Dearest Friends,
One of the most basic principles in Jewish law is that human life comes first. Almost any religious commandment can be broken in order to save the life of a human being. Our religious services are a peaceful respite, a distraction from harsh realities and a valuable opportunity to bask in an uplifting spiritual experience. Attending religious services should always be our safe haven.
Covid-19 has made it nearly impossible for most of us to gather and connect in the common desire for this joyful and serene experience. Sadly, as the toll of the virus increases so does the danger of joining live services inside our synagogue.
As you know, we are currently experiencing a surge of Covid-19 infections and deaths, cases in Middlesex County are at their highest level ever and rising. In order to protect our membership and all of those involved with our in-person services, we have decided to take a break from in-person services for the coming weeks. All of our services will be made available on the variety of platforms that we have been offering since the pandemic began. As soon as possible, we will gradually return to regularly scheduled services.
We must protect each other from good intentions and not act impulsively. This is just another painful result of the devastating pandemic that we are living through. While we are in this defensive mode we can still reach out to one another and perform acts of kindness, which will surely make this a better world.
B’shalom,
Rabbi Robert Wolkoff and Cantor Bruce Rockman