American Jewish Life

Happy Pesach video from SINAI students and staff

SINAI Schools, which operates schools for children with a range of special needs, collected video messages from staff and students wishing each other a happy Passover, in order to create a sense of community.

SINAI Unique Inspirations Virtual Art Show

SINAI Schools serves children who have a wide range of special needs, and theculmination of each year traditionally is a live art show, showcasing the work the students have created through their art therapy program. In spring 2020, because Covid made a live art show impossible, the school created a virtual art show which was released online.

My mother's funeral - what it's like to have someone you love die of covid-19

This story, published in the Jewish Standard, tells the story of my mother's death of covid in a nursing home, at the height of the pandemic in New York; her funeral, and sitting shiva for her.

Matching Tallis and mask during a socially distanced minyan

Wearing a Tallis and mask of matching fabric during a socially distanced minyan for Rosh Chodesh Elul

Houston Bride Marries Groom, While Rabbi Officiates On Zoom

This article tells the story of how a Jewish couple living in Houston, Texas, adapted their wedding because of COVID-19 concerns. In order to have friends and family attend the ceremony, they moved the location to the bride's parents' home in Beaver Creek, Colorado. The Rabbi couldn't travel to the new location, so he officiated the wedding via Zoom instead. The couple also set up a live-stream for those who couldn't attend.

Courage, Gratitude, and Resilience: SINAI Schools Looks at the Lessons the Pandemic Teaches

SINAI Schools' Director of Communications, Abigail Hepner Gross, wrote this article published in The Jewish Standard/Times of Israel. Serving children with a wide range of special needs, from the time the pandemic forced their schools to pivot to online learning, SINAI interviewed parents, educators, therapists and students across all seven of their schools to assess in real time how they were doing. The piece looks back at lessons learned from these interviews.

Parents of Children with Special Needs: Managing Stress in Stressful Times

SINAI Schools presented this online seminar for parents of children with special needs, given by Dr. Stephen Glicksman, PhD, on March 26, 2020.

Passover in a Time of Coronavirus

This essay from Rabbi David Spinrad of the Beth El Hebrew Congregation in Alexandria, Virginia, addresses how COVID-19 has forced changes to Passover this year. Using four perspectives (priorities, people, preparation, and traditions), he encourages people to enjoy the holiday despite the coronavirus pandemic; to use technology to gather with love ones from a safe distance; give themselves a break when it comes to preparing for Seder; and to recognize that while traditions are important, they have the opportunity to make history this year instead.

And Now, We Wait

This essay was written by Rabbi David Spinrad and sent to the Beth El Hebrew Congregation in Alexandria, Virginia. The essay reacts to the COVID-19 pandemic and the way it so drastically and rapidly changed our day-to-day lives. It focuses on Chesed, which "is the love born of our shared humanity that commands us to remember and act on this truth: We are all in this together. Chesed will carry us through." It reminds the members of the congregation to take care of themselves, and to use prayer as a way to give themselves over to the situation and rely on God and each other.

Middle Matzah Haggadah: A Digital Telling for a Time of Brokenness

With the help of folks from Beth El Hebrew Congregation in Alexandria, Virginia, and people from around the country and Israel, “The Middle Matzah Haggadah” breaks the Haggadah into many parts and allowed for a huge number of creative participants. The intro to the video states that "though we are isolated and many of us are alone, we are still together as one people, the Jewish people." It also includes a call-to-action, asking people to donate to help feed the hungry through Mazon. In response to COVID-19, all donations will be tripled.

Virtual confirmation held on August 7, 2020

My son getting ready to participate in his virtual confirmation, August 7, 2020.

Prizmah Knowledge Center Resources for Schools for Covid-19

As schools began to make the quick pivot to closing their buildings, addressing the needs in their communities, and moving to online learning, they relied heavily on the Prizmah network, building collective wisdom of their peers and needing to access resources in real time to help them with every aspect of the transition and new reality. Prizmah's Knowledge Center COVID-19 resources pages have attracted over 30,000 page views, allowing specialists to find critical information that supported individual schools, teachers, administrators, and students through a previously unimagined shift in their experience of school and learning. There are recordings of webinars given my experts and school leaders, resources on online learning, emotional and social health and wellness, and so much more. Over the course of 6-7 months, we have collected thousands of resources to share that represent different stages of the pandemic that correlate with school buildings closing, school buildings opening, newly relevant topics, and an uncertain but hopeful 2020-2021 school year.

#dynamicdayschools videos

Jewish day schools and yeshivas continue to be incredibly dynamic, providing excellent learning and community-building opportunities, as well as meaningful commemorations and celebrations, throughout this otherwise challenging time in the world. Because of the values our schools share, we are uniquely positioned to adapt to new challenges and innovate unique ways to educate and nurture our students. Enjoy these videos showcasing Jewish day schools across North America, made entirely from videos, pictures, and music sent to us by schools.

Beth El Bulletin, May 2020

This is the May 2020 bulletin ("Coronavirus Edition") of Beth El Hebrew Congregation in Alexandria, Virginia. This issue includes messages from congregational leaders; a list of services; information about virtual activities; and information about community resources. "Beth El is still going strong, because Beth El is more than a building: Beth El is people!"

When the Buildings Cheered

For five springtime weeks during the pandemic, I walked the sidewalks of New York to capture the nightly 7:00 PM gratitude for front line workers. Wearing a new face mask and holding an old iPhone 5s, I walked on nearly deserted streets that felt both familiar and foreign. As a born New Yorker, I have always found this city to be the most beautiful, ever-evolving place on earth. I still do. Those five weeks became these five minutes… “When The Buildings Cheered.”

Cousins monthly get together turned into Zoom happy hour in Atlanta!

The Bregman clan getting together once covid hit to continue our monthly celebrations with one another!

All Together Now 2020: Week3

Videos in this collection include a highlight video with excerpts from lectures and seminars from the third week; Melila Hellner-Eshed's discussion on spiritual sustenance in a time of crisis; Yehuda Kurtzer's lecture on pluralism in the face of injustice; Dani Dayan's conversation with Yehuda Kurtzer on American Judaism; and Israel Knohl's lecture on crisis and transformation in the Bible.

All Together Now 2020: Week 2

Videos in this collection include a highlight video with excerpts from lectures and seminars from the second week; Tamar Elad-Appelbaum's discussion about moral and spiritual leadership, and intervention in times of crisis; Micah Goodman's reflections on four Jewish philosophies as he discusses the challenge of empathy in times of crisis; and Dani Segal's discussion entitled "Reinventing Ourselves - New Paths for Connection and Communication".

All Together Now, Summer 2020: For Heaven's Sake episodes

For Heaven’s Sake is a weekly podcast from the the Shalom Hartman Institute’s iEngage Project that revives the lost art of Jewish debate for the sake of illuminating a topic, not sowing division. The podcast draws its name from the concept of Machloket l’shem shemayim, “Disagreeing for the sake of heaven.”

All Together Now 2020: Week 1

Videos in this collection include a highlight video with excerpts from lectures and seminars from the first week; Elana Stein Hain's discussion on truth and relationships in a polarized era; Ginna Green's and Justus Baird's conversation on Blackness, Jewishness, and America; and Donniel Hartman's discussion of ethical pivots in the time of COVID-19.

All Together Now: Jewish Ideas for this Moment

All Together Now: Jewish Ideas for this Moment was a month-long celebration of Jewish ideas from the Shalom Hartman Institute. The free program included lectures, discussions, and seminars from over 60 scholars in both Israel and North America. The program addressed the fact that "the Jewish people are facing important questions about citizenship, nationalism, democracy, and the societies in which we live. COVID-19 has already reshaped our attitudes about collective community, and is also raising issues of theology, spirituality and social responsibility. "

Durham Orthodox Kehillah COVID Policy June 2020

Durham Orthodox Kehillah COVID Policy June 2020.

The Next Year in Person Campaign

As Passover 2020 approached, I decided to launch the #NextYearInPerson campaign to help readers of my Jewish-focused lifestyle blog (rebekahlowin.com) make the most of a socially-distanced holiday. It ended up being much more than just a hashtag: On the site, I published a collection of free virtual Seder resources, crafts (like the DIY watercolor Seder plate you see here), digital greeting cards, small-batch recipes, printable Haggadot ideas, virtual Seder invites, and detailed guides. The hashtag was used over 1,000 times by the end of the holiday.

Zentangle Afikomen

Zoom Seders this year were able to accommodate most of the traditional practices. One custom that seemed at first glance to be beyond what one could do across screens was the hiding and finding of the Afikomen. Someone came up with the idea of hiding the Afikomen in a drawing or work of art that could be shared on the screen. So I asked my 17-year-old daughter to create a Zentangle Afikomen!

Think Piece: "No large High Holiday Services this year. There, we've said it. Now what?"

As a rabbi of a small congregation, I was involved in hours and hours of decisions about suspending each type of in-person activity. Each decision seems obvious looking back, but was excruciating and time-consuming at the time. It was hard to reflect or help our leadership reflect, re-root ourselves in our values. After one particularly frustrating meeting in April, with no grounding principles, I sat down to write some. A few weeks of revisions let me to write this, circulating it among some colleagues, revise it and eventually publish it. I heard from many, many colleagues, some I had never met, who found it helpful as both a way of thinking generally, and a way of looking ahead past the immediate and giving ourselves enough time to several months ahead toward the High Holy Days.