Synagogues are beginning to prepare for prayers in the courtyards during the holidays, following an appeal by Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked yesterday (Monday).
Yesterday, the Minister of the Interior addressed all the heads of the authorities in Israel and asked them to prepare for prayers outside during Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur.
Shaked demanded that preparations be made for prayers in open areas in all logistical aspects, such as the deployment of shading nets, air conditioning, etc., as well as mapping public buildings and their unused courtyards such as schools, kindergartens, community centers and more, to allow synagogue worshipers to do them This is in favor of splitting the large quorums into smaller quorums.This
means, as they felt in their flesh praying last year, is to endure the heavy heat and humidity during prayers - and especially during the Yom Kippur fast.
Along with many of the rabbis and worshipers who are still debating how to proceed, some are not waiting for further instructions.
Such is Rabbi David Satyu, rabbi of the city of Shoham and chairman of the Tzohar rabbinical organization, who addressed the residents of his city and asked them to return to the court quorums.
"There is no need to close the synagogues hermetically, but in my opinion logic means that the synagogues will limit themselves to about 50 worshipers with pre-registration, and at the same time additional minyanim will be established to dilute the presence in the buildings."
According to Rabbi Satyu, "This year there is a feeling of fatigue and frustration from the lack of clarity and sharpness of the government, but we have no privilege to be tired or exhausted. The halakhic standard should be stricter than government guidelines, and It is right to do so. "
Meanwhile, the ultra-Orthodox and religious sectors are currently fighting vaccine opponents on the one hand, and the fact that there is a great deal of indifference to the requirement to wear a mask inside buildings, and especially inside synagogues.
"The call to go out to pray in the courtyards will come, but right now our overarching task is to persuade the public to wear masks," says a source in the Ministry of Health.
"At the moment, almost universally, masks are not taken care of in synagogues among the ultra-Orthodox public. Even the public who were careful, removed the masks after the second vaccination and now find it difficult to go back."
