opening

Dear Congregation B’nai Israel Family,

The welcoming of 5781 seems like it was just yesterday…and then, in another way, it seems like it was a lifetime ago. The year has been full of both beauty and pain. We have gathered over Zoom to connect, pray, celebrate, grieve, learn, reflect, and feel God’s presence. For welcoming 5782 we had so hoped that our CBI community could all be back under one roof, and we still hope to see many of you. But this year again, we are faced with uncertainty as the Delta variant has demonstrated its ability to infect even those who have been vaccinated. The good news is that vaccinations minimize the impact of Delta in the vast majority of cases. 

As we navigate the shifting reality of another High Holy Day season, our goal is to create  safe and meaningful experiences--virtual and in-person. Whether you join us from your couch or in our beautiful sanctuary, we will be one in spirit.  Together we will create sacred experiences that are safe, meaningful and transformative.

All of our High Holiday services will be live-streamed, just as they were last year. Plus our synagogue doors will be open for those who feel comfortable with an in-person experience. We continue to work with our Reopening Committee and look to the experts to stay up to date on guidelines for gathering safely.

See below for all of the ways you can celebrate High Holy Days with the CBI community, whatever your comfort level with gathering at this time.

We understand that many of you are taking a wait-and-see approach, while others know exactly how and where you plan to participate this year. We ask that EVERYONE please share your current plans with us by filling out our High holiday form here. You can always change your plans later, but an early indication of your likely plans helps us determine how we can use our space in the safest way possible. Even if you prefer to attend services virtually at your own home or in a small group of CBI friends and family, please fill out this form.

Here are our current plans and protocols:

Vaccination: Everyone 12+ will need to be vaccinated to attend services in person. 

Masks: Masks will be required of everyone, regardless of vaccination status.

Distancing: All people attending services in the sanctuary will be asked to honor social distancing from others, not in your family group. The sanctuary will be fully opened up to allow for this.

Ventilation: We will have doors open to the outside as well as to the courtyard in order to increase ventilation

Streaming:  All of our services will be live-streamed and open to members and non-members alike, free of charge. Links will be sent out at the beginning of September.

Yizkor Memorial Reflections: When a righteous person dies, we say Zikhronam Livrakha - "may their memory be a blessing." We turn the memories of those we loved into blessings by holding on to the best of who they were in the world and by allowing them to inspire our own behaviors. This year, we invite you to write reflections/ memories of loved ones who have died this year or in years past. Your reflections could be a line or two or a full page. We will be displaying your reflections in the CBI lobby during the High Holidays, so that we may stop read, reflect, and remember. We will also create a digital Yizkor Book which we will share during Yom Kippur. See the High Holiday form for more information on both Yizkor reflections and book.

Outdoor Shofar Service: We will be holding a special outdoor Shofar Service, following our morning service on the first day of Rosh Hashanah. This will give people who are with us in person and those who join remotely an opportunity to stop by the Synagogue and greet Rabbi Robert, Hazzan Brian, and members of the CBI Board, in person at as much of a distance as you desire.

Machzorim:  Machzorim, High Holiday prayer books, will be available for you to pick up August 24th to September 2nd Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 8am to 7pm, as well as Sunday August 29th from noon to 5pm.  You may keep the Machzorim to have throughout the holidays and return them when it is safe to do so.

Following is the schedule for our High Holiday Services: