CTJC Bulletin Rosh Hashanah 2020

From the Chair Jo Landy Welcome to the Rosh HaShanah edition of the CTJC magazine. It is a pleasure to have members and others of all levels of observance participating in our community and services. We respect each other and the belief and practices of the most religious. Any judgmental statements or opinions found in the magazine are specific to that individual and are not representative of the wider community or its officers. We are a group of people who relish difference, accepting both the most and the least orthodox within our traditional structure.

The last six months have been strange for everybody and have demonstrated the strength of the community. This is particularly true of the huge contribution from Rochel and Reuven Leigh in our lives.

Reuven initiated a regular erev Shabbat Zoom get-together. Although not quite the same thing as a face to face experience it has been much better than not seeing people at all, especially during the early months of lock-down. There are members who are still self-isolating, and to be able to catch up with them regularly is especially rewarding.

Reuven has been key in organising the resumption of Shabbat services since July, including Covid-secure kiddushim. Individual kiddush boxes are made up 72 hours in advance containing a few pre-packed sealed goodies from London and a miniature bottle of whisky or wine. These kiddushim are socially distanced and held outside in the cleared back garden to the side of the synagogue.

This Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur will be unique in that we are still in the midst of the pandemic. Services will be rather different from usual. In addition to spaced seating, attendees are requested to bring their own machzorim and tallitot (and, of course, to wear a face mask).

As with Shabbat, it is essential that people sign up to attend (https://www.ctjc.org.uk/high-holidays-attendance). If you have not already done this, please do so as soon as possible so that we can ensure the environment is Covid secure.

For those who would like to attend, but feel uncomfortable in an enclosed environment we are organizing an outside space from which Page 3