Rabbi Abe Friedman’s Report to the Ritual Committee
Introduction
BZBI suspended in-person worship services on Friday, March 13, 2020, without any sense of how long the COVID-19 quarantine would go on. We began holding weekday services via Zoom on Sunday, March 15, and evolved our approach to online services over the two weeks that followed; for the past four weeks, BZBI has followed a consistent halakhic approach to prayer for our weekday services, Kabbalat Shabbat, and Havdallah.
It is now clear that the restrictions on public gatherings are likely to continue for considerably longer; even as discussions begin about when Philadelphia will “go yellow,” we should expect that houses of worship will be among the last venues to return to full operation. There is little reason to think we will be able to welcome substantial numbers of people into our building for this year’s High Holy Days, and it looks increasingly likely that at least some fall b’nai mitzvah may be affected as well. As a result, we have started preparing for online Shabbat and Yom Tov services, to commence no later than August.
Until now, BZBI has not offered Shabbat or Yom Tov services online; people can fulfill their prayer obligations privately at home without a minyan,[1] and there are numerous opportunities for communal prayer and Torah study on weekdays. Nevertheless, this approach does not meet the emotional, spiritual, and mental health dimensions of our congregants’ participation in public prayer. Numerous conversations with BZBI members about the question of online Shabbat services revealed just one universal concern common to all: people miss the sense of community and connection they used to get from attendance at BZBI’s Shabbat services. During a time of immense anxiety and profound uncertainty, we believe we have a halakhic and moral obligation to provide emotional and spiritual support through shared Shabbat worship.
The question, then, for this report is: how, and under what circumstances, shall we go about providing online Shabbat and Yom Tov services?
May We Convene a Minyan Over Zoom?
In a 2001 teshuvah, Rabbi Avram Reisner rules that a person with a two-way audio and video link to a minyan convened elsewhere may participate in that minyan as if they were physically present with the minyan, which includes responding to devarim she-b’kedushah (barekhu, kedushah, etc.). BZBI has relied upon this ruling in the past, for example when a member of the community needed to mark a yahrzeit while hospitalized.
However, Rabbi Reisner’s teshuvah still requires a minyan convened somewhere in physical space (i.e., ten adult Jews physically present and able to see and hear one another):
“When the rabbis moved to require a quorum for communal public prayers and banned response absent a quorum, it seems that they were opting to force the community to come together, whereas otherwise, if one could fulfill all obligations alone, they feared that public communal structures would not develop… But they faced a quandary, in that sometimes a quorum would be impossible, and they did not wish to exempt any individual of the full complement of his obligations. They settled upon the format with which we are familiar. It is possible for any individual to fulfill his or her obligations by reciting the Shema and its blessings, but Barekhu would be reserved for the public…
“What constitutes that togetherness? The halakhah as written seems to demand that that togetherness be physical, tactile… But I could well imagine a definition of “togetherness” that was only auditory or visual. Indeed, the technology to cast our auditory and visual imprint far and wide did not exist in the reality that faced the Rabbis. Is it possible to imagine community based only on remote contact? … I am not at all convinced that any definition of community short of proximity serves, properly, the purpose for which quorum was established.”[2]
While this remains the normative halakhah, during this unprecedented sha’at ha-dahak (time of urgency), BZBI’s practice – suggested by several prominent Conservative authorities – has been to permit the recitation of Mourner’s Kaddish, but not devarim she-b’kedushah, whenever at least ten adult Jews are connected via two-way audio and video connection (e.g., Zoom). This should remain BZBI’s practice until restrictions on in-person worship services are lifted.
Online Services for Shabbat and Yom Tov
Technical Requirements
The transmission must begin before Shabbat or Yom Tov starts and should continue uninterrupted until after Shabbat. In the event this is not possible, the system may be set to start automatically on a timer. Under no circumstances should a person, Jewish or otherwise, actively start the transmission system during Shabbat or Yom Tov. In the event of malfunction or technical difficulties, it could be permissible to have a non-Jewish synagogue employee adjust or repair the system, provided that:
- Such responsibilities are clearly assigned ahead of time as part of that person’s regular duties; and
- That person receives no instruction or direction from a Jewish person on Shabbat or Yom Tov.
Although essentially all online traffic is logged and recorded at various points, such recording should be considered pesik reisha de-la niha ley (an inevitable but undesired consequence) and therefore not a violation of Shabbat.[3]
Any electronic devices used for the transmission of a Shabbat or Yom Tov service should not be considered muktzeh (objects forbidden to be handled on Shabbat) because they have been designated for a permissible purpose.[4]
The guidelines for Shabbat and Yom Tov transmission contained in this report relieve us of any concern about lifnei iver (tempting another person to commit a sin) associated with the use of an electronic device on Shabbat or Yom Tov, as they ensure that it is possible for a person to access the service without committing any violation[5].
Video and Pre-Recorded Elements
In order to fulfill the halakhic requirements of prayer, all prayer elements in an online service must be enacted live. Pre-recorded video of a prayer leader should not be employed.[6]
Use of Internal Zoom Functions
Chat, Passwords, and Other Typing
Typing constitutes Biblically-prohibited writing and is not permitted on Shabbat or Yom Tov.[7] The transmission system should be set up to allow access through a click without requiring the user to enter any passwords or other information, and any chat or comment functionality should be disabled ahead of time.
Mute/Unmute and Spotlight Video
We hold that the Zoom buttons that allow a host to mute or unmute a participant and “spotlight” their video (making it the full-screen speaker view for all participants, regardless of the view previously selected) are akin to electric light switches, insofar as they are designed to function that way and can be used repeatedly without limit or restriction. As such, their use does not constitute a violation of Shabbat or Yom Tov for anyone whose ordinary personal practice allows for the use of electric lights and similar devices.[8] A Jewish staff member or volunteer may be designated as “host” and assigned to control these functions on Shabbat and Yom Tov.
Break-out Rooms
Zoom allows the host to place participants in smaller “break-out rooms” for more intimate discussion. As the process of assigning participants to breakout rooms involves only clicking, it is permitted under the same terms as muting and spotlighting.
Screen Sharing
Screen sharing is also a permissible feature, as it functions solely via clicking. Any files to be shared should be static text or images and the files should be left open on the computer before Shabbat to minimize any potential violations of Shabbat.[9]
Current Plans for Shabbat Services
- The service will be conducted via Zoom, with all participants (including clergy) in their own homes.
- Consistent with BZBI’s current practice for weekday services, we will omit devarim she-b’kedushah while allowing the recitation of Mourner’s Kaddish.
- We will read an abridged version of the Parashah from a Humash. Those taking aliyot will use the blessings for Torah study (Siddur Sim Shalom for Shabbat and Festivals, page 63, third paragraph from the bottom and last paragraph on the page) and/or the Haftarah for the week.
- The d’var Torah format will vary week to week, including traditional sermons, discussions utilizing breakout rooms, and other learning formats.
- All lifecycle events, such as baby namings, will be available via Zoom Minyan; please contact a rabbi to make arrangements for your simcha.
[1] We are, however, aware that a great many of our congregants lack the skills to do so.
[2] Rabbi Avram Israel Reisner, “Wired to the Kadosh Barukh Hu: Minyan via Internet” (OH 55:15.2001), 4.
[3] Rabbi Joshua Heller, “Streaming Services on Shabbat and Yom Tov” (OH 340:3.2020a), 11-12.
[4] Heller, 16-17.
[5] Heller offers an extended analysis of this issue (18-21).
[6] Heller, 10.
[7] Heller, 11-12.
[8] This is a slightly different approach than Heller takes (13-14), although in personal conversation he indicated that he believes it is a defensible reading of the relevant halakhot.
[9] Although Heller (12) rules against screen sharing, after discussing the matter further with Rabbi Heller and members of the ritual committee, I see no meaningful distinction between this feature and the other permitted features.
