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“The Corona virus has completely changed our way of life for weeks,” writes Schuster, who is an internist by profession, “while some of us don’t know how to take control of the children in their apartment or how to pay the rent next month, others suffer quietly.”
He said, “Despite the difficult situation, our tradition offers the approach we need: we have to look at what we have, not what is missing right now. Despite the restrictions on leaving home, we are free people. We live in a democratic state that has restricted some of the fundamental rights. Ours, but it protects us. ”
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A move like a home closure is not a matter of course for the Jews in Germany – even if this is a time of trouble. It evokes associations. This was one of the reasons why the German authorities were in no hurry to impose restrictions on the population due to the Corona epidemic. Emergency measures taken by other governments could have aroused historical sensitivities in German society – such as, for example, the closure of synagogues. Therefore, the Jewish communities were given the opportunity to decide on their own precautionary measures before a national binding decision was made.
“We care for the elderly”
Rabbi Yitzhak Ehrenberg, former chief rabbi of Berlin and currently rabbi of the Joachimstaler Orthodox Synagogue, was one of those who put a cure for the epidemic and closed the gates of community institutions under their responsibility. “The Berlin Senate still allows the prayers of a 50-member public,” the rabbi tells Israel Today, “” It was hard for them to tell us to close the synagogue because of history. So, fearing that some members of the community would be infected – it was a matter of mind control, Purim holiday party, and a week after the holiday to close the synagogue. ”
Rabbi Ehrenberg notes that “These were difficult, but making, decisions. Of all our community members, only two had brought the virus from the United States, and they have recovered in the meantime. We make sure to keep in touch with the elderly who live alone. So far, with one exception, I have not encountered any despair on the part of such people. One older woman called me and said that it was very difficult for her to be alone. I strengthened her and gave her hope. ”
The character of the Jewish community in Germany – some 100,000 registered members, most of whom emigrated from former USSR – turns the Corona crisis into an acute problem: about half of the community’s members are over 60, ie at risk. Many of them are not fluent in German and their social lives revolve around The centers of the Jewish communities, which were a meeting place and operation, and because they could not maintain Jewish traditions under the communist regime, they used to attend mass community events – for example, during Passover arrangements.
Chabad emissaries throughout Germany have a large public order every year – even for Jewish tourists and Israeli immigrants. This year, Passover looks very different. “There is a return to the true roots of Family Seder – especially in Germany, where the custom of public irregularities has recently taken root. It was more convenient and easy to celebrate in the community, “says Rabbi Mordechai Mendelson, Chabad emissary in Carlsruhe in southwestern Germany.” We called community members to make sure everyone got matzah. Some got matzos from us, some bought.
Initially, there was a fear that there would be a shortage of kosher food because people are used to buying these groceries or getting them from Strasbourg in France, but now the borders are closed. We have overcome this problem. We make educational programs for children through zoom, and through the Internet they organize Shabbat songs before the Sabbath and Separation after leaving. ”
Multi in difficult condition
Despite the high proportion of adults in the Jewish community in Germany, it is unknown at this time about the mass infection of the Corona virus, even in the nursing homes and various nursing homes that the Jewish communities operate mainly in the big cities – Berlin, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf and Cologne. However, Chabad emissary in the city of Hanover, 43-year-old Rabbi Benjamin Wolfe, is in serious condition, anesthetized and exhaled, after contracting the virus at a large family event celebrated even before the total ban on mass events takes effect.
All members of the Jewish communities in Germany received a special issue of the Yudisha Algemeine Community Weekly, detailing all the relief activities offered by each community and community, as well as detailed instructions of “Do’s” and, in particular, “Do Not Do” in connection with fulfilling the Corona religious observance. This information has also been translated into Russian.
There are communities that volunteer to help adults purchase food and medicine. However, in many communities the volunteers are usually older people who are themselves at risk.
“The situation is not easy these days,” admits Utah Wagman of the Central Council of German Jews, “especially among the small communities. The community welfare center began to use a ‘hot line’, mainly for Russian-speaking people, to assist them in every way. Are working to help their older friends achieve their essential daily necessities. ”
