Ellen Geller Kamaras

What does a simple, yet special Pesach mean to you? 

As someone who downsized from a traditional colonial three-bedroom house in Madison, Brooklyn, to a two-bedroom co-op in Brooklyn Heights, simplicity has been my go-to strategy for Pesach, Shabbat, holidays, and in my daily life.

I have learned so much about hosting, hachnassat orchim, and shaatra from the talented and gracious women I interview for the Woman to Woman column.

Shelly Antebi taught me a very special approach to hosting guests.  Take thirty minutes to relax and chill before your guests arrive.  Her mother said that people would feel uncomfortable and would not enjoy the meal if she looked tired and stressed.  How insightful is that?

Let’s take that strategy to the next level – how distraught would your visitors feel if you fell asleep or kept nodding off from exhaustion at a Pesach seder?

Another clever woman, Cindy Antebi, shared that she cooks for Shabbat on Thursday night and buys mazza from the local businesses to make her life easier.  A confident woman may feel that she doesn’t have to prove that she can cook everything, provided she can afford to supplement her menu with purchases.  By buying some of the dishes, she also contributes to the success of her fellow business owners.

And let’s not forget Nicole Shamah, founder of Nicole’s Kitchen.  She created a niche by taking the work out of a home cooked meal and enabling her customers to serve it as their own.

A Lesson Learned

So, why am I emphasizing simplicity?

As a young married woman, I followed my mother’s example in preparing for Pesach.  My mom, a”h, didn’t go to sleep the night before erev Pesach and she couldn’t keep her eyes open during the seder.  My aha moment came when I heard the guidelines presented at various pre-Pesach shiurim.  I realized that I didn’t need to buy the latest Pesach cookbook, prepare gourmet dishes, wash the curtains, or scrub my son’s Lego blocks or my daughter’s make-believe tea set.  I decided to focus on my main goal for Pesach: to fulfill the mitzvot of the hag and to celebrate with my family.  That means enjoying the Haggadah reading and the various commentaries offered by the those around the table, educating the children about Yetziat Mitzrayim, and being grateful for family, friends, and our physical and spiritual freedom.

Let’s work together to turn our houses over as simply as possible, avoid Pesach Overwhelm and enjoy the holiday!

Keep it Simple and Focused

Give up on being perfect.  Set realistic expectations about the hag and please don’t compare yourself to others.  Instead, aim for being the best version of yourself.

Be mindful.  Avoid operating on autopilot.  Don’t get stuck doing exactly what you did the year before.  Perhaps you can keep your menu simpler or have more meals out with family and friends.  Change can be a good thing!  Pesach is a celebration of our liberation from slavery in Egypt.  So, let’s not run ourselves ragged for a holiday that is meant to be joyful and emancipating!

Stay focused on your goal.  Keeping a positive attitude is key.  If you have done this before, you can do it again, and perhaps even better and easier!  Apply those lessons learned and implement changes this year.

Keep your eye on productivity. If thinking about Pesach Prep leads to procrastination, work on your time management and making lists.   Avoid out-of-control lists and focus on the most important and challenging tasks for the day.

Divide and Conquer

Break your preparation into actionable tasks and manageable chunks of time.  Choose a task, e.g.  cleaning the refrigerator.  Set a timer for the estimated period that you think you need and go for it!  SMART goals are those that are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely and have a greater probability of getting accomplished.

Perform your tasks in short surges with concentrated focus.  Working in short and concentrated surges (with breaks or resting) increases productivity.

Get enough sleep.  Don’t burn the candles at both ends.  We want to be rested to enjoy the hag with family and friends.

Plan breaks in advance with rewards.   Plan a short walk or a smoothie.  Working towards that reward incentivizes you to get the job done.

Unplug or shut your phone while you are performing a task.   Social media can be an enormous distraction when you want to check off that item as completed.

Pesach Strategies

I surveyed friends, family, and community women and asked them to share their Pesach preparation tips. Here’s what they said:

1. When do you begin your Pesach preparations?

Many women start their Pesach prep right after Purim, which happens to coincide with when the kosher for Pesach foods start to appear on grocery shelves.

The timeline varies for cleaning versus cooking and baking.   Before Purim, I personally go through my pantry closet and dispose of canned goods and boxed food with sell by or use by dates that have expired.

Some women begin to go room by room as early as February, and they tackle one closet/room per week.  Shelly Antebi takes everything out of the closets and discards anything that wasn’t used in the past year, and completely scrubs down the closet and room and puts everything back in new organized sections.

Stacey Gindi starts her Pesach cleaning right after Purim.  She usually weaves in spring cleaning and organization because she enjoys those tasks and not because she feels pressured to.  Stacey tries to stay organized all year so her Pesach cleaning doesn’t need to be so intense.

2. How do you prepare?

Stacey prepares a two-week schedule, working backwards from erev Pesach to include all the required cleaning/shopping/cooking/work.  As a working mother, she finds this schedule helps her to juggle all her responsibilities and to stay organized.  She also strives to keep a positive perspective to avoid undue stress.

Before Alyce K. leaves Brooklyn for her Florida six-week winter getaway, she pulls and boxes everything from her pantry cupboards.  Some items will be disposed of and others, such as canned and jarred goods, will be placed in a special section.  The cabinets, drawers, and refrigerator get a first cleaning and then a final cleaning before Pesach.

The timeline for koshering the kitchen ranges from three to seven days before the hag.  The cooking and baking usually follow as soon as the kitchen is kosher for Pesach.

My friend Bonnie turns over her kitchen for Pesach over a week before Pesach and cooks kosher for Pesach meals only for this time period.   She keeps the dining room table available for any hametz her family eats, usually cereal or sandwiches. If weather permits, serves hametz on the porch.

3. What is your Pesach strategy or approach?

Most women concentrate on simplicity and working smarter not harder.  This means focusing on what really matters.

My finance background influences me to implement process improvement in my Pesach prep and my life coach training encourages me to be mindful.

Declutter your space, declutter your mind!  Pesach is a fabulous time to declutter.  Keep an eye out for clutter during PP!  You will enjoy the extra space that results from doing this task.  It’s my first key step that I launch in February.

Regarding Pesach dishes, gadgets, and cookware, I keep a running log during Pesach of items that I never used during the hag as well as new items that I will need for the following hag.  I write notes on a large index card and transfer it to a separate iPhone note pad called Pesach Next Year.

I recommend looking through your Pesach storage closet or bins and giving away the items you never use or haven’t used in years.  When you put away your Pesach supplies, label your containers clearly so you can easily spot what you need, and don’t pack up things that you will never use.

Many women clean out cupboards and set them aside for Pesach groceries or even set up portable shelves in the den for Pesach pots and pans and non-perishable foods.

4. Do you buy all the newest Pesach products and cookbooks or stick to the basics?

Most women keep a log of Pesach menu items from year to year, including the ingredients and quantities needed.  They do, however, enjoy trying new recipes either from new cookbooks, finding them online, or from friends.

I like to stick to the basics. It’s only eight days!  Avoid impulse shopping and go to the supermarket with a list in hand.  Save money and eat matzah in its natural form vs. buying pricey imitation hametz items such as rolls.  Isn’t matzah what you think of when someone says Pesach?  The savings can be used for a hol hamoed outing.

I would love to hear how you made your Pesach simple, yet special!

Hag Kasher ve’Sameach!

Ellen Geller Kamaras, CPA/MBA, is an International Coach Federation (ICF) Associate Certified Coach.  Her coaching specialties include life, career and dating coaching.   Ellen works part-time as an entitlement specialist at Ohel Children’s Home and Family Services. She can be contacted at ellen@lifecoachellen.com (www.lifecoachellen.com).

Machla Abramovitz

The 120 newly elected members of the Israeli Knesset had just been sworn into the 23^rd Knesset when MK Oded Forer of Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu Party introduced the first of four extraordinary bills to deny Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the right to continue serving as prime minister. The bill grants the Knesset the authority to oust an indicted prime minister heading a transitional government by secret ballot. Not to be outdone, Blue and White MKs quickly presented three additional bills.  One bill limits prime ministers to two terms in office.  Another prohibits those facing criminal charges from serving as prime minister.  A third denies the president the right to offer an indicted Knesset member the mandate to form a government.

Scheme to Replace Likud’s Speaker

With the Blue and White bloc’s 61 Knesset members, as opposed to Likud’s 58,  Blue and White has the requisite numbers needed to establish and take control of the Arrangements Committee, which governs parliamentary activities and the formation of a new government, including the appointment of a Speaker of the Knesset.  Blue and White’s plan is to replace Likud MK Yuli Edelstein as Speaker with one from their party, and to pass legislation to oust Netanyahu. If the bills pass, Netanyahu would be demoted to MK and he would be forced to resign.

As of the writing of this article on March 21, Edelstein refused to comply with such a vote, placing the Knesset in lockout until Monday, March 23^rd in order to allow time for legislators to form a unity government to counter the coronavirus pandemic. At the moment, Likud and Blue and White are at loggerheads:  Edelstein accuses a splinter group within the Blue and White of preventing the establishment of a unity government, while Blue and White leader Benny Gantz accused Likud of misleading the public under the guise of the coronavirus, and tweeted that he had never agreed to such a government. The latest direct poll indicates that if an election were held today, Likud would win 40 seats and Blue and White 30 seats, leaving Gantz to proclaim that he may have no choice but to sit in a national unity government with the Prime Minister.

To sweeten the offer, on March 21, the Prime Minister called for a three-year emergency unity government to get the country through the coronavirus crisis.  He offered to step down as prime minister after the first year and a half after which Benny Gantz would take over for the concluding period. Netanyahu added that if Blue and White continues to try to replace Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein in the coming week, the unity government offer will be taken off the negotiating table.

To Form a Coalition Government

Blue and White’s move was made possible once Israeli President Reuven Rivlin gave Gantz the mandate to form a new coalition government.  Even though Gantz’s party won fewer seats than did Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud, Netanyahu’s religious right-wing bloc was unable to muster the requisite 61 seats necessary to enable him to form a minority government. Likud also won close to 230,000 more votes than in the previous election; its bloc received more than 460,000 votes than did Gantz, an increase of 300,000 votes since September.

However, Israeli electoral law, with the mandate for proportional representation and the necessity of coalitions, is such that Yisrael Beiteinu Chairman Avigdor Liberman’s support for the anti-Netanyahu center-left bloc (that includes Labor, Gesher, and Meretz) placed Gantz within reach of that magic number. But that scenario would only be possible with the help of the Arab Joint List, which won 15 seats, two more than they received during the previous election, and the highest number of Knesset seats won to date.

Blue and White may have the numbers, but does it have the political will to ultimately align with anti-Zionists whose stated goal is the elimination of Israel as a Jewish state? Will the quickly evolving political realities within Israel play against the coronavirus scourge? Is it too soon to declare the end of the Netanyahu era?

Benny Gantz and Blue and White

Benny Gantz, a political newcomer, has proven himself to be a critical player on the Israeli electoral landscape. His party’s support, though, comes primarily from Tel Aviv. While Blue and White is centrist on security, it leans leftward on domestic issues. Many Blue and White supporters have reservations regarding Israel’s recently passed Citizenship Law, and favor a more inclusive society, according to political commentator and Canadian Institute for Jewish Research (CIJR) Fellow Prof. David Bensoussan, professor at École de technologie supérieure. In contrast, Likud voters are more representative of the country as a whole and include many Sephardim who are traditional, distrustful of Arabs, and nationalistic.

“Unlike Likud, Blue and White is not a united by ideology or leadership but is a conglomerate of entities,” political analyst Dr. Manfred Gerstenfeld explains. The party consists of Yair Lapid’s center-left Yesh Atid, which ate into the traditional Labor vote. A second faction comprises a loose collection of individuals who Gantz chose specifically for the election. A third entity – Telem – consists of four or five MKs under the leadership of former Chief of Staff Moshe “Bogie” Yaalon, who served for a short time as Minister of Defense within the Likud government and stands to the right of Likud on security issues.

“What keeps the three entities together is their dislike of Netanyahu. That may be a strong bond in normal times. Today, with many Israelis worried about Corona and with isolation programs in play, this bond makes less sense.  The latest poll indicates that more people have confidence in Netanyahu as Prime Minister than in Gantz,” Dr. Gerstenfeld says.

Avigdor Lieberman and Yisrael Beiteinu

Ideologically, the secular right-wing nationalist Avigdor Liberman marries more easily with Likud than Blue and White.  Dubbed the “kingmaker,” Lieberman holds the balance of power in favor of Likud. However, Liberman refuses to back Netanyahu, claiming he is overly aligned with the ultra-Orthodox and religious parties.  Lieberman calls for a union between Likud and Blue and White, with the exclusion of the haredim.

“Liberman has significant issues with the ultra-Orthodox. His ‘bare minimum’ demands to Gantz for his support include a conscription bill to enlist haredim into the army, the easing of civil marriages, transferring the authority over Shabbat transportation to local authorities, and easing Orthodox conversions. Because many of his Russian constituents are not Jewish enough for the rabbis, the current stringent conversion requirements create a problem for them,” says Prof. Bensoussan.

The Arab Joint List

The Arab party’s astonishing political rise is one of the unexpected consequences of the electoral paralysis plaguing Israel this past year.  Israeli Arabs comprise 20 percent of the population.  Of the 600,000 votes they received, 20,000 were from leftist Jews who voted for the Joint List rather than Labor.

As did Liberman, the Joint List refused to sell its support cheaply.  Its demands to Gantz include the annulment of the Kaminitz Law and the Nation-State Law.  The 2017 Kaminitz Law thwarts the construction of thousands of illegal Arab dwellings, while the Nation-State Law enshrines Israel as the exclusive nation-state of the Jewish people.  Balad, one of the Joint List’s more radical factions, adamantly rejects Israel as an exclusively Jewish state.  One of its MKs, Hanin Zuabi, participated in the 2010 Mavi Marmara flotilla to Gaza. Moreover, Joint List Chairman Ahmad Tibi told the Jerusalem Post that they also demand an end to IDF strikes in Gaza, substantially inhibiting the IDF’s ability to protect Israeli citizens.

“If Gantz forms a government with the Joint List, you will theoretically have ministers who do not recognize Israel as a Jewish state. What is at stake is Israel’s very identity. If you put aside the Jewishness of the state, you have a country like any other country, and there is no reason for Jews to live in Israel and not elsewhere,” Prof. Bensoussan points out.

Gantz acknowledges the fundamental conflicts between the two parties. “The Joint List and I are deeply divided on the diplomatic, national, and security concerns of the State of Israel,” he said during his last campaign. “Israel is a Jewish and democratic state, the only one of its kind, which must protect itself from its outside enemies.” Still, Blue and White and Yisrael Beitenu’s dislike of Netanyahu is so intense that they are presumably willing to overlook the Joint List’s anti-Zionism, as well as ignore the will of the majority who voted Likud to oust him from office.

Will the Coronavirus be the Deciding Factor?

What Gantz could not have foreseen was how the coronavirus would affect the political scene in Israel. With the implementing of extraordinary measures, such as closing schools, shutting restaurants and theatres, putting citizens potentially exposed to coronavirus into 14-day quarantine, and curtailing public transportation, Israelis are feeling anxious, and are looking for strong leadership. And Netanyahu has stepped right up and has made himself seem indispensable. He has been on prime time television every day, flanked by government epidemiologists and economic planners, detailing methods of personal hygiene, bragging that Israel is an example to the world, and promising Israelis that they will get through this together. His public ratings are climbing. Although anything can happen, it seems that Netanyahu’s political career is not over, yet.

Dave Gordon

Coronavirus (COVID-19). Virtually unheard of fewer than six months ago. It started on the other side of the world. A once-a-century pandemic that few really understand, and fewer know how to respond to, has paralyzed the world, the U.S., the Tri-State Area, and our community. Who could have dreamed how stealthily it would invade our shores, shatter our security, impact our synagogues, yeshivot, and semahot. Families are facing agonizing dilemmas previously unheard of – such as, should a wedding be pushed off – something which is usually considered something to avoid at all costs?

Currently, on six continents, with over 360,000 people infected at the time of writing, the coronavirus has become the focus of international efforts to contain its spread as much as possible. The numbers are rising every day, and who knows what the next few weeks will bring?

(Please note that since this is a developing and changing situation from one day to the next, by the time this article goes to print the information and situation might be very different than what it is now).

We find ourselves in a surreal period of quarantines, cancellations, and social distancing. Self-isolation is the order of the day. Travel bans are in effect across every hub. Virtually every non-essential store and company has shuttered in almost every city: restaurants, theaters, shops, gyms, sports centers, community centers. Handshakes and hugs are forbidden. Kollels and synagogues  have closed, weddings take place on front porches in front of five people, and minyanim are now frowned upon. Schools are closed, and children learn online. Hand-sanitizer is now a staple item. And we’re washing our hands until it hurts, by doctor’s orders.

The coronavirus, has brought all social life to a screeching halt.

The reaction of some has been swift and extreme. People are hoarding supplies and foodstuffs. Surgical masks, a presumed preventative measure, are being bought off the shelves, and even stolen from medical facilities.

Are we going over the top? Being practical and safe? Not doing enough?

These are all good questions, and like with any sudden change in the status quo, and like any new challenge, we won’t know what we did, or didn’t do right, until many weeks, or perhaps, months, later.

But first things first. For all of the stress and radical change in lifestyle, writer Michael Pietrzak in Success magazine says it’s important not to lose our perspective, or our reason.

“(We must not let) the parallel virus of media fearmongering drive us to irrational behavior,” he warns, in the lead-in to what has since become the drastic measures undertaken by the U.S. in response to the crisis.

Those aforementioned surgical masks? Pietrzak says those were not meant to protect the layman from germs. They were designed to keep surgeons’ saliva specs from inadvertently falling into a patient’s wounds during operation. And those much-hoarded bottles of Purell – as helpful as they might be – should be used only when hand-washing isn’t available, he says. Should the numbers of patients increase dramatically, Heaven forbid, these bottles will ultimately be needed in medical facilities a whole lot more than on our kitchen counters.

“Let’s not exacerbate an emergency by cleaning out Costco,” Pietrzak urged.

A Time For Drastic Change

The numbers are, unfortunately, swiftly rising, but as of the time these words are being written, about 500 coronavirus deaths have occurred in the U.S. – out of a population of 330 million. There are a total of about 10,000 deaths globally, with China, Iran, Italy, France, and Spain comprising nine-tenths of the fatalities.

There are a variety of presumed reasons why some countries are affected worse than others. Revealingly, the majority of corona deaths have occurred in one country, China, notorious for its poor healthcare.  And, as of mid-March, Israeli biophysicist Michael Levitt, in Ctech magazine, said that fortunately, the virus was slowing down in China. Levitt, a Nobel prize winner for chemistry in 2013, also noted that with such densely populated centers in China, one ought to have expected a far greater infection rate.

The Wall Street Journal, meanwhile, reported on March 11 that Iran has a relatively higher contagion rate because of its “Chinese-backed infrastructure projects built by scores of workers and technicians from China.”

Moving westward to Italy, according to the country’s national health authority, nearly all the fatalities involved the more vulnerable segments of the population – those with existing severe medical issues, and the elderly, with the average age of those who have succumbed to the virus at around 80. Italy has a disproportionately high number of seniors, leaving the country more susceptible. Levitt added that Italians are culturally “very warm” and social, thus allowing the virus to spread more quickly.

Of course, this is true of Orthodox Jews, as well, and our community in particular. We regularly assemble with large groups of people – at Shabbat meals, in the synagogue for prayer services, classes and sebets, at large celebrations and fundraising affairs, and at family gatherings. The unique social, close-knit nature of our community – which is, normally, our greatest source of strength and pride – is our Achilles’ heel when an epidemic strikes. And, it makes it all the more difficult for us to take the steps which health and government officials are urging – to stay at home as much as possible and avoid all socializing. For us especially, this marks a drastic change of our cultural – and even religious – norms. But the severity of the situation necessitates that we follow these restrictions and quickly adapt ourselves to the new set of circumstances that has been thrust upon us – difficult as this may be.

Community Responses

In an effort to keep the community safe, follow legal guidelines and mitigate worries, nearly all of our religious institutions in the area have closed.

In the days leading up to mid-March, the Eatontown Synagogue (Congregation Shaare Tefilah Bene Moshe) continued their minyanim, but in a larger room, with people keeping their distance from one another. Congregants were asked to bring their own books, so multiple hands did not touch the same prayer books and Humashim. Nevertheless, books were being disinfected, just in case. Women who reported slight illness symptoms were warned not to immerse in the mikveh.

That was before our community’s synagogues rabbis, presidents, and doctors held a conference call to determine the next steps. On March 16^th, Rabbi Moshe Douek, Rabbi of the Eatontown shul, said that there were no more services. Doors were closed until further notice. A full lockdown (a few days later, all synagogues, yeshivot, and kollels in the community were closed). Weddings have been cancelled. Rabbi Douek said that his synagogue is providing video clips for children praying at home.

Hillel Yeshiva, like most schools in our community, has been teaching their students via Zoom, a remote method of instruction. Zoom does not require internet access, so the teaching can continue with all the safeguards that a yeshiva requires.

“We were already preparing in late February, with a faculty meeting, with what could be an inevitable school closure, protocol, and plans,” says Rabbi Leon Cohen, assistant rabbi of Park Avenue Synagogue and a teacher at Hillel Yeshiva, which serves some 800 students. The biggest challenge, he reports, is adapting and adopting new instructional methods that few have been exposed to – or at least not at length.

“It’s tough to know if the students really understand the work, if they’re really hearing you,” he explains. “We tend to forget as teachers that it’s not just about the instruction or content, but it’s connecting with the classroom, and being able to bond with them, and to understand them. That, I feel, is what’s missing most.”

Sammy Sitt, Director of Deal Sephardic Network (DSN), says that the facility closed mid-March, when the city declared an emergency. The center offers various sports activities, with a 2,000-strong membership, and is now trying to help homebound community members stay healthy with live streaming exercise classes. “The good thing is that we can show the best of our community coming out, helping each other in need,” he said.

Ike Dweck, Founder and Director of SAFE, says that many clients are foregoing one-to-one therapy visits, for obvious reasons, and group therapies are cancelled. Online resources and internet chats are offered as alternates.

“We want our clients to be safe and adhere to guidelines regarding self-quarantine and social distancing, but isolation can be very detrimental to recovery,” he says. SAFE, he added, began putting contingencies in place even before New York declared a state of emergency, including a thorough cleaning of offices and screening potentially ill clients. As of press time, the doors remain open for crisis situations, and the organization is still available by phone 24 hours a day, seven days a week (866-569-SAFE).

Rabbi Yaakov Marcus of Yeshivat Or Hatorah says the decision to shut down the yeshiva in early-March was because of pending health concerns, and they did so before the city shut down. Hebrew and secular studies are now being conducted online.

“We knew this was coming, so the staff talked about it and met about it. We already sent home work beforehand, and within two days we had things set up online. New York State regulation was already two weeks away. All the teachers had all the courses set out: Gemara, Halachah, Humash.”

Rather than lament, Rabbi Marcus encourages people to see this crisis as a lesson. “People should realize Gd runs the world, and he’s sending us a message. We have to strengthen ourselves through study of Torah, prayer, and following safe practices.”

Keep Calm and Stay Rational

Dr. Abdhu Sharkawy, an infectious disease specialist from Toronto, posted online an important message of hope, urging every to stay calm and composed, rather than resort to panic.

“I am rightly concerned for the welfare of those who are elderly, in frail health,, or disenfranchised who stand to suffer mostly, and disproportionately, at the hands of this new scourge. But I am not scared of Covid-19.

“What I am scared about is the loss of reason and wave of fear that has induced the masses of society into a spellbinding spiral of panic, stockpiling obscene quantities of anything that could fill a bomb shelter adequately in a post-apocalyptic world.”

He emphasized in particular the harm such hysteria could have on children:

“Instead of reason, rationality, open-mindedness and altruism, we are telling them to panic, be fearful, suspicious, reactionary, and self-interested.”

Dr. Sharkawy urges everybody to take the time to stay informed, to get the facts, “as opposed to conjecture, speculation and catastrophizing.”

In short, he says: “Facts not fear. Clean hands. Open hearts.”

Victor Davis Hanson wrote in the City Journal of March 16 of the potential for increased substance abuse among those struggling with stress and anxiety during this epidemic, as a dangerous coping mechanism. He further warned that depression is likelier to set in during times of upheaval, like we are experiencing, especially with the economy crumbling. Hanson urges us all to be mindful of the signs of mental illness, learn yoga or meditation to help ease the anxiety, and phone a friend to lean on.

Looking Ahead

Is there any good news?

Yes!

The Guardian of the UK reported on March 20 that about three dozen companies and academic institutions “are racing to create” a coronavirus vaccine, while “at least four of which already have candidates they have been testing in animals. The first of these – produced by Boston-based biotech firm Moderna – will enter human trials imminently.”

The other, and more important, piece of good news is that as observant Jews, we believe in Providence and that the world is governed by an omnipotent, benevolent Creator. As long as we do our share – taking the necessary precautions that health officials are urging – we can rely on Gd to do the rest. Our responsible handling of the situation, coupled with our heartfelt prayers and efforts to improve ourselves, will, please Gd, get us through this period and raise us all, both as individuals and as a community, to greater heights of unity and religious commitment.

We look forward to soon returning to our synagogues to offer a heartfelt prayer of thanksgiving to Gd for ending this crisis and for once again showing the world His unlimited power and grace, amen.

Symptoms of Coronavirus

Reported illnesses have ranged from mild symptoms to severe illness for confirmed coronavirus cases. The following symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure – fever, cough, and shortness of breath. If you think you have been exposed to COVID-19 and develop a fever and symptoms, such as cough or difficulty breathing, call your healthcare provider for medical advice.

If you develop emergency warning signs for COVID-19 get medical attention immediately. Emergency warning signs include: difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, new confusion, and bluish lips or face.

NOTE: Call your doctor first. If the doctor feels you should be examined, he/she may make proper arrangements to see you. If you simply walk into a doctor’s office, you may infect others in the office.

Know How It Spreads

There is currently no vaccine to prevent COVID-19. The best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to this virus. The virus is thought to spread mainly from person-to-person.

* Between people who are in close contact with one another (within about six feet).

* Through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes.

These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs.

Take Steps to Protect Yourself

Clean your hands often:
Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after you have been in a public place, or after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
If soap and water are not readily available, use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60percent alcohol. Cover all surfaces of your hands and rub them together until they feel dry.

Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
Avoid close contact:

* Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

* Put distance between yourself and other people if COVID-19 is spreading in your community. This is especially important for people who are at higher risk of getting very sick.

* Older adults and people who have severe underlying chronic medical conditions like heart or lung disease or diabetes seem to be at higher risk for developing more serious complications from COVID-19 illness. Please consult with your health care provider about additional steps you may be able to take to protect yourself.

Take Steps to Protect Others

* Stay home if you’re sick.

* Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze or use the inside of your elbow.

* After you cough or sneeze – immediately wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

* Throw used tissues into the trash.

Clean and Disinfect

Clean AND disinfect frequently touched surfaces daily. This includes tables, doorknobs, light switches, countertops, handles, desks, phones, keyboards, toilets, faucets, and sinks. If surfaces are dirty, clean them. Use detergent or soap and water prior to disinfection.

Risk of Children Becoming Sick with COVID-19

Based on available evidence, children do not appear to be at higher risk for COVID-19 than adults. While some children and infants have been sick with COVID-19, adults make up most of the known cases to date.

Facemasks
If you are sick: You should wear a facemask when you are around other people (e.g., in the same room or vehicle) and before you enter a healthcare provider’s office. If you are not able to wear a facemask (for example, because it causes trouble breathing), then you should do your best to cover your coughs and sneezes, and people who are caring for you should wear a facemask if they enter your room.
If you are NOT sick: You do not need to wear a facemask unless you are caring for someone who is sick (and they are not able to wear a facemask). Facemasks may be in short supply and they should be saved for caregivers.

Information obtained from CDC (Centers for Disease Control) Additional and updated  information can be found on their website or local health departments. New Yorkers may call 311 for more information.

The current coronavirus pandemic is hinted to in the Torah, says Biblical scholar Rabbi Matityahu Glazerson, who discovered that this allusion can be disclosed using the “Bible Codes” system of revealing secrets concealed within the sacred text.  These codes predict major events that have taken place or will take place, even many millennia after the Torah was written.

Community Magazine contacted Rabbi Glazerson for his insights into the Biblical references to the current crisis. Before presenting the full revelation of the Bible Code, Rabbi Glazerson first  highlighted numerous news stories that point to the coronavirus outbreak originating from China’s markets – which were reported to have included everything from rats, snakes, bats, fish, to still-living wolf pups.

Rabbi Glazerson produced a video in which he lays out his thesis that the coronavirus can be found in the Torah – specifically, in a segment  from the Book of Vayikra  that speaks of the importance of refraining from the consumption of certain species which are considered “impure.” He highlighted consistent patterns of letters that appear equidistant from one another in the text – something known as the Equidistant Letter Sequence (ELS), a feature on which Bible Codes scholars heavily rely.

What is ELS?

Suppose we eliminate all spaces in the Torah, and consider the text as one long sequence of 304,805 letters. A computer then finds hidden words, encoded at equal intervals of letters. Statisticians call this phenomenon ELS.

Rabbi Glazerson explained that in the section in Vayikra that discusses the prohibition against eating forbidden species, there is an ELS sequence of the Hebrew letters kuf, vav, resh, vav, nun and heh – the letters that spell the word “Corona.”

He also points out other highlighted ELS patterns in the same section, one of which features the letters vav, yud, resh, vav and samech: “virus.” Another consists of the letters alef, bet, resh, mem, het and yud, which spell “ever mehai – limb from the living.” This term, Rabbi Glazerson says, refers to the sin of eating the limb of a still-living animal.

In another part of the excerpt, Rabbi Glazerson highlights the letters samech, yud, nun and yud, which spell sini, or “Chinese.”

“You have it exactly in the section of the Torah that speaks of things you should not eat,” Rabbi Glazerson explained, pointing excitedly to a highlighted verse: “I separated for you the impure things, then you will be for Me a holy people.”

“It’s amazing finding this: coronavirus, China, and the limb from the living, which causes what we see now,” Glazerson concluded.

In this chart the highlighted words include: Corona (top left in black) / Virus (center in red) / Do not eat (top center in orange) / Limb from the living (center in purple)

In this chart the Bible Codes confirm that the coronavirus will come from people eating bats in China in the year 5780.

Hidden Messages

The Torah contains not just the holy words passed down through Moshe, but also a myriad of subtler, and even hidden, messages.

Those hidden messages could be hints to events or people at any period in history, and over time, those messages can be revealed with the right tools and interpretative methods.

It was only in the past few decades that a new methodology was developed with the help of modern technology to search for hidden messages in the Torah through “codes.” The codes are words spelled out in patterns throughout portions of text. Those who deciphered these hidden codes claim that there are hidden messages encoded in the Hebrew text of the Torah, messages so complex that no human could possibly have embedded them.

It should thus come as no surprise that the coronavirus pandemic and its origin are alluded to in the Torah!

Charts and Insights provided by Rabbi Matityahu Glazerson. Rabbi Glazerson has written over 30 books on the Bible Codes and related subjects, including, Torah Codes: A Glimpse into the Infinite, which was co-authored by Professors Robert Haralick and Eliyahu Rips.