Religious services and ceremonies of 10 or less people will be permitted across the state starting on Thursday. NY Governor Cuomo suggested drive-thru services and ceremonies as an alternative.
In response to the announcement, Agudath Israel of America released the following statement to YWN:
Today, Governor Cuomo announced that beginning Thursday, May 21st, religious gatherings of up to 10 people in a house of worship will be allowed, statewide, if strict social distancing measures are enforced and all participants wear masks.
This announcement follows meetings between Agudath Israel leaders with senior members of Governor Cuomo’s staff and Agudah’s recent statement calling on the governor to place high priority focus on the safe reopening of shuls, camps, and schools.
Two weeks ago, Agudath Israel disseminated guidelines for opening shuls after government gives its approval. We urge all to refer to that guidance – formulated by leading rabbonim and respected medical experts, and approved by the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah. Caution and incremental steps are still advised, given the uncertain nature of this pandemic.
The governor also announced the formation of a council of faith leaders from across the state to advise him on reopening. Agudah’s executive vice president, Rabbi Chaim Dovid Zwiebel, has been appointed to that council. Further details will be forthcoming as additional guidelines are developed.
We thank the governor for his attention to Agudath Israel’s and others’ advocacy on this important issue. With Shavuos and Kabolas HaTorah soon arriving, we look forward to the day when our batei knessios and batei midrashim will once again be lively centers of Torah and tefillah.
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36 Responses
Drive thru?
Love to hear how this is going to be implemented and who is going to monitor it.
All hail the great and benevolent son of Mario the Pious ymsh.
The akshonim should have pushed for 15 to give us a little bit of breathing room.
That’s for NYS doesn’t Bill Deblassio have to approve it for NYC?
Maximum of ten people. Which effectively also means men only. This will probably be the rule going through Shavuos.
Is it safe to conduct, even though it is legal?
When will your Minyan restart? When will you start attending?
How will people have sufficient places to make enough minyanim of ten people, only, each?
Drive thru on shabbos only.
I guess it’ll be first come, first in.
Gives a whole new meaning to “being one of the first ten to get the s’char of the entire minyan.”
i find it just fitting that YWN even though they love shocking eye popping titles are quiet and no BECHSDEI HASHEM that minyanim are starting
Where does the Governor’s statement say 10 MEN???? Perhaps the gabbai can be a women (gabboit) and not included in the headcount. Probably need at least one woman for each davener to monitor and enforce social distancing, mask etc. For example, if one guy is a slow davener and the nitwit in front of him takes 3 steps back during shmoneh esreh, that would cut the 6 foot spacing to 3 feet and require a gabboit to yell gevalt!!
new york sate is not new york city it we just lile to keep doing chila hashem by doing hidden mnyon
I don’t understand why they can’t give a number like the fire dept. gives for public buildings based on the size of the building. Just for comparison, it seems a little foolish to say the massive Bobover shul and the pretty small Shomer Shabbos shul can both only have 10 people.
If someone can help me out here, I’m a bit confused. This means that until now any social distanced backyard minyan until now was illegal? My neighborhood has minyanin up to 14 people in backyards. They sounded like it was legal.
B’H in time for יום-ירושלים
Can you have more than 10 in a parking lot minyan?
Why 10? Shouldn’t it be based on room size?
I mean 10 in a little shtieble, might be tight. Yet 20 in a big shul might even have greater social distancing.
In Israel, 10 people was never held to when we had that rule.
Until recently, it was increased it to 19 people, and then it could split once it gets to 20 people to two minyanim.
Yeah, and no women or under Bar Mitzvah kids.
So will the NYPD be monitoring the mosques to make sure no more than 10 Muslims enter? Oh, I thought so.
When is Murphys press conference?
בחסדי השם in time for יום-ירושלים
So if someone needs the bathroom, what happens to the the minyan?
When was a gathering of 10 illegal in the first place? Was New York different than NJ? Wasn’t the executive order for more than 10?
What about for the women upstairs?
Just because its legal doesnt mean its safe!!! Use your own seichel especially in places where you may see rules being broken!
Unfortunately, this advise is weak, dangerous and against medical and scientific guidance and reality. If a person with the Virus sneezes, even with a N95 mask, the Virus can move around the closed space and contaminate others. Also from someone who is a super-carrier.
If air from Fans, A/C or Heating circulates through the Shul. It can spread the Virus around. This is medical and scientific fact.
Unless no heat in the shul during Winter and no A/C in the summer.
Until a proven Vaccine and Antidote are available to all, it’s saconos nefoshos to be in a closed space with other people.
At the end the day, this advice doesn’t come from a mekor of ahavas yisroel.
Unfortunately, this advise is weak, dangerous and against medical and scientific guidance and reality. If a person with the Virus sneezes, even with a N95 mask, the Virus can move around the closed space and contaminate others. Also from someone who is a super-carrier.
If air from Fans, A/C or Heating circulates through the Shul it spreads the Virus around. This is medical and scientific fact.
Unless no heat in the shul during Winter and no A/C in the summer.
Until a proven Vaccine and Antidote are available to all, it’s saconos nefoshos to be in a closed space with other people.
At the end the day, this advice doesn’t come from a mekor of ahavas yisroel.
There’s no reason a bigger shul can’t have 20 people as long as there’s room for them to be six feet apart. And there’s no reason minyanim shouldn’t have been happening all along as long as people were six feet apart. The science says the virus doesn’t travel that far, especially if people are wearing masks. Not to mention these restrictions are unconstitutional (nationally, and states can’t enact laws that violate the national constitution).
Which planet ?
What gives the govt the right to tell us how to worship?
I’m my opinion this is the end of any social distancing in our community. Minyanim will go from 10 to 100 in days, schools will open as a “religious meeting” and we should all daven nothing dangerous Chas v’shalom comes of it.
@ ah yid, women have no chiyuv to daven. Everything can be figured out, hashem gave us brains and the ability to analyze a problem and find solutions, that is what separate us from the other mammals.
Of course the snowflakes in the 5 towns are free to cower in the own homes and not daven btzibur until they discover a vaccine or moshiach comes, whatever come first.
Bunch of nonesense.
This is not based on anything scientific, there is no reason as to why so called essential stores can have many minyanim if shoppers and shulls cannot.
Hospitals are way below their baseline capacity, elective medical stuff are being deferred and treated as if they were some for comfort massage.
There is no public health crisis at the moment.
torah613ami, most of the rest of society had enough of this bunk science and nonsense medical advice. Whomever wants, can stay home. Leave the rest of us alone
It was incredibly amazing and exhilarating being back at my Minjan this morning, after 9 wholes weeks without even 1 Minjan. The Governor has simply no idea how much this means to me. This Minjan many times more important to me, than barbers or sporting events reopening.
10 people is pretty dumb as previous comments said. One size fits all size batei midrashim??!!!
And what happened to the ladies for Yizkor?
But all this is secondary to the most important problem- getting the stores open. Parnossa!!!
Stores are closing. Livelihoods lost. Debt. Rachmonus Yidden
Where are our askonim???!
These people are desperate
They are much more important than davening in a shul. You can still daven in your porch minyanim, but these families are being killed r”l
HELP YIDDEN (and I do not have any stores, just rachmonus)
Where are our Askonim??!!!
people need to use their seichel! if you have 10 people in a teeny shteibel that’s obviouslya very bad idea.
If you have 15 people spread out with fifteen feet between each person that’s totally fine. But of course too many people have a tendency too leave their brains to rot, and things get out of control and then the police come and its a massive chillul hashem. Minyanim outside with major social distancing (15 feet between anybody not in same family) would have been fine all along but it would have gotten out of control because too many people have no seichel. So please use your seichel and follow halacha which states that safek nefashos lechumrah and IF YOUR MINYAN ISN’T SAFE (even if it’s technichally legal) DAVEN AT HOME!!!
In response to Azoiy might I point out that HUNDREDS of frum yidden have died from this virus and many have been left with lasting health conditions (many of whom were considered healthy prior to infection)! People who simply jump to say we MUST open are as bad or worse as the people who call for shutting EVERYTHING down till a vaccine arrives. decisions must be made under carefull considerations by people with daas torah who are also informed about the facts. these are EXTREMELY complex decisions and any person who demands that everything should reopen or everything should stay closed without an understanding of the facts is simply doing everyone a disservice.