Jerusalem Great Synagogue shuts for 1st time since 1958

Zalli Jaffe pulls the curtains in Jerusalem's Great Synagogue and switches off the lights. This holy place will be closed to Jewish faithful for the first time in its history.

Jerusalem's Great Synagogue, an Orthodox place of worship that has hosted many Israeli dignitaries over the decades, announced earlier this week that, because of the pandemic, it would not hold High Holiday services for the first time since it opened in 1958.

According to Jaffe, the reason is a very simple one.

"The most important criteria in Judaism is the safety, the physical safety of every human being and calculating our own consideration we decided that this is the only consideration to adopt."

Eating apples dipped in honey on Rosh Hashanah is a Jewish tradition to symbolize a sweet start to the New Year.

But in Israel, bitterness is prevailing on the eve of the holiday as the country enters a second nationwide lockdown to stem a surging coronavirus outbreak.

In a bid to clamp down on the pandemic, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government has imposed a three-week lockdown, beginning on Friday afternoon — just hours before Rosh Hashanah starts — and running through the 10-day period known as the High Holidays, a time for reflection and repentance.

Israel's first lockdown, in March and April, coincided with Passover, the Jewish spring holiday marking the deliverance of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.

Israel has seen new daily cases of COVID-19 skyrocket in recent weeks, climbing to more than 5,000 on Wednesday — one of the highest per capita infection rates in the world. Since the pandemic began this year, it has recorded more than 169,000 cases, including 1,163 deaths, according to Health Ministry figures.

Religious and secular Israelis alike usually mark Rosh Hashanah with holiday feasts with family and friends.

They pack synagogues, often spending hours in prayer, especially during the fast of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, later this month.

But this year, traditional family gatherings will be muted, synagogue prayers will be limited to small groups and travel restrictions will leave many roads deserted.

Some of the liberal streams of Judaism, particularly in the United States, are turning to technology to help connect people during the Jewish High Holidays.

In Israel, movement during the lockdown will be restricted to 500 metres from one's home.

Gatherings are limited to 10 people indoors, and 20 outside, curbing the number of faithful who can attend synagogue services.

Bars, restaurants, and cultural venues will be shut, but many ritual baths and other religious facilities will remain open.

Israelis have been frustrated since the gains made during the first lockdown — when the virus seemed to have been brought under control — were erased in weeks, with authorities unable to stem the spike that followed.

Weekly protests have drawn thousands to Netanyahu's Jerusalem residence, with demonstrators demanding his resignation over his handling of the virus and his corruption trials.

Some Israelis are organizing services in courtyards and gardens.

At Jerusalem's Western Wall, the holiest worship site for Jews, the plaza is crisscrossed with dividers to allow small groups to pray.

Israeli police are sending out thousands of officers in a bid to enforce the regulations and the power to issue fines totalling hundreds of dollars for those who violate lockdown rules.

Officials have voiced concern that Israelis — already skeptical of the government's erratic and confusing regulations in recent months — may defy the holiday restrictions.