Cast your mind back to the start of the first Coronavirus lockdown. March 2020. There was raw emotion: fear, shock and trauma. The situation was unprecedented, and we were casting about for some comfort and stability.
I desperately wanted to do my little bit to help. I did a bit of food shopping for people who were isolating. But I felt I wasn't stepping up to the plate. I wasn't using my skills.
So, I put together a 30 minute Friday night service and invited 5 families to join me on this new thing called Zoom.
I had a clear objective in mind: to give people strength through this lockdown. The tone of the service suited the tone of the times - serious and comforting. We prayed for the nurses, doctors and government officials, and we comforted the mourners.
About this time, I invited Drew Salida to join us, a brilliant musician. I knew him 20 years ago, but we had only recently reconnected. What perfect timing. It was meant to be. Drew is able to touch people's hearts with his music and he now co-leads our services.
As the end of lockdown approached, 10 weeks later, I felt it was time to finish these services. My objective was met. And it's in my character to create things, and then move on.
But the one person I'd confided in told me off. How selfish I was being! These services weren't about me, or my objectives. They had a life of their own, and people were depending on them. I had a responsibility, a moral responsibility to keep them going.
I find it hard to put my finger on the moment that these Friday gatherings turned into a community. People now talk about "the Levuv community" and its "members".
The tone of the services has also moved on. It's still about giving people strength through this terrible pandemic. But we are also full of joy and a love of Judaism.
It's quite a strange thing really; an experiment in a way. Is it possible to build a Jewish community of people who have never met each other in person, and are only together for 30 minutes each week? I don't think we know the answer to that yet. But, maybe. And that really does feel exciting.
- Daren -