24 | FEBRUARY 11 • 2021
T
his Purim, the Conservative
Jewish community in Metro
Detroit is reassuring its com-
munity that on Zoom, as the Purim
song goes, “we’ll merry merry be.
”
Marking the one-year anniversary
and noting that Purim was the last
Jewish holiday that most Jews cel-
ebrated together in the synagogue,
Conservative congregations will com-
bine their efforts to celebrate Purim
virtually through a variety of program-
ming over Zoom. Also, there will be
opportunities for Jews to enjoy tradi-
tions such as mishloach manot (goody
baskets given to friends) and collecting
and delivering food for the needy
through socially distanced means.
Kicking off the night of Feb. 25,
there will be a family musical Megillah
party at 6:30 p.m. and, in a separate
Zoom at 6:45 p.m., a full Megillah
reading chanted by various members
of participating synagogues. To con-
tinue the merriment, Israeli comedian
Joel Chasnoff will entertain following
the Megillah.
At 7:30 a.m. Feb. 26 there will be a
traditional morning reading. All virtu-
al events are free and open to the com-
munity and registration can be found
at www.conservativeshuls.org.
In past years, congregations in West
Bloomfield and Farmington Hills
would gather on Purim for evening
and morning Megillah readings and
celebrations, while congregations like
Shaarey Zedek in Southfield, Beth
Shalom in Oak Park and the Isaac
Agree Downtown Detroit Synagogue
would have their own readings and
festivities. Because of the way religious
services have evolved virtually in this
year of the pandemic, leaders across
the Conservative Jewish community
decided to join forces for one coordi-
nated celebration, according to Linda
Jacobson of B’nai Israel Synagogue in
West Bloomfield.
“The silver lining of the pandemic is
that congregations are working more
closely together to combine efforts,
”
said Jacobson, who for years has been
on the Purim planning committee for
the Conservative community. “Efforts
from this time will extend beyond the
Conservative shuls unite to
provide virtual Purim festivities.
STACY GITTLEMAN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Conservative shuls unite to
provide virtual Purim festivities.
theJoy!
Stopping
No
COURTESY BETH AHM
COURTESY SHIR SHALOM
COURTESY OF TEMPLE ISRAEL
The cast of Temple
Israel’s 2020 shpiel,
“A Very Frozen Purim”
Ruth Bergman
and Adat
Shalom Rabbi
Aaron Bergman
at a previous
Conservative
Purim celebration
at Beth Ahm
“The silver lining of the pandemic is
Shir Shalom
congregants
get into Purim
in a prior year.
OUR COMMUNITY