The Houston Jewish History Archive is collecting accounts of high holiday practices during the pandemic. Dr. Melissa Weininger, Associate Director of The Program in Jewish Studies, wrote about her experience attending a service outside the home of Dr. Joshua Furman, Director of the HJHA. To submit an account to the archive, click here.

Last Sunday, as I got ready to leave my house for a Kol Nidre service outside Josh Furman and Alisha Klapholz’s house, I realized I needed something to hold my keys and wallet. I pulled a purse off of a hook in my room, and when I put my keys in my hand touched a folded piece of paper. I pulled it out; it was a program for the last event I attended in person before the coronavirus pandemic shut down life as we knew it: an Inprint reading featuring Louise Erdrich on the evening of March 9.

I drive on Shabbat and holidays, so when I pulled up to Josh and Alisha’s home I saw them standing outside on their front lawn under a big, beautiful tree. A staff member from United Orthodox Synagogues stood on the curb and took my temperature as I walked up. The service was organized under the auspices of UOS, which encouraged alternative and outdoor formats for services this year, like many other synagogues. I had signed up online for a slot on Kol Nidre.

We stood around in the driveway for a few minutes and chatted as other participants walked up, wearing the traditional white clothing of Yom Kippur. Curious neighbors poked their heads out of doorways or stood on their lawns to observe the unusual proceedings, as our small group turned to the east and began to pray the traditional opening service of Yom Kippur, in which we are released from all our vows to God.

Usually, Kol Nidre is a grand service. Torah scrolls are removed from the ark and held before the congregation, members of the clergy and others form a beit din, or rabbinic court, to recite the legal formula of Kol Nidre. We had no Torahs, and Josh acted as our prayer leader, singing the Aramaic with the rest of us joining in from the driveway, as the sun slid lower in the sky and the holiday approached. When we finished the short service, some rushed off to other services before sunset, some lingered to chat briefly, masks on, before heading home to spend the rest of the holiday alone or with family.

Kol Nidre this year, like the rest of the holidays since the spring, was not like anything I’ve ever experienced, and we may never again meet on lawns and in driveways to pray together. But this year I was glad to have the chance, even for a few moments, to be in community with others safely on erev Yom Kippur.