Public health authorities are concerned that the public will not adhere to additional restrictions designed to prevent outbreaks of coronavirus during the High Holidays.
According to a proposal regulating public prayer submitted to the cabinet for approval, only a small number of worshippers will be allowed to pray inside synagogues, and most of the public will be forced to pray outdoors.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
One senior public health official said, "No doubt, there is a certain anarchy, and it's a real question whether or not we'll see 'underground' prayer, like we already have in various cities.
"However, we need to make things very clear – there is a real danger," the official said.
The official hinted that if the Health Ministry's traffic light plan, which designates cities, towns, and local authorities red, orange, yellow, or green based on the spread of COVID among their residents, allowing different steps to be taken in different localities on an as-needed basis, High Holiday worship would be less tightly regulated.
"You can't have your cake and eat it, too," the official said.
Meanwhile, gabbais of synagogues throughout Israel were largely confused. Generally, synagogues plan High Holiday prayers a month in advance, but this year, less than a week before the eve of Rosh Hashanah there were still no schedules.
Yitzhak Sheinan of the Itzkovitch Synagogue in Bnei Brak, one of the most prominent synagogues in Israel, said he intends to follow government regulations strictly, but does not know if worshippers will follow the rules elsewhere.
"Generally, we get organized months before the holidays, but this time, we've been backed into a corner. We knew ahead of time that it wouldn't be the same thing, and now we are deciding what to do. We have no choice," Sheinan said.
"Some worshippers are sick of this game," said Sheinan, who himself contracted COVID but recovered.
"It's a big problem. There's no way of knowing how each person will respond, and there's no doubt that some will revolt. The curfew made a lot of people angry, and put them in a bad place," Sheinan said.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
According to the proposal laid before the cabinet, people will be allowed to pray in the open air in groups of up to 20. Groups of up to 10 people will be allowed to pray indoors in places the Health Ministry has marked as having a high number of confirmed cases. In places where the number of confirmed cases is low, groups of up to 25 people will allowed to pray indoors.
Once the government approves the restrictions, the police will begin making preparations to enforce them.
"The last thing we want to do is enforce. If we are asked to enforce the law in synagogues, we will, but from our experience in the first wave we've learned that we won't necessarily be asked to do it. The public understands that there is a problem, and so you see countless 'courtyard' minyans in response.
"There will be police patrols, and at the same time we expect the rabbis to call on the public at large to follow the regulations, but we won't station an officer at every synagogue," a police official said.
