Jewish Telegraphic Agency: Chicago’s Jewish Agencies in the Face of Increased Daily Case Counts

When Rabbi Lizzi Heydemann and her colleagues gathered in a backyard earlier this month to sing together, they knew it would likely be the last time for the foreseeable future.

COVID-19 case counts in Chicago were rising sharply, and the mayor and governor warned that new restrictions would soon be necessary to curb the disease’s spread.

So the team at Mishkan, the nondenominational congregation that Heydemann leads, bundled up against the November chill to record dozens of Shabbat songs. Heydemann said she is hoping the recordings, deployed during virtual services, “will keep us warm through the winter” — one spent at home, alone.