Progressively Speaking! How do we mark Pride Month during lockdown?
Rabbi Dr René Pfertzel looks at the issue of celebrating the LGBTQI+ community with Covid restrictions still in place
Celebrating significant days in our Liberal Jewish calendar while in this period of lockdown and distancing is something our community is getting very good at. From packed Passover seders to our flagship Biennial – held last weekend with more than 1,500 delegates enjoying three days of services, sessions and online mingling – we have become a growing virtual movement.
Pride Month and LGBTQI+ [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and related communities] equality is central to Liberal Judaism. We were the first synagogal movement in the world to introduce liturgy for civil partnership ceremonies (in 2005), the first to (successfully) campaign for equal marriage and the first to introduce ketubot written specially for same-sex couples and those who prefer a non-binary or gender-neutral format.
Every year, for Pride, our synagogues and members enjoy services, socials and attendance at national parades and events. Two years ago, at Kingston Liberal Synagogue, we hosted a Pride Seder. This year, we were planning a similar event, but with an interfaith theme. This is still going to go ahead, but by necessity will be via Zoom.
Liberal Judaism has always been about collaboration, so we are excited that the Reverend Jide Macaulay of House of Rainbow – an organisation that fosters relationships among BAME [black, Asian and minority ethnic] and LGBTQI+ individuals, people of faith and allies to create a safer and a more inclusive community – will be part of the event.
In common with other Progressive communities, we run dedicated Shabbat services for Pride. These will move online, as well as a talk by Professor Marc Baer, author of a new book, German, Jew, Muslim, Gay: The Life and Times of Hugo Marcus.
The annual month of Pride is such an important celebration of those in our LGBTQI+ communities. It is always joyful, uplifting and lots of fun – but with a really important and powerful message about the need for inclusivity in our society.
At this time of lockdown, it is just as important as ever to celebrate this, even if it cannot be done in person.
We have spent the past couple of months showing how Liberal Jewish communities can come together – if only virtually – to pray, study and celebrate. We look forward to demonstrating this once more over Pride this summer.
- Rabbi Dr René Pfertzel is rabbi at Kingston Liberal Synagogue
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
