Dayan Yehudah Osher Steiner, senior Rabbi of the Manchester Beth Din, today welcomed the news that places of worship can reopen for communal prayer following the end of the country’s second lockdown.
He said: “The lack of our thrice-daily communal prayer has been extremely hard for us.
“Communal prayer is our lifeline and is pivotal for our wellbeing, in which we not only pray on a personal level but also pray for our communities and the wellbeing of all society.
“Having to arrange our places of worship to adhere to Covid-safe guidelines has taken much expense and much organisation. Our local synagogues have made tremendous efforts to ensure that they are safe for prayer during the pandemic.
“We are delighted that the government has decided that places of worship can reopen and we are grateful to all those involved in reaching this decision.
“Within our services it is customary to pray on behalf of all for the wellbeing of The Queen, the Royal Family and the government, and we look forward to once again beseeching the Almighty communally that our country returns to normality in the near future.”
