Posted on 04/02/2003 5:02:30 PM PST by yonif
An as-yet-unidentified virus has confounded the Seder plans of Rabbi Ya'akov Kermayer, the modern Orthodox rabbi who leads the Ohel Leah Synagogue of Hong Kong.
With his wife and children and most of his congregation's families having temporarily fled to their native countries, the young rabbi is planning the festival meal but doesn't know who will come to dinner in two weeks.
Kermayer, who was raised in Maryland and graduated a decade ago from Yeshiva University in New York, told The Jerusalem Post in a telephone interview that Israeli males who continue to work for their company branches have remained in Hong Kong, "but they have sent their wives and children back home. So have Jews from America and other countries who live and work here."
"We're all wearing face masks," said Kermayer. "We're afraid of SARS [severe acute respiratory syndrome]," which first showed up in the area a few weeks ago and has proved to be fatal.
"We don't know if the virus is transmitted only by direct contact by sneezing or coughing, or whether it remains in the air and can continue to infect people. Besides the masks, we are washing our hands a lot," he said.
He asked a group of young Jews whom he met recently whether they had been to Israel, and they said it was now "too dangerous."
The rabbi replied that, given the SARS outbreak and the fact that travel to Hong Kong and vicinity is being discouraged by the World Health Organization, Hong Kong could be a more dangerous place than Israel.
Kermayer said that women and children among the more than 220 families affiliated with the local Jewish community center were taking advantage of Pessah vacation and flying home to avoid exposure to SARS. "Anyway, Jewish schools will be closed for more than a week."
There are a few rabbis of various stripes, including Chabad, in Hong Kong, he said. "We don't need to import Israeli rabbis to run the congregational Seder. But this year, with SARS, we don't know how many guests to count on. Whatever the number, we're planning the same rich program and educational message as before."
In the meantime, the male members of his synagogue recite on Shabbat the prayer for the sick, adding a special supplication for Hong Kong residents infected with SARS.
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