Borehamwood , England – Rabbi Gives His Shiur in Cyberspace

Borehamwood , England – Emails have replaced letters, missed television shows can be seen up via online web players and now a synagogue in Borehamwood has made its sermons available on podcast.

In an attempt to ensure shul members never miss their weekly dose of theology, Borehamwood and Elstree Synagogue, in Croxdale Road, is pioneering an online initiative which allows people to download the Rabbi’s sermons, guest speakers and education programmes.

The podcasts are the first of its kind, the synagogue claims.

Rabbi Naftali Brawer said: “A few people have joked that perhaps they will stop attending shul now sermons are available on podcast and it poses a very important question. Can it replace the real experience? And I don’t think it can.

“By providing these podcasts of sermons, we enable as many people as possible to have access to these things where and when it suits them, in case they missed them originally, or want to listen to them again.”

The scheme started last summer, when members started asking if Rabbi Brawer’s sermons were available for podcasting after digital recordings were uploaded to the website.

The rabbi, who said emails were not even commonplace when he became a rabbi, said he is not daunted by the prospect of having his words immortalised in cyberspace.

“Each week I put in a lot of effort to make sure my sermons capture what the community is thinking but now I am more aware that I am talking to a much broader audience. People who do not even come to our shul, leaders of other faiths, can now listen to what is being discussed in our community,” Rabbi Brawer said.

“Sermons are a narrative like any other. They have their own role in history.”

In accordance with Halacha, or Jewish law, no recordings are made on Shabbat or Yom Tov but before the Saturday service.

The synagogue’s website also boasts RSS news feeds to keep the community informed of new podcasts and what else is new on the website, such as key events and the weekly newsletter.