To many observers, 2020 seemed to mark an important new moment in Haredi life. Both in the U. S. and Israel, these traditionally observant Jews strained against social distancing requirements that threatened to alter their decidedly communal way of life—in prayer, study, celebration, and mourning—requirements that they were convinced would be impossible to abide by in many of their small homes with large families, and went against their religious and cultural attachment to a rich collective life
