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Mayim Bialik shares how her faith provides her with comfort during the pandemic

The actress also offers words of hope as we “navigate this together and alone.”
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“If you have hope the sun will come up tomorrow, you can have hope that you can find comfort as we navigate this together and alone,” the “Big Bang Theory” star said.Presley Ann / WireImage
/ Source: TODAY

Mayim Bialik recently observed Passover amid the coronavirus pandemic, which, as she explained in a YouTube video in early April, was going to be a “difficult” and “different” experience for her.

“There’s a tremendous amount of uncertainty. But what that has really forced me to do is really, really understand what it means to be present and to be mindful,” the actress said in the video. “And for me, being an observant Jew, being a person who powers down, who turns off all those other distractions and who just focuses on cooking and praying and being present with my kids and also getting overwhelmed with being present with my kids, that’s a lot of what this holiday is going to be this year.”

Bialik, who is quarantined in Los Angeles with her sons, Miles, 14, and Frederick, 11, opened up to TODAY in an email interview about the role her faith has played in her life during the pandemic.

How faith has helped her face the challenges of the pandemic:

“My understanding of a Higher Power, which I choose to call Gd, has always been a source of comfort for me, even in challenging and painful times. I am grateful my religious tradition allows for a Gd of nature and chaos with plans larger than we can understand. I find prayer and meditation very helpful and I never once have doubted that I am safe in this painful, organic unfolding of the virus.”

How she stays connected with her faith:

“I belong to a very progressive, beautiful synagogue which places tremendous value in mental health and spiritual support. There are minyans (prayer quorums) daily, learning opportunities to study Jewish text with others several times a week, and shiva gatherings for those in mourning. We also have spiritual guides from the community leading healing circles weekly. Sometimes we Zoom in for singing and prayer before we light Shabbat candles, as we don't use TV on Shabbat.”

How she observed Passover:

“I chose to not use the computer for Passover on the first night, but on the second night we had my sons’ grandmothers join by FaceTime. They enjoyed it very much; I found the use of technology on a religious holiday a bit unsettling. But it was nice for them to be able to participate virtually.”

How faith has guided her interactions with her family during the pandemic:

“We pray for people's health every Friday night when we light candles. I always ask for us to think of people we know who need healing before I light, and the first Shabbat after quarantine, I asked my boys, ‘Is there anyone we should be praying for?’ really not intending it to be a trick question. My older son, who is 14, said, ‘Um ... the whole world.’ Indeed.”

A quote that provides her with comfort and hope:

“My faith emphasizes the Oneness of the universe and all of humanity. I lean into that now as we all struggle collectively.”

What she would say to those who might be struggling to find hope at this time:

“If you have hope the sun will come up tomorrow, you can have hope that you can find comfort as we navigate this together and alone.”