LGBTQ Jews face dual threats these High Holidays. Here’s how synagogues can be their refuge.

(RNS) — The High Holidays are supposed to feel like a homecoming. But for many LGBTQ Jews, walking through the doors of a synagogue can also feel like conducting a forced risk assessment.

Will my partner be recognized as family? Will people use my child’s name and pronouns? If my ID does not match my current name or appearance, will security personnel treat me with dignity? Will I be treated as a full member of the community or merely tolerated as long as I do not ask anyone to acknowledge who I am?

No one should have to weigh those questions before entering a Jewish sanctuary at any time, but especially not during the holiest days on our calendar. Yet this year, LGBTQ Jews will enter the High Holiday season carrying the weight of two overlapping threats.

As Jews, they are living through a sustained surge of antisemitism that has made gathering in Jewish spaces feel increasingly vulnerable. At the same time, as LGBTQ people, they are watching courts, lawmakers and political leaders demonize their community and narrow protections that many once believed were secure.

Recent court decisions have upheld state restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors, while lawmakers…