When Greenwich resident Leon Gandelman grew up in Lvov in the Soviet Union in the 1940s and '50s, he was not allowed to practice his religion in public.
His parents gave him as traditional a Jewish upbringing as they could, but it was not until after 1991 that he could openly worship, said his daughter Anya Gandelman.
So yesterday, when he donated a historic torah scroll, the holiest book in Judaism, to the Chabad of Greenwich during a ceremony, it had a special significance to him, she said,
"It's really heartwarming for my father," she said.
More than 30 family and friends gathered as Gandelman, along with Rabbi Yossi Deren, dedicated the scroll to his parents.
"This is a very special and important occasion," said Deren.
A new torah scroll is a big celebration within the Jewish community. It takes an expert scribe more than a year to complete since it is done just as Moses had done more than 3,000 years ago - handwritten in a calligraphy on parchment paper, sewn together with sinews to form one long scroll, according to Deren.
It is approximately 52 pages and has 600,000 words, and if even one word is misshapen or a letter missing, the document is not considered kosher and is not used, according to Deren.
"This is a very important thing for the Jewish people," said Gandelman, a businessman.
Anya Gandelman brought the document from Tel Aviv to Greenwich for the dedication. A new torah scroll can cost approximately $30,000.
Gandelman wanted to donate the scroll, after learning that the Chabad of Greenwich only had two scrolls. It is customary to have three at every synagogue, according to Deren.
"It's a big occasion not just for his family, but for the community," said his friend Michael Chernomordin, who attended the festivities.
Following the dedication, friends and each member of the family, which included Gandelman's brothers and wife, Olivia, gathered around the table to fill in the last few lines of the text with the help of the scribe, Rabbi Moshe Klein.
Klein, a fourth-generation scribe, held the feathered quill as each person filled the letter that his or her first name started with. Then the document, which weighed more than 15 pounds, was rolled up and placed in a special protective cover.
At the end of the ceremony, attendees danced, sang and feasted on a four-course meal.
"It's a been a wonderful celebration," said Valentine Tropp, Greenwich resident and member of Temple Sholom, "It's an honor for us to be here."
Every Shabbat, the synagogue will read a portion of torah scroll, Deren said.
Showing posts with label Torah. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Torah. Show all posts
Monday, December 29, 2008
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Chabad welcomes new torah
June 26, 2008
Members of the Chabad of Glenview celebrated the completion of a new sefer torah for the congregation with music, singing and dancing Sunday.
Virutally all of the torah was written by a scribe in Israel. The scribe filled in the last 70 letters of the scroll, many of which were "purchased" through donations, at the dedication ceremony.
The scroll was then placed in a decorated cloth casing, and adorned with a traditional silver crown and pointer for reading. Congregation members, their families and friends marched, sang and danced around the 1800 block of Glenview Road with the torah.
The torah was made in the memory of Rabbi Nochum Yosef Ben Yerachmiel, grandfather of the Chabad's Rabbi Yishaya Benjaminson. Members of Benjaminson's family, including his father and grandmother, traveled here from New York and other states to take part in the celebration.
Members of the Chabad of Glenview celebrated the completion of a new sefer torah for the congregation with music, singing and dancing Sunday.
Virutally all of the torah was written by a scribe in Israel. The scribe filled in the last 70 letters of the scroll, many of which were "purchased" through donations, at the dedication ceremony.
The scroll was then placed in a decorated cloth casing, and adorned with a traditional silver crown and pointer for reading. Congregation members, their families and friends marched, sang and danced around the 1800 block of Glenview Road with the torah.
The torah was made in the memory of Rabbi Nochum Yosef Ben Yerachmiel, grandfather of the Chabad's Rabbi Yishaya Benjaminson. Members of Benjaminson's family, including his father and grandmother, traveled here from New York and other states to take part in the celebration.
Monday, June 16, 2008
The Torah: A Moral Compass
By Rabbi Ezra Schochet
For the Jewish people, the Torah is the moral compass that guides us through all difficult personal and ethical issues. Indeed, the most intimate and private parts of our lives are also subject to the direction of the Torah.
In recent years we have witnessed a social revolution in Western culture: the validation of homosexuality as an alternate lifestyle. Clearly this is not in consonance with the teachings of the Torah. Sadly, this assault on basic moral standards gained a beachhead in the Jewish community as well. Some see it as an issue of equality and compassion. This argument, however, carries no moral weight. The Torah unequivocally condemns homosexuality alongside incest and adultery.Our Torah enjoins us to treat all humans with dignity and respect, as all are created by G-d in His own image. The very same Torah also prescribes a code of proper behavior that defines and reflects human dignity, the violation of which would diminish and marginalize it. Hence derives the concept of "hate sin but love the sinner."
Rabbi Shmuley Boteach attempted to do exactly this ("Dr. Laura Misguided on Homosexuality," June 16) when he fell into an intellectual abyss. He seriously twisted the classic Jewish teachings. His absurd argument that the prohibition concerning homosexual acts is just a religious instruction and not a spiritual moral imperative is a distortion of Torah. By equating the biblical condemnation of homosexuality with ritual laws and norms for proper character traits, he willfully ignores and maliciously distorts explicit pronouncements of the Torah.
Proper character traits and interhuman relationships in the Jewish faith are built upon Torah principles and not just human wisdom that changes in each generation. The student of pirkei avot (Ethics of our Fathers) would know from the very first mishna that all ethics and morals originate at Mt. Sinai.
The prohibition of homosexuality is not only a ritual law for Jews like the precepts of the dietary laws or the Sabbath. Any simpleton reading this chapter (Leviticus 18:3) must come to the conclusion that a moral statement is being made by the Torah - not simply a violation "on religious grounds."
This prohibition is a universal injunction for all mankind, part of the fundamental moral principles. It is an integral part of the Noachide Code (Maimonides, Laws of Kings 9) the basic laws of society given by G-d to all of humanity.
Dismissing this (as Boteach and others do) does not represent the Jewish point of view, does not reflect a religious Jewish perspective.
The argument that homosexuality was as common as heterosexuality in ancient times is an absurd non sequitur. Paganism and incest were equally popular. Sould we defend these, too, in the name of history?The fact that homosexuals are so vociferous does not make them normative. Are we to accept adulterous behavior, in the spirit of compassion, as another alternate lifestyle for those who can't control their desires for a married woman?
Indeed, quite a few bear the challenge of homosexual tendencies. As individual humans they are entitled to the same rights and dignity as all others, and perhaps even extra compassion. That is altogether different, however, than granting acceptance to their lifestyles as legitimate alternatives. To celebrate their sexual preferences, let alone to expose schoolchildren to it, or to have society sanction their unions on a par with normative marriage is an indefensible aberration that destroys the moral fibers of society.
The attack on Dr. Laura Schlessinger skirts the real issues and throws out unwarranted accusations of homophobia.
Unlike her critics, Dr. Laura's position does not follow the latest fads to gain transient popularity. She follows her conscience as a religious person. For this she deserves to be applauded by all, including those critics who put pursuit of truth before personal agendas.
I am saddened that a former yeshiva student failed to acquire the most basic principle of religion: G-d and His revelation transcend popularity contests and political correctness. The truth will prevail, and the word of G-d will stand forever.
Rabbi Ezra Schochet is the rosh yeshiva and dean of the West Coast Talmudic Seminary, Yeshivas Ohr Elchonon Chabad, in Los Angeles.
For the Jewish people, the Torah is the moral compass that guides us through all difficult personal and ethical issues. Indeed, the most intimate and private parts of our lives are also subject to the direction of the Torah.
In recent years we have witnessed a social revolution in Western culture: the validation of homosexuality as an alternate lifestyle. Clearly this is not in consonance with the teachings of the Torah. Sadly, this assault on basic moral standards gained a beachhead in the Jewish community as well. Some see it as an issue of equality and compassion. This argument, however, carries no moral weight. The Torah unequivocally condemns homosexuality alongside incest and adultery.Our Torah enjoins us to treat all humans with dignity and respect, as all are created by G-d in His own image. The very same Torah also prescribes a code of proper behavior that defines and reflects human dignity, the violation of which would diminish and marginalize it. Hence derives the concept of "hate sin but love the sinner."
Rabbi Shmuley Boteach attempted to do exactly this ("Dr. Laura Misguided on Homosexuality," June 16) when he fell into an intellectual abyss. He seriously twisted the classic Jewish teachings. His absurd argument that the prohibition concerning homosexual acts is just a religious instruction and not a spiritual moral imperative is a distortion of Torah. By equating the biblical condemnation of homosexuality with ritual laws and norms for proper character traits, he willfully ignores and maliciously distorts explicit pronouncements of the Torah.
Proper character traits and interhuman relationships in the Jewish faith are built upon Torah principles and not just human wisdom that changes in each generation. The student of pirkei avot (Ethics of our Fathers) would know from the very first mishna that all ethics and morals originate at Mt. Sinai.
The prohibition of homosexuality is not only a ritual law for Jews like the precepts of the dietary laws or the Sabbath. Any simpleton reading this chapter (Leviticus 18:3) must come to the conclusion that a moral statement is being made by the Torah - not simply a violation "on religious grounds."
This prohibition is a universal injunction for all mankind, part of the fundamental moral principles. It is an integral part of the Noachide Code (Maimonides, Laws of Kings 9) the basic laws of society given by G-d to all of humanity.
Dismissing this (as Boteach and others do) does not represent the Jewish point of view, does not reflect a religious Jewish perspective.
The argument that homosexuality was as common as heterosexuality in ancient times is an absurd non sequitur. Paganism and incest were equally popular. Sould we defend these, too, in the name of history?The fact that homosexuals are so vociferous does not make them normative. Are we to accept adulterous behavior, in the spirit of compassion, as another alternate lifestyle for those who can't control their desires for a married woman?
Indeed, quite a few bear the challenge of homosexual tendencies. As individual humans they are entitled to the same rights and dignity as all others, and perhaps even extra compassion. That is altogether different, however, than granting acceptance to their lifestyles as legitimate alternatives. To celebrate their sexual preferences, let alone to expose schoolchildren to it, or to have society sanction their unions on a par with normative marriage is an indefensible aberration that destroys the moral fibers of society.
The attack on Dr. Laura Schlessinger skirts the real issues and throws out unwarranted accusations of homophobia.
Unlike her critics, Dr. Laura's position does not follow the latest fads to gain transient popularity. She follows her conscience as a religious person. For this she deserves to be applauded by all, including those critics who put pursuit of truth before personal agendas.
I am saddened that a former yeshiva student failed to acquire the most basic principle of religion: G-d and His revelation transcend popularity contests and political correctness. The truth will prevail, and the word of G-d will stand forever.
Rabbi Ezra Schochet is the rosh yeshiva and dean of the West Coast Talmudic Seminary, Yeshivas Ohr Elchonon Chabad, in Los Angeles.
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
Torah vanishes from Bais Menachem
RABBI SAYS NO SIGNS OF FORCED ENTRY
BY JILL KASSANDER, SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH LIGHT
University City police are investigating the disappearance of one of the Torahs belonging to Congregation Bais Menachem — Chabad on Delmar. Rabbi Yosef Landa and the congregation discovered the Torah was missing during Shabbat services on May 24.
"When we opened the ark for the Torah service I realized one of the Torahs was missing," Landa said. "A big gasp went up throughout the congregation."
The synagogue keeps two Torah scrolls in the ark, said Landa. The congregation does not have a daily minyan so the last time he saw both Torah scrolls was the previous Shabbat.
"The Torah which was stolen is the only Torah we actually own," Landa said. "It is a very beautiful, tall Torah with a red mantle, with large letters in the script style of Rabbi Yitzchak Luria, the Ari Zal. The other Torah we have is on loan to us."
Landa contacted the University City police department after Shabbat and officers arrived within a few minutes. They interviewed Landa, filed a report and told him he would be contacted by a detective during the week.
Further research by the Jewish Light has found three thefts of Torahs from Chabad congregations in other states in the past nine months. Asked about the other thefts, Detective Mike Gage who was assigned to the case said he would be looking into the other incidents.
"We will be contacting the other police departments to compare notes and look for possible connections," Gage said.
One of the Torah thefts occurred around the end of September 2007 from Yeshiva High School in Cottage Grove, Minn.
"A Torah scroll was stolen and a video projector," Rabbi Moshe Weiss, the school's director of development said. "The Torah scroll and projector have not been recovered."
In April, a Chabad House in Miami Beach, Fla., was burned down in an apparent case of arson being investigated by fire officials, the police and the FBI according to an article on MiamiHerald.com. It is believed the congregation's Torah scroll was stolen before the fire was set.
Two scrolls were discovered missing from Congregation Bnai Zedek Chabad in Kenosha, Wis., on April 15. The small congregation has only been around for about nine months, said Rabbi Tzali Wilschanski. The rabbi was giving a class in the social hall downstairs and closed the door to the sanctuary before he left for the evening.
"There was no sign of a break-in," Wilschanski said. "I am concerned somebody might have entered the synagogue and hidden in the sanctuary because the deadbolt lock was open in the morning."
The hazzan's oversize siddur, chumashim and the rabbi's laptop computer were also stolen, though the thief left behind the silver ornaments used to adorn to the Torah.
It is not clear whether any of the thefts are connected although there are similarities in some of the cases, such as the missing books. Landa had noticed a couple of books missing about two weeks before the Torah theft.
"I noticed the large oversized siddur used by the hazzan and a large oversized book of Haftarot were missing," Landa said. "We looked everywhere and thought perhaps someone had borrowed them and forgotten to return them."
Now Landa is wondering if the two incidents are related.
"My mind was racing when I saw the Torah scroll was gone though I don't know if the events are connected," Landa said. "All that was stolen were communal articles. They did not take the pushke which has about $30 to $40 in it."
The Torah scroll is valued at $30,000 to $40,000 according to the police report, though Landa said he would have to do additional research to assess the value of that particular Torah.
Landa said he e-mailed other rabbis to alert them to the theft so they could be more watchful at their own congregations.
"This is so disappointing," Landa said. "There was no sign of forced entry. We have an open door policy. People who frequent the congregation know the code to get into the building."
Barry Parnas regularly attends Shabbat services at the congregation and was there when the theft was discovered.
"I remember the Aron HaKodesh, the Holy Ark, being opened and only one Torah being in there," Parnas said. "The first person to respond was Rabbi Landa. I think he said, 'Sefer Torah missing.'"
Sometimes the shul will use the Torah someplace else but it is always back by Shabbat, said Parnas. He said the congregation was very shaken and surprised by the theft.
"A Torah doesn't seem like something that someone would steal," Parnas said. "It seems very odd to me that someone would take it."
Landa and members of the congregation checked around the community just in case someone had borrowed the Torah and other items for a shiva house or to study.
"This is very sad for me personally," Landa said. "I'm holding out hope that I will wake up from this nightmare and the Torah will be back. I assure whoever took it total anonymity. We just want the Torah back — no questions asked."
BY JILL KASSANDER, SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH LIGHT
University City police are investigating the disappearance of one of the Torahs belonging to Congregation Bais Menachem — Chabad on Delmar. Rabbi Yosef Landa and the congregation discovered the Torah was missing during Shabbat services on May 24.
"When we opened the ark for the Torah service I realized one of the Torahs was missing," Landa said. "A big gasp went up throughout the congregation."
The synagogue keeps two Torah scrolls in the ark, said Landa. The congregation does not have a daily minyan so the last time he saw both Torah scrolls was the previous Shabbat.
"The Torah which was stolen is the only Torah we actually own," Landa said. "It is a very beautiful, tall Torah with a red mantle, with large letters in the script style of Rabbi Yitzchak Luria, the Ari Zal. The other Torah we have is on loan to us."
Landa contacted the University City police department after Shabbat and officers arrived within a few minutes. They interviewed Landa, filed a report and told him he would be contacted by a detective during the week.
Further research by the Jewish Light has found three thefts of Torahs from Chabad congregations in other states in the past nine months. Asked about the other thefts, Detective Mike Gage who was assigned to the case said he would be looking into the other incidents.
"We will be contacting the other police departments to compare notes and look for possible connections," Gage said.
One of the Torah thefts occurred around the end of September 2007 from Yeshiva High School in Cottage Grove, Minn.
"A Torah scroll was stolen and a video projector," Rabbi Moshe Weiss, the school's director of development said. "The Torah scroll and projector have not been recovered."
In April, a Chabad House in Miami Beach, Fla., was burned down in an apparent case of arson being investigated by fire officials, the police and the FBI according to an article on MiamiHerald.com. It is believed the congregation's Torah scroll was stolen before the fire was set.
Two scrolls were discovered missing from Congregation Bnai Zedek Chabad in Kenosha, Wis., on April 15. The small congregation has only been around for about nine months, said Rabbi Tzali Wilschanski. The rabbi was giving a class in the social hall downstairs and closed the door to the sanctuary before he left for the evening.
"There was no sign of a break-in," Wilschanski said. "I am concerned somebody might have entered the synagogue and hidden in the sanctuary because the deadbolt lock was open in the morning."
The hazzan's oversize siddur, chumashim and the rabbi's laptop computer were also stolen, though the thief left behind the silver ornaments used to adorn to the Torah.
It is not clear whether any of the thefts are connected although there are similarities in some of the cases, such as the missing books. Landa had noticed a couple of books missing about two weeks before the Torah theft.
"I noticed the large oversized siddur used by the hazzan and a large oversized book of Haftarot were missing," Landa said. "We looked everywhere and thought perhaps someone had borrowed them and forgotten to return them."
Now Landa is wondering if the two incidents are related.
"My mind was racing when I saw the Torah scroll was gone though I don't know if the events are connected," Landa said. "All that was stolen were communal articles. They did not take the pushke which has about $30 to $40 in it."
The Torah scroll is valued at $30,000 to $40,000 according to the police report, though Landa said he would have to do additional research to assess the value of that particular Torah.
Landa said he e-mailed other rabbis to alert them to the theft so they could be more watchful at their own congregations.
"This is so disappointing," Landa said. "There was no sign of forced entry. We have an open door policy. People who frequent the congregation know the code to get into the building."
Barry Parnas regularly attends Shabbat services at the congregation and was there when the theft was discovered.
"I remember the Aron HaKodesh, the Holy Ark, being opened and only one Torah being in there," Parnas said. "The first person to respond was Rabbi Landa. I think he said, 'Sefer Torah missing.'"
Sometimes the shul will use the Torah someplace else but it is always back by Shabbat, said Parnas. He said the congregation was very shaken and surprised by the theft.
"A Torah doesn't seem like something that someone would steal," Parnas said. "It seems very odd to me that someone would take it."
Landa and members of the congregation checked around the community just in case someone had borrowed the Torah and other items for a shiva house or to study.
"This is very sad for me personally," Landa said. "I'm holding out hope that I will wake up from this nightmare and the Torah will be back. I assure whoever took it total anonymity. We just want the Torah back — no questions asked."
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Teamwork leads to recovery of holy Jewish cabinet
Saturday, September 15, 2007
By LAURIE LUCAS
The Press-Enterprise
The timing was perfect: Smooth sailing for Rabbi Shmuel Fuss' ark.
It isn't a vessel like Noah's, but a holy cabinet specially constructed to hold an ancient handwritten scroll called the Torah.
The ark arrived last Wednesday and was consecrated at the Chabad Jewish Community Center in Riverside for the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah.
What makes the ark especially poignant for Fuss, 27, is the convergence of several faiths behind the rescue and resurrection of this sacred box.
A Muslim discovered it in an antiques store in Yucca Valley. Her Jewish friends bought and transported the ark to Riverside. Their Jewish friends knew that Fuss' congregation needed an ark. They asked their Mormon neighbors if their son was looking for a service project. He was. And so, that's how the mysterious ark came to be restored.
"What I find so beautiful is that we're from the same God, the same universe," Fuss said. "We all came together with total respect."
Jon Taleb, 60, the daughter of a Kurdish father and Irish mother, stumbled upon the ark while searching for a chest of drawers. An elementary school teacher in Perris, she stopped at a vintage shop one day on her way home to Joshua Tree.
The ark had languished at the second-hand furniture store for at least three decades. The owner thought it had come from a church. But Taleb knew better.
Although Muslim, she'd visited synagogues for Holocaust Remembrance Day.
She recognized the Hebrew letters on the massive structure. It stood nearly 5 foot tall from the top of its peaked roof to the bottom of the box, which was almost as wide. It was 30 inches deep with two folding doors in front.
Taleb could see in the veneer the imprint of a metal Star of David that had been removed. "I felt some kind of reverence," Taleb said. "It had meant something to someone."
She described the ark in detail to her friends, Margie and Kevin Akin, members of Temple Beth El in Riverside. Their synagogue has a fine ark.
Margie Akin consulted her mahjong partner, Inez Trupp. She and husband Chet Trupp have attended Chabad services in the new community center. They asked Fuss.
He was eager to jettison Chabad's makeshift ark for the one abandoned at the antiques store.
"What better time to inaugurate it than the Jewish holidays?" he said.
Margie Akin gave Jon Taleb $80 to buy the ark. Taleb hauled it home. On Aug. 19, Kevin Akin drove the ark to Riverside where he scrutinized the box that was huge enough to hold four Torahs.
He surmised that the ark was at least a half-century old and was once housed in a now-defunct desert synagogue. The ark probably disappeared after its retiree population died out. Or perhaps an another congregation discarded the ark after renovating or moving to a new building.
"This piece is so heavy and bulky it probably never traveled very far," Kevin Akin said.
16-Year-Old's Project
Next stop was the home of Mark and Darlene Malone. Friends of the Trupps, they agreed to take on the transformation of the ark. It was intended as a Boy Scout and a Mormon church project for their 16-year-old son, Andrew, a junior at Riverside's King High School.
Andrew has Jewish friends and attended a bat mitzvah, a coming-of-age ceremony when a Jewish girl turns 13.
"I wanted to do something to help the Jewish community," he said.
Because of Andrew's heavy football schedule and the tight two-week deadline to rehabilitate the ark, dad stepped in to do most of the work.
"Whoever made the ark was absolutely a carpenter," marveled Mark Malone, himself an expert craftsmen.
Father and son built a 3-foot cabinet for the holy box to sit on, making it a seamless unit. They sanded and restained the ark, repaired damages, painted with gold inlay the Hebrew letters carved into the Ten Commandments at the top of the ark and replaced $400 worth of hardware.
Fuss said he plans to reimburse Malone, a small price for the donated ark the rabbi estimates would cost about $5,000.
Fuss placed the ark at the easternmost wall of the community center. That's because worshippers chant prayers while facing the Western Wall in Jerusalem, which is east in most Jewish-populated countries.
"This is really a wonderful new beginning," he said.
By LAURIE LUCAS
The Press-Enterprise
The timing was perfect: Smooth sailing for Rabbi Shmuel Fuss' ark.
It isn't a vessel like Noah's, but a holy cabinet specially constructed to hold an ancient handwritten scroll called the Torah.
The ark arrived last Wednesday and was consecrated at the Chabad Jewish Community Center in Riverside for the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah.
What makes the ark especially poignant for Fuss, 27, is the convergence of several faiths behind the rescue and resurrection of this sacred box.
A Muslim discovered it in an antiques store in Yucca Valley. Her Jewish friends bought and transported the ark to Riverside. Their Jewish friends knew that Fuss' congregation needed an ark. They asked their Mormon neighbors if their son was looking for a service project. He was. And so, that's how the mysterious ark came to be restored.
"What I find so beautiful is that we're from the same God, the same universe," Fuss said. "We all came together with total respect."
Jon Taleb, 60, the daughter of a Kurdish father and Irish mother, stumbled upon the ark while searching for a chest of drawers. An elementary school teacher in Perris, she stopped at a vintage shop one day on her way home to Joshua Tree.
The ark had languished at the second-hand furniture store for at least three decades. The owner thought it had come from a church. But Taleb knew better.
Although Muslim, she'd visited synagogues for Holocaust Remembrance Day.
She recognized the Hebrew letters on the massive structure. It stood nearly 5 foot tall from the top of its peaked roof to the bottom of the box, which was almost as wide. It was 30 inches deep with two folding doors in front.
Taleb could see in the veneer the imprint of a metal Star of David that had been removed. "I felt some kind of reverence," Taleb said. "It had meant something to someone."
She described the ark in detail to her friends, Margie and Kevin Akin, members of Temple Beth El in Riverside. Their synagogue has a fine ark.
Margie Akin consulted her mahjong partner, Inez Trupp. She and husband Chet Trupp have attended Chabad services in the new community center. They asked Fuss.
He was eager to jettison Chabad's makeshift ark for the one abandoned at the antiques store.
"What better time to inaugurate it than the Jewish holidays?" he said.
Margie Akin gave Jon Taleb $80 to buy the ark. Taleb hauled it home. On Aug. 19, Kevin Akin drove the ark to Riverside where he scrutinized the box that was huge enough to hold four Torahs.
He surmised that the ark was at least a half-century old and was once housed in a now-defunct desert synagogue. The ark probably disappeared after its retiree population died out. Or perhaps an another congregation discarded the ark after renovating or moving to a new building.
"This piece is so heavy and bulky it probably never traveled very far," Kevin Akin said.
16-Year-Old's Project
Next stop was the home of Mark and Darlene Malone. Friends of the Trupps, they agreed to take on the transformation of the ark. It was intended as a Boy Scout and a Mormon church project for their 16-year-old son, Andrew, a junior at Riverside's King High School.
Andrew has Jewish friends and attended a bat mitzvah, a coming-of-age ceremony when a Jewish girl turns 13.
"I wanted to do something to help the Jewish community," he said.
Because of Andrew's heavy football schedule and the tight two-week deadline to rehabilitate the ark, dad stepped in to do most of the work.
"Whoever made the ark was absolutely a carpenter," marveled Mark Malone, himself an expert craftsmen.
Father and son built a 3-foot cabinet for the holy box to sit on, making it a seamless unit. They sanded and restained the ark, repaired damages, painted with gold inlay the Hebrew letters carved into the Ten Commandments at the top of the ark and replaced $400 worth of hardware.
Fuss said he plans to reimburse Malone, a small price for the donated ark the rabbi estimates would cost about $5,000.
Fuss placed the ark at the easternmost wall of the community center. That's because worshippers chant prayers while facing the Western Wall in Jerusalem, which is east in most Jewish-populated countries.
"This is really a wonderful new beginning," he said.
Thursday, September 06, 2007
Jewish center welcomes arrival of Torah
For the 250 or so families involved, it is a time of great happiness at the Chabad of the South Hills.
The Jewish Center for Living and Learning in Mt. Lebanon formally welcomed the addition of its own Torah scroll last evening.
"Purchasing or refurbishing a Torah is considered to be a huge, huge celebration in the Jewish community," said Rabbi Mendel Rosenblum, co-director of the Chabad with his wife, Batya.
Ten days of the High Holidays begin Wednesday with Rosh Hashana and conclude at Yom Kippur.
The synagogue's ark currently has three other scrolls -- the text, written in Hebrew, is literally considered the words of God as given to Moses -- on loan through various long- and short-term arrangements.
"Typically, the first time the [scroll] arrives, it is welcomed to the synagogue, but the timing just didn't work out for us," Rabbi Rosenblum said, explaining that the Chabad of the South Hills received the Torah several months ago.
Last night's festivities included dancing and dinner, as well as an education program for the children.
The cost of obtaining a Torah "is significant," he said. "which ranges anywhere from $20,000 to $70,000.
"But the spiritual achievement is great as well. It's always welcomed into the synagogue, even if it's not the first Torah scroll."
The scroll was purchased from another conservative synagogue, Poale Tzedek in Squirrel Hill.
"One of the members of our congregation grew up in this synagogue and their family is still very active. They were the ones who made the connection for us.
"It was a huge donation [but] the family wants to remain anonymous. They just wanted to see the Torah restored."
The scroll, he said, "was not fit for use when we purchased it," so they sent it to a scribe in New York who restores Torahs.
The process took about five months; all of the characters are handwritten on parchment and those handling the scrolls must be painstakingly careful due to age and wear.
When the restoration was complete, the entire Torah was run through a computer scanner to check for accuracy.
"We found two letters missing entirely," Rabbi Rosenblum said. "So in a sense, this is the first time it's really fit for use. It's really a cause for celebration in our community."
The Chabad of the South Hills began in the Rosenblum's home almost nine years ago, but is currently renting property from the Bower Hill Swim Club. A new center on McFarland Road will be dedicated this winter.
"There's a lot of symbolism here, between the holidays and our moving to a new place," Rabbi Rosenblum said.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)