[ RELIGION ]
STAR-BULLETIN / 2001
Marty Kogan and granddaughter Isabel Yeoh marvel at the unscrolled Torah at Temple Emanu-El in a previous celebration of the covenant between God and the Hebrew people.
All welcome to witness
Torah be unscrolled
The entire Torah -- parchment scrolls containing the five books of Moses -- will be unrolled at Temple Emanu-El tonight as the congregation joins Jews around the world celebrating the covenant between God and the Hebrew people.
The Simchat Torah holiday traditionally involves reading the last passage in Deuteronomy, then the first paragraph of the Book of Genesis, as the yearlong reading of the law both ends and begins again.
The 7 p.m. celebration at 2550 Pali Highway is unique, said Dana Washofsky, president of the temple board of directors.
"To unscroll it completely is incredibly unusual. We're not the only one where it is done, but it isn't typical," she said. "It allows for the breadth of the Torah to be seen. It is awesome, and I don't mean in the way kids say it. An individual may have the chance to read a portion now and then, but this gives the opportunity to see the inside of the whole scroll."
In the process, Rabbi Avi Magid will point out certain passages, such as God giving Moses the Ten Commandments and other writings known to Christians as the Old Testament Pentateuch and retold as part of Western culture in poetry, music, books and movies.
The holiday is light-hearted, said Washofski; visitors are welcome.
She said the synagogue's Torah scrolls are undergoing another kind of scrutiny. The congregation is raising funds to have its eight sets of scriptural writing restored. The handwritten Hebrew calligraphy on parchment can only be refurbished by a trained and authorized scribe or sofer. Among the treasured scrolls at the temple is one that was given to King Kalakaua and another that was rescued from Nazi destruction during World War II.
Click for online
calendars and events.
