A Torah desecrated during the Holocaust will be rededicated in memory of the victims of Oct. 7 and in honor of IDF soldiers defending Israel, as part of a Seder Torah project coordinated by the East Valley JCC. 

Members of the Greater Phoenix community are invited to participate in the Nov. 19 dedication of the Torah by purchasing portions of the Torah, such as a word, verse or parsha. 

The final verses will be written during a ceremony held at the site of the Nova Music Festival site near Re’im, Israel, where 364 young adults were murdered on Oct. 7, 2023. Afterward, the Torah will be transported to its new home at Yeshivat AMIT Ashdod, where it will be used by yeshiva students who will serve in the Israel Defense Forces after graduation. 

The Torah was written in the late 1800s and was found in rubble after World War II in Marseille, France. A Jewish family visiting France found the Torah in the possession of a man who had it unrolled on the floor and they purchased it and brought it home. After the family decided to sell the Torah, the East Valley JCC purchased it for a project that ended up being sidelined due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

During a 2023 visit to Israel after the Oct. 7 attacks, Rabbi Michael Beyo, East Valley JCC CEO, learned about the work of Machane Shura, the IDF’s Casualty Treatment Unit, and realized he found a new home for the Torah.

Rabbi Shalom Malool, the rabbi of Machane Shura, is also the rosh yeshiva (head of school) of Yeshivat AMIT Ashdod, a yeshiva in Ashdod, Israel with hundreds of students.

After the repair and restoration of the Torah is complete, so that it can be halachically kosher to be used again, the Torah will be given to the yeshiva this year on Nov. 19, in memory of the victims of Oct. 7 and in honor of the members of the IDF who defend the Jewish state and its people. Donations for the project will go to Machane Shura, to help provide recovery and healing support for members of the unit.

“I thought, what better place to give this sefer Torah that survived the Holocaust than a place where it’s going to be used on a regular basis,” said Rabbi Beyo. “In my mind, this creates a connection between the people who originally wrote it and those who will use it today.” 

Be a part of this project here

Learn more about Machane Shura here.

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