Vinnytsia Welcomes New Torah Scroll During Sukkot

Members of the Jewish community of Vinnytsia, Ukraine, together with guests, rabbis and dignitaries, gathered during Chol Hamoed Sukkot for a moving celebration marking the dedication of a new Torah scroll to the community.

The Torah scroll was generously donated by the Jewish community of Dnipro, with the assistance of Chief Rabbi Shmuel Kaminezki. In honor of the occasion, a festive procession accompanied the Torah through the streets with torches, music, singing and dancing.

Among those who joined the celebration was Rabbi Shlomo Wilhelm, Chief Rabbi of Zhytomyr and Western Ukraine, who offered words of encouragement to members of the community, particularly displaced Jewish families who have joined the Vinnytsia community in recent years.

Rabbi Halperin and Rabbi Moshe Thaler, Chief Rabbi of Berdichev, also participated, together with additional rabbis and Chabad emissaries, as well as students of the city’s Jewish educational institutions.

Members of the Jewish communities of Zhytomyr and Berdichev, together with yeshiva students, traveled to Vinnytsia to share in the celebration. Following the Torah scroll’s arrival at the synagogue, traditional hakafot were held, with participants dancing together in honor of the Torah.

Addressing the gathering, Chief Rabbi of Vinnytsia Rabbi Shaul Horowitz quoted the teaching, “The Torah, the Holy One, blessed be He, and the Jewish people are one,” emphasizing the enduring bond between the Jewish people, their faith and the Torah.

The celebration continued with the mitzvah of the Four Species, followed by a festive meal in the community’s spacious sukkah. Each participant also received a personal souvenir — a piece of fabric from the material used to make the Torah scroll’s cover — as a lasting memento of the special occasion.