New Torah Scroll Welcomed into Mykolaiv Synagogue Ahead of Shavuot

The Jewish community of Mykolaiv, Ukraine led by Rabbi Sholom and Rebbetzin Dina Gotlieb, celebrated the dedication of a new and beautifully written Torah scroll to the city’s central synagogue ahead of Shavuot, the festival marking the Giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai.

Hundreds of community members, guests, local dignitaries, and students from the city’s Or Menachem Jewish educational institutions joined the festive procession, which made its way through the streets accompanied by live music, singing, and dancing.

The Torah scroll was donated, with the encouragement and guidance of Rabbi Shmuel Kaminezki, Chief Rabbi of Dnipro, by Mr. Benjamin Dachenko of the Jewish community of Dnipro, in honor of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson.

The dedication carried special meaning in Mykolaiv, a city deeply connected to the Rebbe’s life and legacy. The Rebbe was born there in 1902 and spent his early childhood years in the city, where his grandfather, Rabbi Meir Shlomo Yanovsky, served as chief rabbi. Mykolaiv is also remembered as part of a distinguished rabbinic family legacy connected to Rabbi Avraham David Lavut, the Rebbe’s great-great-grandfather, who served as the city’s rabbi beginning in the 19th century.

The celebration continued as the Torah scroll was welcomed into the synagogue, where the existing Torah scrolls were taken from the Ark in honor of the new arrival. A local choir accompanied the event with song, while spirited Hakafot filled the synagogue with joy.

At the conclusion of the ceremony, the large crowd sat down together for a festive seudat mitzvah, marking the dedication of the new Torah scroll and preparing as a community for the upcoming holiday of Shavuot.