Torah Completion Ceremony Marks Milestone at Chabad of Nashoba Valley in Westford

WESTFORD, MA — When Rabbi Zalman Gurkow, his wife, Malka, and their five children left their former synagogue in Newton three years ago to a new Jewish community in the more rural Westford, a day like the one they experienced on Sept. 21 would not have seemed possible.

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About 100 people gathered that Sunday on the lawn of Chabad House on Tadmuck Road, home to the Chabad of Nashoba Valley, for a rarely witnessed ceremony — a Torah Completion and Dedication Ceremony.

At the Chabad’s first event, “We had three people. This past event drew 100 people,” said Gurkow. “Three years ago, I had no idea a day could ever come when we’d celebrate with 100 people — completing a Torah on the streets of Westford.”

And celebrate they did, including a parade with the Torah amid music as the Torah arrived at its new home — the “ark” at Chabad House. Guest speakers followed, along with a festive meal and special entertainment for the children.

“It was a very moving afternoon. The first half was done on the side yard — that was the spiritual side as we completed the scroll,” Gurkow explained. “It was spiritually moving, many witnessing this for the first time.”

The Torah is the most precious heritage in Jewish life, says Gurkow. Jews believe that at Sinai, God dictated to Moses the Torah word for word, and then it was placed in the Holy Ark of the Temple.

Additional Torahs were then transcribed from the original in precise detail — so precise, in fact, that one inaccurate letter in a Torah even today deems it unsuitable or un-Kosher, said Gurkow.
The words read in synagogues today are exactly as those recorded by Moses, with none of the 304,805 letters ever having been changed.

According to Jewish tradition, every Jew “owns” a letter in the Torah, corresponding to their spiritual identity, says Gurkow.

There is also a little known commandment, says the Chabad’s David Levy, that every Jew should write his own entire Torah scroll. Given the size of the Torah, this is a daunting task that was undertaken by the Kings of Israel.

Since it’s largely impractical today, Jews instead make a contribution by buying a letter, word or verse of the Torah to fulfill this obligation, according to Levy.

Many of the letters, words, sentences or sections of the Torah that was completed and dedicated at Chabad House were endowed by Chabad participants, friends and families.

The Chabad doesn’t have a formal membership. It’s an outreach synagogue, inviting Jews practicing at all levels, or not practicing at all, to come back to their Jewish roots, said Gurkow.

All who endowed the Torah became “partners” in the restoration of the scroll, which originated in Florida and was part of a synagogue that had closed.

It is customary that scribes leave the Torah unfinished in order to afford people of the community the honor of writing a letter in the Torah.

Writing the letters and dedicating the Torah served to unite today’s Nashoba Valley community with its ancient history, said Gurkow.

“The text is over 3,000 years old and it’s exactly the same today. This is connecting us with history of 3,000 years, uniting everyone who was part of that history. It’s one happy circle.”

In addition to completing the scroll, the ceremony included the sounding of the shofar, which is done every day during the Hebrew month of Elul as a reminder of the High Holy Days (Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur); the Hagbah (one person is honored with lifting the Torah once it’s dried); and the Gelilah (dressing and covering of the scroll).

Prayers, blessings, singing and dancing take place as the new Torah is festively carried to its ark, while other Torah scrolls are removed from the synagogue to “greet” the new Torah. It is then placed in its new home at Chabad House.

The new Torah at Chabad of Nashoba Valley was dedicated to the memories of Rabbi Yechezkel and Menucha Vitta Pinson, who began their lives in Russia under the Soviet regime, which outlawed any and all communal and religious activities. They are the grandparents of Malka Gurkow.

The late David Waxman was also honored for his work in having the Torah restored and brought to Chabad House.

As Gurkow reflects on the day, he is gratified that so many witnessed a special and rare event in Jewish life.

“To sit down, take a quill and partner in writing the most sacred part of Jewish life — it’s a very transcending experience. And for us, using the new Torah for the first time on the Jewish New Year is even more meaningful.”