Florida Chabad House Prepares to Receive Torah

The limitations of having only one Torah scroll struck Rabbi Sholom Schmerling during Yom Kippur services last year at Chabad of Venice and North Port, Florida.

The solution, to commission a new Torah written primarily by a scribe in Israel, will lead to a day of rejoicing in mid-February when the ancient teachings are unveiled.

“When you have to read from a section of Genesis and then one from Numbers on the other side, you have to unroll the other end,” Schmerling said. “It’s a lot of work. Somebody got up and said, ‘Why don’t we get another torah?'”

A major pledge from Jerry and Gayle Zingerman began the capital campaign, and other synagogue members and businesses pitched in. Schmerling said more than half of the needed $36,000 has been raised by members of the congregation that began in 2005 with three families and now serves more than 700.

He anticipates the rest being donated before the Feb. 16 celebration that will involve closing a lane of U.S. 41 for the procession of the new torah traveling with accompanying music and dancers to its new home at Chabad.

“It’s like a wedding between God and the Jewish people,” Schmerling said. “With that celebration of joy, we will bring it to its new place at the synagogue.”

The rabbi used contacts from when he studied in Israel to find the scribe who painstakingly hand-lettered its 53 portions representing roughly 308,000 words. Scanning by both people and computers ensure that all letters are in place and not touching or the laborious process must begin again.

“The writing of the torah goes back exactly to the same way Moses wrote it when God dictated the words,” Schmerling said. “It’s a skill and a talent to be able to handwrite the ancient Hebrew on parchment.”

To raise money, the synagogue offered sponsorship opportunities. Portions dedicated to one’s bar mitzvah or to a loved one complemented specified high holiday giving.

Abbie Davis and her husband, Steve, are sponsoring a portion of Exodus about contributions from the children of Israel that must always be given with the correct intent. Steve, who is Southern Baptist, also has embraced Judaism.

“We wanted to do something that was not material, that expressed our spiritual ideals through the torah,” she said. “Something that was more of a legacy than an event and we wanted to contribute to Chabad the legacy we could give to ourselves and our children and the community. We just jumped on the bandwagon and said, ‘Yes, this is something we want to be a part of.'”

Setting an example for their son Adam, 24, also was important.

“We want him to see us try to do things for the right reasons, not for the glory of man, but for God,” she said. “The best thing we can do is give him an example of our values and our ideals.”

Similarly, Chabad member Dan Rubin and his wife, Shellie, recognized the significance of a new torah arriving in Venice. Rubin recalled a visited to Israel and watching a scribe work on Mount Masada.

“It’s the commandment, everything you need to know is right there,” he said. “I call it our ancient GPS; it guides our lives.”

The couple elected to sponsor a portion about Jews choosing to be counted in the desert that was read at his son’s bat mitzvah. Rubin also sponsored the silver crown that will sit atop the parchment.

While Rubin is grateful his family’s generosity will help tie it to Venice forever, he said Chabad has needed a torah for some time. The orthodox synagogue he attended before moving here nine years ago from Ohio had several.

Schmerling has been using a torah from his late father that had been his final “mitzvah” before passing.

The new one, which will be completed after it is transported from Jerusalem to Florida, will be finished by a Miami scribe. With sponsors in attendance to assist with the lettering, the sacred document that the kabbalah calls the blueprint for life will be complete.

“Literally, every aspect of our life even in 2013 when we have challenges, the answers are in our torah,” he said.