'Momentous Event': Northbrook's Beth El Celebrates New Torah

NORTHBROOK, IL — The good vibes continue at Temple Beth-El with the acquisition of a new Torah just one year after the Northbrook congregation celebrated its 150th anniversary. TBE, one of Chicagoland's oldest practicing synagogues, was officially recognized on May 12 during Shabbat services after it reached the North Shore via Israel.

According to TBE, the last time the synagogue acquired a new Torah was 40 years ago. The process of creating a Torah starts in Israel when a sofer, or scribe, personally writes the 300,000 letters that are inscribed by hand. TBE said the writing process can take more than a year to complete. When the writing is near completion, the scribe will then trace the outlines of the final letters, which allows the TBE community to witness the final words being written in Northbrook.

"The Torah contains 613 commandments. It has been taught that the 613th is that every Jew should write a Torah in their lifetime and we were thrilled to be able to make this possible for so many members of our community," Rabbi Sidney Helbraun said. "This was my first opportunity to participate in writing a Torah. The experience gave me a great feeling of pride as well as a deeper physical connection to our people’s traditions and story."

In addition, TBE introduced its "The Torah Belongs To Everyone" project, which gave every temple member a chance to finish a letter in the Torah.

Earlier this month, over the course of two days, local scribe Yochanan Nathan met with congregants to finish writing the Torah. TBE said each participant or family received a beautiful commemorative document detailing the significance of their letter. Families also participated in Torah-related activities such as creating their own mini Torah, decorating Tzedakah bags and more.

During the May 12 services, hundreds of congregants who attended the service lined up in two rows to accompany the Torah from the Mishkan, where it was completed, into the Ark in the main sanctuary where it will be housed.

"As we mark the end of our 150th year, we are able to celebrate our ongoing creation and participation in our people’s traditions through the writing of the Torah with our own hands and hope that we will bring the teachings of the Torah to life through our deeds in the world," Helbraun said.

To learn more about Temple Beth-El of Northbrook, visit www.templebeth-el.org and follow them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TempleBethElNorthbrookIL.