G‑d instructed Moses to transcribe His words at Sinai. The very first Torah scroll was born. For thousands of years since, each Torah has been transcribed precisely the same way.
It begins with parchment, ink, a hand-sharpened feather quill, and a G‑d fearing Sofer (scribe). Intense concentration is required. Indeed, to help his focus, a Sofer can be heard while writing saying, “for the holiness of a Sefer Torah.”
It takes one year, 62 large sheets of parchment, 248 columns, 10,416 lines, and a perfect 304,805 letters. Completed, a Torah Scroll is the holiest object in Judaism.
The Torah is brought into its new home, the synagogue’s holy ark, in a celebration reminiscent of a wedding. Elegant velvet, gold and silver, adorn the new Torah.
3,333 years old. The Torah remains flawlessly unchanged. It is a living miracle.
The Very Last Mitzvah in the Torah
The final Mitzvah that Moses communicated to us in the Torah is the Mitzvah to write a Torah. It is an honor and great Mitzvah to participate in the writing of a Torah. By endowing a letter, word, or sentence for yourself, your children, your family members, or friends, it is as though you have written your own Torah Scroll, thus fulfilling this special Mitzvah.
With the kind help and generosity of the Pickell family, Chabad of South Scottsdale has commissioned a scribe to begin writing a new Torah Scroll for our growing community. The Torah has been dedicated in Memory of Sara's parents - Shalom Reuven and Neome Mazal Barzilai, and will be housed at Chabad in time for the Jewish New year, Rosh Hashanah, which is also David Chai's birthday!
We invite you to join us in writing history, fulfill the Mitzvah of writing a Torah Scroll uniting Jews from every background by endowing a letter, word or sentence in the South Scottsdale CommUnity Torah for each member of your family. You also have the option of dedicating various special selections in honor or in memory of a loved one.
Now, you can fulfill this Mitzvah. Join us in writing history!
