Congregation to celebrate 10 years of hosting rescued Holocaust Torah

Posted By: Jack Krampitz May 6, 2022

The following is a press release from Gishrei Shalom Jewish Congregat

Gishrei Shalom Jewish Congregation (GSJC) in Southington invites the community to attend a special Friday night service on May 20, 2022 led by Rabbi Alana Wasserman. Ten years ago, the congregation became “shomrim” (guardians) for a Torah scroll rescued after World War II. 

The congregation’s former rabbi, Shelley Becker, who will attend the service, proposed the project to the tiny congregation and after a challenging fundraising effort, the Torah was selected and brought to Southington.

The Torah is a parchment scroll containing the five books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy). It is written by hand by skilled scribes. This specific Torah has some components that date back to the 17th century. It probably was used in several different congregations over hundreds of years.

The Memorial Scrolls Trust in London, England, has a collection of rescued scrolls and tries to find congregations which will care for them. GSJC arranged with the Trust to obtain this Torah which was rescued from the Caslav-Golcuv-Jenikov region, in Bohemia, near Prague. 

By law, Caslav could only have one Jewish family living there until the mid-nineteenth century. When Jews were given civic equality, a congregation was created there in 1870 with about 300 members at its height. The congregation disappeared entirely after World War II.

Golcuv-Jenikov was an important Jewish center with over 500 Jews in the mid-18th century. It also disappeared after World War II. 

GSJC has researched the names of those Jews who were deported by the Nazis from these towns. Their names are read during the Yizkor service on Yom Kippur, a time to remember family members who have died. 

GSJC has an ongoing project to repair and maintain this historic scroll. After the first major repair, it was re-dedicated in 2016. The congregation welcomes donations to its Torah fund to ensure that ongoing repairs can be made. 

The celebration will take place during a regular Friday night service at 7 pm in GSJC’s home at First Congregational Church, 37 Main Street, Southington. The service will be held in the Meetinghouse. All are welcome to attend. 

For more information or to RSVP, please contact membership@gsjc.org or 860.276.9113. GSJC also has more information on their website: www.gjsc.org.