On the Shabbat before Rosh Hashanah, Rabbi Yossi Simon, the leader of London’s Chabad of Golders Green was discussing with members of the the community the final commandment in the Bible — the requirement to write your own Torah scroll — as well as how they would commemorate the Oct. 7 terror attacks, which fell on Simchat Torah in Israel. Suddenly, the two ideas came together: The community would write its own Torah scroll, sponsored by the members, which would be dedicated to all of those who were killed on Oct. 7 and would be used in this year’s Simchat Torah celebrations, which were less than a month away, reports Jenni Frazer for eJewishPhilanthropy from London. Despite the tight time schedule, yesterday, the community marked the completion of the scroll, along with the dedication of a cover and silver crown.

Get it done: A sofer stam (scribe) was found in Israel who had almost finished writing a scroll and was just having it scrutinized for potential errors. He agreed to sell it to the community. And a massive operation kicked off to raise the money by “selling” each of the Torah’s 54 parshas for £1,200 ($1,558). Yesterday, a bulky parcel arrived from Israel at London’s Heathrow Airport, swathed in packaging and only just identifiable as a Torah scroll by the wooden poles visible through the wrapping. The scroll was ready, save for the verse of the Torah, which was completed last night with a local scribe on behalf of members of the community.

In his name: Among those present to complete the scroll was Shai Shojat, whose uncle, Michel Nisenbaum, from Brazil, was among those murdered on Oct. 7. Michel, 59, was killed in the southern town of Sderot, and his body was taken into Gaza and only retrieved by the army on May 24. Shojat, who attended the ceremony with his young children, entered a letter in the sefer Torah in his uncle’s name.

Read the full report here.

Cantor Robert Lieberman and his wife, Rabbi Vicki Lieberman, donated $500,000 to the Zamir Choral Foundation, a nonprofit focused on promoting Jewish choral music, in order to create a first-of-its-kind institute to train conductors of Jewish choirs, the organization told eJewishPhilanthropy’s Judah Ari Gross.

Creating a pipeline: The Jewish Choral Conducting Institute, which will have its first meeting on Sunday, will train a cohort of 12-15 Lazar Fellows, named in honor of the founder and director of the foundation, Matthew Lazar. The participants come from the United States and Israel and will take part in “in-person retreats and workshops, monthly online and in one-on-one mentoring sessions with Maestro Lazar and guest presenters,” the organization said. Upon completion of the program, they will receive a certificate in Jewish choral conducting, as well as assistance finding places to work afterward.

Secured and expanded: “By auditioning and training the next generation of conductors, under the leadership of Maestro Lazar, the future of Jewish choral music and its impact on Jewish literacy into the next generation will not only be secured but expanded throughout the United States and Israel,” Robert Lieberman said in a statement.

Read the full report here.

“Over the past few years, our ability to be seen and see others, allow for our perspectives to be heard and opinions to be valued have been overshadowed by our collective grief. Sukkot represents our profound opportunity within the Jewish calendar to reclaim what it means to proactively gather in order to reconnect with ourselves and each other in ways that allow us to help others feel more seen and understood,” writes Jodie Goldberg, founder and principal of Fleurish Consulting Inc., in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy.

Lessons from the ‘Four Species’: “The backbone of Sukkot is the opportunity to dwell with family and friends in the sukkah… While designing a sukkah, we have an opportunity to utilize its internal walls to create invitations in the form of photos, interactive art work, banners and symbols in order to spark curiosity that can lead to deeper connections between people.”

Coming together: “Jewish tradition teaches us that it’s a mitzvah to share a meal with others in the sukkah… Reframing the meal through the lens of a potluck allows sukkah guests to bring a food item or dish that tells a story about who they are and ignites curiosity in others to learn more about the person they want to become… Judaism offers us profound gifts in the form of prayer and song which help ground us in our own emotions and narratives.”

Read the full piece here.

“About this time a few years ago… I went to visit a friend in the hospital who was very ill… The problem was that her next of kin was not answering the phone. A few hours later, I finally got hold of him. He told me not to worry. I would see her in the next few days. But my dear friend, to everyone’s surprise, died that evening. I was unable to see her for the last time and say goodbye,” writes Erica Brown, the author of Kohelet and the Search for Meaning and vice provost for leadership and values at Yeshiva University, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy. “This dose of deep regret helped me appreciate the advice that the Israel Defense Forces gives soldiers before entering combat: Say goodbye. Don’t wait. First write letters to loved ones with the hopes that no one will have to read them. Ever.”

Enjoy while you can: “I’ve been thinking about [that] a great deal as we transition from Yom Kippur to Sukkot, when we traditionally read Kohelet, the Book of Ecclesiastes. Kohelet expresses great uncertainty about the world and accentuates the looming shadow of death. Be prepared, its author assumes, for any eventuality, and make every moment count more. In seven verse clusters throughout the book, Kohelet promotes the small joys of eating and drinking with friends amidst the grander, more difficult of life’s challenges. This, too, is a response to the fragility of life. Say the right words and grab the temporal pleasures because they may be all you have.”

Make it count: “This Sukkot, as we recite Ushpizin to welcome in heroes from our biblical past, let us include heroes and hostages from our recent past. And let us create authentically intimate spaces – physically and emotionally — where we are not afraid to tell our friends and family what they mean to us and how much we love them under the shelter of a ceiling that still exposes a little bit of heaven. Because we are alive and because we can.”

Read the full piece here.

“A neighbor invited me to her annual Simchat Torah potluck picnic lunch. Her email invited us to be together again this year, so that “the kids can celebrate, while the adults cry.” I have heard this same refrain from everyone as the holiday approaches — the children need space to joyfully celebrate the Torah with candy and dancing, while adults can’t imagine feeling anything but grief on the anniversary of a massacre. How can we give our children Simchat Torah when the adults need Tisha B’Av?” writes Rabbi Avi Killip, executive vice president at the Hadar Institute, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy.

Weeping and shouting: “There is an emotional passage from the book of Ezra that recounts the moment of the rebuilding of the Temple. We might imagine this as a purely ecstatic and joyous experience for the Jewish people, but Ezra presents a more nuanced picture: One where the elders and the youth seem to have entirely different experiences simultaneously… ‘The elders who had seen the first house, wept loudly at the sight of the founding of this house. Many others shouted joyously at the top of their voices.’”

This year can hurt: “[Rashi] teaches that the weeping actually overtook the sounds of joy and that the sound of the tears was heard far beyond that of the rejoicing… When I am honest, I must admit that Rashi’s reading sounds more appropriate for this year. This first year, we can and probably should let our weeping overtake the sounds of the joy of the children. That is appropriate. This year we need to allow the tears to flow… Over time, perhaps the sound of the weeping will recede and we will again find the ability to shout together for joy.”

Read the full piece here.