Czech Holocaust Memorial Scroll

 In 1979, Bet Mishpachah received its first Sefer Torah, a scroll originating from the Czech town of Dolni Kouince. The Jewish community in Dolni Kounice began in the 14th century. Over the years, they faced many perils, including the destruction of their synagogue, laws limiting the number of Jews allowed to live there, a fire in the 1830s, a devastating flood in 1862, and finally the forced deportation of the town’s entire Jewish community to the Auschwitz death camp. The only survivor was our Torah scroll. This Holocaust Memorial Scroll(#703) has been placed on permanent load to Bet Mishpachah by the Westminster Synagogue in Knightsbridge, London. By receiving this Holocaust Memorial Scroll, Bet Mishpachah became the first LGBTQ+ Synagogue to receive a Memorial Scroll.

Westminster Synagogue acquired 1,564 rescued Czech Torah scrolls and has generously placed over 1,400 scrolls in synagogues around the world. Placement and coordination of these scrolls are handled by the Memorial Scrolls Trust of London (www.memorialscrollstrust.org). 

                                                                      Repairing our Sefer Torah

Our Holocaust Memorial Torah Scroll was joyously welcomed home on September 18th, 2022.  To join in celebrating our Scroll’s return, members were invited to assist our Soferet (scribe) in completing the entire project, thus fulfilling the last of the 613 Mitzvot to write your own Torah. More information can be found by clicking here.