A torah for Brisbane’s progressive community

March 20, 2016 by J-Wire Staff
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Brisbane’s tiny progressive community has finally got its own Torah…gifted from a congregation in Dallas, Texas.

A torah finds its new home

A Torah in its new home

The Dallas recently received a new Torah had a spare one for which they wanted to find a new home.

Young members of the Dallas congregation set about  finding a small congregation somewhere in the world which would benefit from a Torah.  
Brisbane’s Cantor Bentley had trained in the US and knew Cantor Croll in Dallas and the Texas Torah was soon its way to its new home.
 
The Brisbane congregation was formed in 2009 and has it never had a Torah
A spokesperson for the congregation told J-Wire: “Over the years we used a printed, miniature ‘Torah’.  Then two years ago we were loaned a Torah, but not having a permanent place to keep it safely, the loaned Torah has been kept safely in the ark at Temple Shalom, Gold Coast.  This Torah has now pushed us to have a small, portable ark built to house this Torah while our loan Torah will continue to be kept on the Gold Coast.  
 
The synagogue 42 member units which includes individuals, distant members and families.
 
Beit Or recently celebrated the  arrival of its new Torah.

The spokesperson added: “With music and dancing, the Torah was celebrated, held high, paraded and lauded. Families and friends from our community and the community at large were there to share in the festivities on a muggy, wet and hot Brisbane day.

The Dallas Scrolls, as they have become known, were kindly donated to our congregation by Temple Shalom, Dallas, Texas. During the latter part of 2015, Cantor David Bentley and Sally Castle flew across to Dallas, Texas and then on to the World Union of Progressive Judaism conference in Orlando, Florida to officially receive our Scrolls and bring them safely back to us.”

 

Comments

One Response to “A torah for Brisbane’s progressive community”
  1. Deborah Scholem (nee Berlin) says:

    The Torah couldn’t have found a better home.

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