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Question of the Week:

Who was the first woman to attend classes at the Jewish Theo-
logical Seminary? (Hint: she enrolled in 1902, when she
moved to New York from Baltimore.)

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In The
Beginning • • •

Elizabeth Applebaum
But what about the beginning of the
AppleTree Editor
cycle? That also is a cause for cele-
aturday, Oct. 9, is Shabbat
bration, although by the time Shabbat
Bereshit, when we begin again
Bereshit rolls around, most of us are
the yearly cycle of public readings
pretty tired from the big holiday sea-
of the Torah. It's called Shabbat Bereshit
son just completed.
because on this day we read from the
Nonetheless, Shabbat Bereshit, as a
first chapter of the first of the five books
day of beginnings, is a good time to
of the Torah,
think about the practicalities of the Torah
called Bereshit, or
and reading from the Torah scrolls.
Genesis.
Jewish law teaches us how the Torah
In Judaism, we
is to be made. First, it must be hand-
speak of differ-
written on a parchment scroll. The
ent new year's
parchment must be made from the hide
days: the reli-
of a kosher animal (most often a cow).
gious new year,
It is written by a specially trained
Rosh HaShana;
scribe, called a sofer in Hebrew. The
seasonal new
Torah scroll, or sefer Torah in Hebrew,
year from the
is written in 248 columns of 42 lines
Torah, Pesach
each. A sefer Torah can be tall or short
(Passover); the
(depending on the size of the letters),
new year of the
but its columns and lines will match
trees, Tu B'She-
every other sefer Torah. The Torah is
vat.
written without punctuation, vowels or
The Torah also has a new year's
cantillation marks.
day, although we don't formally desig-
The sheets of parchment are sewn
nate it as such. We publicly read
together with thread made from the
from the Torah (in the synagogue)
tendons of a kosher animal. The
three days a week,
edges of the outer
completing the
z• A .M kg e
sheets are tied to
Ag
entire five books in
wooden
poles,
t.Air
one year. In fact,
ts4
kc.
referred to in Hebrew
we celebrate the
as atzay chayim,
The hows and whys, whens
completion of the
trees of life. The
and wheres of making and
yearly cycle with a
poles have-top and
holiday called Sim-
bottom handles and
reading the Torah.
chat Torah.
flat, circular rollers. In

S

Holding up the
Torah scroll

Writing a sefer
Torah

A:

Sefer
Tora h
with
pointer

10/8

1999

Detroit Jewish News

107