By Anash.org reporter
Over 500 people came out on Sunday afternoon to participate in the completion of a Sefer Torah written in memory of Hatomim Eliyahu Moscowitz, HY”D.
The program began at the Moscowitz residence, where family, shluchim and friends from the different communities with which Eliyahu was connected came to write a letter in his Torah.
When the Torah was completed, members of the community were honored with hagbah and galila, and Rabbi Efraim Moscowitz, Eliyahu’s grandfather, placed the crown on the Torah.
Following this emotional moment, the joyous parade began. The procession was joined by the mesivta, and together they danced all the way to Congregation Bnei Reuven.
Upon arriving at the shul, the Torah was welcomed with hakafos, followed by a seudas mitzvah.
“It was an inspiration to see the true ahavas achim of the Chicago community,” said Rabbi Yosef Shmuel Moscowitz, executive director of Lubavitch Chabad of Illinois, and Eliyahu’s cousin. “When there is a crisis, everyone comes together, but here it was a Simcha and the entire community came out!”
The Torah will eventually settle in the Chabad House in Cambodia, where Rabbi Bentzion and Mrs. Mashie Butman, Eliyahu’s sister and brother in law, are shluchim. For the next few months however, the Torah will remain in Chicago, where Eliyahu was born and bred.
“[Eliyahu] was taken from us on Simchas Torah,” Rabbi Yosef Shmuel said. “On Simchas Torah this year, we will have another Torah to dance with; b’ezras Hashem, he will be there to dance with this Torah!”
A very special thanks goes out to staff of Congregation Bnei Ruven, Rav Boruch Hertz, mora d’asra, and Rabbi Moshe Elya Markowitz, for all the hard work they put in to making this special event the great success that it was!
