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LIKE OLD TIMES: A Chicago = Torah visits=20 its old home in Europe
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THE=20 NEW JEWISH MOTHER: Many women are = carving out=20 new territory, but some are embracing = the ways=20 of their own moms

Oy=20 vey! You should read what they're = writing about=20 them-in books yet =

LIKE=20 OLD TIMES: A Chicago Torah visits its = old home=20 in Europe By Pauline Dubkin Yearwood = (09/16/2005)

This is the story of a citizen of a = lost=20 Jewish community in the Czech Republic = who-with=20 help from members of the U.S. Congress, = no=20 less-returned home for a visit and was = received=20 with wild enthusiasm by the residents of = a town=20 where no Jews survived.=20

It's also the story of the bond that = grew=20 between members of a Chicago synagogue = and the=20 non-Jewish residents of a small European = town, a=20 town whose children even today mourn and = honor=20 their Jewish neighbors who perished in = the=20 Holocaust.=20

Participants in this drama call it = unique,=20 incredibly powerful, life changing.=20

But the star player can't say = anything- not=20 directly, anyway-because the citizen who = returned for a brief visit home is a = Torah.=20

The story-the modern part of it = anyway-=20 really begins in 1967 when Rabbi Robert = Marx,=20 then the Reform movement's regional = director for=20 the Midwest, helped a congregation in = Beloit,=20 Wis. apply for a Holocaust Torah from = London's=20 Westminster Synagogue.=20

Under a complex deal involving the = Czech=20 government, a prominent British art = dealer and a=20 London Jewish philanthropist, that = synagogue in=20 1963 had become the repository for more = than=20 1,500 Torah scrolls the Nazis had = confiscated=20 from synagogues in then- Czechoslovakia. = The=20 scrolls, many of them in poor condition, = were=20 repaired, then an organization, the = Czech=20 Memorial Scrolls Trust, was formed to = find new=20 homes for the ones that were able to = travel.=20

One of the = Torahs found its=20 way to Rabbi Marx, but by that time the=20 congregation it was supposed to go to = had=20 folded. Marx kept it until 1984, when he = founded=20 Congregation Hakafa in Glencoe. There = the Torah=20 has reposed ever since, used only once a = year,=20 on Yom Kippur, for the reading of the = Holiness=20 Code, read in the afternoon just before = the=20 Yizkor service. (Many congregations that = possess=20 so-called Holocaust Torahs use them only = on the=20 most solemn occasions out of deference = for the=20 Jews who perished.)=20

Things might have stayed that way had = Rabbi=20 Bruce Elder, now Hakafa's spiritual = leader, not=20 received a call two years ago from Dr. = Stanton=20 Canter, a California man who had = traveled=20 through the Czech Republic several years = before.=20

During those travels Canter came = across a=20 small town called Lostice in the Moravia = region=20 and was astounded to discover that, = although=20 there had been no Jews there since they = were=20 rounded up by the Nazis around 1939, the = non-=20 Jewish residents had maintained the = town's=20 Jewish cemetery and repaired an old = synagogue.=20

Why? "The non-Jewish community had = such warm=20 feelings toward the Jewish community = because=20 there had been harmonious relationships = for 350=20 years," Elder relates.=20

Canter joined with a local man, Ludek = Shteipel, to form a foundation, Respect = and=20 Tolerance, designed to teach those very = virtues,=20 along with the history of the town, to = local=20 schoolchildren.=20

He also = continued=20 researching the history of Lostice = (pronounced=20 Lo-STEECH-a) and was able to trace = Hakafa's=20 Torah back to it.=20

At almost the same time the citizens = of=20 Lostice had been putting the finishing = touches=20 on the rebuilt synagogue and were = beginning=20 research to find out where "their" Torah = ended=20 up. It was just one of many coincidences = connected with the trip.=20

Canter called Rabbi Elder to ask if, = for the=20 town's 450th anniversary celebration, he = could=20 take a picture of the Torah and send it = to the=20 mayor. Elder did so, and the picture, = along with=20 a letter the rabbi sent, now hangs in a = place of=20 honor on the wall of the old synagogue, = where=20 the anniversary celebration was held.=20

The mayor, Dr. Ctirad Lolek, was = thrilled-and=20 sent Elder and his congregants an = invitation to=20 visit Lostice. Two years later, they = accepted.=20

Elder, himself the son of a Holocaust = survivor from Hungary, decided after=20 corroborating the information that the = Torah's=20 provenance was authentic that "it would = be a=20 real powerful thing to take our Torah = back"-but=20 only for a visit, as it was not needed = in a town=20 where there are no longer any Jews.=20

The decision to = bring the=20 Torah back to its home was occasioned by = "all=20 the voices that cry out from it that = don't have=20 the opportunity to come back. We had the = opportunity to bring them back to their=20 synagogue," he says. In addition, it = would be a=20 way to thank the non-Jews of Lostice for = maintaining the memories and memorials = of their=20 Jewish neighbors.=20

The occasion would mark the first = worship=20 service held in the Lostice synagogue in = more=20 than 60 years and, as it turned out, the = first=20 time a Czech Torah has returned to its = homeland.=20

The rabbi, along with 16 congregants, = began=20 making plans for the trip. But there was = a=20 problem. How to transport the Torah, = which is=20 nearly five feet tall and weighs 125 = pounds?=20

There was no seat available for the = scroll on=20 the plane the congregants were taking, = and=20 besides, "it wasn't feasible to be = shlepping it=20 on a plane," Elder says. "It's in very = good=20 shape but it is 200 years old and is = fragile. It=20 had to go through Customs, and we needed = a way=20 to get it over there safely."=20

He wondered whether it could be = shipped=20 through a "diplomatic pouch," a form of=20 transport the U.S. government uses to = send items=20 to its embassies, and contacted U.S. = Rep. Jan=20 Schakowsky's office to find out.=20

Schakowsky, who is Jewish and whose = district=20 includes Chicago's northern suburbs, = "took (the=20 problem) and ran with it," Elder says, = calling=20 her "an amazing, unbelievable person. = Without=20 asking, she took all these steps to find = a way=20 to get the Torah there safely," he says. =

For her part, Schakowsky says, "I was = thrilled to be asked to be involved. = Nothing=20 like this had ever been done = successfully with=20 the Czech Republic."=20

She first contacted the U.S. = ambassador in=20 Prague, who recommended against using a=20 diplomatic pouch. Schakowsky then = assigned a=20 legislative assistant, Robert Marcus, to = the=20 problem and together they contacted Rep. = Tom=20 Lantos, himself a Holocaust survivor and = the=20 ranking Democrat on the International = Relations=20 Committee. Marcus is a Wilmette native = whose=20 family members belong to Congregation = Hakafa.=20

Lantos = recommended using the=20 shipping company DHL, which is owned by = a friend=20 of his and, he noted, has expertise in = shipping=20 valuable objects. The firm "not only = offered=20 their help but really went out of their = way,"=20 Schakowsky says, flying the Torah for = free on a=20 chartered flight, then coordinating its = arrival=20 with the U.S. State Department and the = U.S.=20 embassy in Prague.=20

"Everyone who heard the story was = touched and=20 moved and looked for ways to be helpful, = to be=20 part of this very exciting, moving = historic=20 event," Schakowsky says.=20

Elder noticed that reaction too. "The = coordinating that went on to get the = Torah there=20 and back was amazing," he says. So was = "the=20 outpouring of support, people rallying = around=20 this object. It's just an object but it=20 represents so much more so many people." =

Finally the Torah arrived and on = Friday, June=20 17, so did the 16-member delegation from = Hakafa,=20 plus Marcus, Schakowsky's legislative = aide, who=20 became so caught up in the drama that he = arranged his vacation so that he could = go along.=20

Even after the exchange of letters = with the=20 town's mayor, Elder says, the = congregants were=20 unprepared for what awaited them in = Lostice.=20 Some 150 people-mostly non-Jews from the = town,=20 but a few Jews from surrounding areas- = turned=20 out to greet them at the town hall, = where the=20 mayor and community leaders waited. In = addition=20 a handful of Jews from Prague, 80 miles = away,=20 had heard about the event and traveled = to=20 Lostice to be a part of it.=20

The crowd traveled with the Hakafa = delegation=20 through the streets of the city to the=20 synagogue, where the Torah was placed in = the Ark=20 for the first time since the late 1930s. =

A number of reporters were present as = well,=20 and the visit was well covered in the = Czech=20 press, with stories appearing in every = major=20 newspaper under headlines like "The = synagogue=20 revived by worship" and "The = 19th-century=20 Lostice Torah is back."=20

In the = synagogue,=20 meanwhile, the Chicagoans found a number = of=20 benches as well as parts of stained = glass=20 windows from a synagogue at the nearby = town of=20 Olomouc that was completely destroyed by = the=20 Nazis. After the war, survivors found = some of=20 the benches; rescued them and installed = them in=20 a local church as a Holocaust memorial.=20

Then, with financial help from Jews = all over=20 the world, including Congregation = Hakafa, the=20 respect and Tolerance Foundation = acquired the=20 benches and installed them -- 21 seats = in all-in=20 the Lostice synagogue. Each seat is = dedicated to=20 an individual, including the rabbi of = the=20 Olomouc synagogue, who perished at = Treblinka;=20 Rabbi Elder; and Elie Wiesel, who is an = honorary=20 member of the foundation.=20

The Lostice synagogue had fared = better than=20 its neighbor, but not by much. It, too, = had been=20 partially destroyed by Nazi troops, with = some=20 walls knocked down and other parts = burned. After=20 the war, the citizens of the town = decided to=20 rebuild it as a tribute to the Jewish = neighbors=20 they had lost. They found the ancient = blueprints=20 in the town hall and used them to = reconstruct=20 the synagogue. The blueprints now hang = on its=20 wall in a frame.=20

Marcus found that bit of enterprise = amazing.=20 "This was not a wealthy town," he says, = "and=20 they did this anyway even though there = were no=20 Jews there."=20

In this setting, the ceremonies began = with a=20 Shabbat service during which the Torah = was, for=20 the first time since it originally left = Lostice,=20 unscrolled to the portion of the week, = which=20 Elder and other congregants read to a = packed=20 audience.=20

The Lostice = mayor and other=20 community leaders participated as well, = along=20 with a representative of the Prague = Jewish=20 community and one from the U.S. embassy. = A=20 children's choir from the town had = learned=20 Jewish songs for the occasion and sang = them at=20 the service.=20

"To hear 'Sholom Aleichem' in = beautiful=20 three-part harmony in a synagogue that = hadn't=20 had Jewish voices in it for years-it was = impossible not to be transformed by it," = Elder=20 says. "The walls were crying, we were = all=20 crying. The Torah represents so much-the = human=20 will to rise above hatred. We all came = away very=20 different people. It touched each of us=20 individually, so deeply, so profoundly." =

One of those who was affected was = Hakafa=20 congregant Judith Joseph, who was = marking=20 exactly 36 years (or as she says, = "double chai")=20 since her own bat mitzvah-so the parsha = was the=20 same one as hers. Only then she, like = other=20 girls and women, had not been allowed to = read=20 from the Torah. Instead, she did so at = Lostice.=20

"For the first time in my life I got = to chant=20 my Torah portion," Joseph says. "It was = so=20 thrilling to chant Torah in that = building where=20 it hadn't been chanted in 60 years. I = felt like=20 it was such a privilege."=20

For Jerry Friedman, one of the = founding=20 members of Hakafa and its first = president, the=20 highlight of the trip was "the first = moment,=20 bringing the Torah and placing it in the = Ark,=20 then being able to hold a service there = in a=20 room packed with people from the town. = That was=20 very moving."=20

After the service the congregants = spread the=20 Torah out on a table and mingled with = the guests=20 at a reception, which also included an = exhibit=20 of Jewish art that the Respect and = Tolerance=20 Foundation had hung on the synagogue = walls.=20

"For an hour and a half, people = walked past=20 the Torah, looking at it and taking = pictures of=20 it," Friedman reports. "They didn't want = to=20 leave."=20

Marcus says he will never forget "the = look in=20 the people's eyes when we brought the = Torah in.=20 They knew this is a treasure. The rabbi = asked=20 the mayor if he would like to hold it = and he was=20 so honored and so scared-he didn't want = to drop=20 it."=20

He, too, was impressed with the = "hundreds of=20 people who lined up to look at the = Torah. The=20 look on their faces-this was part of = their town,=20 their history. It was very touching."=20

Despite the language barrier "there = was a lot=20 of hugging and handshaking," Marcus = recalls. He=20 adds that although some of the older = people were=20 mourning townspeople they had known who = were=20 lost in the Holocaust, much younger = people, even=20 the children, seemed to "get it" too.=20

"It was so amazing-they were really=20 understanding the significance of this," = he=20 says. "I've never heard of another story = where=20 people in a town have gone out of their = way to=20 rebuild and maintain a synagogue, to = keep the=20 (Jewish) cemetery intact."=20

After the services Lolek, the Lostice = mayor,=20 invited the Chicago delegation back to = his=20 office, where he proudly served a cheese = made in=20 the region and poured a strong, = vodka-like=20 drink, made from plums and also produced = locally. When he found out that one = congregant,=20 Jerry Friedman, is a former mayor = (Friedman was=20 the mayor of Northbrook 24 years ago), = "he=20 insisted I have another, then he got = somebody to=20 take our picture," Friedman relates.=20

The visit ended for the Chicagoans = with a=20 trip to a 13th-century castle just = outside of=20 the town. The Nazis had once used it for = their=20 regional headquarters, but now it held = an=20 exhibit documenting the history of the = Jewish=20 community of Lostice, put together by = the=20 director of the Respect and Tolerance=20 Foundation.=20

He had also engaged an Irish violin = and piano=20 duo, flying them in to play Jewish music = (although the musicians are non-Jews)=20 interspersed with Jewish poetry at the = close of=20 Shabbat.=20

For Elder, "sitting in this room, = hearing=20 this music in the very room where Nazis = used to=20 listen to Wagner while planning to = deport Jews,=20 was such an incredible experience."=20

Indeed, Elder says that for everyone = who=20 participated, the trip was "life- = changing."=20

Some, like Joseph, have kept up and = deepened=20 the connections they made. An artist who = specializes in ketubot (wedding = certificates),=20 she met an artist from Lostice and they = began=20 working on arranging a joint exhibition = together=20 in a nearby town. In addition, the = non-Jewish=20 Czech artist began making a Jewish = calendar and=20 sought Joseph's help in writing the = names of the=20 months in Hebrew.=20

Beyond that, "I learned something," = Joseph=20 says. "I never really appreciated the = cultural=20 loss to these European communities when = their=20 Jews were eliminated. I was raised to = think the=20 gentiles were willing participants, and = in some=20 cases they were." But in Lostice, and = perhaps=20 other towns too, "they felt a terrible = loss,"=20 she says. "Now they are teaching their = kids=20 about it and using that to promote = respect and=20 tolerance."=20

Discovering that was "unbelievable," = Joseph=20 says. "I was filled with a mixture of = sorrow=20 that the Jewish community was completely = absent=20 and just being amazed that the gentiles = of the=20 town were making this huge effort to = document=20 and educate about the Jewish heritage."=20

The trip "was two days, but it's = continued to=20 blossom for me in terms of my connecting = with=20 people who are promoting something = really good=20 in the world," she says.=20

Friedman says it's not just the = participants,=20 but even those who didn't go along who = were=20 impacted. "The synagogue has been very = touched=20 by the whole experience," he says. "The = entire=20 synagogue, they want to know more about = it.=20 Every time we have services people are=20 constantly asking abut the trip, about = our=20 experiences."=20

For Marcus, who has studied the = Holocaust=20 academically, "this was absolutely = unique-a town=20 in central Europe that has really = embraced the=20 lessons of the Holocaust and is going = out of its=20 way to understand." Shteipel, the = respect and=20 Tolerance Foundation director, "is going = around=20 the country teaching the Holocaust to = children=20 in public schools who don't even know = what the=20 Holocaust is, and they're listening. = It's so=20 rare that the lessons of the = Holocaust-never=20 forget-are actually being applied here," = he=20 says.=20

Schakowsky, he adds, participated = vicariously=20 even though her legislative duties = prevented her=20 from taking the trip. "From the day the = rabbi=20 approached Jan she was so thrilled, she = was=20 checking in on this every day," he says. = "There=20 was such a sense of accomplishment and = pride=20 when we finally got it wrapped up."=20

For her part, Schakowsky says she = sensed that=20 the visit "had this huge educational = impact. It=20 was so loaded with emotion, not like = reading it=20 in a textbook. I had a sense of that, = the=20 potential, when Rabbi Elder called." She = says=20 she is grateful to Elder for "engaging = so many=20 people, governments, people's hearts, = the=20 significance of how much this would mean = to the=20 people of the little community and = beyond."=20

Elder himself continues to be amazed = by "the=20 stories, the connections- incredible = layers of=20 them. You throw a rock into a river and = it=20 creates a ripple effect and you have no = idea.=20 The ripples just keep going."=20

That's certainly true of the Lostice = story.=20 Currently Czech filmmakers are working = on a=20 documentary about the community, and the = story=20 of the Torah's return will be a part of = it. In=20 addition the Westminster Synagogue in = London,=20 which is still involved with = distributing Czech=20 Torahs all over the world, plans to use = the=20 story of the Lostice Torah as a paradigm = for=20 reconnecting the past and present of = lost Jewish=20 communities.=20

The Respect and Tolerance Foundation = is=20 continuing to gather information about = the Jews=20 of Lostice and two surrounding towns and = will=20 eventually show their findings to the = public=20 through an exhibition and possibly a = book.=20

"History of Jewish settlement in our = region=20 goes back to the 15th century, but very = little=20 attention has been given to this subject = so=20 far," foundation director Shteipel = writes in an=20 e-mail explaining the organization's = work. "The=20 history of the Jewish communities in the = Lostice=20 area until the Nazi occupation is a = story of=20 peaceful coexistence of Jewish and = Christian=20 inhabitants. There is plenty of evidence = that in=20 the period before World War II, Jews = were fully=20 integrated into the society and took = vital part=20 in cultural and social life of their = towns," he=20 writes.=20

The work the foundation is doing, he=20 continues, "can be used as evidence that = tolerant coexistence of people with = different=20 religious and racial backgrounds was, = and is,=20 possible. In our divided world such a = message is=20 still essential and very important." He = closes=20 with a quote from Elie Wiesel: "To = remain silent=20 and indifferent is the greatest sin of = all."=20

Robert Marcus, too, believes that the = Lostice=20 trip "can be used to reconnect other = little=20 towns with other American communities. = I've=20 never heard of one like this before," he = says.=20 "This was a once-in-a-lifetime = opportunity."=20

And he speaks for everyone involved = in the=20 journey when he says, "I want people to = know=20 that even with the rise of anti-Semitism = in the=20 world, there are opportunities to = rekindle the=20 lessons of the Holocaust."=20

=20 =

=A9 Chicago Jewish News=20 2005 Contact = Chicago=20 Jewish = News Design by=20 jesterjames &n= bsp; Code=20 by Remington=20 Associates, Ltd.