Community leaders, bereaved families and the gabbaim of the Tiferes Yisrael shul in Beit Shemesh gathered Sunday for the solemn kevurah of the remains of Sifrei Torah that were burned in the missile strike that devastated the shul and claimed lives earlier this year.
Before the kevurah, remarks were delivered by Beit Shemesh Mayor Shmuel Greenberg, City Council member Nati Gabay and Tzion Revach, who had donated one of the Sifrei Torah and whose son, Gavriel Baruch Hy”d, was killed in the same tragedy.
The Tiferes Yisrael shul, where the Sifrei Torah had been housed, was completely destroyed in the missile strike. The shul is now at an advanced stage of reconstruction and is expected to reopen to mispallelim in time for the upcoming Yomim Tovim.
For Revach, the kevurah carried an especially painful significance. After having buried his son, he was now taking part in the kevurah of the Sefer Torah for which he had painstakingly saved, shekel by shekel, in order to have it written.
“For me, this is a difficult day. It takes me back to the terrible blow I suffered this year when I buried my son, and now I am burying the Sefer Torah for which I collected shekel by shekel in order to have it written. But I find comfort in the rebuilding of the shul, which will symbolize our revival and our ability to rise from our mourning.”
Mayor Greenberg spoke about the pain of the kevurah while pointing to the rebuilding of the destroyed shul as a source of hope and renewal following the tragedy.
“We are burying here today, with sorrow and honor, the Sifrei Torah that went up in flames at the site of the missile strike that hit the city during the ‘Operation Lion’s Roar’ war. The shul that was completely damaged is at an advanced stage of reconstruction, and with God’s help, the site will be ready in time for the Yomim Tovim. May the year and its curses end; may the year and its blessings begin.”
City Council member Nati Gabay described the kevurah as the closing of another painful chapter for Beit Shemesh, while noting the extraordinary anguish endured by Revach.
“Another painful chapter in the history of the city came to an end today. For Tzion, this is a second burial after losing his son. We are now rebuilding the temporary miniature Bais Hamikdosh, and with Hashem’s help, it will only be an interim station until the permanent structure is built and the community is returned to the shul.”
{Matzav.com}
