For the Athens Jewish Community and Hillel, the word “Torah” represents a great gift and a sign that Jewish life is flourishing at the University.

The University’s chapter of Hillel will receive a large donated Torah within the next two weeks, starting with a celebration on Sunday in Atlanta and moving to a celebration in Athens on Jan. 30.

“We have this incredible donor, and he’s been very generous to the Hillel’s of Georgia,” said Joel Marcovitch, director of Hillel. “For us to get a Torah, it really is a sign that Jewish life is vibrant here, that we’re not dying as a community and we’re not shrinking, we’re actually growing.”

Torahs are written by hand on parchment, take a year or more to complete and are very expensive, Marcovitch said.

This donation of a Torah comes from Ray Schinazi, a professor of pediatrics and chemistry, working in HIV/AIDS research at Emory University.

“All the stars were aligned and I could do good,” Schinazi said. “I felt the students needed a Torah. And most importantly was to show that we are sister universities and we are happy to support each other.”

Schinazi, who has dedicated two Torahs in the past to his father and mother, plans to dedicate this donation to himself and his family.

On Sunday, Hillel students will travel to Emory University to receive the Torah and then bring it back to Athens.

“A lot of University students and alumni live in Atlanta, and we just want to raise awareness and gain support,” said Mara Price, student president of Hillel.

A ceremony will also be held to dedicate the Torah in Athens.

During the Jan. 30 celebration, guests and members of the Jewish community will fill in the last few letters of the Torah, which are traditionally left blank.

According to Jewish tradition, filling in a letter represents the completion of a mitzvah — or good deed — that asks followers to write Torah in their lifetime.

“It’s one of these good deeds and the rabbis have declared that by writing one letter in the Torah, it’s as if you’ve completed an entire Torah,” Marcovitch said. “The tradition is for people to use them as fundraising events, to sell letters to people who wish to contribute to Jewish community here at Hillel.”

On hand to fill in a letter will be University President Michael Adams, Dean of the Medical School Barbara Schuster and other members of the Jewish community.

“We’ll be dancing with the Torah and people will be hugging it and kissing it and welcoming it to our community,” Marcovitch said.”

Price said members of Hillel encourage anyone interested to come out and join the celebration.

“This will be a living, breathing document and it will mean a lot to this community,” Marcovitch said. “It’s very emotional, because the whole idea that a community like ours, which is close-knit and wonderful, can get a document of this stature. To me, it shows that we’re alive.“

DEDICATION

When: Jan. 30th

Where: Hillel at UGA,

1155 South Milledge Ave.

More Information: Guests include University President Michael Adams