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Introduction
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The memorial Torah scroll project is a very important project because it allows Jewish communities to live on through their artifacts, even if the communities are no longer here today. The Hasten Hebrew Academy of Indianapolis is honored to have a part in keeping these communities alive. One of the biggest disgraces to Judaism is the maltreatment of Torah scrolls. During the Holocaust, the Nazis tagged and logged Torahs with the hope of getting rid of them.
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Fortunately, many Torah’s could be saved. The Torah scroll project permanently loans Torahs from all over the world to synagogues, schools and other Jewish organizations to protect, display and to inspire study. However, the Torah scroll isn’t just an artifact in a museum. It’s a living part of out culture. he Torah scroll currently displayed in the Holocaust museum is #437, from Dobříš , in what is now the Czech Republic. Dobříš is a small town outside of Prague, with a Jewish synagogue and cemetery. Before the Holocaust, we believe there were around 88 Jews living in Dobříš . Today, there are no Jews living there. The synagogue has become a cultural center and the cemetery is used as a tourist attraction. The Torah scroll arrived here in Indianapolis by courtesy of the Cohen family in 1988. We are so glad to be able to partake in this remembrance of Jewish culture and tradition.
Pre-War History
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Pre-WWII Dobříš was part of Czechoslovakia. Going back to the earliest time that we know of Jews in Dobříš, the first document of Jewish life is from 1645. The earliest Jewish tombstone known is from 1650. There are not many records from the Jews until 1866 but there were some records that the Christian church made. The laws varied from place to place in Dobříš for the Jews. In some places, Jews couldn’t own land in some places they could.
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This caused the Jews to be scattered in different places and not in one Jewish quarter which was ordinary for old Jewish communities. By the first half of the 19th century there were 26 Jewish families. The Jewish community started in the 18 century. It was formally established in 1890 along with the Jews in the surrounding areas. There were rules made in 1896, like terms for a Rabbi, assistant Rabbi, a Cantor, and Melamed/teacher. The first Rabbi was Rabbi Wolf Bruner. He was Rabbi from 1827-1837. The first synagogue was built in 1777 but destroyed by a fire in 1807. It was built and destroyed a couple times. A totally new synagogue was built in 1904. Dobrish had a Chevra Kadisha, a group of people who dealt with the dead, and a Women’s Charity Society. Jews worked as traveling peddlers, tavern owners and managers, they worked with textiles, and more. Jews were part of local politics, like being part of city council things related to that. Jews fought during WWI. They served the Czar and were very patriotic.
Holocaust
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Dobris is a small city on the outskirts of Prague, and had a smaller Jewish community. Following the Munich Agreement of September 1938, about a year before the outbreak of World War II, the Republic of Czechoslovakia was disbanded. Beginning in March 1939 Bohemia and Moravia were occupied by Nazi Germany and became a protectorate of the Third Reich, beginning a period of discrimination and violence against the Jews remaining in these regions.
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During a series of pogroms carried out by the fascists, the new synagogue was damaged. By the end of 1942 most of the Jews remaining in the protectorate had been concentrated in the Terezin (Theresienstadt) Camp. From there they were deported to concentration and death camps, mostly in Poland, where most were killed. They did get a chance to send a lot of their Torah scrolls and prayer books to Prague, which is the reason that they are around today.
After the War
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Although Dobříš doesn’t have any Jews currently living there is still Jewish history left behind. Only 8 Jews from Dobříš survived the Holocaust. Jewish life in the town was not revived. The building in the center of the town that once housed the newer synagogue was converted into a cultural center that hosts concerts and exhibitions, as well as art galleries. Before you walk in the building above the door you can see two tablets of the Ten Commandments. They were restored and are neatly preserved. There was an older synagogue that was destroyed in 1960.
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The Dobříš cemetery was established by the first half of the 17th century, and about 250 tombstones are still visible, with the oldest marker from 1650. After 1985 the cemetery area was reduced so that the part of the cemetery without tombstones received a sports hall. A new wall and gate were built in about 1988-1989. By the end of 1990s, there was no cemetery maintenance, but the area was regularly cleaned. Currently, the cemetery ensures ongoing maintenance. In the future, re-erecting gravestones from the 19th and early 20th centuries and possibly restoration of historic tombstones from the 17th - 19 century might occur.
Dobříš Cemetery and Synagogue Before and After the Holocaust
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360 Degree View of the former Dobříš Synagogue and its Surroundings
Virtual Interactive Tour to Dobříš
Arrival in Indianapolis
Mrs. Shirley Cohen Tell Us how the Dobříš Torah Scroll Came to our School
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The Dobříš Torah scroll came to Indianapolis around the year 1986 from London. Originally there was an application to receive a scroll in the first the Jewish Holocaust museum at HHAI but there wasn’t a physical scroll here itself. This application was present when the museum first opened in August of 1996. Everything went through the Memorial Scrolls Trust in London, an organization which purchased hundreds of scrolls saved and stored in the Prague museum during WWII.
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Eventually we received a scroll, scroll number 437 through the dedicated efforts of the family of Mrs Shirley Cohen whose parents were Holocaust survivors from Hungary. The scroll is now in our school, the Hasten Hebrew Academy’s new interactive Holocaust museum. The purpose for the scroll being brought to the school is to learn from it. For students, teachers, and upcoming members of the community to all benefit from this new and exciting learning experience. This scroll was given to us specifically on permanent loan.. Torah scrolls are supposed to show how G-d wants us to live. They are traditionally routinely read aloud in all synagogues, and we offer prayers and blessings through them. With scroll number 437 we will not be using it for prayers and in synagogue as it is not a kosher scroll and it is too difficult to repair because of its age. Imagine how long the scroll has survived. What a history and story it has for us to learn, and allow our minds to grow with its knowledge. Our school is fortunate enough to have received it, and like it is said, “nothing happens just by chance,” so our job is to keep, respect, learn from this scroll, and bring it back to life.