Lost Torah Returns to Family

By Dovid Zaklikowski

A family Sefer Torah loaned to the Lubavitch shul in Montreal, Canada, thought to be stolen was found. “I sent out a plea a week before my late father’s birthday,” says Mrs. Surie Glassner, the daughter of Mordechai Chaiton, who had the Torah written 40 years ago, “and the Torah was returned on his birthday.”

In the early 1970s Mr. Chaiton, a Montreal electrician, from the founders of the Tzeirei Das V’Dos Shul, wanted to write a Torah. The idea, at the time, was a radical one, and he approached the Rebbe, asking him if it was okay. The Rebbe, giving him his blessings, told him that his entire extended family should participate monetarily in the project.

Mr. Chaiton knocked on the doors of his and his wife’s uncles and cousins, many who had strayed from Yiddishkeit. The electrician would later tell the story, of the many tears that were shed over those visits, which would be for many their first connection to Yiddishkeit in many years.

The search of a Sofer was on and after examining samples of their work, one was chosen. The Sofer had sent a Mezuzah, when Mr. Chaiton showed it to the Montreal Rabonim, they agreed that it was a nice and Mehudar writing. He placed the Mezuzah in his drawer. The next time he was in New York, armed with his progress report, he brought the Mezuzah to the Rebbe. The Rebbe gave it back to him, telling him that the ksav was nice, “but he should not hold it in the drawer.” Mr. Chaiton affixed on a doorway in his home.

On Zayin Adar, 1972, the Torah was completed and danced through the streets of Montreal, with members of Mr. Chaiton’s family, taking an active part.

Over the years, the Torah was loaned to the Lubavitch Shul in Montreal. Mr. Chaiton meticulously wrote up a contract, which he would renew every ten years. In it he stated that the Torah should only be loaned with permission from the family.

Before Chanukah 2004, following a long life of doing many good deeds, Mr. Chaiton passed away. Shortly beforehand he had written the last contact with the Shul, that was due to be up this year.

Over a year ago, Rabbi Yerachmiel Daniel Glassner, son-in-law of Mr. Chaiton, received a phone call from Rabbi Shmuel Kramer, the administrator of the Lubavitch Yeshivah Zal, Rabbinical College of Quebec, stating that the Sefer Torah is passul and he should have it checked and fixed as soon as possible. When examining the Sefer Torah, the Torah’s mantel covering did in fact state that it was the Chaiton Torah, but when he took it off, it was clear that it was not. The atzei chayim, the sticks on both sides of the Torah, which had inscribed on them the names of the deceased members of extended Chaiton families, was not there and thus it was determined that it was not that Torah.

An immediate investigation took place, examining all the Torahs in the shul, to see if the Mantels were switched. The Torah could not be found. Local shuls were called and they could not find the Torah by them. “If my father was a live,” says Mrs. Glassner, “he would have turned over every stone to find it, I had the responsibility to find it.”

With the influx of Chabad Houses across the globe, the new Jewish centers, starting from infancy, need to borrow a Torah, until one is donated to the community. Therefore larger Chabad communities, who house many Torahs, become a good resource for Torahs.

“The shul has always directed,” says Rabbi Glassner, “to contact us before they borrow the Torah.”

Once the Torah could not be found locally, the family called the last Chabad rabbi from Ottawa, who had requested to borrow the Torah. He in turn said that he does not remember the details and couldn’t even remember if he at the end had actually used the Torah or another.

After year of investigating, phone calls and pleading to anyone who would hear their calls, with no traces, the family thought that the Torah was stolen. “I was frustrated,” Rabbi Glassner says passionately, “I could not piece the story together, I did not understand how it came to be switched with another Sefer Torah’s mantel, unless someone would have switched it and stole the Chaiton Torah because it was nicer.”

In a last minute effort, Mrs. Glassner, wrote on a Montreal forum, asking from the general community for help in finding the Sefer Torah, “Last year it came to our attention that [our] Sefer Torah disappeared! Some people have helped us search for it in some shuls in this area, but to no avail. If you are a Gabbai or a Rabbi anywhere in or around Montreal, or if you are not a Gabbai or Rabbi and know anything of its whereabouts please, we urge you to please contact us as soon as possible.”

Thinking that maybe the Torah was loaned around the yomim noraim in its white covering and the one the Torah, was the regular one, she wrote, “the Sefer Torah has two mantels. One is blue and the other is white. On the top right Eitz Chaim there is a circular glass casing. Inside is written the names of the four families whose memory it was written. They are Chaiton, Shano, Bercovitch and Gertler families. Hopefully the Sefer Torah is in a safe and respectful place. We urge everyone to please help us find it. My father ob’m’s birthday is on the 8th of Kislev and his Yorzeit is the 23rd of Kislev. It would bring a big Nachas for his Neshamah to find it and bring it back safely where it belongs.”

One of the Chabad Shluchim who received the email, forwarded the email to the email forum for Chabad Shluchim in Montreal. And it turned out that one of the Chabad Shluchim had the Torah for the past two and half years.

In 2009 Rabbi Nissan and Chanie Gansbourg opened a Chabad House in the Old City of Montreal. Shortly thereafter they began to use a Sefer Torah donated to the Lubavitch Shul in honor of the legendary founder and long time director of the Chabad schools Rabbi Leib Kramer. The Torah smaller, with its own Aron Kodesh built for it, was sought out by new Chabad Houses. When a summer camp called and asked to use the Torah during the summer, Rabbi Gansbourg asked which Torah his Chabad House would use. The camp director, who had for many years used the Chaiton Torah in camp until the Kramer Torah was written, brought to the Chabad House the Chaiton Torah.

Rabbi Gansbourg was planning on returning the Torah, as recently a member of the new community purchased a Torah for their growing Chabad House. When he heard that the family was distressed over the Torah, he immediately made the trip to return the Torah. It was the birthday of Mr. Chaiton.

It turns out that a new mantel was purchased some fifteen-years-ago, and the old one it seems replaced an even more worn out one on another Torah.

Mrs. Glassner is hoping to educate those that borrow Torahs, that they should always reach out to those that they belong to, “these are family heirlooms and very important to them,” she says, “even if you want to use it for a good cause, always be in touch with the family or shul that it belongs to.”

While the family plans repairs to the Torah and the purchase of a new mantel, adding the name of Mr. Chaiton and his wife Mrs. Shaindel Chaiton, plans are on the way for a celebration for the return of the Torah.

Rabbi Glassner is glad that the Torah was used for good purposes and hopes that in the future the issue would be prevented beforehand. “This should never happen to another family,” he says, but emphasizes the Hashgacha Pratis that by the time they found the Sefer Torah, the Chabad House already had a new one.

In turn Mrs. Glassner says, “Why do you think G-d created emails if not for situations like this?”