During the war years 1939 - 1945 Hitler's nazi Germany systematically looted Torah scrolls from the synagogues of Czechoslovakia. It was Hitler's intent to place these scrolls in a museum, to preserve for all the world what he considered the pitiful remnants of the Jewish people after the "Final Solution."

Through the efforts of the Joseph Dave Foundation, Beth HaTephila acquired one of the 1,564 Torah scrolls looted by the nazis during World War II from synagogues in what was then Czeckoslovakia. These scrolls were kept by the Czech government until 1964 when they were transferred to the Westminster Synagogue in London, England for safekeeping, restoration and distribution to synagogues throughout the world. The Torah was restored and is in beautiful condition despite its age of over 100 years, as shown on the left together with its framed provenance (i.e., a history of the scroll's origin).

At the Beth HaTephila Brotherhood brunch January 16, 2005, Howard Jaslow, Temple vice prsident, told the story of how his former congregation, Beth David in Commack, Long Island not only acquired a Czech Holocaust Torah from Westminster Synagogue but through diligent research found a survivor of the synagogue from which the scroll was looted -- in Caracas, Venezuela! They brought the survivor from Venezuela to Commack.where he was the honored recipient of an aliyah for the reading of the Yom Kippur afternoon portion (Kedoshim) from the rescued Torah.

Howard Jaslow makes his presentation of how congregation Beth David acquired their Holocaust Torah and how they located an actual survivor.

Rubin Feldstein, Ty and Nicki Erickson (Nicki partly hidden) and Rose Rose listen intently.

Totally engrossed is Brotherhood treasurer Chuck Itzkovitz.