Torah   The Torah is the most important and sacred item in the synagogue. The Torah scrolls are kept in the ark on the bimah. These scrolls are handwritten on parchment-animal skins that have been specially prepared. A sofer, or scribe, uses quill pens and ink to inscribe the first five books of the Bible (Humash, Pentateuch or five books of Moses), which comprise the Torah. The Torah scrolls are adorned with ornamental mantles, silver breastplates and crowns. The Torah reader uses a pointer, called a yad, to mark his or her place in the Torah scroll. During the course of the Jewish year, we read the Torah; each week we chant consecutive sections, called parashot. On Shabbat and festival mornings, we also read a section from the Bible's prophetic literature, called the Haftarah. The theme of the Haftarah is drawn from a passage of that morning's Torah reading. Brith Sholom is fortunate to have seven Torah scrolls. The newest Torah scroll was acquired in 2002 as part of our fundraising campaign. We are also quite fortunate to have a Haftarah scroll which belonged to a Polish Jewish community before the Holocaust. The weekly Haftarah can be read from the scroll or from a printed book.