We can not be more excited to embark on this once-in-a-generation project to bring community together to write our own Torah. The 613th commandment, the final commandment in the Torah, is to write a Sefer Torah (Torah scroll). 

As it is written:

וְעַתָּ֗ה כִּתְב֤וּ לָכֶם֙ אֶת־הַשִּׁירָ֣ה הַזֹּ֔את וְלַמְּדָ֥הּ אֶת־בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל שִׂימָ֣הּ בְּפִיהֶ֑ם

לְמַ֨עַן תִּֽהְיֶה־לִּ֜י הַשִּׁירָ֥ה הַזֹּ֛את לְעֵ֖ד בִּבְנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽ

“Therefore write down this poetic song and teach it to the people of Israel; put it in their mouths, in order that this poetic song may be my witness for the people of Israel”

(Deuteronomy 31:19)

Our ancient rabbis interpret this “poetic song” to be the Torah, and a mitzvah for every Jew to write a Torah for themselves and teach it to their children of Israel. We want every member of our congregation to have the opportunity to fulfill this mitzvah as we embark on writing a new TBI Torah. 

We are inviting every member of our TBI community to participate in the writing of this Torah, creating the scroll that will be our legacy. In doing so, we will be building and strengthening Community One Letter at a Time.

Every letter is needed for a Torah to be complete. The writing of each letter transforms the scroll into a live and active Sefer Torah (Torah scroll). Every person who writes one letter.

As Maimonides proclaims, every person who writes one letter is fulfilling the mitzvah of writing the entire Torah!

TBI has thirteen Sifrei Torah (Torah scrolls), each between 80 – 500 years old. Sadly, all of our Sifrei Torah are aging and slowly deteriorating, rendering them both unkosher and difficult to read. Additionally, most of our Sifrei Torah are too large or heavy for many congregants to carry easily.

Our new Torah will be clearly written with new, bold ink and sized for almost everyone to carry comfortably. Therefore, in addition to fulfilling the 613th commandment and strengthening the community, your participation in this Torah project will help make the Torah accessible for our community.

Our Torah Project has five parts:

1) Find a Sofer (Scribe) to write our Torah. 

We have engaged a Soferet in Israel to write most of our Torah text.

2) Engage community in sponsorship opportunities. 

Each person in the community is invited to take up the opportunity to sponsor a section of the Torah, from a single letter or Torah, a verse,  a parsha (Torah portion) or one of the five books of the Torah.

3) Participation in the Writing of the Torah. 

The Soferet will be coming to Melbourne with sections of Torah on parchment and we will all have the opportunity to closely observe the Soferet who will be writing our very own Torah. We will literally take part in writing the letters of our Sefer Torah. When all the letters have been inscribed, the pieces of parchment will be sewn together, and our Torah will be complete.

4) Community Building. 

Throughout the year, there will be numerous programs for people of all ages and interests to engage with Torah, including the process of making a Torah, children’s programs,  Hebrew calligraphy, Torah studies with various scholars using different approaches to studying Torah.  It will be an exciting year for all

5) The Dedication. 

Once completed, our new TBI Torah will be presented to the community and all of our sponsors will be acknowledged as we celebrate our unified effort in fulfilling this incredible mitzvah.

When writing a new Torah for the whole community, it is customary to financially support its creation by sponsoring portions of the text. A sponsorship is an opportunity to select a portion of the Torah that is meaningful to you and your family. This sponsorship can be made in honour of a loved one or to commemorate a simchah. In doing so, it becomes a family banner and generational heirloom. In addition, your generous contribution will assist to sustain the sacred work and vibrant spirit of our community.

Each person and family will have the opportunity to learn how to write a Hebrew letter or their name in Hebrew. Our sponsors will be given either their name or a verse from their sponsored section.

Sponsorship opportunities are listed on this page below or by contacting the Torah Project Team via email ([email protected]). We aim to secure sponsorship for at least 50% of the Torah Project prior to our inaugural event planned for February 2026. At this very special ceremony, our Soferet from Israel will be brought to Australia where she will commence the writing of B’reishit (the very beginning of the Torah). Everyone will be invited. 

The actual inscribing of the sponsored sections of the Torah will occur on two separate occasions. During the Soferet’s visit, the Torah Project Team will work with the sponsors to schedule an appropriate date and time to meet with the Soferet.

The actual inscribing of the Torah will occur on two separate dates. You will work with a member of the Torah Committee to schedule an appropriate date and time.

There are a variety of dedication opportunities from which you can choose. These range from a single letter to the dedication of the entire Torah. Rabbi Conyer, Cantor Laloum, and our Torah team can help you identify an appropriate and meaningful dedication opportunity for you and your family.

There are many other possible dedications beyond the list. If you have an idea or want help choosing a dedication, please contact Rabbi Conyer, Cantor Laloum or one of the Torah chairs.

There are a variety of sponsorship opportunities ranging from a single letter, a word, a parsha and an entire book.

Rabbi Conyer, Cantor Laloum and our Torah Project team can help you identify an appropriate and meaningful sponsorship opportunity for you and your family.

There are many other possible sponsorship opportunities beyond our list. If you have an idea or would like to choose a different way to sponsor the Torah, please contact Rabbi Conyer, Cantor Laloum, or one of our Torah Project chairs, Victor Majzner and Vivienne Rosta.

Our goal is for every individual TBI member – from infants to life members – to have a letter in their name.

Our TBI Torah Project – Building Community one Letter at a Time – is a project for and about our TBI community and future generations. We welcome all members of our extended TBI community to take part in this mitzvah, a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience. Torah writing is open to anyone, regardless of age or religious background. As a welcoming community, we encourage our membership to invite family and friends outside our membership circle to participate in this mitzvah.

Don’t worry. There is plenty of Torah to go around! We will ask you if there is a reason you chose a particular book, parsha, verse or letter, and include this in our final dedication material.

Our Community Building Torah Project will be TBI’s major fundraising opportunity this year. We ask that you make a meaningful contribution to honour your family’s connection to TBI and support the ongoing continuity of the Jewish people and tradition.

Your sponsorship will help to underwrite the costs of hiring the Sofer in Israel, to bring out various Sofrim and scholars to join us in Melbourne, and to deliver various programs celebrating Torah and this exciting initiative.

All sponsorships at every level will be acknowledged and celebrated. Our major sponsors will be included in our opening ceremony and in our commemorative celebration upon the completion of the Torah.

We will also maintain a page on our website with all the sponsorships including both the individual/family and the part of the Torah they sponsored. There is an opt-out option for those not wanting to be on this list.

After the dedication of our new Sefer Torah, each year, we will invite the sponsors for an aliyah (call up) to the Torah during our Shabbat services of the section they sponsored in recognition of their contribution to the Torah and community.

This will be an exciting year of Torah learning and celebration. Please join us in this profound mitzvah of writing our new Torah and building community one letter at a time. Let’s come together NOW to honour our past and write our future for generations to come. And, in so doing, may we all be strengthened – Chazak chazak v’nitchazek.