Shelter Islander’s Torah covers  are unveiled: New Year observance at Greenport synagogue

When Island artist Susan Schrott was asked to create new covers for the Torah scrolls at the Congregation Teferith Israel in Greenport, she felt especially honored.

This small synagogue on 4th Street has stood for more than 120 years, and as the High Holidays approached, she welcomed the idea of offering beauty to the observance in what has been a challenging year.

In a message on the synagogue’s website, tiferethisraelgreenport.org, Rabbi Gadi Capela spoke of the significance of the year just ended, 5784, which is described as meaning “to stab as with … a spear.” The Rabbi wrote: “Unfortunately, 5784 lived up to its name. We were stabbed in the gut on Oct. 7, right at the beginning of the Hebrew year. Israel and the Jewish people are still defending their lives on Israel’s borders, on American campuses, and on streets throughout the world.”

Turning to the significance of the new year, 5785, it means “to compensate for a damage, to make smooth, to fix, to beautify.” When Ms. Schrott was commissioned to create the new Torah covers, she saw it as an opportunity to bring beauty to the congregation at a most significant moment.

The covers will be displayed for the first time on Thursday, Oct. 3, which is the beginning of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish celebration of the New Year. An artist who has worked extensively with textiles, Ms. Schrott said she chose white velvet for the covers, a color associated with the New Year’s celebration. Designs on the Torah covers, made from her hand-dyed fabrics, all carry symbolism.

“There are 18 branches,” she said, “because the number 18 is symbolic of life — chaim. They are circled by 10 birds, representing the Ten Commandments. Five sea creatures are pictured, for the five books of the Torah.”

To give the covers elegance in keeping with the reverence for the Torah, the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, she worked in Swarovski crystals and gold thread “which signifies light, hope and renewal,” she said. “We could all use some light.”

Rabbi Capela urged the congregation to embrace the traditional Rosh Hashanah aspiration: “Let the year end with its curses, and let the new year begin with its blessings.”

Ms. Schrott said the High Holidays at the synagogue, a time of spiritual reflection and renewal, are free and open to all, with no tickets required.