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March 10, 2000/3 Adar II 5760, Vol. 52, No.27
Scribe demonstrates making of mezuzotMore than 500 Valley Jewish children learned about the methods behind scribing a mezuzah (parchment scroll inscribed with bible verse) and Torah Feb. 27-28 at Jewish day schools, Chabad of Phoenix and the Tri-City JCC.Rabbi Yehuda Clapman, a scribe from Brooklyn, N.Y., demonstrated how ink is made and described what must be done in order for the mezuzot and Torahs to be kosher. Rabbi Mendy Deitsch, of Chabad of the East Valley, said the ink used has to be "jet-black, so it can last for hundreds of years" and must come from a natural source. Different scribes use different ingredients, he said, including those from trees, fruits and vegetables. The parchment used for a Torah and a mezuzah must be hide from a kosher animal, Deitsch said. Usually cowhide is used, although hides of sheep, goats and deer may also be used. The quill used to write on the parchment must be from a kosher bird, he said. Usually feathers from geese are used. It usually takes about 2,000 hours to complete a Torah scroll, Deitsch said, and several hours for a mezuzah. After the presentation, each child used a quill dipped in ink to trace over Hebrew letters. The children also got to watch Clapman write their Hebrew names in scribe calligraphy. "It was really an unbelievable event," Deitsch said. |
