When soferet Julie Seltzer began writing a Torah at the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco in late 2009, the New York Times wrote an article about the project. J. had already covered it, of course, and subsequently KQED did a piece, as did the San Francisco Chronicle.
But really, the exhibition “As It Is Written: Project 304,805” was vastly under-covered in the media considering what an amazing, groundbreaking undertaking it has been.
And a huge one. When museum officials, led by CEO Connie Wolf, envisioned the project several years ago, they were heading into uncharted territory. First, only one other woman had ever written an entire Torah before, and second, few if any people had ever written a Torah while sitting on display in a museum — as this exhibit called for Seltzer to do.
Seltzer 35, experienced hardships, such as a work-related injury and being unable to focus with so many people always around her. Changes were made, allowing her to write at home more often. But she braved every challenge that came her way, such as Q&A sessions eight times a week in which she’d get the same questions over and over.
So big kudos to Seltzer, who finished the bulk of her work in December. The past few months, the Torah has undergone intense proofreading, corrections have been made and its 62 sheets (containing 304,805 letters) sewn together. This weekend, the final touches will make it a truly finished product, as Seltzer will help the last of more than 100 “adopt a letter” purchasers ink in their own letter.
Also, big kudos go to the museum for having the vision, and the flexibility, to pursue such a monumental project without knowing for sure what adversity might be around the corner. Who knew if Seltzer could go the distance? That nearly 200,000 people would end up not only seeing the exhibit, but lingering longer than most would have imagined?
No other museum has ever done this before, nor, speaking to the difficulty of such a project, does any plan to do it soon.
It’s tempting to say all of this will culminate at a joyous community-wide celebration at the CJM on April 3, with the music and dancing that traditionally accompanies the completion of a Torah.
However, this Torah is raring to leave the museum world behind and become part of our community. To that end, it will be read from April 2 at Congregation Netivot Shalom in Berkeley, beginning a life in which it will be lent to synagogues throughout the area and to Jewish communities both local and beyond.
So in essence, the life of this Torah is just beginning — even though its life so far has been at once remarkable and historic.