CBS Sefer Haftarah Project Honoring Harvey Gold

The Men's Club is proud to join with the CBS board and other synagogue arms to kick off the CBS Sefer Haftarah Project honoring Harvey Gold.

For more than 40 years, Harvey has been a driving force and an inspiration to our shul and our community. His unending devotion to our young people is just one of his many legacies. By dedicating this special symbol of our faith to Harvey, we are honoring both his vision and his service to Congregation Beth Shalom.

The Sefer Haftarah has been part of Jewish liturgy since Roman Times when it was first introduced as a way to counter a Roman decree that forbade the reading of the Torah in public assemblies. During the 9th century, the Ben Asher family developed the system of cantillation and punctuation (trope and k’tiv). From that time onward it became traditional for the Haftarot to be chanted.

It was common during the Middle Ages to have books of the prophets in the Ark next to the Torah scrolls. When it came time to read from the Haftarah, a scroll was taken out of the Ark and a Haftarah was chanted. Books of Haftarot in scroll form have been in use for more than one hundred years but have almost been totally eclipsed by the printing press. The CBS Sefer Haftarah will be used to further enhance the spirituality of the reading experience.

To learn how you and your family can be a part of this exciting project, please review the Sefer Haftarah Project brochure, and watch for upcoming events that will provide additional details.