Tzedakah Torah Mantle

Mixed fabrics, Machine appliqué
36 x 91 x 20 cm. (14" x 36" x 8")
Commissioned for the Reena Foundation by friends of Joseph Berman

The design, a collaboration with Sarah Silver, combines many motifs pertaining to tzedakah and the work of the Reena Foundation, a rehabilitation facility for physically and emotion-ally disabled Jewish adults.

These include the eight steps of Maimonides' Ladder of Tzedakah, transforming at the top into helping hands. The gates are those of righteousness, and these open towards an expansive future for those whom Reena assists. The crown represents both God and Torah, and the seven trees are the cedars in Psalm 92: "The righteous shall flourish like palms, grow tall like cedars in Lebanon".

Photo: Harold Duke

Click on titles to view details:
detail one
detail two
return to full view