A Navy article describes how retired Chaplain (Rear Adm) Harold Robinson, now of the Jewish Welfare Board’s Jewish Chaplains Council, personally presented the USS George Washington with a new, handmade Torah for its Jewish community: 

The Torah contains the five books of Moses: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy, and is a crucial component for studying and practicing the Jewish faith…

Robinson hand carried the new Torah from New York City to Yokosuka, Japan and presented the sacred text to the Jewish community aboard George Washington.

While the MRFF’s retired Army Col Lawrence Wilkerson may find it “dangerous” for these Jewish Sailors to publicly express their faith, it is admirable that the Navy and the JWB have worked together to protect the religious rights of those in uniform, supporting them with religious resources when they can do so.

Photo credit:
Aviation Electronics Technician 3rd Class Zachary Rosen, the Jewish lay leader for the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73), opens a Torah donated to the ship by the Jewish Welfare Board in the ship’s chapel. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Jaime Marcial/Released)

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