On certain rare occasions, we remove three Torah scrolls from the synagogue ark for the Torah reading. This occurs when three distinct portions must be read for the day—for example, the regular weekly portion, the Rosh Chodesh (new month) reading, and a special holiday or maftir portion. Rather than rolling one scroll back and forth to three different places (which is time-consuming and considered disrespectful to the congregation), halachah prescribes using multiple scrolls.1

There are four possible occasions during the course of a year when three scrolls are used. Only one of these—Simchat Torah—happens each year, the other three only occur when certain calendric variables align.

1. When Rosh Chodesh Tevet is on Shabbat. Since the month of Tevet always begins during the holiday of Chanukah, in such a case there would be three readings: a) the weekly reading, b) the reading for Rosh Chodesh (head of the month), c) the holiday reading.

2. When the month of Adar (or the second month of Adar in a leap year) begins on Shabbat. The extra portion of Shekalim is always read on the Shabbat immediately preceding the month of Adar, or on Rosh Chodesh Adar itself when it falls on Shabbat. On such a week we would read: a) the weekly Torah portion, b) the reading for Rosh Chodesh, c) the Shekalim reading.

3. The same applies when the month of Nisan begins on Shabbat. The extra portion of Hachodesh is read on the Shabbat immediately preceding the month of Nisan, or on Rosh Chodesh Nisan when it falls on Shabbat. On such a Shabbat, the weekly Torah portion is read, in addition to the Rosh Chodesh and Hachodesh readings.

In each of these cases, three Torah scrolls are taken out of the ark, if the synagogue has that many. After each reading, hagbah and geliah are performed on each scroll respectively. If the synagogue only has one scroll, then it is rolled between readings to the correct position, and hagbah and geliah are only performed at the conclusion of all the readings.

Significance

On various occasions, the Rebbe highlighted the higher Divine orchestration that this convergence signifies, when it occurs due to a quirk of that year’s calendar.2 Unlike Simchat Torah, where three scrolls are used annually, these other instances depend on something extra, akin to a miraculous event—a step above the steady cycle of nature.

The Rebbe likens this to the difference between nature and miracles. Although nature is also directed by G‑d, miracles reflect a revealed Divine will that breaks natural patterns. A Shabbat where three scrolls are taken out is not ordinary; it points to a Divine moment of elevation and opportunity.

Gates of Compassion

The Zohar teaches that when the Torah scroll is taken out of the ark for public reading, “the Gates of Mercy (Sha’arei Rachamim) are opened in Heaven.”3 Building on this idea, the Baal Shem Tov taught:

At the moment of opening the ark, when even a simple Jew sincerely recites the Berich Shmei prayer with pure faith from the depth of the heart, the Holy One, blessed be He, fulfills that person’s request, either in whole or in part.”4

Based on this, Rabbi Pinchas Menachem of Ger (the “Pnei Menachem,” 1926-1996) emphasizes the extraordinary spiritual potency of the rare moment when the ark is opened, and three Torah scrolls are removed. He advised that those seeking salvation or Divine compassion should pray specifically during this time.5

Three Dishes

On a lighter note, some cite the custom of adding extra dishes on such a Shabbat. Several Chassidic rebbes, including the Minchas Elazar of Munkacs, are reported to have asked that three separate kugels be prepared to symbolize the three Torah scrolls.6

The Significance of Shabbat Rosh Chodesh Tevet

On one occasion—speaking on Shabbat Rosh Chodesh Tevet, Chanukah 5735—the Rebbe highlighted the significance of the three elements of Shabbat, Rosh Chodesh, and Chanukah.

These three themes—though independent and not always coinciding—reflect two complementary movements that exist throughout Torah and creation: affirmation and negation, the “positive” and “negative” strokes, which together form the wholeness of G‑d’s revelation. Just as the first two commandments, “I am” and “You shall have no other gods,” are considered the root of all the commandments and were heard directly from G‑d, so does all of creation carry both multiplicity and unity.

Shabbat, Rosh Chodesh, and Chanukah each express another aspect of this relationship between difference and unity. Their distinctions begin with time itself: Shabbat recurs weekly, Rosh Chodesh monthly, and Chanukah annually. They also differ in history and spiritual essence. Shabbat dates back to Creation, when the Divine light shone openly for 36 hours. Rosh Chodesh came into its full significance only when G‑d chose Jacob and his children, the people whose calendar would sanctify time. Chanukah arose centuries later, in an era when darkness prevailed—the Greek regime sought not merely to disrupt Jewish practice temporarily but to extinguish it entirely. Yet out of that darkness came a light with the power to illuminate the outside world, transforming night itself. This is the essence of Chanukah: not merely resisting concealment, but causing the very darkness to shine.

In personal service, Shabbat corresponds to Torah study, which elevates a Jew above the world, as every Jew is called “a student of the Divine.” Rosh Chodesh does not have the level of sanctity of Shabbat, since work is permitted on it; nevertheless, Scripture does not call it a “day of work.” This indicates one’s engagement with worldly matters—whether necessities or one’s livelihood—but in a manner that lifts action into a realm beyond action, infusing it with holiness. Chanukah, in turn, reflects the power to illuminate the outside world, not only removing concealments but transforming the world itself into holiness.

Ordinarily, these are three distinct modes of service. But when Shabbat, Rosh Chodesh, and Chanukah coincide, the Jew is empowered to unite all three at once: to stand above the world like Shabbat, to elevate the world like Rosh Chodesh, and to transform the world like Chanukah.7