Jewish Life Nov-Dec 1951

i the Lord, and work; for I am with yon—H agoai 2:4

riSH SOLDIERS IN KOREA

is issue,

aplain Oscar Lifshutz

>US FOUNDATIONS OF 3CRATIC FREEDOM V Israel Abrahams

K JN

Van Camp’s Beans in Tomato Sauce bear the official seal of approv« al (y ) of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Con« gregations of America

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EDITORIALS S aul B ernstein , Editor M. Morton R ubenstein D r. E ric Offenbacher R abbi T heodore L. A dams

Editorial Associates P aul H ausdorff

Art Director

Esther Freedman, Editorial Assistant ; Sam Landau, Cir­ culation Assistant.

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• ARTICLES SHEMITTAH '7 _■ Joseph Weiss WITH JEWISH SOLDIERS IN KOREA .1..... 16 Oscar Lifshutz' WANT TO READ A GOOD NOVEL? 25 , Harold U. Ribalow THE YOUNGEST CHIEF OF STAFF 30 Touvia Ashkenazi : THE RABBI IN A CHANGING COMMUNITY' 36 Simon L. Eckstein RELIGIOUS FOUNDATIONS OF DEMOCRATIC FREEDOM 40 Israel Abrahams ISRAEL'S NEW GOVERNMENT AND ITS PROBLEMS — - 48 I .,Halevy Levin AS THE TWIG IS BENT', ,56 Eliezer Ebner-

• FEATURES . AMONG OUR CONTRIBUTORS A ... ' 2 UP FRONT IN, KOREA (Photo Feature) 1'i.' 14 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR .... 1---- ----- 69

® BOOK

Published by U nion of Orthodox J ew ish Congregations of A merica W illiam B. H erlands

President

Rabbi Herbert S. Goldstein, William Weiss, Dr. Samuel Nirenstein, Honorary Presi­ dents; Benjamin Koenigsberg, M. Morton Rubenstein, V i c e - P r e s i d e n t s ; Joseph Schlang, Secretary; N, Ken­ neth Gross, Treasurer; Saul Bernstein, Administrator.

REVIEWS

PROPHET OF DESTRUCTION „ ¿ L ... 63 Israel Gerstein TORAH,' SCIENCE AND. HEALTH Israel Tabak

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• SERVICES ka sh ru th

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EXCERPTS selected arid translated by Alexander S. Rosenberg PHOTOS from Korea courtesy of National Jewish Welfare Board.

A m o n g O ur Contributors OSCAR LIFSHUTZ, illustrious Bronze Star chaplain, recently returned from service with the 8th Army in Korea;: is Executive Officer at Chaplain's Training School, Fort Slocum,. N. Y. A native of Rock Island, 111., he graduated Hebrew Theological College in Chicago and earned advance degrees from two western colleges. He joined the Armed Forces in 1945 and in the post-war period was advisor on DP problems to General Mark Clark. He is now Consultant to the Armed Forces Division of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America. *

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PROF. ISRAEL ABRAHAMS is the Chief Rabbi of Capetown and one of the

leading personalities of the South Africa Jewish Community. He holds the chair of Professor of Hebrew at the University of Capetown. *

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HAROLD RIBALOW, a popular contributor to periodicals dealing with Jewish

and general subjects, has had a varied literary career. Author of two books, essayist and sports columnist, he is now Managing Editor of Congress Weekly. He is a graduate of Yeshiva University and New York University. *

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ELIEZER EBNER is the rabbi of the Beth Israel Congregation of Calgary,

Alberta, Canada. He studied at Yeshivath1Mir in Poland, Petarch Tikvah in Israel and received the Doctorate degree in the Department of Jewish Education from Dropsie College. *

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SIMON ECKSTEIN, ordained at Yeshiva University, was an associate of Dr.

Leo Jung at the Jewish Center, N.Y., and now is Rav of Congregation Tifereth Israel in Winthrop, Mass. He is President of the Orthodox Rabbinical Council of Greater Boston and a member of the Executive Committee of the Rabbinical Council of America. *

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JOSEPH WEISS is an instructor of Talmud at Yeshiva University, where he

received both his ordination and a baccalaureate degree. A research specialist in Talmud and Halachah, he has recently been appointed by the Rabbinical Council of America as Secretary of its Commission on Halachah. He has con­ tributed several articles in this field to leading Torah magazines. *

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TOUVIA ASHKENAZL, Russian-born, reared and educated in Palestine, Egypt

and France, and highly trained in the social sciences, is the author of magazine articles and of several books in Hebrew, as well as one in French, and in English. He has been honored by high awards from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and the American Academy for Jewish Research and is a member of a number of scientific societies. He resides now ill the United States. 2

Jewish LIFE

EDITORIALS THE TIME TO WORK FOR G-D

JP^S WE go to press^ delegates from all parts of the United States and Canada are assembling at the National Convention of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregation of America. Undçr the slogan — “The time to work for G-d” ^ these representatives of the forces of Torah Judaism will address themselves to the problems of our time in a spirit of realism and determination. “Time”, “Work”, “G-d” — without that we fusé togther each part of this theme, the needs of the American Jewish community cannot be served. Joining them to­ gether, we can accomplish great things for our generation and for the generations to come. To translate purpose into action is not simple. But many indica­ tions show that Orthodoxy has developed a generation of men and women who join devotion to its cause with keen understanding of its broader needs, and combine willingness to serve with a grasp of the lines of action necessary under present-day conditions. With the favor of the Almighty, the UOJCA National Convention will channel and activitate this great force. May the Convention, in this era of momentous change, lead American Jewry to a higher destiny.

THE LESSON OF LONG ISLAND

JN

EVER-WIDENING circle of forces has been animated by the campaign for Kashruth at the new Long Island hospital. Being built under sponsorship of the Greater New York Federation for Jewish Philanthropies, the hospital is prompted as an undertaking of the Jewish community at large. The campaign for Kashruth is designed to assure that the hospital will be Jewish in fact as well as in name. After months of effort, the aim has not yet been achieved but the campaign goes forward with unabated purpose. Within and far beyond the Greater New Nov. - Dec., 1951

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York area, an upheaval has been set in motion which may ultimately affect many facets of American Jewish life. Peering through the facade of committee hearings, consulations and deliberations staged by the sponsoring body, the Board of Founders of the hospital and its Board of Trustees, the fact must be plainly recognized that there could never have been, and still is not, the slightest intention on the part of those really in control to allow the Long Island Hospital to be kosher. This, regardless of what arguments might be put forth in favor of such a policy, and by however communally repres­ entative and weighty proponents. Barely, indeed, has any local communal cause gained such wide and diversified support as that seeking a policy of Kashruth for the Long Island Hospital. Organizations and institution^ of every kind, local and national, rabbis and laymen, prominent indivi­ duals and the rank-and-file mass, orthodox, Reform and Conservative elements, all ^poke and continue to speak with one voice on the matter. But those in control of the Long Island Hospital are undeterred; the hospital, they are resolved, must be tereyfah. JJEGARDLESS of the ultimate outcome of the campaign itself, it has borne fruit by virtue of its very existence. First of all, it has served to strip from even the most naive any remain­ ing illusion that the batlanim who rule over our Countering communal philanthropic institutions have any prediUn-Jewish lection (or even “tolerance” !) for authentic Judaism. Leadership In this respect, the pattern in the Greater New York area is identical to that in most American communi­ ties. However humanitarian in motive, the prevailing type among the rulers of our communal institutions is spiritually anti-Jewish — an ugly fact which can no longer be minimized. Yet the Long Island campaign also teaches us that even among these tycoons there are those who are not entirely impervious to the call of Judaism — when that call is issued with sufficient force and 'clarity to penetrate encrusted layers of bigotry. The campaign, it is known, has not been without effect upon certain individuals who might 4

Jewish LIFE

under other circumstances scarcely have given the issue serious considera­ tion. These people can yet be won for the Jewish muse. The Long Island campaign has shown that the closed circle of controlling influence can be penetrated from within and shaken from without. In the future, it is not likely that a body of self-appointed individuals will disregard »with impunity the ideals and beliefs of the community at large in setting up an institution supposedly representing that community. Existing institutions, too, now come into the spot­ light and the shameful betrayal of Judaism which characterizes many of them stands revealed in a new light. These institutions function in the name of the Jewish community* which maintains them. Can we, viewing the cumulative momentum of the Long Island campaign, contemplate a time when they shall also be governed, democratically, by the Jewish community, and operated as actually Jewish institutions? ■pHE Long Island experience has demonstrated some effective weapons for the defense of Jewish rights at Jewish institutions. One is the withholding of financial support from the institutions which misrepresent themselves as Jewish. This tactic has already made itself felt in the case of the Long Island Hospital, will be felt increasingly in the future, and is being adopted markedly in other communities. It is a language which can be plainly and sharply understood. Another is a long-term pro­ cess requiring patient and thorough orientation of the men and women whose prominence or wealth is coupled with attachment to the faith of their fathers as well as to humanitarian purpose. All too many of these are being bamboozled by the smooth and specious representations of the dejudaized but socially “elect” elements who control communal philan­ thropy. They must learn to use their influence — and their means — to Jewish advantage, even as the others use theirs to Jewish disadvan­ tage. And basic to all is the organized community campaign, effectively demonstrated in Long Island and bearing corollaries of great significance in themselves. Nov. - Dec., 1951

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p"OR SEVERAL past generations, orthodox Jews in America, individ­ ually and collectively, have been under constraint to participate on an “interdenominational” basis with non-orthodox Technique for groups for communal purposes. These programs have MInterdenomina- frequently carried a neat joker: the projects in ^uestionai" Action tion, though usually directed at genuine commun­ ity needs, serve to strengthen the influence, aims or position of the non-orthodox, who control them. By losing the initiative in the establishment or control of communal services, Orthodoxy as an organized force' has again and again been maneuvered into an impotent position. The Long Island campaign too, forms an effort cutting across idèological lines — but the initiative and, momentum have been orthodox. In this case, orthodox forces have spearheaded a campaign meeting the need of the entire community, orthodox and non-orthodox alike. In the campaign for Kashruth at the Long Island Hospital orthodox forces could without scruple accept a “minority” status 77 because the aim is directly in line with orthodox Jewish needs, rather than one in which orthodox needs will be served “also.” It is a campaign in which orthodox groups/ can afford to submerge their individual identity, for the end to be gained could not be other than in accord with Jewish belief. At the same time, elements not in the orthodox fold yet deferring to the spirit of Jewish tradition or cognizant of the need to maintain Jewish selfrespect could not fail to be in harmony with the campaign, without fear of pinning on themselves an orthodox label. This was achieved because orthodox f orces saw the imperative need to exercise initiative in a matter affecting all in the community and to take action as an organized force rather than as isolated individuals. The lesson of Long Island must be studied seriously and applied to its widest extent. 6

Jewish LIFE

The Sabbath of the land, pillar of social brotherhood, is renewed as of old. 'THIS YEAR, 5712, is the seventh year in the cycle of seven year periods which the Jews have been counting since they occupied Eretz Yisroel in the time of Joshua. The term Shemittah, meaning relin­ quishment, given to this year, char­ acterizes the main features of this seventh year as prescribed by the Torah. It calls for the abandon­ ment, during the entire year, of the cultivation of the field, orchard and garden, and the cancellation of debts. In three places, the Torah ex­ plains the laws governing the con­ duct of this special year. The first, found in Shembth 23:10-11 reads: And six years thou shalt sow thy land and gather in the increase thereof; but on the seventh year thou shalt leave it and abandon it, that the poor of thy people may eat, and what they leave the beast of the field shall eat; in like man­ ner thou shalt deal with thy vine­ yard and with thy oliveyard. In Vayikra 25:1-7, the law is more elaborate and definite. Verse four begins thus: But in the sev­ enth year shall be Sabbath to the Nov. - Dec., 1951

land, a Sabbath unto G-d; thou shalt neither sow thy field nor prune thy vineyard. That which groweth of itself of thy harvest thou shalt not reap and the grapes of thy undressed vine thou shalt not gather; it shall be a year of work-stoppage for the land. And the Sabbath (produce) of the land shall be for food for you; for thee, and for thy servant, and for thy maid, and for thy hired servant and for the settler by thy side that sojourn with thee. And for thy cattle, and for the beasts that are in thy land shall all the increase thereof be for food. The law concerning the renounce­ ment of debts is given in Devorim 15:1-3,9. Verse; two reads: And this is the manner of the release: every creditor shall release that which he hath lent unto his neigh­ bor, he shall not exact it of his neighbor and his brother, because he hath proclaimed release, for G-dfs name. Further reference to Shemittah is made in the Tochacha, that por­ tion in the Torah devoted to warn­ ing of the punishments that would 7

come if the laws were not heeded. Of the two such chapters the first one is Vayikra 26:33-35: And you will I scatter among the nations, and I will draw out the sword after you; and your land shall be a deso­ lation, and your cities shall be a waste. Then shall the land be paid her Sabbaths, as long as it lieth desolate and you are in your ene­ mies’ land; even then shall the land rest, and repay her Sabbaths, As long as it lieth desolate it shall have rest; even the rest which it had not in your Sabbaths, when ye dwelt upon it. «J-HE SINGLING out of Shemittah from all other transgres­ sions gives us a clear indication as to the importance the Torah at­ taches to the regulations of this year. Even in Exodus (Shemoth), where the precept of Shemittah is immediately followed by that of Shabboth, this association alone gives it prominence and signifi­ cance next to Shabboth, which is the cornerstone of Jewish faith and practice. The tractate in the Talmud called Shvees is devoted to the de­ tailed study of the Laws of She­ mittah pronounced in the Torah, plus those added by the rabbis as a safeguard to its observance. Al­ though it is not the piirpose of this article to explain the many laws and practices of the seventh year, I do want to point out some of the highlights of the rules for the Shemittah year, so as to give us some idea of the nature of Shemit­ tah, of the problems confronting 8

Jewry in Eretz Yisroel today and the proposed solutions. First, it should be known that Shemittah of the land, ;Jike every other Mitzvah relating to land, is limited to Eretz Yisroel. From the above quotation in Leviticus {Vay­ ikra) one may notice the four spe­ cific types of operations which the Torah forbids. They are sowing or planting of the field, pruning of the vineyard, reaping the harvest of the field, and the gathering of the fruits. The first two, planting and reaping, are unconditionally for­ bidden, while the latter two, reap­ ing the harvest and gathering of the fruits, have their modifications. The verse calling for an equal share of the products for all classes of people clearly shows that the Torah, in prohibiting the gather­ ing of the fruits, did not intend to let them rot away on the tree. This injunction is designed to restrain one from acting to remove the product of his field and orchard as if they were his own. JT IS the wish of the Torah that the owner make the crops free and available to all, among whom he also can take a share.- -All work on the field besides these four, with the exception of plowing, which is of a doubtful nature, is permissible according to the Torah, but is for­ bidden according to rabbinical or­ dinance. An exception is made for work designed to prevent loss to the land or to the trees (Moed Koton 3). The time and manner of the consumption of products which grow without human effort Jewish LIFE

is further restricted. The Torah allows them L’achlah, for eating, but excludes their sale. Only the normal mode of consumption is permitted and processing them into something else is banned. Even squeezing to extract juice is pro­ hibited, except in the case of olives and grapes. This alone points to a problem today, especially with re­ gard to citrus fruits. From the above quotations, it is learned that these products may be enjoyed only as long as some of the same food remains in the fields for the ani­ mals. When there is no longer food in the fields for the animals, the Mitzvah of ‘Biur- is then per­ formed. There is a division of opinion as to the meaning of Biur. According to Rambam (Maimonides) and others, it means the burning of all remaining crops. The opinion of Ramban (Nachmanides) and oth­ ers, which is accepted, is that all the produce in one’s household is to be taken out to a public place and made free. If no one takes ad­ vantage of this offer, he may then

take the food back home and con­ tinue to use it. In addition to these laws, the rabbis made a further restriction. They declared that all vegetables, which unlike fruits of trees need replanting each time, are forbid­ den even if they happened to grow by themselves, for fear that the transgressors might grow them and deceive us. This is called the' prohibition of ‘Sefichim.’ This rule has its exceptions, in cases where the above circumstances could not possibly occur. So much for the Shemittah of the land. As to the law regarding the, re­ nouncement of debts, it is worth mentioning that this takes place everywhere, even outside of Eretz Yisroel, and only at the end of the seventh year. If, by his own free will, the debtor wishes to return the money he had borrowed, the creditor — after he has informed him that he forgives the debt — may accept it. The claiming of the debt is the main target of this prohibition (see Rambam Hilchoth Shvees 9:28 and Mishnah Rishonah on Tractate Shvees 10:8,9).

The Moral Significance of Shemittah T H E FOLLOWING explanation Lord of the land. Just as on Shabof the meaning of Shemittah both, the seventh day of the week, is adopted mainly from the great we cease to create and make one commentary to the Chumosh by the thing from another, thereby relin­ illustrious Rabbi Samson Raphael quishing these domains to their Hirsch who, of course, follows the Creator, so with Shemittah, tjie explanations of the Talmud, Mid­ Shabboth of thè years, when we rash and Rishonim. The one great message of the cease to exercise rights over our entire procedure of Shemittah 'is property we return the land to its to proclaim G-d as the Owner and primary Owner.

Nov. - Dec., 1951

9

Thus we see the Sabbath of the During Shemittah, the Torah de­ land was given to us as a re­ mands not only the stoppage of minder that the land we occupy field work, but also the disclaiming and wherefrom we draw sustenance of debts. From the concept of G-d is not our own property and sov-, as the Master and Father of all, ereign possession. When the Jews there follows the concept of broth­ occupied and settled Eretz Yisroel, erhood and friendship among men. the danger was present that they Wealth and poverty, factors of might become so conditioned to the credit and debt, tend to divide peo­ land as to forget the words of G-d: ple and set up classes. Living un­ For Mine is the land. To prevent der the guidance of the Lord of the this, the Shabboth of the land was land, this breach is repaired and proclaimed, to teach all that the all become brothers. This probably owner of the land is the Lord, and accounts for the use of the word that we utilize this land only by “brother” in the commandment His grace, for terms of six years. concerning cancellation of debts. This is why not all labor on the The atmosphere of true brother­ fields is forbidden by the Torah hood and friendship is established, during the Shemittah year, but where the social order is based on only such operations as sowing, moral duty rather than forced obli­ planting, and the gathering of the gation. We have seen that the produce— activities which most creditor may accept payment when clearly suggest man’s ownership of offered freely. The inhibition is the land. By planting, he shows against collecting debts by force of occupation of the land, and by claim. This is why the release of gathering his crops he makes per­ debts takes place only at the end sonal use of its fruits. Shemittah, of the seventh year. It takes a however, demonstrates to man the year’s absence from duties bound true state of affairs — neither the to the land, and all this signifies, land nor its products are his by to evoke in us this genuinely broth­ his own right. erly feeling. Shemittah in Our Time

“J"HE PROBLEM of Shemittah arose in modern times when the movement for colonizing Eretz Yisroel got under way. When the Shemittah year 5649 (1888-9) was about to occur, it appeared to the struggling colonists in the newlyestablished settlements that inter­ ruption of work and the loss of a year’s income would spell ruin to 10

their efforts, and endanger the suc­ cess of the movement. The Torah had foreseen such apprehensions on the part of the people in Yayikra 25:20: And if ye shall say, 'What shall we eat in the seventh year? behold we may hot sow, nor gather in our increase*. To this the reply is given in the Torah: Then I will command My blessing Jewish LIFE

rabbinical laws and directs us to obey them, so that this last point should be carefully examined. What the colonists were looking for was a legal way out of the necessity of leaving their land fal­ low, through which they would be lawfully allowed to avoid the posi­ tive observance of Shemittah. They turned to the leading Torah author­ ities in quest of such a ‘Hetter/

upon you in the sixth year, and ye shall eat of the producer the old store,. until the ninth year, until her produce come in, ye shall eat the old store. The great Rabbi Hersch Leib, the Netziv of Volozhin, reminded the colonists in a letter of this promise of the Torah and pointed to the unusual bumper crops which they then enjoyed in advance of the oncoming Shemittah, as a sign of this Divine blessing (Meshiv Dovor, response 56). As we shall note later, there is a large body of opinion that the observance of Shemittah in our times is of a rabbinical nature, not directly a Torah mandate. It was therefore feared that since it was only ‘MidarabononY the blessing promised in the Torah may not be binding and certain under such circum­ stances. It should be noted, how­ ever, that the Torah authorizes all Nov. - Dec., 1951

PROMINENT among the rabbis who responded and issued an affirmative ‘Hetter* was Rabbi Yitchok Elchonon Spektor of Kovno. The substance of the Hetter was to recommend the sale of the land to a non-Jew, who, as owner, could do all kinds of labor on the land. Where non-Jewish help was not possible, Jews were allowed to do those kinds of work which come under the category of being rabbinically forbidden. Under no cir­ cumstances were those types of work forbidden by the Torah per­ mitted to Jews. The basis of this Hetter rests on two main conceptions: ( 1 ) the ob­ servance of Shemittah when all the tribes of Israel are not settled in Eretz Yisroel is by rabbinical de­ cision; (2) Eretz Yisroel land in the possession of a non-Jew is de­ prived of the holiness necessary for the Shemittah observance,^ and is therefore freed from all injunc­ tions, allowing even a Jew to work on it. The reader who is acquaint­ ed with this second aspect in the Talmud (Gitiii 47a) will note the significance of the point just made. An opinion that fruit grown by a H

non-Jew is freed from many special laws of the Holy, Land appears quite openly in the Talmud. (The Halachic ruling and its conditions is another matter.) * However, that the land of Eretz Yisroel in nonJewish hands should lose its in­ herent holiness, so as to permit working on it during Shemittah, is not easily and readily accepted there. This is a deeply involved theoretical study (see Sefer HaShemittdh by Rabbi Tukinsky, pp. 89-97) . Later, it was also proposed that a portion of land be set aside t 6 remain fallow during Shemittah, as a reminder of the mitzvah. T H IS HETTER was by no means universally recognized. Among the leading rabbis opposed to it were the two outstanding ‘geonim,’ Rabbi Joseph Ber Soloveitchik of Brisk and the Netziv, Rosh Yeshivah of Volozhin. They disa­ greed on both legal and moral grounds. Morally, the argument was that Jewry was participating in the establishment of these col­ onies in order to revitalize Eretz Yisroel as a holy land and to renew the mitzvoth which were absent in the Diaspora. Failure to perform such mitzvoth was contrary to the plan of resettling the land (Meshiv Dovor 56). They appealed to the farmers to have faith in G-d and in His promise for prosperity as given in the Torah. They were also reminded of special Shemittah funds which would be raised for their assistance. A strong argument in favor of this legal and moral claim was the Ü

fact that in the entire rabbinic literature when Jews tilled the soil of Eretz Yisroel, and were known to have been observing Shemittah, we do not find any mention of the avoidance of Shemittah observance by any means. Another difficulty with which the authors of the Hetter had to cope was the law which prohibits the sale of land in Eretz Yisroel to strangers. This ban is considered ‘min ha - Torah/ The sale of the land was therefore arranged for a period of two years only. Being only temporary, it was lawful to do so. This' decision, too, was not so simply arrived at and was also not favored by all rabbinic leaders. T H E DECISION as to the Hetter rendered by Rabbi Isaac Elchanon, world recognized Torah au­ thority, and favored by a host of other Gedolim, was respected and accepted by most of the settlers in Eretz Yisroel. A few did remain Shemittah observers. The local rabbis of Eretz Yisroel arrangea the actual sale and gave instruc­ tions as to what work was con­ sidered ‘min ha - Torah’ and not covered by the Hetter. It should be noted, however, that it was never intended to institutionalize this avoidance of keeping the She­ mittah year holy, as it was ex­ pressly stated by the rabbis that this was only a ‘horaath shoah’, a temporary measure resulting from the special economic conditions of the time, to be reviewed with the arrival of each Shemittah. Jewish LIFE

In the same Hetter, the argument was advanced that since the pre­ servation and cultivation of the co­ lonies was in itself a mitzvah, as part of - Yishuv Eretz Yisroel’, the carrying out of the Hetter was jus­ tified even on moral grounds (after having been cleared legally, of course). Furthermore, argued Rab­ bi Kook in his Halachic volume Shabboth Ha. - Aretz, the burden of the Shemittah observance might keep prospective religious settlers away, so that only non-religious people would be drawn to the land, auguring great danger to the Holy Land, which makes the Hetter im­ perative. To all this, the famous “gaon,” Rabbi Ridbaz of Slutzk and Jerusa­ lem retorted that the mitzvah of 'Yishuv Eretz Yisroel’ applies only when we settle upon and build up ‘holy’ land. However, when we devise means to free the land from its holiness, it then loses its reli­ gious value and we no longer can consider its cultivation a religious necessity. Rabbi Kook, in return, explained that besides the holiness of Eretz Yisroel for the observance of the special mitzvoth of the land, it also possesses a general sanctity inherent in the country as a geo­ graphic entity. In non -J e wi sK hands, the holiness pertaining to the special mitzvoth is temporarily lost, but not the over-all sanctity of the country.

Nov. - Dec., 1951

SIMULTANEOUSLY with the is­ suing of the Hetter, Rabbi Kook encouraged all ^hemittah-observing people, and founded the 'Keren Ha-Shemittah,’ a fund to aid these people. Under the spon­ sorship of the Agudath Horabonim, the Keren Ha-Shemittah in the United States is doing valuable work for the assistance of many thousands of Shemittah observers today. Some of the kibbutzim in Eretz Yisroel have recently begun a new method of developing plantations in water called ‘hydraponics,’ which, as most rabbis agree, is permis­ sible on Shemittah. If successful, this will help solve some of the pro­ blems. TN THE WORDS of the Midrash' ' XVayikra 1 ) : On th er verse in Psalyis 103:20 : Bless the Lord ye: angels of His, ye mighty 'in strength, that fulfill His word, Rabbi Yitchok said this, refers to the Shemittah observers, i "You may find a man performing a mitz­ vah lasting a day, a week, a month, perhaps a full year, but behold the man who sees his field and vineyard barren for an entire yea>r, who pays his land-tax and remains'content. Do you know of a mightier in strength?”

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FRONT IN KOREA

The traditional cus­ toms — and viands — of Pesach

find en­

thusiastic v o t c f r i e s among

Jewish

ser­

vicemen in Korea

With Jewish Soldiers IN KOREA By OSCAR LIFSHUTZ

A chaplain9s eye-witness account of life at the battlefrorit. JJAVING RECENTLY returned Other than those in the U.N. from service as Army, Chaplain forces, there are no Jews in Korea. in Korea, I have found myself Thus the Chaplain becomes the confronted with many inquiries re­ focal point of every aspect of re­ garding our Jewish boys in the ligious life. It is with pride that field of combat. Foremost among I am able to report of the wonder­ the questions put to me are, “How ful cooperation of our relatively are our Jewish boys reacting to numerous fighting men in the field. battle conditions and military life They have become awakened there in a distant land?” and, -'Are these to a new awareness of their herit­ men able to maintain their reli­ age. They have been a source of gious practices in the field, in com­ inspiration to the Chaplains. Let me hasten to say that our bat, distant from Jewish communi­ ty life?” These problems have Jewish men in Korea are not tzadcaused great anxiety / among tradi­ dikim. They manifest the same tional Jewry in particular. They human qualities as their fellow present a great challenge to many soldiers of other faiths. The mo­ young men who are responding to rale and fighting spirit of the the call of their country. It is American soldier in Korea is high, therefore incumbent upon those for all the grim dangers which he who have served in the zone of must face daily. Certainly the combat to make known what has spirit of the Jewish soldier there transpired among our men in is on par with the best of his nonJewish comrades. Combat apart, it Korea. It must be understood that Korea is no secret that any soldier can itself represents, from a Jewish get into scrapes of one kind or standpoint, a total religious vacuum. another in his moments of relaxa­ There is no environment or com­ tion. Jewish boys are no exception, munal life that in any way paral­ yet, as I observed, to a distinctly lels conditions in the United States. lesser degree than the others. The n

Jewish LIFE

Chaplain OSCAR LIFSHUTZ leads Chanukah service for the Jewish soldiers in Seoul, Korea (Photo courtesy TWB)

p Provost Marshall once confided to m e: “I never had any trouble with Jewish boys.” At the time I left Korea, there was not a single Jew­ ish soldier in the stockade. The great question so often asked, as to whether army life necessitated a breach of contract with religious principles, is ans­ wered by the tremeiidous response that our men in Korea are giving to their religious call. Whenever a

worship , service is announced, or kosher foods made available, the response of the men is overwhelm­ ing. If they were formerly “Once a Year Jews” they are so no longer. The American Jewish soldier in Korea has become an every-dayin-the-year Jew. Our men have learned that they are the Jewish community; they are aware of the responsibility this entails and are prepared to shoulder it.

TT GOES without saying that com* bat conditions place severe ob­ stacles in the way of religious ob­ servance. Soldiers would ask me, “Chaplain, what about dispensa­ tions? Don’t we have hetterim for times of crisis ?” My answer to the men was always, “We do not have dispensations, for at no time can we abrogate our traditional law, but we do have interpretations which provide for the ability to observe, though the standard be a minimum one.” In the field our men learned that problems of Kashruth, for example, can be met by ingenuity rather than by dispensation. Here, as elsewhere, the character of home training makes itself felt when the man is in the field. Among Jewish soldiers who had been taught to observe Kashruth not by habit alone but because of defined reli­ gious principle and understanding of his obligations, we found ex­ ample after example of complete

adherence even during the darkest hours of combat. Let it not be ignored that combat does have its hours and days, weeks and months — of darkness. No less than any previous conflagration does the war in Korea subjects the body, mind and soul of the com­ batant to the test of blazing fury. Yet I recall vividly several of our boys in the Second Division who, throughout, carried their own mu­ sette bags filled with kosher items. At Headquarters, the Mess Ser­ geant often had kosher items on hand which he supplied to the ob­ servant boys from time to time. It is to be noted here, with ref­ erence to a much misunderstood point, namely the attitude of th§ military authorities towards sup­ plying religious requirements, that it is not to be expected that the non-Jews be familiar with all as­ pects of Kashruth practice. They must be educated as to our require­ ments. Non-Jewish army personnel

Chaplain Lifshutz at the grave of a fallen Jewish soldier in Korea. (Photo courtesy JWB.)

Jewish LIFE

are only too glad to help when they know that a religious principle is at stake. More than once I’ve heard a Mess Sergeant yell as the men fell in line for Chow: "Hey you guys — get in the kosher line. After all the sweat to get the kosher food you ain’t getting in any other line!” ■pVERY non-Jewish Chaplain in Korea is alerted by direct con­ tact to help the man who observes Jewish law. I recollect a call from a non-Jewish Chaplain of I Corps, with rank of Colonel: "Chaplain, come immediately — we just ran out of gefilte fish. We must have it at once!” Even if it isn’t ‘Lishmah’, it is a vital morale factor. If kosher dietary observance makes a Jewish boy a better soldier then it becomes of vital concern to the command-at-large.

Some of the men, on the other hand, are adept at making the best of the situation whether through Mess facilities or by supplies shipped from home. One Pfc.’s constant supply of toothsome State­ side viands led to him frequently sharing a nash with his C.O. "What have you got today, son?” the latter would regularly enquire. "Oh, just some kishke and rye bread.” "Come on in!” And the two would sit fraternally munch­ ing together, with the C.O. disz coursing as to the day’s battle with uninhibited informality.

W H I L E THE accent of Jewish observance in the army usual­ ly devolves upon the dietary prob­ lems, there are a great many more religious requirements calling for the same amount of observance. For example, let us take the daily devotions. There is no reason for | From time to time we hear com7 a man not to worship daily in the plaints about men who have been field. He is given every privilege starving themselves in order to on a par with the others to attend abide by their religious principles. to his daily devotions. He will not It is my firm belief that if these be criticized if he puts on a Talith men would have contacted their or­ and Tefillin. He will not be con­ ganizational Chaplains, regardless sidered a curiosity. I recall one " of denomination, they would not young man with the — Division only have received support for who was given a separate tent be­ their belief but at the same time cause the General observed that he would win the support of their was truly pious. The boys called it fellow-soldiers. On contacting such "The little shod by the side of the men I would query them, "What road.” At 8th Army Headquarters our have you done to get kosher food ?”,* and the answer would invariably Chapel was open twenty-four hours be, "I didn’t know what to do.” a day for the men to come there to These men obviously needed the pray. Religious equipment was al­ guidance which the Chaplain is so ways on hand in great abundance. What we did suffer from was the happy to give. Nov. - Dec,, 1951

19

lack of family training. Many men who had nevèr been Bar Mitzvah came to me and asked for instruc­ tion so that they might be able to carry out the precepts of their faith. When I asked them why they had not learnt previously, they invariably indicated that not only were, they not given any training

J CANNOT stress too strongly this deficiency of religious training and orientation among many of the Jewish boys serving in Korea —and those in Korea undoubted­ ly represent a fair cross-section

community, therefore, is faced with the problem of indoctrinating these men so that they will be able to stand on their own two feet and practice their faith. While it is never too late to learn, the field of combat is the testing ground of survival and not for religious training. A soldier is given basic training with his weapon before he is sent into battle. The man must be indoctrinated with his religious concepts and beliefs before he is

same degree to the boys from nom­ inally orthodox homes — by far the great majority of the men serving in Korea are of orthodox background .and to those from Reform, Conservative and unaffili­ ated homes. A good number were a total void in this respect, any­ thing of a Jewish religious nature being utterly foreign to them. Boys of this type were apt to be aston­ ished and delighted at the beauty of the traditional religious serv-

20

sent out to face the battle of life wherever it may be.

Jewish LIFE

ices, which were a revelation to them. It was touching to see how such men showed preference for the Hebrew prayers, although they might not even be able to read Hebrew and certainly could not un­ derstand it. To these, as to the great majority of their comrades who were better equipped then they religiously, the traditional service and customs signified the real thing, for which they inarticu­ lately hungered amid the presence of danger and death. Without minimizing what has been said above, it must also be noted that perhaps ten per cent of the Jewish soldiers in Korea, ac­ cording to my observation, were not only well trained and disci­ plined in orthodox belief and prac­ tice but had acquired an under­ standing grasp of their religious tenets and of their deeper signifi­ cance. Others were diligent in some forms of observance while slighting the rest. Typical of these were some boys who would exer­ cise utmost vigilance in assuring that there were no departures from tradition in the services but could never be induced to help get to­ gether a kosher meal. In addition, there was a large element that hailed from observant homes but had received the type of miseducation and misorientation that left them only confused as to their re­ ligion and uncertain of their own beliefs. Among the minority who were from Reform or Conservative homes, I found a number of fine boys who had been well taught as Nov. - Dec., 1951

to the precepts of their denomina­ tion and had a fairly well defined spiritual outlook. But by and large the servicemen of this category were perhaps even more lacking in religious understanding, not to speak of Jewish training, than those from orthodox homes. Pain­ ful as it is to see boys from tradi­ tional homes stumble in efforts to read Hebrew prayers and lack ap­ preciation of the significance of that which they are reading, it is still more painful to see the prod­ ucts of Reform Sunday Schools recite in a flat, purely mechanical monotone, meaningless syllable fol­ lowing meaningless syllable, an English prayer which might just as well be Chinese —* or even He­ brew! — for all the sense it holds for them. y E T AGAIN H must say that whether in spite of, or because of, the religious training they have had at home, the Jewish soldiers in the combat zones in Korea have a deep-seated appreciation for their heritage which seeks and is finding its outlet. Let it be observed that the Jewish soldier exercises to a marked degree as compared with his non-Jewish comrade an apprecia­ tion for all forms of religious ex­ pression. Attendance at Jewish re­ ligious services, I noted, was pro­ portionally almost double that of non-Jewish services. I will note here too, that the overwhelming preference among our boys was for the full service, rather than the ab­ breviated field services. And the Jewish soldier is often prepared to 21

Chaplain Gaïson Goodman Lt. (JG) USN, officiates at a servicemen’s Seder “somewhere in Korea"

go to real effort for the opportuni­ ty to participate in a religious event or to perform a mitzvah. Our Oneg Shabboth became, to our boys, a deeply meaningful and joyous religious experience rather than just a snack session. It was an event they looked forward to eagerly and needed no urging to attend. Above all, they found in­ expressible satisfaction in making Kiddush, which we induced each one to do personally. For some of the boys it was necessary to trans­ literate the traditional blessings of the Kiddush into English letters, and it meant much to them to be thus enabled to perform the tradi­ 22

tional rite. The pride and pleasure the soldiers found in this mitzvah was again and again expressed in letters written to their homes. J RECALL very vividly that when the Pesach season arrived, we made elaborate plans for our men in Korea. Every possible means was utilized to help bring the men to central places for services and to provide food Kosher Le Pesach. But we felt that in spite of all our preparation there would still be many men who would not be able to attend due to military circum­ stances. As a result, we inaugu­ rated “Operation Maps” — Mobile Jewish LIFE

Army Passover Seder. It was simply a huge army truck loaded with the necessary equipment for Passover observance. It toured the battle areas and brought the Seder to the men in the fox holes. As a result, we not only befriended the religiously observant soldier, but the marginal observers as well. The men took pride in the fact that a new technique had been utilized to bring their faith to them. The net result was enthusiastic religious re­ sponse coupled with the friendship that is so vital between the layman and the rabbi. A Chaplain must find out that he cannot take any­ thing for granted but must be ready to provide every ingredient of religious worship observance, and liaison with the soldier he serves. On another occasion we set up a Chapel on the MSR — Main Sup­ ply Route — leading to the battle front. All units were notified as to the location of our mobile Chap­ el. The Chapel was equipped with everything necessary for a com­ plete service. My assistant and I maintained a 24-hour shift to make sure that at no time would the Chapel be left unattended. As a result we had an attendance that far surpassed anything we had ex­ perienced before. The men appre­ ciated the fact that a Chaplain was up front with them but more than that they gained esprit de corps, because their faith was represented in the combat zone. NATIONAL JEWISH Wel* fare Board is to be credited for Nov. J- Dec., 1961

doing a remarkable job of support­ ing Chaplains and all Jewish men in Korea. Not only were the sup­ plies bountiful, but they were shipped in a very expeditious man­ ner. The resultant morale effect upon our men aroused confidence in our community representatives. Orthodox needs were always sup­ plied and our requests were given priority. When the High Holy Days services were held in Sep­ tember of 1950, We received our prayer books by plane. We did not lack one item required for a com­ plete orthodox observance. Our soldiers noted these things and were quick to applaud such efforts. When our Sefer Torah arrived, be­ fore Rosh Hashonah, the men could hardly believe that there was a Torah in Korea — it is scarcely possible to describe their emotions at this acquisition. General Ridge­ way Was most happy to learn that we had a Torah with the 8th Army, and an Aron Kodesh was immedi­ ately built for it. When Succoth arrived, we had an Ethrog and Lulov. All this contributed greatly to the spiritual well-being of our men. Let me pay tribute also to the fine work of the Armed Forces Di­ vision of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America. The boys who received supplemen­ tary Kosher items and religious guidance from the Union were highly appreciative of the interest in their religious welfare mani­ fested in such a practical way by the national congregational body. 23

Perhaps thé most trying time we carry on. The Jewish soldier serv­ had was in December of 1950 when ing in Korea knows better than Chinese advances forced, us to evac­ ever before the price he is paying uate Seoul. It was during Chanukah as an American fighting for his that we made preparations to leave religious freedom. Religious free­ the city. On the 8th day of Chanu­ dom is a foundation of the Ameri­ kah we had a service in Seoul. can way of life. To use it is to Military police warned us that to live it. light candles at night would be The Army offers a great chal­ very dangerous because of the closeness of the enemy. I told this lenge to the man who desires to to the men who had assembled for maintain his principles even though the service. “Don't worry about he is away from home and not sub­ the Chinese/' my boys answered, ject to the close scrutiny of his “light all the candles and put the community. It is usually assumed Menorah on the window sill. Let that a man in the armed forces everyone see it." We continued is on a “vacation" from his reli­ gious principles. This has caused with the service. Need I say what great pride I great anxiety to the families of took in these boys? It was a rare servicemen and the orthodox Jew­ moment. Our men met and faced ish community at large. It is my the test. This was a great message hope that this article in some small to bring to the Jewish community measure may help to alleviate this anxiety. in the United States. We must face the realities of JÇÔREA has brought home to me, life. The world crisis that con­ as it has done to other Jews fronts all G-d-fearing people must who served there, that we must be answered by all. If we are to learn to maintain discipline in our encounter hardship in our attempt ranks. It is not only a discipline to face this danger then we must of abstinence and sacrifice, but also be prepared to be staunch in our one of positive action. We must religious principles though that utilize every technique available to may create many personal sacri­ us in order that we may be able to fices. Too often, we sacrifice our maintain our tradition. To sacri­ religious principles instead of our fice tradition in order to avert personal convenience^. Jewish ob­ hardship is to admit defeat in our servance is a way of life and we own belief. Faith must give us must serve it if we are to maintain strength and courage if we are to our courage in the time of strife.

24

Jewish LIFE

WANT TO

A GOOD NOVEL?

The “Jewish Novel " of today reflects the Jew of our times.' T'WO YEARS ago there were pub­ lished in the United States some thirty novels of Jewish interest. Not all of them were entirely of Jewish content, but all contained situations or characters which served to project the dilemmas, joys and problems of American Jewry. Last year the number leap­ ed to more than sixty. Thus far this year the number is proportion­ ately greater. In the flood of American Jewish fictjon, what is good and what is bad? What should a Jew who reads fiction selectively choose to read in the way of the novel ? Should he take seriously the distorted Jews of James Jones in his best-selling novel From Here to Eternity; the " too-clever Jewish lawyer in Herman Wouk's widely-read The Caine Mut­ iny; the rich, blatant Jews of Ste­ phen Longstreet's The Pedlocks; the dull Jews of Isidore Rosen's Will of Iron*! Should Jewish read­ ers pick up any novel, cheap and uninteresting though it may be (like Lewis Apple's Some Are Peo­ ple) merely/because it is written by a Jew, on the subject of inter­ marriage? Why should, the Jewish Nov. - Dec., 1951

reader take seriously Ann Birstein's Star of Glqss simply because it is concerned with a rabbi and his con­ gregation (and how bitterly draWn and poorly conceived this volume is!) ? In other words, in guiding the unsuspectipg . Jewish reader along the trails of fiction, should the cri­ tic attempt to curry favor for all words concerned with Jews, or should he deliberately attempt to tell his readers : “Most Jewish nov­ els, like most novels on general themes, are pretty sad, so I'm asking you to forget all. about them. Pay no attention to them. Read only , the good ones. Read these." , And then the critic may proceed in explaining why certain novels would profit a reader. JN THIS essay, I shall not burden the reader with the unfortunate books (there have been some unbe­ lievably bad ones) but I shall, try to explain why there are more than a half-dozen excellent Jewish works of fiction which will entertain and enlighten any Jewish readers, even if they seldom attempt to find solace and education in novels. In the riov25

el, when well and honestly done,wwe find a true reflection of our own times. In the books that follow* I believe the Jew in America is por­ trayed intelligently; accurately and, in most cases with artistry. All these novels are recent and they indicate that their authors, all Jews, see American Jewish life without distortion and with consid­ erable insight. Some of thè best novels, curious­ ly enough, deal with the immigrant generation of the early 1900's, their problems of adjustment, their Am­ ericanization and their conflict in reconciling traditional Judaism and contemporary secular American­ ism. Journey to the Dawn by Char­ les Angoff, probably the best single novel chronicling the Americaniza­ tion of European-Jewish families, contains practically all of the events and situations contained in most such volumes: the strangeness of America, the struggle for economic security, the battle to retain Jewish traditions. But one of the key strug­ gles in this novel is the war (it is literally a war) to maintain the Sabbath. Finally, the hero's father, facing hunger in the midst of a terrible depression, finds himself in a situation where he must work on the Sabbath if he and his fam­ ily are to survive the depression. He accepts the job. But this ac­ ceptance pains him to the core of his soul and he is never again as complete a human being as he used to be. Others succumbed more quickly ; some didn't even fight against the tide which swept away the Jewish 26

formà| and customs of life. But many did and, as Angoff portrays them, they deserve understanding and not scorn. The power of a no­ vel, incidentally, is seen in the theme of the breaking of the Sab­ bath. No rabbi, regardless of his eloquence, is apt to project thé meaning of the Sabbath as deeply as does a novelist who, on a vast and detailed canvas, portrays the joy of the Sabbath and the trage­ dy which strikes them when it is finally broken. The Sabbath theme is one of many that run through Journey to the Dawn and it is ma­ nifestly injudicious to emphasize this aspect at the expense of count­ less indelible scenes and charact­ ers. But it is highlighted in order that it be pointed out that through the novel basic problems can be mirrored with authenticity. JS NOTHER VOLUME dealing with the matter of adjustment to America is Yuri Suhl's One Foot in America. While Suhl's work is humorous and lightly-written, it is by no means a fluffy work of fic­ tion. The adventures of the young immigrant boy and the difficulties of his father in America are acute and memorable. More a series of vignettes than a full-bodied novel One Foot in America is note­ worthy for its sentimentality which isn't güshy. Curiously enough, the author, a noted left-wing Yiddish poet, has managed to make his nar­ rative an optimistic ope, without the somber shadings one would ex­ pect of him. The background of the book, much of which involves a Jewish LIFE

butcher shop, is sufficiently unusual to be interesting in itself. The third fine work of fiction stressing the Americanization theme is ¡Sam Ross's The Side­ walks Are Free. Ross writes ex­ citing “chase" stories, but this ef­ fort is a semi-lyrical account of a young Jewish boy's adolescence, his father’s struggle to earn a liv­ ing and his own battle on the streets of the big city to find him­ self and struggle to his maturity. The book is written with love and affection for the Jews portrayed in the volume and while there is de­ tailed description of Jewish poverty and struggle, there is an honest de­ lineation of the opportunities given to immigrants in the United States. The streets of America were not paved with gold, as the early im­ migrants believed, but the authors of these three novels understand that the illusions harbored by the immigrants were not the fault of America. The immig­ rants brought their dreams with them and if some of them were shattered others weren't. These novels are fine works of fic­ tion; more, they are accurate por­ trayals of Jewish American at­ tempts to become Americans and, at the same time, to remain tradition­ al Jews. Some managed to retain much of their Judaism; others dropped too much along the way. To understand the why and how, these novels are recommended.

more fully, one should read Henry Denker's My Son, the Lawyer and Hilde Abel's The Guests of Sum­ mer. Denker writes heavily, with­ out grace and with scarcely any im­ agination. Yet he has a strong story to relate and the material speaks for itself. Miss Abel, a sensitive, gentle and perceptive writer, is hardly a novelist, but she captures mood, atmosphere and a sense of Jewish alienation which are sym­ bolic of contemporary American Jewry. Together, these two novels catch a pattern of American Jewish life worth retaining. Denker's book is about a Jewish boy who doesn't want to be a law­ yer but permits his mother, ag­ gressive and ambitious for her son, to persuade him to study law. How his family deprives itself of material things in order that he study; how he works in a depart­ ment store in order to make a few dollars; how he finally is faced

K ND TO understand the bitter­ ness of the Jewish economic and spiritual struggle in America even Nov. - Dec., 1951

27

with f a moral crisis in a corrupt as a swift-moving narrative it bogs society are all-told with sympathy. down now and again, the work in While the characters are stock and its entirety does come off. What is much of the writing done in cliches, even more significant is that thé the book holds up because of the intellectual Jewish writers of the power of the situations and the de­ 1950's are now writing about them­ tail' added on detail to the Jewish selves: as Jews -— a far cry from the family life in the book. The intense same intellectuals of the past de­ satisfaction the laboring Jew takes cade who tried to deny their reli­ in education ; the concept of “a law­ gion and the national strivings of yer, a doctor, a professional man” the Jewish people. is caught well in this novel. The Jewish mother is a good woman T H E TWO final novels on this list who, in her goodness nearly des­ *■* are of an entirely different na­ troys her son, yet this same son, ture. One is a war novel, Louis when his mother is dying, is fran­ Falstein's Face of a Hero; the other tic with fear and anxiety. It is a is a narrative about Israel, Zelda warmly conceived book and if read Popkin's Quiet Street. For both by non-Jews would offer ,a . sympa­ books are the most successful in thetic --- aiid authentic — view of their fields from the Jewish point of Jewish life in this country* £ view. There literally have been Hilde Abel's volume is, less a dozens of novels dealing with the novel than an essay describing the late war which include a Jewish soL fears of a Jewish group vàcation- dier or utilize a Jewish dilemma as ing in the mountains during the the crux of the book. Of all these period that Hitler moves' into full novels, only Falstein's truly ap­ power in Germany and begins to proaches the war from the Jewish wipe out thé Jewish people. The side of the fence. His Jew is not an story takes place in New York but unauthentic Jew, a Jew labelled as thé shadow of Hitlerism is deep such by his creator but without any over every person in the book. The further Jewish attributes. Irwin heroine is caught between her ad­ Shaw's Jew, Ira Wolfert's Jew, miration for an / ‘Aryan" typé Gen­ Martha Gellhorn's Jew (in The tile and a Polish ghetto type Jew. Young Lions, An Act of Lone, and She is in conflict with her mother, Thè Wine of Astonishment) are the self-made “American succfess.” Jews who intermarry, eat lobster She feels ¿nti-Semitism in her mar­ and never attend a synagogue. row. And everyone else in the group Louis Falstein's Jew comesi from is aware of the meaning of the Hit­ Russia,- remembers pogroms, real­ ler era. Ifew writers have caught izes the meaning of Hitler and is the horror of Hitlerism at that willing and eager to fight against point in its infamous history. Miss the Nazis because of the Jewish­ Abel has. And if her book is, in ness. He is fighting as a Jew first* spots, pretentiously4 written, and and*then as an American. His reaJewish LIFE 28

sons for fighting are authentic and the Jewish youth are all here. No one believes in him as a human be­ Jew can read, or will read, this vol­ ing. The other Jews are stereo­ ume without emotion and pride. It types, important because their aurj is also important for another rea­ thors utilize them as symbols, but son. A Jewish woman who once they are not recognizable Jews to wrote successful detective stories aware Jews. Falstein’s novel hap­ has now, in the 50’s found her Way pens to be one of the best war nar­ back to Jewish themes. This is ratives produced in the past few typical not only of her but of a years: it is documentary, terse, em­ generation of Jewish writers. otional and true. It moves; and moves its readers. That it is a “Jew­ ■■pHIS ASPECT is not the least in . any discussion of the Jewish no­ ish” book is obvious to anyone who reads it. It also makes one look vel of today. For too long had Jew­ forward to the author’s second ish novelists, stressed the negative aspect of Jewish life (as Ben Hecht novel. Zelda Popkin’s Quiet Street, a did in his, novel thirty years ago, novel about the fighting in Israel or Jerome Weidman in his gar­ and the struggle for Jewish nation­ ment-industry books of the 1930’s, hood is a fine effort which offers or Budd Schulberg in his Hollywood in a single volume more infor­ novel on a Jew named Sammy mation about the war for Jew­ Glick). And many of those who ish independence than one would ex­ meant well were Jewishly ignora'nt. pect in a work of fiction. But the Today the Jewish novelists are events themselves were so- much writing out of knowledge and out of more dramatic than anything fic­ sympathy. Perhaps they are not tional that Miss Popkin’s book suf­ great writers producing first-rate fers by comparison. It is, as spme critics have called it, more jour­ fiction, feut before the great novels nalistic than imaginative. While emerge, you just have the honest this charge is true, it does not de­ ones, informed with understanding tract from the interest of the book. and love. They are already here The-siege of Jerusalem, the fight­ and perhaps the next decade will ing in the Negev, the martyrdom of enrich us even more.

Why is the Torah compared unto water? To teach you that just <a‘s water does not go to high places# only to low places, so also the Torah is retained only by him who is humble in spirit, -r- Derech Eretz Zuta

Nov. - Dec., 1951

•

Brilliant youthful soldier-diplomat leads Israel’s defense forces

The Y o u n g e s t ^ h i e f of « 9 ^ a f f in t h e ^ ^ o r ld By TOUVIA ASHKENAZI Y^GAEL YADIN was born in Jerusalem, the son of Professor Eliezer Lippa Sukenik of the Heb­ rew University. This perhaps ac­ counts for the remarkable combina­ tion of the exuberance, fresh eager­ ness and self-confidence of a Sabra (native-born youth) with the solid learning and cultural background of a Jewish scholar. Yigael Yadin is a trained archaeologist in his own right. Indeed, his archaeologi­ cal knowledge contributed greatly to his qualities as Chief Operations Officer of an Army which fought over a historic battleground. He has an intimate knowledge of the valleys and hills of his land. He is familiar with the detailed his­ tory of the battles that have been fought in this land. And in the planning of an operation, he has qsed to good advantage the knowledge of how these battles were won in the past. The Chief of Staff’s stan­ dard has been passed on to RaVAlouf Yigael Yadin, who at 32 be­ comes the youngest Chief of Staff of any army in the world. He brings to this post his ex­ 30

perience as Chief of Operations throughout Israel’s War of Inde­ pendence and a record of service which began when he was a young­ ster on a bicycle acting as despatch rider for Haganah in Jerusalem. Yigael Yadin’s ability and personal charm won him the confidence of army commanders and men during Israel’s War of Independence. These same qualities will stand him in good stead in the new tasks he is now undertaking. The chief of these is the development of the regular army and the improvement of Israel’s defense system. In some ways his task is more difficult than that of his predecessor Rav-Alouf Yaacov Dori. p O R ALTHOUGH the fashioning of an army when the enemy has broken through the g a t e s — and even windows — is no small feat, the urgency of war stimulates qualities which are apt to lapse when the din of battle has been stilled. Soldiers who have served for a long time are naturally anxi­ ous to return to civilian life and Jewish LIFE

Rav - Alouf Yigael Yadin Strengthens Israel's Independence

comforts. People who are prepared to sacrifice their lives when the enemy appears at the gates tend to feel a reduced sense of urgency when the enemy has been thrust back across the frontier. It is up Nov. - Dec., 1951

to the new Chief of Staff — as it is with the Chief of Staff of any army in time of truce, armistice or peace — to give the army a new stimulus, to maintain a high level of training and preparedness, to 31

keep its morale at sky level. The and subsequently with Syria which new Chief of Staff is assured of ended in the conclusion of success­ the best wishes both of the army ful agreements. Dayan, who has a and of the people of Israel. The similar fighting record, was a mem­ spirit of pioneering which created ber of Israel's delegation to the the foundations of th,e new State is armistice negotiations with Transnot strange to him. It is a central j or dan at Rhodes. Since then he part of the spirit of the new army has been' the chief Israel delegate which must be rooted in the soil to the Mixed Armistice Commis­ and in the life of the land. Such sions with the neighboring states. qualities and such outlooks are us­ Ih this capacity, he has shown him­ ually characteristic of men of miich self an able negotiator, with quali­ more mature age. Israel is fortu­ ties of shrewd statesmanship. As nate in finding them in men so a Regional Commander, he now young. It is good that in Israel re­ bears responsibility not only for sponsibility should be given to the the defence of an area, but for im­ most able. And it is good that the buing the soldiers under his com­ most able are also young. Here are mand with the spirit of the new no brass hats. Here are simple men army of Israel. The keynote of with great: physical and spiritual youth introduced by the appoint­ courage and with high powers of ment of Yigael Yadin as» Chief of leadership. Here, are commanders, Staff is predominant among his who see the purpose of the army principal lieutenants. as an essential part of the, pur­ What is perhaps unique is that pose of the State of Israel Jpf^the Israel's top army commanders reconstruction of the nation and combine youth with battle experi­ of the homeland. ence and military skill with diplo­ Yadin, Maklef, Dayan and the matic ability. This phenomenon others are in mappways only out­ »was produced by conditions in Is­ standing examples of the; type of commanders which leads the De­ rael. Few wars anywhere have fense Army of Israel. Maklef, who given such scope to young offcers at 29 becomes Deputy • Chief of both to serve as active soldiers Staff, has seen action as junior in many campaigns and quickly to and senior officer in the campaigns reach the high ranks of command. that liberated Galilee, from Haifa Few armies of other nations have to Mishmar Ha-Yarden; later he offered to its successful comman­ headed Israel's delegation at the ar­ ders opportunity to display their mistice negotiations with Lebanon qualities as diplomats. Origin of Israel's Defense

pROM THE very* beginning of the * resettlement of Eretz Israel efforts for agricultural colonization and de32

fense were irrevocably bound together. The Turkish Government, which ruled the land then, lacked Jewish LIFE

the strength and ability to provide for the public safety. The country was in a state ofi anarchy; bloodfeuds between neighboring villages and clashes between Bedouin and Fellahin broke out frequently with­ out hindrance or interruption on the part of the ruling regime. The members of the Jewish settlements, which in those days were few in number and very young, were un­ able to rely upon the government and had to look to themselves for security and peace. The concern for creating a permanent and stable or­ ganization arose only in the days of the Second Aliyah, which be­ gan approximately 45 years ago, in 1904. At that time the Hashomer (Watchman) organization was cre­ ated, the first group to furnish a permanent guard for the Jewish settlements. Until then the protec­ tion of the Jewish moshavoth was entrusted largely to foreign watch­ men, Arabs or Circassians, and only during an actual attack did the settlers come out to defend them­ selves.

day's work in the field or the cow­ shed, he devoted part of his free time to military training. Until the establishment of the Settlement Police during the disturbances of 1936-1939, there did not exist in Eretz Israel a professional defense corps which gave its full time to this function. Haganah, as a volun­ teer defensive force, was inte­ grated into the lives of the Yishuv's people, alike , among the dwellers in rur^l moshavoth and kibbutzim and among the laborers, white-collar workers and others in the cities. In the Second World War the Yishuv made further progress in re­ cruiting a defense force and in the acquisition of military experience. The crowning achievement, -how­ ever, was the creation of the “Jew­ ish Brigade'' in the second half of the war, thanks to the personal in­ tervention of Winston Churchill and through the diligent and stub­ born efforts of the Chief of the Po­ litical Division of the Jewish Agency at that time, Moshe SherTOURING the First World War tok (Sharett), For the first time there was established the Jew­ thousands of Israel's youth were ish Legion, which fought as an in­ enabled to train openly and almost tegral part of Allenby's army for fully in both light and heavy wea­ the freeing of Eretz Israel from the pons and not merely by platoons, Turkish yoke. In the interim period but by companies, battalions, and between the two World Wars, de­ even full brigade strength. It is fense was not entrusted to pro­ too early to recount in public the fessional men of arms specifically story of the War of Liberation chosen for this task, as in the days which followed. Strictly speaking, of the Hashomer, but rather be­ it has not yet come to an end, and, came an organic part of the life of therefore, any analysis must leave the settlements. Every settler was many things untold for reasons of in fact a defender, and after his security. Nov. - Dec., 1951 33

JSRAÈL'S Wàr of Independence can be divided into four periods: (1) The period when the British* still exercised full control over Palestine — the beginning of the disturbances ; (2) The period when the British withdrew from certain areas of the country, up to their final evacuation in May, 1948 ; (3) The invasion by the Arab armies in May and June, 1948; (4) The great offensive of the Israel De­ fense Army in June, July, etc. Inall these operations the air force and artillery played an important part, but it was the infantry that carrièd the main burden. Now Zva Haganah Le’Israel, the Israel De­ fence Army, is being built up into an efficient fighting machine, but it is destined to be much more. It gives the new immigrants a sense of unity and comradeship, and it performs tasks of vital impor­ tance even outside the military field. An outstanding example, is the help being given by the army in preparing the ma'abaroth, or transit settlements, to meet the hardships they have to overcome. The Defense Service Law divides the service of a man in the army into three categories : Service in a regular unit, service in Nachal (Fighting Pioneer Youth), and ser­ vice in the reserve forces. Peace is

the first aim of Israel's foreign po­ licy, but, as a state, surrounded by recently defeated enemies, it must have a strong and efficient army, Organized and trained in keeping with Israel's piqneering and constructive traditions. Pro­ bably the new Army Service Act, presented to the Knesseth by David Ben-Gurion, Premier and Minister of Defense, constitutes a unique approach to the problems of na­ tional defense in the world today, for it is thoroughly in harmony with these traditions. The history of any country in time of war has shown that, other things being equal, no matter what the defense instrument at the disposal of the state, ultimate victory or defeat de­ pends upon the spirit and skill of the population. The battle honors in Israel's War of Independence go to the army and the frontier settle­ ments. But to the population as a whole falls a large share of the credit. The awareness of the peo­ ple's role in time of emergency is what William James once called “The inarticulate major premise" of the public mind. The smallness of Israel and the proximity of everyone, wherever he lives, to a potentially hostile neighbour force Israel to always be on guard.

Out of the Strong . • .

DANES in the army of Israel 1 have been most modest. The top rank up to now has been Rav-Alouf, and that has gone to the Chief of Staff alone. Chiefs of Staff in other countries are at least full Generals. 34

With the army reorganization it has been difficult to provide rank for some of the higher commands. And so a new rank has been inserted be­ tween Segan-Alouf and Alouf, known as Alouf-Mishneh. The equiJewish LIFE

valent of Alouf-Mishneh is full Col­ onel, while the equivalent of SganAlouf remains Lieutenant-Colonel, RavrAlouf, hitherto equivalent to Brigadier, now has been raised to Major General. This still gives top commanders of the Israel Army a lower rank than their counterparts in other countries. A corps com­ mander, for instance, is usually a Lieutenant General; whereas, in the Israel Army, he is a Brigadier. But the army leaders consider that the balance has been happily struck between the desire for modesty in rank and the need to meet the ap­ propriate organizational demands.

ample by applying Samson's wellknown words to the Defence Army of Israel, ^ out of the strong came forth sweetness. If Israel has to maintain an army, and one which, moreover, embraces the entire pop­ ulation, it is as well that it is an army founded upon Zionist prin­ ciples with the task of safeguarding Zionist achievements and values. Israel's Army is, after all, the mo­ dern successor of the Haganah which, as the underground military organization of the Yishuv in its struggle for self-preservation and self-determination, gained the ad­ miration of the entire Jewish world and of a large section of the nonThe Chief of ' Staff, General Ya- Jewish world. In view of undeni­ din, has the habit of quoting apt able handicaps, its past record of phrases from the Bible on suitable achievement and confident facing occasions. It would seem fitting, in of the future cannot but compel this connection, to follow his ex­ admiration.

CLEANSING AND PURITY Cleanliness in dress and body, by washing and re­ moving of iniquities, is enjoyed by the Torah; but it must be connected with purity of action, and with a heart free from low principles and bad habits. It would be extremely bad for man to content himself with a purity obtained by washing and cleanliness in dress and toilet, and be at the same time voluptuous and unrestrained in eating, drinking and other gratifications of the senses. — Moses Maimonides

* * H* CAUSELESS HATRED The First Temple fell because of the sins of idolatry, immorality and bloodshed. The Second Temple, despite the fact that the Torah w as studied and good deeds performed in its day, fell on account of causeless hatred (sinath chinom). This teaches that causeless hatred is as grievous a sin as idolatry, immorality and bloodshed. — Talmud

Nov. - Dec., 1951

35

•

Shall the rabbi of today be a leader —n or a rubber stamp? *

THE ¿%ABBI in a ^ hanginS" C ommunity By SIMON L. ECKSTEIN ^■HE BASIC role of the orthodox rabbi has not changed, despite the many changes that have occur­ red in the character of the average Jewish community. We must at all times discriminate and differenti­ ate between the changeless and the changing. The orthodox rabbi on the American scene bespeaks now, as always, uncompromising loyalty to our Torah and Jewish tradition. He continues the chain of tradi­ tionally ordained rabbis who have ever held the ideals, goals and val­ ues of our Torah as changeless and eternal verities. At the same time, however, he recognizes the need of applying the principle of '/Torah im derech eretz/’ applying new techniques and changing methods in fulfilling his role as; spiritual leader of our communities. The rabbi’s role, therefore, re­ mains basically the same |l- that of being primarily a religious leader and a teacher of Judaism, helping Jewish families to live a Jewish W

life in a world of which they are a part. The rabbi must stand for Judaism, approaching all problems from a Jewish perspective. He stands in the front lines of the battle for Jewish survival. J N F O R M E D observers of the American Jewish scene^are aware that during' the past thirty years, the American-trained orthodox rab­ binate has fought an uphill strug­ gle. Much valuable ground was lost due to the fact that orthodox rabbis were oft aloof and insensi­ tive to the unique problems posed by the changing American milieu. Despite numerous obstacles we have, however, made tremendous forward strides, particularly in the course of the past ten years. The prestige, stature and efficacy of the orthodox rabbinate has grown. It has become a vociferous, aggres­ sive and dynamic group. It has at all times been conscious of its great responsibilities, but it has only reJewish LIFE

cently attained the maturity of virtue of his traditional semichah realizing the latent potentialities (ordination) maintains the genuine of its strength and influence. distinctiveness of the Rabbinate. We speak of a changing com­ The rabbi must, therefore, impress munity. This phrase signifies in himself on the community as the many respects, a negative change. religious authority, as the voice of There has been a continuous shift­ the written and oral Torah, as the in g of Jewish population to new judge of what is in keeping with areas and new communities in the Jewish tradition and what is which traditional Judaism strug­ not. He must make the principle of gles against odds to gain a foot­ Torah-true Judaism felt in all fac­ hold. More and more there be­ ets of communal endeavor. He must comes apparent the lack of an edu­ apply unadulterated and uncom­ cated laity. The disease of “am- promising Jewish tradition to all aratzuth,” of ignbrance and indif­ of life’s relationships and to all his ference, has become rampant, and personal and communal contacts. with it the watering down of Jew­ Though some may criticize him for ish traditional standards both in his courageous championing of Jew­ the home and in the community. ish tradition and although many We note laymen assuming authori­ will desire that he follow their ty to rule on matters of Jewish whims and fancies and lend him­ law and thereby contributing to­ self to appeasement, yet he must wards the complete secularization remain firm and be primarily in­ of Jewish life. We at times also terested in gaining the respect of note on the part of some weak- his community. kneed rabbis the acceptance of the The orthodox rabbi is derelict in 'will of the masses over the will his duty if he is ready to sacrifice and spirit of G-d’s Torah, his distinctive mission for the sake All this and much more is, alas, of so-called “popularity.” A distin­ part of the so-called changing com­ guished leader'of the American munity. Yet there are positive as­ Rabbinate, Rabbi Leo Jung, states pects of the changing Jewish com­ the matter in the following man­ munity, notable among which is ner: “A rabbi who only asks the birth of Jewish Day Schools whether a thing is popular or un­ in many areas. To a great extent, popular rather than is it right or however, these schools are much too wrong is a coward to begin with few in number at the moment. and a menace always.” In Pirkey OvotJn, we find the advice of one of A M I D S T the aforementioned our Sages that “Lo motzothi laguf signs of a deteriorating com­ tov mishesikah’^ S meaning that he munity, the rabbi is destined to did not find anything of greater assume an extremely important value to a person than silence. We role. He must fulfill the traditional note, however, that the Sage selects role of a Rav, a musmoch, who by the word “guf,” which /means Nov. - Dec., 1951

37*

“body,” to perhaps warn us that for the well-being of an individual, silence may be golden but that this does not apply to the areas of the spirit. v A rabbi who is true to Judaism cannot afford the luxury of silence. He cannot strive for popularity m the superficial sense by merely serving as a pulpit echo and spokes­ man for the watered-down Jewish loyalties of the masses. In the long run, as he maintains his sincerity, consistency and unswerving loyalty to Judaism, his influence will be felt; he will touch lives, he wiii fashion Jewish self-respect and he will have gained the basic respect and love of his community.

rabbi is obligated to father its creation. To heed the objections of assimilated Jews who dread such an energetic espousal of maximum Jewish education in his community is again to traffic with compromise. He must assure that Jewish Day Schools in his State as well as those organizations fostering the Jewish Day School movement across the country are supported from the charity allocations of his synagogue and community. He must show a readiness “to get into trouble” and tenaciously persevere for elevating the curriculum and teachers' stand­ ards of his Hebrew school, as well as for adding maximum possible hours for Hebrew instruction. The rabbi must motivate projects which J^ET ME cite just a few areas would stress actual observance of which require courageous ac­ Judaism by the children. He must tion on the part of the rabbi. The foster home-school cooperation to pulpit, for example, must be the the end that lessons at school be rabbi's pulpit. From it must ema­ followed with practice in the home. nate Judaism. It is to be unfettered Here is another area where the rab­ by admonitions, reproof, and “good bi is apt to be criticized for his advice” of his President or Board desire to be a rabbi in the full Chairman. It must be a Jewish sense of the word. pulpit and it must sound always the voice of Judaism and Jewish Q R TAKE the question of Sun­ day school “education” which is traditional values. If the rabbi is to have any influence, it will be without doubt below the minimum not by dint of his eloquence and standards of Jewish education. dramatic oratory, but basically by Here, too, the rabbi must be firm his sincerity and by remaining in­ in requiring that all children of dependent and not bowing to the the Sunday School supplement, at dictates of the ignorant and reli­ least for a few days during, every gious “convenience seekers” in his week, the “information” ' that is community. showered upon them by an unquali­ Let usf take the area of Jewish fied Sunday School teacher who education for a further example. “volunteers” her time. If a Jewish Day School is at all Or take the area of Jewish youth feasible in his community, then the activities. Here, too, th^ orthodox 38

Jewish LIFE

vance of kashruth at all functions sponsored by a Jewish organization in his community will at times be confronted with serious threats and difficulties. He must speak out for Jewish self-respect when Jew­ ish loyalties are flouted in his com­ munity. I know of many rabbis who join me in the principle of not officiating or even showing one's presence at weddings, Bar Mitzvah parties, or any Jewish organiza­ tional functions which are not kosh­ er catered. Despite the resistance we may find, despite frequent misunderstanding and despite the seeming futility so often countered, we of the orthodox Rabbinate dare not be discouraged nor dismayed, but shall find strength and encouragement in the "PARE THE question of Jewish knowledge that we represent the standards in the community. The “moroshah,” the age-old tradition rabbi who battles for the obser­ of Israel.

rabbi can play a unique role. He must educate parents to induce their children to attend services on Sabbath and Festivals. He must use all means at his disposal to cajole, plead, , influence and con­ vince Jewish parents not to end the Jewishness of the youngsters with the Sabbath of Bar Mitzvah. As busy as the rabbi might be, he dare not relegate the whole area of Jewish youth activities to men who see such activity only in the fields of basketball game$ and dances. He must plan cultural and educational programs and he must acquaint Jewish youth with the danger of inter-marriage that is apt to follow regularly sponsored interfaith dances and the dating of non-Jewish boys and girls.

STRENGTH IN KNOWLEDGE "The observance of Judaism must not be confined to Synagogue attendance. Our forefathers never thought of their religion in such one-sided manner. They considered study of the Torah as equally important. And the zealous study of the religious literature has sharpened their ability for the cultivation of the sciences and arts and all cul­ tural works whenever the slightest opportunity was opened for them. It is a tragic prejudice of our times to think that we >no longer can spare the time to study our Judaism in earnest if we were to maintain our secular cultural stand­ ards. . . . All our pride in our heritage, all our love for our people cannot substitute for the strength that is given to our convictions by the knowledge of our religious literature. Without such knowledge no true convictions can be formed. Without a cultural appreciation of our religion, one cannot develop a real love for it." — Herman Cohen

Nov. - Dec., 1951

39

Jewish LIFE

OUNDRTIONS n of Democratic IREEDOM By ISRAEL ABRAHAMS ^■HE TEN C o m m a n d m e n t s , which, from a variety of view­ points, may be regarded as the foundation of Biblical teaching, begin with the dramatic utterance : “I ani th o L o rd thy G-d, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bond%ge” (Shemoth 20:2) . The implica­ tions of this statement are momen­ tous. The commanding G-d is also the liberating G-d. Nay more : free­ dom precedes the precepts. The very commandments—- The Divine imperatives, which are- basic to Scripture and the way of life it in­ culcates — have their roots in the concept of liberty. They are not, in the first instance, an external com­ pulsion but a call for an inner ac­ ceptance. The people are not forced to enter the Covenant of G-d; they are not coerced to agree to the New Order. They cry of their own voli­ tion : “All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient” (She­ moth 24:7). They give "willing as­ sent to the heavenly injunctions. This is not merely ah example of re­ ligious democracy. It is something higher. For the heart rejoices in its obedience to G-d; the spirit finds fulfilment in submitting to the Di­ vine Will. Herein lies also the essential dif­ ference between secular law and

religious precept/ The former is a constraint from without ; the latter is a free, a liberating urge from within. A Jewish sage has observ­ ed: “No man is free but he who la­ bours in the Scriptures” (Ovoth 6:2). Religion is thus to be re­ garded as the Divine charter of human liberty rather than as the opiate of the masses. It frees man from the bondage of his lower an­ imal instincts ; it delivers his spirit from the shackles of materialism; it saves him from the soul-destroy­ ing spiritual emptiness of atheism; it solaces him with immortality; it gives him ultimate victory over death. And because freedom is of G-d, it is also universal. The Bible makes this pellucidly clear in another car­ dinal declaration of far-reaching import: “So G-d created man in his own image^ (Bereyshith 1:27). It implies that every soul, being a mirror of the Divine glory, is un­ ique, and consequently has the right —nay the sacred duty—to develop its inborn Divine reflection to its fullest capacity. This Divine right of every human being to freedom and its prerogatives, this innate dignity and sanctity of the indi­ vidual soul, irrespective of lineage or one's station in life, is the cen­ tred value of civilization, and the ultimate sanction of the democratic way of life. To deny it is sacri­ lege. ■J'HE TRUTH that freedom is the birthright of mankind as a whole carries with it a number of important corollaries. It postulates 42

diversity, but neither implies nor condones a caste system. The uni­ versality of the human right to freedom posits the essentiah homo­ geneity of all races; we are all brethren, children of the same Heavenly Father. Whilst Holy Writ utterly rejects the unholy con­ cept of totalitarian uniformity and condemns the physical and mental slavery that go with it, Scripture commands, as a categorical impera­ tive: “Thou shalt love thy neigh­ bour as thyself” | (Vayikra 19:18). Freedom and love, not fear and serfdom, constitute the spiritual cement that alone can bind the world together in enduring solid­ arity. In the light of these conclusions, is the Herrenvolk theory tenable from the religious viewpoint? Un­ happily, there are not a few who give an affirmative answer to this question. Indeed, they attempt to find support for the divisive and enslaving doctrine of a “master people” in the Bible itself. Were not the children of Israel, they argue, at one time so regarded? Is it not written concerning them: “Ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people? They hasten to add that the identity of G-d’s “treasured people” has since changed; that the Jewish people are no longer deserving | of the title. The honour, it is claimed, now belongs to those who adhere to the correct creed and dogmas; although, in view of the number of rival candidates in the field, the final selection remains difficult and rather invidious. Jewish LIFE

Without entering into unneces­ to be called “a treasured people.” sary intricacies of theological ar­ But the indefinite, not the definite gument, let it be said that the Jews article is used; it is realized that have no aspiration to be regarded in G-d’s store-house there are as the chosen people to the exclusion many treasured peoples. Lest the of members of other religious de­ Jew become overweening and forget nominations. Judaism does teach that he is but one of a number of that Israel has been chosen by Pro­ chosen races (in truth, which race vidence to fulfill a particular pur­ is not?), our sages ordained the pose in history; but not for a mo­ y annual reading in Synagogue of the ment is it denied that other races following text as part of one of the have also had special missions allot­ prophetic lessons: Are ye not as ted to them in G-d’s unfolding de­ the'Children of the Ethiopians unto sign. We do believe that through me, O children of Israeli saith the the noblest minds of the Hebrew Lord. Have not I brought up Israel race at the most glorious periods of out of the land of Egypt, and the our annals, the Jewish people have Philistines from Caphtor and the qualified, by the grace of Heaven, Syrians from K iri The Bounds of Freedom

T H E REFERENCE to Ethiopians is not without significance. The prophet makes it unmistakably clear that in the Sight of G-d no na­ tion or race is inherently superior. The Bible may recognize chromatic distinctions in the human spirit; there may be “black,” sinful souls, and there may be “white,” pure souls. But cutaneous discrimination has no religious basis. Thus an old rabbinic teaching proclaims: “I call heaven and earth to witness that whether it be Jew or Gentile, man or woman, free or bondman—only according to their acts does the Di­ vine spirit, rest upon them” (Tana Debey Eliyahu, 9). Any examination of the problems associated with the concept of free­ dom necessitates the consideration of the question of its limitation. Are there boundaries to the ideal of Nov. - Dec., 1951

human liberty? The answer, as­ suredly, cannot be in doubt. With­ out definite bounds, freedom ceases to exist ; these restrictions inhere in its very nature. It must be dis­ ciplined; it must never degenerate into license. This truth is expressed simply yet prof oundly in the story of the Exodus: “Let my people go that they may serve me!y (Shemoth 10: 3); Bondage is evil; service is good;: but every true service must, in its ultimate aspect, be dedicated to G-d. The Divine commandments are thus ah integral part of our spiritual freedom. In the words of a modern liberal: “Freedom can exist only when there is an inner loyalty to spiritual and moral principles. These principles are the eternal foundations of democracy.” Another curtailment of freedom derives from its universality. The

11

is unfortunately all too easily for­ gotten, with the result that justice is truncated and, in consequence, destroyed. In other words, the rights of the individual are neces­ sarily restricted by the needs of the community, and the prerogatives of each community are, in turn, limit­ ed by the legitimate requirements of other communities.

respective claims of individuals and groups to freedom Can, and often do, clash. It is not always right and wrong that are opposed to each other ; such is the complex­ ity of life that all too frequently right and right are in conflict. When this takes place common sense, as well as the higher dic­ tates of righteousness, requires us to find a modus vivendi. Every in­ dividual who successfully integrates himself into his group or commun­ ity achieves this adjustment only by virtue of various limitations of his personal liberty and interests in de­ ference to the rights of his fellows in the same regard. This is the deeper meaning of the precept: Justice, justice, shalt thou follow (Devorim 16:20). We are morally entitled to demand the justice due to ourselves; but we are equally duty-bound to accord to others the justice due to them. The latter truth 44

JJE R E , TOO, a vital distinction *is to be drawn between the se­ cular conception and the religious attitude. In the view of the former, justice is primarily a negation, a prohibition of acts of injustice; whereas the latter postulates the positive arid higher relationship of love towards one's neighbor as an essential corollary of the páramoünt precept: Thou shalt love the Lord thy G-d (Devorim 6:5). To love G-d is to put, willingly and joy­ fully, the good of the whole-—be it the community, the nation or all humanity, before the benefit of the part »/one's personal egotistic am­ bitions or the narrow tribal inter­ ests of one's group. The spiritual law of freedom finds its practical culmination in the principle of neighborliness. The free man is es­ sentially the good neighbor. In discussing the principles of freedom, it shojuld never be regard­ ed as an academic or idealistic theme, unrelated to practical objec­ tives. Freedom is co-extensive with life and an integral part thereof. Our approach to it should, there­ fore, be realistic. Just as there are many facets to human life and its requirements, so there are many asJewish LIFE

pects to freedom. The late Presid­ ent Roosevelt popularised the con­ cept of f our/reedoms, which he for­ mulated as “freedom from want, freedom from fear, freedom of speech, freedom for every man to worship G-d in his own way every­ where in the world.” These are by no means exhaustive, but they straddle large territories of human life and may well serve as a basis for the consideration of the practic­ al problems connected with the real­ ization of the freedom ideal. It must be conceded, alas! that today all four freedoms are univer­ sally threatened; in some parts of the world they have already been completely suppressed. A barbed jest, which is not wholly without, its element of truth, suggests that the trouble with our world is not so much the absence of the four free­ doms as the confusion that has ar­ isen in regard to the relevant pre­ positions. Instead of Roosevelt’s famous formulation, we have today, freedom of want, freedom of fear, freedom from speech and freedom from worship! T ET US DWELL for a moment on the question of freedom of speech. Not the least disturbing aspect of the Chaotic tendencies in present-day thought is the increas­ ing resentment evinced in certain quarters against any criticism of current affairs made by organized religion. It is urged, with more ve­ hemence than logic, that it is wrong for the clergy to intervene in poli­ tical issues or to adjudicate on eco­ nomic problems. Religion, it is said, Nov. - Dec., 1951,

has its own particular sphere and should confine itself thereto. Spirit­ ual teachers áre pointedly reminded of the adage: Let the cobblér stick to his last ! Personally, I should be inclined to applaud the sentiment, with one essential proviso^: that the politi­ cians and the economists do not in­ vade the religious domain and tres­ pass against the spiritual and moral laws of G-d. A wrong does not be­ come a right because it is given a political or economic label. On mor­ al issues, on questions of equity, the synagogue or the church has every right to speak—and to speak forth­ rightly. The attempt to divide human life into water-tight compartments be­ trays either a puerile or a disingen­ uous mentality. Religion must never be reduced to á .matter of worship on specified days of the year. We dare not halt the message of the Bible af the portals of the sanctu­ ary. The Jewish Prophets did not hesitate to preach G-d’s word in the market-place or the royal court. “Cry aloud” declared Isaiah. “Spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and declare unto my people their transgression and to the house of Jacob their sins” (Isaiah 58:1). Religion has the right to raise its voice against oppression, be its ori­ gin political, economic or creedal. It has the right to remind the world that: The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof (Psalms 24: 50); that we are not so much the owners of our possessions as the stewards of G-d’s bounty. This is 45

not economics or politics; this is basic religious doctrine. SPIRITUAL LEADERS are fully justified in quoting Micah’s vi­ sion of a warless world," which con­ cludes with the significant ‘words: Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid” (4:3,4). And the objective exegete, in interpret­ ing the passage, must not hesitate to point out the incontrovertible fact, that in the prophet’s view eco­ nomic security for every individual is a vital factor in the creation and maintenance of a peaceful world; and that justice accorded to the weakest elements in a state, so that “none shall make them afraid,” is the test of national righteousness. Furthermore, religious teachers are duty-bound to condemn, in no uncertain terms, any tendency to repress freedom of expression, pro­ vided the views enunciated, how­ ever wrong-headed, bear the clear

hall-mark of moral integrity and intellectual earnestness. When it is remembered that the Patriarch Ab­ raham was permitted to question the justice of the Almighty Judge, that suffering Job was given free rein to impugn the righteousness of his Creator, and that Ecclesiastes could roundly condemn the Divine regimen as “vanity of vanities,” is it thinkable that a human govern­ ment should be less tolerant ? Likewise, there rests a sacred responsibility on ministers of re­ ligion to expose the sinfulness of any form of Xenophobia — be it racial, cultural, or pigmen­ tary. The law of G-d is clear: “The stranger that sojourneth with you shall be unto you as the homeless among you, and thou shaft love him as thyself” , (Vayikra 19:34). To abrogate this command­ ment is to hack at the very roots of religion; though it be done under the cloak of a political credo or an economic theory, it is indisputably a rejection of the basic principles of Holy Writ, which teaches love, not hate. At the peril of his soul shall a man be silent on such issues.

The Need o f Mankind

g U T EVEN greater than our need ' of freedom today is our need of faith. We live in a critical age of transition. Old concepts are pass­ ing ; the new values that are taking their place often give cause for grave anxiety. Dark clouds of strife are accumulating everywhere. Yet we must not surrender to despond­ ency. It is part of our sacred spir46

itual trust to have faith in the fu­ ture, in the new, emergent world. This must not be construed as an easy optimism, as a carefree hope that all will come right in the end. It must be a deep conviction spring­ ing from unquenchable faith in the Liberating G-d, the Eternal G-d of the Exodus. History is His witness: Pharoah, Haman, Antiochus—let us Jewish LIFE

skip the marching centuries, and add: Hitler! The story repeats it­ self: freedom is insuppressible; it triumphs in the end. Our faith must never, however, degenerate into passivity. “G-d’s will be done” is axiomatic; but we must on no account eschew our duty as His instruments. The cause of freedom imposes far-reaching obli­ gations on each one of us; we have much to do, much to remedy. Gene­ ral Smuts, with characteristic in­ sight, put his finger on the funda­ mental malady of our generation, the taproot of the present world up­ heaval, when he said: “When reli­ gion went, there was a void, and people caught at all sorts of exped­ ients.” There is a world famine, to­ day, for the word of the Lord. Man­ kind is desperately in need of a great religious revival IIS on both sides of the Iron Curtain.

To achieve this global spiritual revolution will require no little vi­ sion, effort and sacrifice. It will call for high idealism and great forti­ tude. Pericles gave expression to an abiding truth of human life when he declared: “Happiness is Freedom, And Freedom is Courage.” If we have the courage of our love of liberty, we can yet proclaim a new Jubilee upon earth of undiv­ ided freedom, in which the old hates and hurts will forever be dissolved and atoned for, even as it is writ­ ten : In the day of atonement shall ye send abroad the trumpet throughout all your land . . . and proclaim liberty throughout the land unto all the inhabitants there­ ofThe accent is on all.

NOBODY ASKED TO BE BORN When an adult pettishly protests that he didn't ask to be born, he overlooks the simple fact that nobody else did either. Those whose services he commands had as little to say about being born as he himself had. By his standard, therefore, they have as much right as he to ask that the world wait upon them—the only hitch being that the people upon whom the world would have to depend are also people who did not ask to be born. To mature, in brief, is progressively to accept the fact that the human experience is a shared experience; the human predicament, a shared predicament. A person remains immature, whatever his age, as long as he thinks of him­ self as an exception to the human race. —From "The Mature Mind" by H. A. Overstreet

Nov. - Dec., 1951

47

•

From our Israel correspondent:

J erusalem

jp^T NO time, beyond doubt, has the prestige of Government in Israel been at so low an ebb as at the present. This, in a single sentence, sums up the major and most pressing problem confronting Mr. Ben-Gurion's new Ministry. It is unfortunately equally true that at no time, certainly not since the Provisional State Council handed over the reins to the First Knesseth, have difficulties so urgent and so complex beset any Government. In retrospect, even taking into account the immense objective diffi­ culties of the situation and being properly appreciative of the great achievements that have been regis­ tered, it. is difficult not to join in that almost unanimous chorus of criticism that fills the air. It can hardly be questioned that the mor­ ale of the Yishuv has declined pre­ cipitously since only four years ago, when the fiat of the Jewish Agency, backed by hardly more than moral authority, sufficed to weld the 600,000 Jews of Palestine into a pioneering, fighting com­ munity. Certainly currency infla­ tion has had its moral and social consequences in the growing puri 48

suit of luxury and a cynical mater­ ialism. No less true, that the Black Market, officially proscribed, but to which every citizen who has the, money must eventually have re­ course, and the maze of economic regulations and controls* either hon­ ored in the breach pr very ineffi­ ciently enforced, have produced a terrifying disrespect for the law. It is indisputable that the general shortage of essential commodities has given birth to a mentality hard­ ly short of mendicancy. But at the same time there has been no fun­ damental change in the general readiness to accept new immigrants —a fact which unfortunately is far too little appreciated and not only among Jews overseas. The Jewish Agency's decision to restrict immi­ gration this year to 120,000 (as against the 150,000 planned for 5711 and the 205,000 who actually entered the country) has been re­ ceived with feelings closely akin to shame and has bpen bitterly critic­ ized. In itself this is sufficient proof that despite the negative characteristics of the Yishuv which have done so much to damage Is­ rael's gpod name overseas, patriotJewish LIFE

ism based upon a keen and genuine ahavath Israel remains essentially sound. INDEXED, has been one of the,principal weaknesses of gov­ ernment in Israel—that this will­ ingness to absorb any number of newcomers despite the drastic im­ pact of the latter upon a standard of civilization precariously estab­ lished, has been accepted as a nor­ mal and natural phenomenon. It has never been really appreciated me­ rely because of the fact that it ex­ ists, for all the world to see. No leader in Israel has attempted to grasp the mentality of the governed and the latter have retaliated by withholding their confidence from their elected representatives. Is­ rael's statesmen and politicians are new to the exercise of authority and the business of conducting a sover­ eign state. Their approach, be­ cause of their background and such training as they have, is essential­ ly bureaucratic. The concept of ob­ taining the consent of the governed, except as an outward formality for which the institution of elections adequately provides, does not come naturally to them. Subconsciously they rely on the police for the implementation of their powers. There has been little sincere ef­ fort to secure the cooperation of the public even when it has been clearly realized that such coopera­ tion is necessary. Promises in re­ gard to supplies, for instance, have been recklessly made, without cov­ erage, and then cynically disre­ garded. Tongue-in-cheek stateNov, v Dec., 1951

ments on the supply situation have been made glibly, their mendacity revealed almost immediately after they were uttered. Housewives' 'complaints regarding inadequate and insufficient rationing have been countered with sage official criti­ cism of the quality of their cook­ ing. Clothes rationing was intro­ duced with fatuous remarks that in any case wardrobes are packed to capacity, while admonitions for austerity are constantly being made by labor leaders and officials driv­ ing around in sleek Chryslers and building themselves luxurious (by local simple standards) apartments. All this coupled with virtual an­ archy in currency control — under which all sorts of doubtful manipu­ lations by semi-public bodies ap­ pear to be condoned — the Black Market, again involving semi-pub­ lic bodies, the incidence of taxa­ tion allowing for more exceptions than rules, have produced an everyman-for-himself-and-the-devil-takethe-State attitude, which is corrodig the foundations of our corporate national life. ^H E CIRCUMSTANCES sur­ rounding the birth of the new government have not been such as to inspire confidence, nor are the results capable of convincing the public that a stable Government, capable of solving the country's problems, has now been formed. Mr. Ben-Gurion enjoys a reputa­ tion for being an astute tactician. It may yet be proved that the two months he spent in preparatory ne­ gotiation were a wiser investment. 49

But the public in its present mood is not of that opinion and by the time the Coalition was finally formed had reached a state verging on complete apathy. It is clear that for both national and narrow tactical reasons, Mr. Ben-Gurion would have preferred a “broad Coalition,” ranging from Mapam to the Agudah. Failing that, the present was the only alignment he in any case intended accepting. A “broad Coalition” would have given Mapai ample room for manouevering. A MapamMapai line-up, even with the ad­ hesion of other workers’ parties (Hapoel Hamizrachi and Poele Agudah), commanding seventy seats in the Knesseth, implied not a compromise but a surrender, and an acceptance by one of the major partners of the foreign policy of the other. Mapam however, forced on the defensive by its recent elec-

tion defeat (it emerged with fifteen seats compared to twenty in the First Knesseth), is too deeply in­ volved in its pro-Soviet ideologies to accept Mapai’s concept of nonidentification. Despite Mapam’s subsequent statements on this issue it is clear that no agreement was ever possible. On economic and in­ ternal policy, on the other hand, a mutual program could easily have been reached. Mapai is flexible on economic issues and its economists, far less socialistic than they make themselves out to be, nevertheless are despairing of their own pecu­ liar blend of laissez-faire with offi­ cial controls, and are now begin­ ning to appreciate that firmer gov­ ernment guidance of economic life and even a restricted degree of nationalization —* imports, trans­ port and potash production — are inevitable.

Education and Politics

S I M I L A R incompatibility, cation in foreign affairs in any would have been a virtual though on a different issue, case precluded the possibility of agree­ abdication of their ambitions. In­ ment between Mapai and the Gen­ deed throughout the negotiations eral Zionists. The latter, despite the only question of principle they their disappointment over the polls, fought for was that of State edu­ are still aggressive and regard their cation, to replace the present par­ election slogan “From opposition to tisan system. They subscribed ful­ power,” as a serious prospect, even ly, it was revealed by D. Z. Pinças, if their rise to power should be by to the Program submitted subse­ way of a Coalition in which they quently to the Knesseth by David would constitute the axis. To have Ben Gurion as the basis of the new entered any Coalition which would Government. They refused how­ have given much less than control ever to countenance the entry of of Israel’s economy — they support the Religious Parties into the Min­ the present policy of non-identifi- istry and would agree to partici50

Jewish LIFE

pation of the Progressives only under pressure. All other bargain­ ing was entirely concerned with the portfolios, their demands con­ centrating upon the Treasury, the Ministries for Trade and Industry (including Supply), Communica­ tions and Development. The ultimate decision to form a Cabinet not only with Hapoel Ham­ izrachi and Poele Agudah, but with the Agudah and the Mizrachi (be­ tween whose leader, D. Z. Pincas, and the Mapai there had been very strained relations since last year's Cabinet crisis) came as something of a surprise. But Mr. Ben-Gurion did not wish the middle class ele­ ments to feel themselves comple­ tely deprived of representation in the new Government. At the same time he sought to deprive political opponents of the charge that the Government depended upon the five Mapai-affiliated Arab Members for its majority in the Knesseth. (Mapai's 45 Members, together with the Religious Parties' 15, constitute fifty percent of the Knesseth). The prolonged and unsuccessful negotiations, during which other political parties were progressively eliminated, placed the Religious Parties, and particularly Hapoel Hamizrachi in an excellent bar­ gaining position. Nevertheless, conscious of the capacity of their strength, they remained on the de­ fensive and sought hardly more than the maintenance of the status quo in religious affairs, and to a lesser extent also in education. Mapai agreed to shelve its meas­ ures for the introduction of civil Nov. - Dec., 1951

marriage and divorce, which, in view of the strong feelings enter­ tained on the issue, might have caused irreparable national cleav­ age. Mapai further agreed not to go ahead with the Amendment to the Defense Act providing for the enlistment of religious young wom­ en in the armed forces. The Gov­ ernment, furthermore, is unlikely to repeat its blunder over the im­ port of non-kosher meat. ■jpHE DECISION to allow the present system of education to continue for at least two years is influenced less by ideological than practical considerations. A prob­ lem with its roots so deep in the political life of this country cannot be solved overnight. Two years is not too long a period to enable the Commission of Enquiry which is to be appointed to study the question, to conclude its investigations, and for both the public and the Gov­ ernment to consider its recommen­ dations. Opinion on this issue, though far from unanimous, cuts across political alignments in the Coalition. In Mapai there is a strong section, headed by Mr. BenGurion, in favor of bringing edu­ cation under state control, reducing political influence to a minimum, if not eliminating it entirely, and providing for both religious and non-religious schools, with room for variants to meet local prefer­ ences. Hapoel Hamizrachi and the Mizrachi are largely in favor of such a plan, which is opposed in a varying degree by the Agudah and Poele Agudah. 51

During a period when the future of education is in the balance, it constitutes an important gain that Dr. Kalman Kahane (Poele Agudah) has been appointed Deputy Minister of Education. The posi­ tion of Dr. Kahane has been strenghtened by the resignation of the former Director-General, Dr. B. Ben-Yehuda, and the decision

not to seek a successor to this post. Upon one point however, the Re­ ligious Parties were compelled to give ground ^^Bon recognition of the fifth educational sub-grouping, of the Mapai-controlled Haoved Hadati. Clearly it is easier to pre­ vent the establishment of new facts than to alter old ones.

Religious Position Strengthened

•J^HE POSITION of the Religious Parties in the new Government has been strengthened. Instead of three Ministers out of twelve as in the out-going Cabinet, they have four out of thirteen. The gain is more clearly expressed by the port­ folios held. Previously the Reli­ gious Bloc controlled Interior, Health and Immigration (Mr. Shapira), Religious ' Affairs (Rabbi Maimon) and Social Welfare (Rab­ bi Devin). The Ministry of Immi­ gration was hardly more than a facade, as the main function in this sphere which has always been performed by the Jewish Agency, is being liquidated; The same re­ ligious parties now hold Interior and Religious Affairs (Mr. Shapira), Health (Dr. J. Burg), Social Welfare (Rabbi Levin) as well as the key Ministry for Communica­ tions, covering land, sea and air transport, posts, telegraphs and telephones, and ports/w hich will be headed by Mr. Pincas. The representation of the Reli­ gious Parties has also been very much strengthened. In the Ministry of Interior, Mr. Shapira proved 52

himself a highly capable adminis­ trator, respected by all parties in the Knesseth. Mr. D. Pincas, an out­ standing parliamentarian (a poll conducted among Knesseth corre­ spondents placed him first in Is­ raeli legislature), was conspicuous in the First Knesseth for his capable handling of the Finance Commit­ tee of which he was Chairman, and possesses a wide experience of fi­ nance and economics. Dr. J. Burg, a teacher by profession and a rabbi by education, belongs to the new guard of Israel's leaders. A force­ ful personality, equipped with a keen sense of humor (a rare quali­ ty in Israel), he enjoys the dis­ tinction of being at the age of forty-two the youngest Cabinet Minister so far to hold office, ^■HE GOVERNMENT has barely taken office and there is little so far upon which to judge it. There is scarcely any indication of how far it appreciates the necessity of restoring public confidence. In his broadcast last week, Dr. Joseph, the néw Minister of Trade, Indus­ try and Supply, declared, “We shall Jewish LIFE

honor our promises.” Broken prom­ averagéd IL. 180 a month on piece ises in the past constituted a par­ work rates last season (more than ticularly painful sore point. Dr. a Cabinet Minister's salary) are Joseph covered himself adequately now demanding a thirty percent in­ by refraining from any specific crease, besides special rations of committments. But this too is pro­ meat, oil, flour, etc. gress. Better face the facts than A Mapai leader stated last week suffer repeated disappointment. that we must increase production A hopeful symptom is seen in or go under. This sentiment has the rapidity and decision with been reiterated on innumerable oc­ which the Government broke a casions over the past two years. strike of locomotive engineers, But never has it been so true as which threatened the country with today. starvation, by mobilizing military transport and issuing a warning ■J"AX REFORM is another task to which the Government must that the railways would be placed under the control of the army. But give its immediate attention. With a long and bitter struggle lies be­ the exception of a Sales Tax — for fore the Government, if it is to re­ seme unexplained reason officially move the eruption of economic ex­ referred to as a Luxury Tax — no tortion that is spreading through­ major changes have been intro­ out the ranks of Israel's labor. The duced into the fiscal structure in­ latest threat has been by steve­ herited from, the Mandatory ad­ dores, engaged in loading citrus in ministration, except, of course, for Haifa Port. The stevedores, who progressive increases. The Histadruth parties, loyal to socialist doctrine, have set their faces against any attempt to extend the incidence of indirect taxation (though customs and excise have been considerably raised), strongly supporting the income tax as the most just form, socially, of raising revenue. In practice, however, it has been found that the heavy rate on higher income minimises the in­ centive to work overtime or on con­ tract rates, and has acted as a se­ vere drag on production. A common saying among workmen is “I won't work for Kaplan”. To such an extent has the situation deteri­ orated that the Treasury has been compelled, in order to prevent 1

strikes in key occupations, to stoop to all sorts of legal subterfuges. These, while formally legal, have destroyed the moral foundations upon which the tax is based. When the dissatisf action *of the judges and magistrates with their salaries confronted the Government with an unpleasant dispute, the Treasury found a simple solution,— by paying them substantial repre­ sentation allowances, which being an expense are not taxable. A similar transparent fiction oper­ ates in the case of other higher Government and Jewish Agency officials. By suitable pressure elec­ tricity workers extorted an agree­ ment — for some time kept secret —granting them preferential treat­ ment in taxation. An arrangement on the same lines is proposed to in­ duce teachers to work extra hours, in view of the acute shortage of qualified personnel in that profes­ sion. But the most instructive side-light on this situation has been provided by the Haifa steve­ dores, already mentioned, who de­ mand exemption from all taxation on earnings of over one hundred pounds per month. Taxpayers oc­ cupying less strategic positions, or to whom the strike-weapon is dis­ tasteful, smart under a keen sense of discrimination, while tax-eva­ sion is provided with a not totally invalid excuse for self-vindication. ■DUT WHETHER guns or butter ** will be given preference in Is­ rael may be decided by circum­ stances beyond the control of our G o v e r n m e n t . Mr. Ben-Gurion’s 54

Ministry will have to cope with a very difficult Middle Eastern situa­ tion which is degenerating from day to day. The murder of I/iaquat Ali Khan, Pakistan's Premier and by all accounts a moderate states­ man, and the unilateral repudia­ tion of the Anglo-E gyptian Treaty, are further incidents in a series, symptomatic of an explosive situa­ tion. Egypt's abrogation of her treaty with Britain has already set in motion a chain of developments, whose denouncement is uncertain, but which is already assuming the proportions of a Cold — and notso-cold — War. Egyptian states­ men, for purely internal reasons, to conceal their own corruption and to divert public attention from their incapacity to solve urgent so­ cial problems, have embarked upon a struggle over which they are al­ ready losing control. It is already certain that the de­ cision to go ahead with the Middle Eastern Regional Command, even without Egypt's participation, does not constitute the last word. In this respect the return of the Brit­ ish Conservatives, who promised their electors a firmer policy in the Middle East, makes little material difference. Overtures are still being made to induce the Egyptians to think again. Fortunately for Is­ rael, however, with the congenital Levantine inability to listen to rea­ son and the rabble getting out of hand, there is little prospect of the Egyptians accepting any offer that the Western Powers can make. But the events of the past month have Jewish LIFE

given Israel much food for thought. Egypt's acceptance of the FourPower offer to join the Middle Eastern Command, implying the supply of American arms on a lavish scale, would have embroiled Israel in a ruinous armaments race with catastrophic consequences. But there is no indication that the Americans have learnt the lesson that even the British, with their far more extensive experience of the Arab mentality, have not yet fully mastered -t-- that totally irra­ tional and very often completely irrelevant considerations shape the policies of the Middle Eastern states. The Americans were con­ vinced that if only Dr. Moussadegh of Iran was made to appreciate that his oil policy was suicidal for his country he would come to terms with the British. They labor under a similar delusion with regard to Egypt and other Arab States. Ap­ peasement is far from dead in this theatre and Israel apparently is being exploited to frighten as well as to cajole the Egyptians to fall into line. Reports of Egypt's offer to transfer the Gaza Strip (which is steadily being cut off from its sources of supply in Egypt by the British occupation of the Canal Zone) to Transjordan, and the de­ mand now being voiced by certain Iraqi politicians for the nationali­ zation of their country's oil, now being exploited by the British, may be omens foreshadowing the course of future political events. Nov. - Dec., 1951

A frustrated opposition, made implacable by the dis­ appointment of having its share of power thrust from its lips at the last moment, the prospect of the present Ministry remaining in of­ fice for the statutory four-years period is regarded dubiously. Only in the event „of external dangers developing into a threat of war — a possibility not immediately visi­ ble — would a favorable atmos­ phere be created for a national co­ alition. But failing such an even­ tuality, there seems no reason why the present Government should not last at least two years, until the truce period over the controversial education issue expires. Mapai, by exhausting all alternative Coalition combinations, has convinced itself and the country that under present circumstances the present Coali­ tion, with all its weaknesses and defects, is the best we can hope for. The relative stability of political opinions in this country, reflected in the recent election results and the virtual impossibility of any sin­ gle party securing a decisive ma­ jority, have induced a more sober frame of mind among Israel's poli­ ticians. Impulsive measures, are less likely to disturb the present equilibrium. The Coalition, com­ manding sixty votes in the House — besides the five Mapai allies among the Arab members — has a working majority if not a satis­ factory one. And there are cer­ tainly grounds for hoping that Is­ rael is today more mature politi­ cally than it was only eighteen months ago. 55

AS THE TWIG IS T he child in Jewish sources By ELIEZER EBNER "Behold, children are a heritage of the Lord." (Psalms 127:3)

TH ESE WORDS reflect the attiA tude of Jewish, parents toward children both in Biblical and mod­ ern times. The child is regarded as a gift of G-d and the stories of Sarah, Leah, Rachel and Hannah portray vividly the plea of Jewish mothers to be blessed with children. A Boraitha goes so far as to com­ pare the childless to a dead per­ son. (Nedorim 646). The first law of the Torah enjoins man to procreate his own kind. As to the minimum number of children this law implies, the opinion of the sages of Tannaitic times is divided between the school of Shammai and the school of Hillel. According to the former, husband and wife should have at least two sons and two daughters, while the latter es­ tablishes the minimum at one child of each sex. Sons were more desired than daughters. This preference the Jew shared with other contempor­ ary people. Sons perpetuated the name and tradition of the family, while daughters, upon, their mar­ riage, were counted as members of another family, Rabbi Judah I 56

summed up this attitude in these words: “The world needs both males and females, but happy is he whose children are sons.” (Pes. 65a. Sank. 1006). r V E N BEFORE the child was born he was a subject of won­ derment to the Rabbis. Parables and legends were woven around his pre­ natal existence. One question they were concerned with is: Since the child is born with a soul that is divine, why then is he morally and intellectually immature ? In reply, they suggested parabolically that the embryo is guarded by two an­ gels who teach the unborn all the knowledge of the Torah. But as soon as the child is ready to be born, an angel strikes a blow on his up­ per lip which causes him to forget all th at he had learned before. The child then very much against his will leaves his ideal habitat and comes to the world with a cry of protest. 306). The sacredness of human life that Judaism teaches applies to the in­ fant as soon as he is born. “One desecrates the Sabbath for the sake of a baby of one day, but not for Jewish LIFE

the dead body of David, King of Israel/- (Shab. 156). Concern about the health of the infant is "sufficient reason to postpone the otherwise unalterable date of cir­ cumcision. Practices of infanticide, which were in vogue among some people of the ancient world, have been unknown among Jews through­ out their history. Judaism permits no distinction between desirable and undesirable offspring. The life of each person is considered holy, whether boy or girl, rich or poor, strong or weak. The Mishnah teaches : “He who destroys one hu­

man life is compared to one who destroys the whole world." (Sank. 4.5). At the approximate age of three years the child was believed to enter upon the second stage of his life. On the average, this used to be the age when he was weaned. The author of II Mac­ cabees mentions a three years' n u rsin g period. R abbi E liezer thinks two years to be the cor­ rect nursing time, while his col­ league, Rabbi Joshua, sees nothing wrong in letting the child suckle up to his fourth and even fifth year.

Education for Boys and Girls

■PHE boy child and girl child were appropriately designated “Tinok” and “Tinoketh", meaning suck­ ling/' It stands to reason that this long nursing period caused the name “Tinok" to become a term of endearment, used long after the nursing stage. We find reference, for example, to “Tinokoth of the school/' to a Tinoketh who gets married, and Rabbi Zadok calls a young priest officiating in the Tem­ ple by the name of “Tinok." In the case of the girl,/the age of three years opened a number of legal questions, related to her phy­ siological development. By that time, the child has usually begun to pronounce words. In the case of the boy, the father is asked to teach his son to recite the two verses | from the Torah: “Hear 0 Israel, the Lord is our G-d, the Lord is One" and “Moses commanded us Nov. - Dec., 1951

the Torah, as an inheritance of the congregation of Jacob." The participation of the little boy in the religious life of his people must begin at even an earlier age. A boy who no longer called his mother at night was required to sleep in the Sukkah. The Mishnah tells us that Shammai went even further: When his daughter-in-law gave birth to a son, he converted the room where the baby was into a Sukkah. Another Rabbi extended a similar privilege to the unsuspect­ ing cradle occupant by adding him to the “Minyon" for the purpose of saying grace together. As he grew older, he was progressively intro­ duced into the observance of those Mitzvoth which demanded a more active involvement. He learned to shake the Lulov, he put on the fringes and the tefillm and, if cap­ able, was given the privilege of 57

reading publicly from the Torah and translating it into the Aramaic vernacular. Q N YOM KIPPUR, boys and girls were expected to fast as Tong as they could, even though they had not attained as yet their religious maturity. Rabbi Akiva would in­ terrupt his studies on the eve of Yom Kippur, to make sure that the children were fed well enough to sustain them during whatever time they would fast on the morrow. The age at which the boy's physi­ cal and mental growth had deve­ loped sufficiently to allow him to share fully in his people's way of life, was set at thirteen years. At that age he becomes a “Bar Mitzvah", bound as all adults to observe the commandments. There is no re­ ference in the Talmud that would indicate a special celebration or ce­ remony in connection with the boy's transition from the status of a “Koton" or minor to that of a “Godol" or adult. The closest indication of some kind of a Bar Mitzvah celebration is the following passage in the tract­ ate Soferim (18:5) : “It also was a fine custom in Jerusalem to let the younger sons and daughters fast on the Day of Atonement—the elevenyear-olds and the twelve-year-olds the whole day. Thereafter (Rabbi Elijahu of Yilna adds here “when he was thirteen years old") to bring him before every elder, that he may bless him, encourage him and pray over him, that he may acquire To­ rah and good deeds." This custom may be related to Josephus' remark 58

about himself: “While still a mere bojr, about fourteen years old, I won universal applause for my love of letters." {Life: 2) Another de­ clares this date to constitute a turn­ ing point in life, for “after thirteen years the good inclination (Yetzer tov) is born." And the Mishnah states, that with “thirteen years and one day his vows have legal validity." {Avoth of R. Nathan 16, 2. Nid 5.6). The girl reaches her religious ma­ turity a year earlier, requiring her to observe those Mitzvoth that are incumbent upon the woman. The chronological factor was not the on­ ly one to determine the maturity of the boy and girl. The physical changes that occurred in the body, and that varied from individual to individual, were reckoned with and had their legal implications before and after the age of religious ma­ turity. In the life of the girl, wha “matured faster than the boy," there are recognized three definite stages, all predicated upon her phy­ sical development. On the average these stages were dated (1) from three to twelve years, when she was called a “Ketanah," (2) then up to twelve years and six months, when she was called a “Na'arah" and (3) thereafter, when she was called a “Bogereth". This rather early maturation resulted in the custom to marry off the girl at a young age, a practice that still pre­ vails in oriental countries today. T H E SOCIAL and legal position of the child and the underlying psychology upon which this position Jewish LIFE

is based, is evident in the attitude of the Haloehah. In the eyes of the law, the “Koton” or minor is placed in the category of those exempt by mental deficiency from any respon­ sibility for committed actions. If, for example, someone was unfor­ tunate enough to have had an in­ jurious encounter with any of this category, he is in a disadvantageous position, “for the one who harms them is liable, while if they do so to others they are not liable/' For­ tunately, however, for the Koton, the association with such company is only a temporary one. The actions of the minor do not possess legal quality, because they lack the necessary mental founda­ tion. In the matter of defilement, therefore, where in addition to an overt act an intention is required, the action of the minor will not con­ stitute the defilement, because as the Mishnah frequently puts it, “children can commit actions, but they have no thoughts." ( Kelim, 17,5; Taharoth 8,6 ; Makshirim 8,8 ; 6, 1). Or rather they do have thoughts, but these are incoherent, fragmentary and not dependable. Their thinking is generated by im­ pulses and momentary outside sti­ mulations. It is dominated by feel­ ings of likes and dislikes and it lacks the quality of consistency. It is guided by wishful thinking and imagination rather than by reason and logic. The testimony of children before court is therefore not admis­ sible. Neither are their vows and evaluations legal, “because they have no understanding." (Arakin 1,1). Likewise is the Koton disquaNov. - Dec., 1951

lifted from performing an action that demands concentration and sustained effort, like ritual slaught­ ering and the public reading of the Megillah, even though such action does not require for its execution an understanding of its meaning and purpose. There is however also a positive aspect to the immaturity of the Koton. Whatever mischief the little boy or girl may have perpetrated, they are not considered evil or sin­ ful, because their deeds are not sub­ ject to moral evaluation. Children are ^considered to be pure. One rabbi sympathetically exclaims: “Their very breath is free of sin." In the time of the Temple in Jeru­ salem, children were employed to draw the water from the Shiloach spring, in order to ensure the ritual purity of the water needed for the Temple service. The small sons of the Levites were permitted to en­ ter the courtyard of the Temple for the purpose of contributing the 59

sweetness of their voices to the choir of the adult Levites. Plays and games, which take up so much of the time and interest of children, are scarcely mentioned in our sources. There is an indirect reference to a game with locusts that was given to the Koton to play

with. That children then, no less thap today, loved to play soldiers may be inferred from the words: “Helmets on the heads of children.” The ubiquitous ball, stuffed with rags, had its place too in the amuse­ ment of children (Shqb. 9,7; Zebahim 88b; Kelim 28,1).

Parent and Child

JP^T ABOUT the age of six or seven years boys and girls parted company. The boy went to school, where he spent most of the day, while the place of the girl's education was the home and the curriculum of her instruction was the domestic arts. The Mishnah gives us a picture of the skills the girl had to acquire to be a good home-maker : “She grinds the flour, bakes, washes, cooks and nur­ ses her child, makes the bed and works in wool.” (Ket. 5,5). Learn­ ing these arts, and the fact that girls frequently married at a young age, left little time for the girl's literary education. Nevertheless, the possibility of acquiring knowledge of the Torah was not denied to her. Indeed we have some evidence indicating that girls did study the Bible. But what­ ever they learned was done volun­ tarily. One voice in the Tannaitic literature is raised demanding that formal éducation for girls be made obligatory. “'Says Ben A?/:ai, a fa­ ther is required to teach his daugh­ ter the Torah.” Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Joshua, the leading scholars at the turn of the first cefitury, C. E., strongly object to this opinion, 60

without however registering their opposition in the form of a prohibi­ tion. That the teaching of Torah to girls was not forbidden is clear from this statement of the Mishnah : “But he may teach his sons and daughters the Bible.” Another in­ dication that there were girls who studied the Torah is the fact that a woman was prohibited from serving as a school teacher. (Ned. 4,3; Kid. 4,13) . Such a law could have appli­ cation only if there were women who had the proper educational background to be school teachers. ^ |N THE BASIS of the available evidence in our sources it is im­ possible to conclude.whether Jewish parents generally assumed a strict and stern, or a lenient and forbear­ ing, attitude towards their children. Moreover, it is unreasonable to put this question in the “either — or” form altogether. As with parents at all times, there were those who treated their children in an affec­ tionate and indulgent manner, while o th e rs w ere s tr ic t and exacting with them. The rabbis were aware of the perennial difficulty of deter­ mining the proper way for parents to deal with their offspring ; a way Jewish LIFE

that should make allowance for the tender, feelings of love and for the realization that, for the ultimate good of the child, it is at times unavoidable to use means of correc­ tion which he would resent quite strongly. “Said Rabbi Simeon ben Eleazar, dealing with a woman and a child, ‘It is best to repel with the left hand and draw near with the right hand/ ” (Semaehoth, 2,6. Sank. 107a). But when it came to enforcement of the study of the Torah, the rab­ bis recommended ‘even stern mea­ sures, if need be. A special enact­ ment at the Galilean city of Usha in the middle of the .first century C. E. gave the father the right to employ strict means to compel his twelve-year-old son to study the To­ rah. Rabbi Meir, wishing to illus­ trate an impending misfortune, uses an apparently familiar picture

of “a teacher who comes to school with a strap in his hand. Who wor­ ries? He who usually gets chastised every day.” Rab, the most promin­ ent Babylonian scholar of the third century, sought to alleviate this practice somewhat by telling the teacher to use merely a “shoestrap.” The rabbis issued this sound pedagogical advice: “One must not threaten a child, but either flog him immediately or keep silent and say nothing about it.” (Ket. 50a. See Rashi ad loc) . Although the Talmudic saying^ “there is no father who hates his son” is representative of the paren­ tal attitude towards children, it is also true that the authority that parents commanded and the inten­ sive form of Jewish education were effective means to guide the up­ bringing of children.

PHILO ON SHEMITTAH In the seventh year the owner was not permitted to fence in his vineyard, orchard and other fields in order that the poor of the land may have the same use of the produce as the owner. It w as forbidden for the owner to work his fields in order to spare him the frustration that would be his were he to work his field without being permitted to enjoy the fruits thereof as the sole owner. At the same time the poor were thus given the semblance of ownership, since no one was working in the fields this year and thus were spared at least this year the humiliation of being treated as beggars and possibly abused by the owners." — Philo - Judeus

Nov. - Dec., 1951

61

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PROPHET OF DESTRUCTION B y I S R A E L G E R S T E IN

CHURBAN EUROPA and NOCH'N CHURBAN by Dr. Isaac Lewin, (Yiddish). Illustrated. Research Institute for Postw ar Problems of Religious Jewry. New York, 1948 and 1950, 600 pp. $6.00. These two volumes by Dr. Lewin, who is the esteemed professor of Jew ­ ish history a t Yeshiva University, are in the main made up of articles which the author wrote for the daily press, principally the New York Jewish Morning Journal during and after World W ar II, and deal w ith the heroic efforts for rescuing European Jew ry from H itler's clutches, in which the author was a prime mover. Reading the pages of C hurban E u ro p a one relives the tragic era which witnessed the liquidation of one third of our people. One's h eart contracts w ith shame a t the thought th a t m yr­ iads could have been alive today were it not for the indifference first of the world's statesmen, among them the leaders of the democracies, and sec­ ond, the leaders of our own organiza­ tions whose raison d'etre is safeguard­ ing the lives and rights of Jews everywhere. Dr. Lewin like a wide-

Nov. - Dec., 1951

awake sentinel began ringing the bell of alarm upon receiving the first hints of the diabolic Nazi plan to “solve the Jewish problem" by means of whole­ sale murder. He pleaded, begged and beseeched, but all to no avail. Dr. Lewin was a passionate pleader, and his lines even in cold print palpitate w ith the emotion which dictated them. He devised one plan after an­ other which if adopted by the large and powerful organizations then functioning on the American Jewish scene were bound to minimize the “churban", but there was a lack of vision and “without vision a people perisheth". In view of these obstacles, the re­ sults of the rescue work carried on by such organizations as the Vaad H atzalah in which Dr. Lewin played a leading role are in the nature of miracles. Deeply moving and inspiring are the author's tribute to some of the g re a t personalities th a t were cruelly destroyed by the Nazi hangman. Through these individual portraits one is afforded a better insight into the spiriual and intellectual life of the Jew ry which is memorialized in

63

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64

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these pages in Churban- Europa. attention since he was one of the re­ His articles on the undefeated sp irit1 cognized spokesman of the Agudath of the yeshivah baehurim who found Israel, The volume also contains ad­ their way to Shanghai is recommend­ dresses Dr. Lewin delivered before the ed reading for anyone in need of a Commission on Human Rights of the tonic for low spirits. United Nations. The spirit of “ahavath Yisroel” and The second volume contains the au­ thor’s experiences among the dis­ a dedication to the furtherance of placed persons in camps and commu­ loftiest Jewish idealism hovers over nities. Dr. Lewin’s proposed consti­ these pages' and endows them with tution for the State of Israel deserves perm anent Significance.

TORAH SCIENCE AND HEALTH B y IS R A E L T A B A K

THE HEART AND BLOOD IN THE BIBLE by Dr. David I. Macht. Published by Author, 3420 Auchentoroly Terr., Baltimore Md., 1951, 79 pp. $2.00. ■jpHE WORD of Gr-d and the world of G-d are synonymous in Jewish thought. The Torah is the blueprint of creation, and the physical universe is the reflection of the Divine Will. Under this system there can be no conflict' between faith and science as both are different faces of the. same coin. Dr. David I. Macht has devoted a life-time of labor and research to prove this point. The harmonization of Torah with science has been one of the chief pursuits of his prolific career. Side .by side with his purely medical and pharmacological studies he has published a host of papers on Biblical themes, indicating in a v ar­ iety of ways the scientific accuracy of the words of Torah. “The H eart and Blood in the Bible” is a study of h eart ailments and related disorders of the circul­ atory system as recorded in the Bible

Nov. - Dec., 1951

or as Implied in Biblical figures of speech. The heading of the intro­ ductory chapter gives a clear idea of the contents: “Biblical allusions to coronary, apoplectic and other episodes of blood circulation.” The author attem pts to determine the diseases th at -certain Biblical char­ acters succumbed to by analyzing the symptoms and the affective manifes­ tations with which these events are conveyed, such as in the cases of Ishmael, Eli, Nabal and Sisera. The most remarkable., fact mentioned is the discovery of the actual anatomical re­ mains of the heart of Pharaoh of Moses’ time, which is reported in a paper by Lord Moynihan. The author does not only trace the stresses and strains upon the heart of man in ancient days, but he brings us face toff ace with the fa r more ser­ ious problem of modern man and the demands Which our civilization makes upon the heart: “ Sudden deaths are probably more prevalent at the pre­ sent time than at other periods in the world’s history.” '

65

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Is there a remedy? How can mod­ ern man, who is blessed with so much wealth and luxury, save himself from being destroyed by his own civil­ ization? The answer, the author claims, is to be found in the way of life prescribed by our Torah. The per­ iodic “Day of Rest” which complete observance of the Sabbath affords is the best cure for the ills of our age. The physical and mental relaxation, the complete change of routine, the spiritual atmosphere which the Sab­ bath brings into the life of the ob­ servant Jew, adds years of health and well being to his life. In the words of the a u th o r: “By fa r the greatest pro­ phylactic against such direful com­ plications is a sincere and conscien­ tious observance of the Sabbath . . .”

He goes on to quote from the re­ port of the recent National Confer­ ence on Cardio-Vascular diseases to the effect th a t between 1933-1948 the incidence of death from h eart causes has increased to the alarm ing figure 51%, while death from other causes has dropped about 12%. This sharp increase, Dr. Macht asserts, is due to the high tension of present life. To quote his own words: “Modern medi­ cine reveals th a t probably the g reat­ est factors in precipitating sudden death from coronary episodes . . . are nervous tension and strains of h eart and arteries engendered by the te rri­ fic tempo . . . of men who know not how to rest and to relax body and mind, and are hell-bent on their own destruction.”

GLEN SPEY, N. Y. •

KASHRUTH SUPERVISED BY

i ©

UNION OF ORTHODOX JEWISH CONGREGATIONS OF AMERICA •

CITY OFFICE: 4320 BEDFORD AVENUE

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK

DEWEY 2-6761 Nov. - Dec., 1951

67

Just in time for Chanukah

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R ea d ers w ill sh are th e p a r e n ts y de­ lig h t in the follow in g' ve rse s. S p o n ­ ta n eo u sly com posed, th e y evidence the J ew ish s p ir it w h ich seek s ex p ressio n in ' the child of to d a y tM-EDI TO R.

New York, N.Y. - Several weeks ago, on a F riday night, my daughter was watching my wife light the candles, and then said th a t she wanted to sing some Zmiros of her own. She sang some words to a tuné of her own, and immediately after Shabbos we wrote down w hat she had said. My wife had been re­ peating it all day so th a t she would not forget it. A t the time my daughter, Chasida, was only three and a half years old. We think this shows quite an insight, do you agree? “S le e p y tim e f o r candle is w e e k d a y On Shabbos th e y are a w a k e M om m y lig h ts th em w ith a m a tc h A n d th en th e y a re a w a k e w ith fir e on th e m ” S . J o s h u a W e is s

New York, N.Y. Here is a “g reat composition” by my young son, Julius Jay, who is seven years old. You may have “all right, titlé and interest” to it.

Nov. - Dec., 1951

“/ am a v e r y good Jew I go to schdol and p r a y too,' B ecause F m a little H e b rew . I f I could p r a y E v e r y sin gle day, Oh, w hen w ou ld I p la y . To shool, I g la d ly w alk. There I canno t ta lk . I s it q u iet as a m ouse, In G -dfs g r e a t house. S a m u e l N ir e n s t e in

OPTIMISTIC

Phoenix, Ariz. Here is my renewal through 1957 somewhat optim istic; yet a Jew must be. So L’chaim to J E W IS H L IF E and a successful New Year. M. J. R i t c h i e MIKVAH OR RITUALARIUM?

Washington, D.C. I send you the attached clipping concerning the “dedication of a Ritualarium (M ikvah),” as I think th at a courageous publication like O.J.L. might have something to say about the development which becomes so evi­ dent in this announcement. Of course we must be happy th at a Mikvah, built according to the Din,

69

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and a t the same time modern and dig­ nified, is going to he opened in ail American city. However, wonder whether the Chachomim ever thought of such undignified publicity with de­ legations, dedicating ceremonies, guest speakers, cantorial performances ( !), in connection with the great and holy fundam ental institution of a Mikvah &-pardon, I should not have used this old-fashioned, embarassing word! No, there must be something tru ly “Amer­ icanized,” a new word, coined for this special occasion, so th a t the inventors of th a t new word can proudly say, “See, we are 100% Americans; we call this institution now — Ritualarium. And, to top all these wonderful, appropriate ceremonies, there will be someone to lead the audience to the “R itualarium .” Is it not a shame th a t we have come so fa r? Maybe it is done for financial purposes? Is it not a desec­ ration Of something so delicate, so holy, so much tied up with the real idea of “Tzniuth?” A voice should be raised against those who are willing to lend their participation to such an un-Jewish display of “modern orthodoxy.” I think it is only another sign of our great confusion. Some elements in Orthodoxy w ant to show apologetic­ ally th a t we are ju st as modern as others. As so many rabbis and lay­ men do not know w hat is dignified and w hat is against mores in our ways of thinking and acting, the result is exactly, in my modest opinion, the op­ p o site of the old word, tru ly applicable in the sad example a t the threshhold of 5712, pYHID K$1 BHIpl K a r l D. D a r m s t a d t e r

Nov. - Dec., 1951

CREDITABLE

New York, N.Y. F or quite some time I have had in mind to write to you about J E W IS H L I F E . The arrival of the current issue prompts me not to delay it further. I am very much impressed with the content of each issue and especially with the last one. It seems to me th at you have succeeded in furnishing Am­ erican Jew ry with a magazine which is tru ly expressive of the sentiments and point of view of th a t element which calls itself orthodox in Jewry. Every piece of literary w riting which enters in its make-up seems to be per­ meated by sound knowledge, good w riting and a spirit of tolerance to­ w ards those whose views it does not share. Altogether, you are rendering a service which I am sure is appre­ ciated by those who profit by it. J o s h u a B loch

Chief, Jewish Division New York Public Library A HOAX

Brooklyn, N.Y. Enclosed is an object, (ostensibly a Mezuzzah), which was sent to an ac­ quaintance, along with a letter re­ questing a donation for an institution. The recipient, like many hundreds of others to whom such appeals are made, is not very conversant with Jewish law. Were it not for the fact th a t I asked to inspect the “Mezuz­ zah” it would actually have found its place on the door, although this is but a Mezuzzah container without the pro­ per Mezuzzah inside. I think it is a sacrilege for any Jew ­ ish institution to engage in such prac­ tice. No holy object, whether genuine

71

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72

Jewish LIFE

or imitation, should he sent to un­ known persons. I think th a t the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations should make every effort to stop such practices. Anyone who really respects our Law should not stoop to collect

NUTRITIOUS « f m

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money in such manner. In this case, it is a double wrong: the “Mezuzzah” would have been used as such by an innocent individual. I think it would be in order for the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations to send, a bulle­ tin to every Jewish institution, re­ questing th at each cooperate and not send a holy object, genuine or imita­ tion, with an appeal for a contribu­ tion. S il v ia F r ie d m a n

HERRING

m

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73

UNION OF ORTHODOX JEWISH CONGREGATIONS OF AMERICA

© KASHRUTH DIRECTORY List of Kosher commodities and services under the direct supervision and endorsement of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America* WATCH FOR THIS SEAL: (0). It is your guarantee that the product has been thoroughly investigated and every ingredient found to conform in every way with the Jewish Dietary Laws. Only such items are included in this directory as are directly endorsed and supervised by UOJC, which are marked by © . All products and services listed are passed upon by and receive the constant inspection of the Rab­ binical Council of America, Rabbinic body of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations. Consumers are cautioned to: 1. MAKE SURE THAT THE © SEAL IS ON THE LABEL OF EVERY FOOD PRODUCT. 2. READ CAREFULLY THE LIST OF INGREDIENTS OF EACH © PRODUCT TO ASCERTAIN WHETHER IT IS A MEAT OR DAIRY PRODUCT. THE © DOES NOT NECESSARILY MEAN THAT THE PRODUCT IS PAREVE.

Please note that the © seal of Kashruth endorsement is exclusively the symbol of: Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America 305 Broadway, New York 7, N. Y.

BEekman 3-2220

Effective until March 1, 1952 74

Jewish LIFE

UOJC KASHRUTH DIRECTORY Items listed © are Kosher for year-round use not in­ cluding Passover;

Items listed ©P are Kosher for both Passover and year-round use.

Condiments Baby Foods

' o i

© Heinz—with ® label only. (H. J.

Heinz Co.) Strained Food Orange Juice J Junior Food Cereal Chopped Mixed Vegetables Puddings (Butterscotch, Choco­ late, Vanilla) © Beech-Nut Packing Co. (with © label only) Strained Food Junior Food beans Cereal

Baked Beans © Heinz Oven Baked Beans in mo­ lasses sauce (H.J. Heinz Co.) @ Heinz Oven Baked Beans in toma­ to sauce (H.J. Heinz Co.) © Van Camp's (Stokely Van-Camp) (with © label only)

Cakes, Cookies and Crackers © Golden Cracknel Egg Biscuits (Golden Cracknel & Spec. Co., Detroit) © Ry-Krisp (Ralston-Purina, St. Louis) © Sunshine Krispy Crackers (with © label only) (Sunshine Biscuit Co. L.I.C., N.Y.)

Candies ®P Barricini, Inc.

Caterers © Hotel Diplomat. 108 W. 43 St., N.Y.C. (Delano Caterers)

Cheese IBakers) © Cottage Cheese (Pickrodt Cheese

Co., Brooklyn, N.Y.)

© P Gold's Horseradish (Gold Pure Foods, Bklyn, N.Y.) ® Heinz (H.J. Heinz Co.) Horse Radish 57 Sauce Worcestershire Sauce Chili Sauce Ketchup © Pride of the Farm Catsup (Hunt Food Prod, Bridgeton, N. J.)

Convalescent Homes © Dayton Nursing Home, 1884 Mar-

mion Ave., Bronx, N.Y.

Dishwashing Machine Detergents ®. Spic & Span (Proctor & Gamble)

Dressings © Cascade Salad Dressing (Table

Prod. Co. San Francisco) © Duchess Salad Dressing

(Table

Prod. Co.) © Garber's Misrochi Salad Dressing (Garber Eagle Oil Corp., Bklyn) © Gold Crest Mayonnaise (Spare-

Way Food Prod., Bklyn, N. Y.) © Gold Crest Melomaise (Spare-Way

Food Prod.) © Nu

Made

Mayonnaise

(Table

Prod. Co.) © Piedmont Mayonnaise (Table Prod.

Co.)

Eggs— Dehydrated , © Stan-Egg

(Standard Milling Co., Chicago, 111.)

Eggs— Frozen I WholesaleI ®P Ocoma Foods Co.

* New © endorsement 75

UOJC KASHRUTH DIRECTORY Items listed © are Kosher for year-round Use not in­ cluding Passover;

Items listed ©P are Kosher for both- Passover and year-round use. •

Household Cleansers (See also Scouring Powders)

Fish Products © Royal Snack (S.A. Haram Co., N.Y.C.) Cream Herring Matjes Fillets Spiced Herring Lunch Herring Herririg Cocktail Tidbits v Salmon (in wine sauce) © P Mother's Old Fashioned (Mother's Food Prod., Newark, N.J.) Gefilte Fish Sweet and Sour Fish

Flavorings © Westag Lemon (Table Prod. Co.) © Westag Vanilla (Table Prod. Co.)

Food Packages © CARE, 20 Broad St., N.Y.C.

Frozen Foods ® Rapoport's Blintzes (Family Frozen

Food Prod., B'klyn, N.Y.) cheese, potato Veg. Steak with Protose '© Home Town Foods, Harris, N. Y. Blintzes (cheese, cherry, blueber­ ry) © Milady Food Products, Brooklyn,

N. Y. Blintzes (blueberry, cherry, cheese, potato)

Fruit l Dried I © California Packing Co., San Fran­

cisco, Calif.

Honey ©P Garber's Misrochi (Garber Eagle Oil Corp.) 76

© Arctic Syntex M beads (bulk only) (Colgate- Palmolive-Peet) ©P Brillo Products (Brillo Mfg. Co.,

Brooklyn, N.. Y.) © Cameo Copper Cleaner (Cameo

Corp., Chicago, 111.) © Cheer (Procter and Gamble) © Dreft (Procter & Gamble) © Fab (Colgate-Palmolive-Peet) © Felso

(Fels & Co., Phila., Pa.)* © Qlim (B. T. Babbitt, Inc.) © Golden Fleece Pot Cleaner

(Metal Textile Corp). ~© Golden Fleece Scour Cloth

(Metal Textile Corp). © Hum (Theobald Industries) © Joy (Procter & Gamble) © Kirkman Detergent

(Colgate-Palmolive-Peet)* © Spic & Span (Procter 6c Gamble) © Sprite

(Sinclair Mfg. Co., Toledo, Ohio) ® Swerl (Allied Chem. 6c Dye Corp., N.Y.) ® Tide (Procter & Gamble) © Vel (Colgate-Palmolive-Peet)

Ice Cream © Costa's French Ice Cream (Costa's Ice Cream Co, Woodbridge, NJ.)

Jelly ® Heinz (HJ. Heinz Co.)

Mustard © Heinz (HJ. Heinz Co.) *New © endorsement

Jewish LIFE

UOJC KASHRUTH DIRECTORY

>

Items listed ©P are Kosher for both Passo/er and year-round use.

Items listed © .a re Kosher for year-round use not in­ cluding Passover;

Oil^Peanut ©P Garber s Misrochi (Garber Eagle Oil Co.)

Potato Chips © Blue Ribbon (A. A. Walter Co., Albany, N.Y.)

Resorts © P Pine View Hotel, Fallsburg, N.Y. © Strath Haven Hotel, Miami Beach,

Fla. ' ©P Washington Hotel, Rockaway Park, N. Y.

Salt Poultry— Frozen © Menorah ^Farm (Menorah Poultry

Co., Boston, Mass.)

Peanut Butter © Beech-Nut Packing Co. ® Beverly (Table Prod. Co.) © Heinz (H. J. Heinz Co.) © Real Roast (Table Prod. Co.)

Prepared Food$ © Kosher-Pak Sandwiches, 488 Al­ bany Ave., Bklyn, N.Y.

Relishesf Pickles, etc . © Heinz (H. J. Heinz Co.) © H. W. Madison Co., Medina, Ohio © Mount Olive Pickle Co.# Mt. Olive N.C. Carolina Beauty Mopico Pick of Carolina Little Rebel Way Pack Play Mates ® Spare-Way Food Prod.# Bklyn.,

Sour Pickle Relish Fresh Cucumber Rings Sweet Mixed Pickles * New © endorsement

©P Mogen Dovid Coarse Kosher Salt (Carey Salt Co., Hutchinson, Kan­ sas) © P Morton Coarse Kosher Salt @P Morton Fine Table Salt ©P Morton Iodized Salt (Morton Salt Co., Chicago, 111) ©P Red Cross Fine Table Salt

(International .Salt Co., Scranton, Pa.) © P Sterling Fine Table Salt

(International Salt Co.) © P Sterling Kosher Coarse Salt (International Salt Co.,)

Sandwich Spread © Lunch Box (Table Prod. Co.)

Scouring Powder (see also Household Cleansers) © Ajax (Colgate-Palmolive-Peet) © Bab-O (B. T. Babbitt Co.) ® Ben Hur (bulk only) (ColgatePalmolive- Peet) ® Babbitt's Cleanser (B. T. Babbitt Co.) © Cameo Cleanser (Cameo Corp., Chicago, 111). 77

UOJC KASHRUTH DIRECTORY Items listed © are Kosher for year-round use not in­

©

©

cluding Passover;

Items listed ©P are Kosher for both Passover and year-round use.

©P Garber's Misrochi Cleanser

(Garber Eagle Oil Co.) N. Y. C. © Kirkman Cleanser (Colgate-Palm-

olive-Peet) © Kitchen Klenzer (Fitzpatrick Bros,

Chicago, 111.) © Lustro Polishing Powder (Pal Prod., Bklyn, N.Y.) © New Octagon Cleanser (ColgatePalmolive-Peet Co.) © Palco Polish Powder (Pal Prod.) © Old Dutch C le a n s e r (C u d ah y Packing Co.) © Pal-Lo (Pal Prod.) © My Pal (Pal Prod.)

Shortening © Durkee Vegetable Shortening (Bulk only) (Durkee Famous Foods,

N.Y.) © Garber's Misrochi Pareve Fat

(Garber Eagle Oil Co.) © Humko (The Humko Co., Memphis, Tenn.) ©P Nut-Ola Vegetable Shortening

(Nut-Ola Fat Prod., N.Y.)

©P Mother's (Mother's Food Prod.) Borscht; Cream Style Borscht; Cream Style Schav © Mother's Mushroom

and

Barley

© Queen Esther Ready-To-Serve Kosher Soup (Linda Foods, Inc., Newark, N. J.)

Spices ©P Garber's Misrochi (Garber Eagle Oil Co.)

Sugar ©P Refined Syrups & Sugars, In®., (Yonkers, N. Y.) Flo-Sweet Liquid Sugar Hudson Valley Refined Granula­ ted Sugar

Syrup © Sleepy Hollow (Table Prod. Co.)

Tzizith (Rayon, for rayon taleythim) © Leon VogeL 66 Allen St., N.Y.C. © M. Wolozin & Co., 36 Eldridge St.,

N. Y. C. © Zion Talis Co., 48 Eldridge St. N.Y. (Woolen) © M. Wolozin & Co.

Vegetables ©P Serto Brand Selected Garlic

(Scaramelli <5c Co., N.Y.C.)* ©P Gold's (Gold Pure Food Prod., Bklyn, N. Y.) Borscht; Russel; Schav © Heinz (H. I. Heinz Co.)

78

Vegetables, Dehydrated (Bulk only) ©P Basic Vegetable Prod., San Fran­ cisco, Calif. ©P Gentry, Inc. (Los Angeles, Calif.)

Cream of Mushroom Condensed Cream of Mushroom Condensed Cream of Green Pea Condensed Gumbo Creole Condensed Cream of Tomato Condensed Vegetarian

Vinegar

Vegetable

* New © endorsement

©P Garber's Misrochi (Garber Eagle Oil Co.) © Heinz (HJ- Heinz Co.) © Old Mill (Table Prod. Co.)

Jewish LIFE

REFRESHING, FLAVORFUL

. ..D E L IC IO U S !

AMERICA’S EXCLUSIVE KOSHER HARD CHEESE

made only with our own kosher natural Rennet

Prepared under Rabbinical Su­ pervision, in America's m6st modern Ice Cream Plant

RICHER IN TASTE, SUPERIOR IN QUALITY

Get It At Your Grocer Today Approve^ by Rabbi Dr. J. Brener Also askrfor our Schmerling ’& kosher imported Swiss Gruyere Cheese SCHNALL PRODUCTS CO. Brooklyn 25, N. Y.

©

GETy^

C o sta ', S ICE CREAM FOR FINEST QUALITY

For Chanukah Gifts

FOR KASMIUTH and QUALITY

*

KOSHER New York State CHAMPAGNE MOUNT HAIFA brand naturally fermented in bottle

9

n

o

Jewish housewives

1“

PREFER ilAIHQND CRYSTAL KOSHER SAIT

produced and bottled at the winery

Ideal fer ¡Coshering meat —wende r f t i l in seeking.

Under the supervision of

RABBI A. I. SHISGAL, by Marlboro Industries, Ltd. Marlboro, New York * Kosher Vermouth and Wines A vailable

C e rtifie d b y

j

R abbi N. K obo

j

o f N e w Y o rk

I

f a s t i* 14

A PRODUCT OF GENERAL FOODS

u

Nov. - Dec., 1951

79

CEREALS-STRAIN ED-JUN IO R FOODS for BABIES

—

*

s a l t e d

IN SERV-KRISPY PARS GUARANTEED Kosher and “P arve”

a

,

LOOKFOR THE ® OH

EACH PACKAGE AS THE SYMBOL I tBAOi-MAAK

OF RABBINICAL SUPERVISION

BAKE D IN THE KOSH ER P RODU CT S D IVISI 0 N O F Suns/tine BtSCUitS.ync NEW YORK, N Y.

80

Jewish LIFE

V *

“Chanukah” by Arthur Szyk (America's foremost miniaturist) 1 of 7 Lithographs in full calor on the Jewish Holidays, in size 6 by 13/^ inches: overall size 9¿4 by 12.3/4 inches. Price per set of 7 prints @ $7.50. Published by Arthur Rothmann Fine Arts Inc . . . send for Free illustrated catalog.

Rosh Hashanah — Succoth — Sim cha f h Torah Chanukah — Purim — Passover — Hillel These prints are in the exact size of the originals painted by A rth u r Szyk, the foremost m iniaturist of our time, in the color of the origipals. Lithographed in 9 colors — a splendid pictorial record of the Holidays and Jewish sages. Inspiring for youngsters and adults as they richly portray memorable scenes dear to Jewish tradition. Suitable for fram ing for homes, institutions and libra­ ries. Recommended for Chanukah, birthday, all “Occa­ sional” gifts, contest prizes and awards.

ORDER NOW Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations 305 Broadway New York 7, N. Y. Please' send|H H K ......y..sets of Szyk prints a t $7.50 each. Check Enclosed Q K in d ly sen d fre e illu s tr a te d catalog □ Name ..... I .....H...

Address

... ...........................:.................. l.l.;../.;...-:..

I I I I

a short w ay to spell’Kosher'is... The <Q) seat of endorsement of THE UNION O F O RTH O D O X JEW ISH C O N G R EG A T IO N S O F AMERICA means "Kosher." You will find that 9 seal on the front of the lab el of Heinz Kosher Baked Beans and many others of the Heinz 57 Varieties. Strictly Kosher and strictly P arevel Heinz Baked Beans are both! Strictly delicious, too — as only through and through oven-baking and a mouth-watering tomato sauce can make them!

HEINZ OVEN-BAKED

BEANS here's the © Kosher Seal

STRICTLY K O S H E R , \ STRICTLY PAREV E, STRICTLY V EG ETA R IA N !

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