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BLUFFS. LINCOLN. OMAHA Omaha. Neb., Frl., February 6,1981

Symphonic Chorus Seeks Sacred Service Singers The Omaha Symphonic Chorus plans to perform the Bloch Sacred Service (Avodath Hakodesh) in late spring In celebration of the birth 100 years ago of composer Ernest Bloch.

In connection with the production, members of the Jewish community are being sought for parts as singers and soloists, the announcement stated.

"It is the hope of the Omaha Symphonic Chorus, its director, John Miller, and Board of Directors, that an abundance of talent within the Jewish community can be recruited." Rehearsals and auditions will take place Feb. 10 at 7 p.m. in Room 105 of the University of Nebraska at the Omaha Performing Arts Center. Information may be obtained by calling Kay Haar at 393-4498 or Bette Swanson at 292-1920.

Chairman of the Finance Committee for the New Center of the Aging will be past president of the Jewish Federation of Omaha, Leonard (Buddy) Goldstein, according to Phase III co-chairmen Harlan Noddle and Is Tretlak. Mr. Goldstein, a past chairman also of the Federation Campaign and an active member of the Jewish community for a number of years, has called the first meeting of his newly formed committee for Wednesday, Feb. 11. The duties and responsibilities of this committee will be: To determine If there are adequate funds available to meet the projected costs of the new long term care facility; to determine the design of the

TIBERIUS, Israel — In earlier days, people fish in the clear waters near the north shore of the Sea of Galilee, Israel. According to Israeli scientists, the biblical lake Is In danger of pollution by wastes from about 20 nearby kibbutzim. Yoel Gaifman, head of the national water company's Lakeside Research Station, recently said, "They pump raw sewage into the River Jordan, which feeds the Sea of Galilee. They also pollute its clean waters with the residue of their fertilizers. It Is possible to overcome these problems with a small Investment and some good will.''

The committee also will coordinate the fund raising effort for the new facility. It will review pro-forms budgets of the long term care facility in helping to determine the scope of the Capital Funds Drive in regard to building in an endowment that will provide adequate income to fund the deficit of the facility in perpetuity.

Leonard Goldstein Capital Funds Drive to fund the facility and appropriate

With the appointment of Mr. Goldstein, the Phase III Committee now has a full complement of chairmen for each area of concern for the building of a new home for the Jewish aged on the site of the Jewish Community Center.

Board Members Trade Chills for Drills By Ellen Gordman Despite four Inches of snow and blizzard-like winds, 65

Canadian Slovak Hopes to Save Soviet Jew's Life

Sea of Galilee Threatened

memorial opportunities that will assure the success of the project.

ByBenKayfetz TORONTO (JTA) - A $30,000 kidney transplant opera.tlonlo save the life of a 21-year-old Soviet Jewish emigre hoping to come to Canada will be paid by a charitable foundation in Toronto established by a Slovakia-born Roman Catholic. The Stephen B. Roman Foundation said in a letter to both the federal and provincial government in Canada that it will pay for the operation of Arkady Markh, a Latvian Jew. Markh is in a hospital in Italy and with his parents Is awaiting final clearance for permission to enter Canada. His parents reportedly received permission to enter the country but Markh was denied landed immigrant status because he needs the expensive operation which the parents and relatives in Canada cannot afford. In its letter, the Foundation called upon Ottawa and the Ontario provincial government to start arrangements to bring Markh to Canada. Stephen Roman came to Canada at the age of 16 as an immigrant from Czechoslovakia and built his fortune on uranium mining. He established the Foundation 14 years ago.

hardy people braved the weather to attend the first Joint Board Orientation of the Jewish Federation held last Sunday Feb. 1. Participating In the session were members of the Boards of the seven departments plus the Federation Board. Bob Fischer, director of support and development for the Jewish Welfare Board was the facilitator for the orientation. Joe Kirshenbaum, president of the Federation, said the Federation realizes the importance of training its board members. "We want to give you the necessary skills and basic information to do your Jobs," Mr. Kirshenbaum said. Mr. Fischer, led the participants through a short course on developing listening skills. This was followed by a worksheet exercise on the philosophy and responsibility of board members. The last part of the meeting involved the board members in a problem solving exercise. The people at each table were given a problem facing one of the seven Federation Departments and asked to give solu-

tions. The findings of the group at each table were then presented to all the participants. Some innovative solutions were given including ideas for increasing the usage of the library and for involving board members more actively in the annual Federation Campaign. Sunday's orientation was the initial stage in a three part training program that is being conducted for the first time for members of the Federation's eight boards. Stage two will be orientations by the individual departments for their board members. This will be followed on March 8 by the all day Harry and Sadie Kulakofsky Focus on Community Seminar. The Seminar has a three fold purpose according to Lou Solomon, executive director of the Federation. "The seminar is designed to help the leadership of the various agencies develop skills in goal setting, to set up better interdepartmental communication and cooperation and to begin to identify unmet needs in the community," Mr. Solomon explained.

Israeli Politics in Transitionand the Elections byYoscfGoeU Editor and Political Columnist, the Jerusalem Post Lecturer in Israeli Politics, Hebrew University's School for Overseas Students Israel's domestic politics have always been complex. In recent years, however, they have tended towards Incoherence. One result of this breakdown in the coherence of the system and of the relative predictability of political behavior is that It has become more difficult than ever to foretell the outcome of elections. This was true in 1977 and seems to be true in this election year. A persistent feature of Israeli public opinion polls over the past half year has been the prediction that the opposition Labor Party would beat Menachem Begin's Likud handily. But there is an important caveat: About 40 percent and sometimes even a greater proportion of the electorate remains undecided (and troubled) about whom to vote for. Israeli politics arc obviously in transition. The spectacular defeat of Labor in 1977 after 29 years Ip continuous power (actually 42 years if one counts the prc-Statc ylshuv period) was itself a sign of the changes sweeping the political arena. The current unpopularity of the Begin government coupled with persistent suspicion and unease at the thought of the return to power of an "unreconstructed" Labor Party provide further evidence of shifting political loyalties. Despite the complexity of the system (an average of 24 par-

tics contending in Knesset elections and an average of 14 lists winning at least one Knesset seat), Israeli politics until the mid1970s were largely a continuation of patterns established in the formative pre-Statc years. The impressive stability in the identity of the power holders during this protracted period was all the more remarkable in view of the quintupling of Israel's population during the first three decades after Independence. If anything, the internal makeup of the population changed even more dramatically than its numbers. Indeed, the surprise is that basic political change took so long In coming, given the revolutionary change in the population base. That changes have been occurring In recent years Is largely the result of the following factors: The mass-membership, true-bellever, Ideological parties have largely broken down. These parties originally provided the power bases for the country's "heroic" leadership. They were the main factors in lending coherence to the fragmented party system and consistency to government policies. In the past decade Israelis have become nearly totally turned off from the political parties, although there is no sign of alienation from politics and public affairs. Party membership, where it exists, Is nearly always of the self-serving, vested-interest type characteristic of party functionaries. The youngpr the Israeli the more disillusioned and cynical about party politics he tends to be. The old-time ambience of loyal party-member relationships is to be found today

primarily on the margin of politics, In such movement as Gush Emunim on the uitra-natlonalist-religlous right and Peace Now on the secular-left-of-center. Neither of these two movements have yet taken the step of turning Into political parties intending to run in the Knesset elections. The "heroic age" founding fathers of nearly all political parties have either died or retired. They have been succeeded by much weaker second generation collegia! leaders who have not succeeded in establishing their primacy in their respective parties. The parties' inability to choose strong new leaders has been a major cause of instability. In this sense Menachem Begin is the last of a breed, the charismatic leader whose continued primacy is not based on the need to win elections. When he goes, it is more than likely that the Likud bloc he heads will fall apart and that his Herut party will become enmeshed in the same internal struggles for succession that have marked Labor and the National Religious Party (NRP) throughout the 1970's. The NRjP's long-time founder-leader, Moshe Haim Shapira, died in 1970. The party has proven incapable of choosing a recognized leader to succeed him. Much the same can be said about the Labor Party following the resignation of "founding mother" Golda Meir in 1974. Former Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin never was granted the title of party leader and was finally rejected in favor of Shimon Peres. Peres, who in all likelihood will be thejiext Prime Minister after the elections, was a candidate of convenience for the large , . , (Continued on Page a)