SERVING NEBRASKA, IOWA Omaha, Neb., Fit, December 9,1983
Vol. LXII No. 15
Reagan, Shamir hold two days of talks The White White House has provided a transcript of the remarks of President Ronald Reagan and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir at the conclusion of their recent talks. The remarks are nx follow*: THK PRESIDENT: We hove held two day» of intensive talk* with Prime Minister Shamir and his colleagues, cove-ring n hrond range of subjects including political, military cooperation, Lebanon, Israel's economic situation, and the pursuit of the Middle V.iM pence process; and these discuMions, as could l>e expected between close friends and nllic'!*, have l>ceii very productive. We reconfirmed the longstanding bonds of the friendship and cooperation between our two countries, and expressed our determination to strengthen and develop them in the cause of our mutual interest*. We have agreed on the need to increase our cooperation in areas where our intercuts coincide, particularly in the political and military area. And I am pleased to announce that we have agreed to establish a joint political-military group to examine ways in which we can enhance U.S.-Israeli cooperation. Thin group will give priority attention to the threat to our mutual interest posed by increased Soviet involvement in the Middle East, Among the specific areas to IJC considered arc combined planning, joint exercises and requirement* fur propositioning of U.S. equipment in Israel. We've agreed to take n number of other concrete steps aimed at bolstering Israel's economy and security. These include asking Congress for improved terms for our security assistance to Israel, using military assistance for development of the I.mi aircraft in the United States, and for offshore procurement of Lavi components manufactured in Israel, permitting U.S. contractors to enter into contracts with the government of Israel consistent with U.S. low, which would allow Israeli industry to participate in the production of U.S. weapons systems procured with foreign military talc* credits, offering to negotiate a free trade area with Israel. . A main focus of our meetings was the agony of Lebanon, and the threats there to our common interests. We examined, together, Soviet activities in the Middle East, and found a common concern with the Soviet presence and arms
President Reagan and Prime Minister Shamir — a While House photo. buildup in Syria. We reaffirmed our commonly held goals of a sovereign, independent Lebanon — free of all foreign forces, and of security for Israel's northern border. We agreed that every effort must be mode to expedite implementation of the May 17th agreement between Israel and Lebanon. Adequate security arrangement* for Israel's northern border must be assigned tho highest priority. We ore hopeful that such a'rrangements can be concluded soon. We, of course, discussed the broader goal of peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors. The Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty remains the cornerstone of the peace process. I re-
New dating service for the handicapped
By MorrU Mnline Many healthy young men and women join dating services to expand their social life and to meet potential nuirriago partners. But, what about handicapped people? Where do they go to meet new friends and potential marriage partners? Twcnty-five-year-old Bill Vnnn thinks he has the answer. With the help of his parents, Judy and Howard Vonn, he him orgnnlzed Exceptional Dating Service, an organization which is designed to help disabled individuals find friendships, dating partners and companions. (continued on page 2)
Bill Vonn
affirmed my commitment to the September 1 initiative as the best way to realize the promise of Camp David and the U.N.S.C. Resolutions 242 and .'i,')8 upon which it was built. As you can see, our two days together have revealed substantial areas of agreement and resulted in a number of specific concrete stepn that we will take to strengthen our ties. We have also discussed some issues on which we do not see vye to eye. But disagreements between good friends do not alter the unique anil sturdy foundation of our relationship. I know that Prime Minister,Shnmir shares with me the rent-wed conviction that the warm friendship between the United Suites and Israel will endure and strengthen. PRIME MINISTER SHAMIR: I am grateful for the invitation extended to me by President Reagan to come here to Washington for these discussions. The Minister of Defense and I have had the opportunity to conduct very thorough discussions with the President, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, and their sea of colleagues and advisors. These discussions have been carried out in the spirit of the traditional friendship and the common bonds of mutual understanding that bind our two countries. We reaffirmed our determination to insure the withdruwn) of nil foreign forces from Lebanon. The only basis for a settlement of the Lebunesc problem is the full implementation of the May 17, 1983 agreement in all its parts. We have discussed with the President and the Secretaries the necessary steps that could facilitate the carrying out of this agreement. * Syria constitutes today a major threat to the peace in our area by occupying more than 60 percent of Lebanon and by its massive concentration of Soviet arms and personnel on Syrian territory. Israel is ready to renew the peace process and discuss the final status of Judsa and Samaria, following the autonomy period in the framework of the songrecd basis for negotiations, mainly the Camp David Accords. We discussed during our visit here the major threat that terrorism constitutes to the peace, and we shall pursue our fight agairiBt it in close cooperation with the United States, (continued on page 2)
Nominations received for Community Service The Jewish Federation of Omaha has received a number of nominations for its Community Service Award, presentation of which is scheduled for the Federation's annual meeting next month. Nomination* received by the Nov. 11 deadline arc ns follows: The JSing-Along program conducted by the LOVE organization at the Bureau for the Aging submitted by Bert Lewis; Summer Shlichim for the Jewish Community Center camp program, submitted by Sharon Cippcrley; the Creighton/ADL Dialogue sponsored by ADL/CRC, submitted by Jean Ann Krupinsky.
Also, the "Anti-Semitism and Youth" program conducted by ADL/CRC, contact person Jean Ann Krupinitky; the ongoing program of the Tzcdakah Committee for Jewish Family Services, submitted by Cheryl Cooper and Alan M. Gonsher; the formation of the United Talmud Torah of Omaha, contact person Stanley Mitchell. Also, the JCC Singles program, contact Steven J. Rod; and the JCC's Yom Ha'ntzmnut — Israeli Independence Celebration, submitted by the Jewish Cultural Arts Council and the JCC by Ann Kibel Schwartz and Steven Rod.
Mordecai Kaplan — pressure for change in Judaism NEW YORK (JTA) — Dr. Mordecai Kaplan, the founder of the Reconstructionist movement and considered one of the most influential scholars in the history of Judaism, died Nov. 9 at the Hebrew Home for I ho Aged in Rivcrdalc, N.Y. He was 102 year* old. Many of the key developments in Jewish life today are based on concepts Kaplan developed during his long career — concepts like the organic Jewish community, Judaism as a religious civilization with it* spiritual center in Israel, the synagogue center and summer camp movements, Jewish community centers, the public celebration of Bat Mitzvah, and on American version of the European self-governing Jewish community (kchillo). Kaplan's ideological history was one of a struggle between the Orthodox beliefs he was taught and by which he lived,' until he decided that >uch a Jewish outlook was incompatible with the outlook of Jews bom and raised in the unique freedom of American life. Out of that struggle, the Recorutructionist philosophy emerged. He was denounced by the Orthodox who put him in hcrcm (excommunication), a somewhat l e u than drastic ban in an open society. Kaplan originally developed Rccorutructionism not as another branch of Judaism but as a stimulation to thinking in non-Orthodox forums. Hit ideas profoundly influenced
Reform and Conservative Judaism. Rut tho pressures for change which his teachings generated led to the crystallization of the movement in its own institutions. One was tho Society for the Advancement of Judaism (HA.)), trio pilot Rcconstructionist congregation in Manhattan, which Kaplan founded and served as rabbi even while continuing his teaching duties at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America and his busy schedule of writing and lecturing. Kaplan also founded tho Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Philadelphia and taught in it. The Reconatructionist movement also has a network of congregations in many parts of tho United States and Canada, in addition to the Mevakshci Dercch synagogue in Jerusalem, and its own journal, "The Rcconatrurtionist." With the publication in tho 1930's of his major work, "Judaism as a Civilization," Kaplan delineated the basic structure of his outlook, in which ho defined tho elements of an "evolving religious civilization."' This was to bo developed in his prolific writing over many decades. A bibliography of his printed works on the occasion of his 100th birthday included over 700 items. f Bom in Lithuania, Kaplan came to the U.S. with his parents at the age of eight. A student at the JTS from the
nge of 12, Kaplan was ordained in 1902 and began to serve as "minister" of Congregation Kehilnth Jeshurun in New York. Later he become the rabbi there after receiving his ordination on a trip to Europe in 1908. Appointed as the dean of the Teacher's Institute of the JTS in 1909, Kaplan worked there for half a century, retiring in 1963. He immigrated to Israel several years ago and taught at the Hebrew University. He recently returned to the U.S. Kaplan was considered an intellectual giant and was one of the key figures, along with Judah Magnes, Israel Friedlander and Samson Bcnderly, in the development of various , intellectual circles in New York before World War I. One of his earliest acts was the founding of Young Israel. In the June 1980 issuo of "The Rcconstructionist," Kaplan was described "as the man who has taught at least three generations of JCWR. how to think about Judaism in the modern world." Continuing, the editorial stated: / "Perhaps no man ever becamo more obsessed with a cause than ho. For him the cause was the survival of the Jewish people, physically, spiritually, culturally. From heder to yeuhiva, from public school to university, from the Jewish Theological Seminary to the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, he clung to his single purpose, tho reconstruction of Judaism for the Twentieth Century."