Texas Jewish Post (Fort Worth, Tex.), Vol. 13, No. 25, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 18, 1959 Page: 4 of 12
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Page 4 Pofttorial Texas Jewish Post Thurs., Juna 18, 1959
POSTORIAL
Basic Values
Easily the most popular lecture topic of our day is the current
“religious revival.” Each week, rabbis in a dozen different pulpits
praach about the place of the synagogue in Jewish communiy
life, often inveighing against those whose participation in the con-
gregation is purely nominal, or challenging the commitment to
Judaism of those who think in terms of social events or even new
community buildings rather than of synagogue attendance. Almost
daily, the press reports the views of some sociologist, psychologist,
or psychiatrist on whether we are growing more religious, or on
the significance of the new emphasis on religion. Naturally enough,
these views reflect both the professional discipline and the indi-
vidual bias of the speaker.
Now Riabbi Max Kadushin, conducting a Torah session recently
at the 59th annual national convention of the Rabbinical Assembly
of America has shed new light on a familiar problem.
Stressing that the present day concern with prayer makes no
distinction between prayer and worship, Dr. Kadushin reminded the
habbis that while Judaism, like other religions, encourages prayer
on the part of the individual, its primary emphasis has always been
upon worship. And he adverted to tWo distinctive features of Jewish
worship; the fact that (1) study can become worship, when that study
brings one to the realization of the sovereignty of God, and as a
corollary commits one to God’s law; and (2) the quroum of ten
men necessary for public worship, itself a factor in worship, since
it enables the individual to achieve a heightened communal aware-
ness of God.
Perhaps the time and thought which the members of the Rab-
binidal Assembly devoted to this analysis of an aspect of Judaism
will ultimately help all of us to understand how an increase in
synagogue membership, considered alone, can be sterile, while re-
examination of the meaning of prayer may provide the stimulus
to a Judaism at once closer to tradition and mere relevant to con-
temporary needs. In any eyent, there is significance in the fact that
such spiritual matters stood high on the agenda of the Rabbinical
Assembly.
S Letters
TO THE EDITOR
Boris Smolar
Between You and Me
MIDDLE EAST AFFAIRS: The
present situation in the Middle
East is now being watched by
everyone interested in world
peace. . .S'oviet manipulations in
the Arab countries and the rift
which has now openly developed
between Iraq and Egypt are at-
tracting world-wide attention. . .
Those who argued that the crea-
tion of Israel led to instability in
the Middle East no longer ad-
vance this argument. . .They rea-
lize now that Israel is practically
the only stable country in the
Middle East and that the insta-
bility in the area is due primarily
to rivalries between the Arab
countries themselves. . .They also
realize that if not for Israel,
Col Nasser—in his ambition to
become the ruler of all Arab
countries—would have swallowed
up Jordan long ago. . .Thus the
present government of Jordan
has much to be thankful to Israel
for its independent existence. . .
The precarious position of Jor-
dan vis-a-vis Nasserism, as well
as the major developments in that
territory from antiquity till to-
day, are ably presented in “Jor-
dan: A State of Tension,” a book
published this week by the Coun-
cil for Middle Eastern Affairs. . .
Its author, Benjamin Shwadron,
an expert on the Middle East,
presents a vivid picture of the
power politics in the Arab world
and of the conflicts between
Western interests and Arab Na-
tionalism. . .He analyzes the dis-
tinction between Nasserism and
Arab nationalism and evaluates
the prospects that face Jordan. . .
He believes that the Western
Powers must decide to stop Nas-
serism and help all the elements
that are ready to resist Nasser’s
ambitions. . .Onlv then, he thinks,
could stability be established in
the Middle East, and the attempt
of the Soviet to dominate the
area be defeated. . .If, on the
other hand, the United States and
Britain should “come to terms”
with Nasserism, then the author
believeys that Jordan would be
the first victim, followed by
other Arab countries which are
still not und,er Soviet influence. .
. .He goes into great length to
show that Nasser is no longer a
free agent but the servant of
Soviet purposes, although he may
resent certain Moscow activi-
ties. . .The book is one of the
most interesting and valuable
studies not only of Jordan but
of Middle East problems. . .It
touches, of course, on Arab-Israel
relations. . .
Looking
Toward
Israel
Sy Ruth Brodsky
Dear Sir,
I want to thank you for all the time and assistance you gave
me in interpreting the beautiful 1959 Purim Ball .Ybur generousity
helped make it the success it was.
It has always been a pleasure “working” with the Texas Jewish
Post and reading its many articles of interest.
Many thanks again for your kind cooperation and excellent cover-
age.
Elaine Stahl
Dear Sir, .
I’m not much of a gardener myself, but I’ve had gardening friends
tell me they get a real kick out of happening across a plant blofom-
ing in some spot where they’ve forgotten about having ever planted
any seed. . , , . ,.
With this in mind, I hope yOu’ll find some special pleasure m dis-
covering that seeds you planted several months ago are just about
ready to begin flowering.
On April 1st, to be exact, those Christmas Seal contributions you
helped raise last winter are going into action. They’ll begin the
job of paying for the countywide tuberculosis wOrk carried on by
the Dallas TB Association during its new fiscal year - April 1, 1959
to March 31, 1960.
Please let me take this occasion to thank you again, on behalf of
the Directors of the TB Association and in behalf of the whole
community, for the very considerable share you and The Texas
Jewish Post had in this effort.
G. Gordon Beck
President
DALLAS TUBERCULOSIS ASSOCIATION
Dear Sir,
As a Veteran of the Hagannah and as an ex-serviceman of the
Israel War of Independence in the besieged and beleagured Jeru-
salem in the year 1948 in the rank of lieutanant (riow in reserve)
and having the highest esteem and admiration and being possessed
with a deep feeling of gratitude for the gracious American Jewry
for its colorful and creative role in establishing and since then
bolstering Israel in every arena. I would like to correspond (in
English, Hebrew or Yiddish) with any of the readers of your paper
in a view to foster !and promote friendship between us as indivi-
duals.
I am a permanant resident of Jerusalem, 45 years old married
and have t\*o boys of 16 and 14 years respectively.
I will therefore genuinely appreciate if you could kindly use your
good offices and bring - through the medium of your paper - the
contents of your respectful readers in order to materialize my
agreeable intention.
Thanking y*ou in advance and with the warmest greetings and
blessings from Jerusalem, I am,
Yours very truly
Noah Ben-Horim
Shikun Rasco 20, P. 0. B. 782
Jerusalem, Israel
Dear Sir,
Many, many thanks for giving the 75th Anniversary Celebration
(of Congregation Shearith Israel such wonderful publicity.
Mrs. Philip Vogel
Dallas
Dear Sir,
I wish to offer my heartiest congratulations to ytou on the occa-
sion of your election as Secretary of the American Jewish Press
Assbciation.
The high standards and the fine reportage of the Anglo-Jewish
Press has provided us with a well-informed Jewish community.
I know fof the tremendous responsibility which your post entails,
and I wish you every health, happiness and success in these endea-
On a recent evening in Dallas,
Harry Golden, rotund little Jewish
writer, humorist, philosopher and
social observer, held an audience
of 1200 enthralled with one of the
most amusing lectures this com-
munity has heard. His humorous
treatment of the most serious sub-
jects is illustrated by his reference
to Pioneer Women’s Child Rescue
Dinner (the occasion for his dom-
ing here.) “I think the Jews in-
vented ‘no eatin’, no meetin’, but
our ‘food culture’ is nothing to be
ashamed 'of because for hundreds
of years, for Jews, food was sy-
nonymous with Survival.”
To exemplify some of the po-
sitive things in American Jewish
life he recalled that 50 years ago
his Orthodox mother complained
that she was witnessing the end
of Jewish life in America,., but
“Wouldn’t she be surprissed to see
us now. We not only have choco-
late matzos, but Elizabeth Taylor
and Marilyn Monroe as well.”
Yes, Harry Golden is impressed
with what can happen “Only in
America.” Where else could such
as he finish a speech at a Catholic
school to the accompaniment of
the nuns marching down the aisle
with a big crucifix? Whejre else
receive over a thousand letters
a month from every other national
group (particularly the Swedish)
telling him that the anecdotes in
his book were about their mo-
ther?
Again and again he referred to
what the immigrant Jewish woman
at the beginning of this century
vors on behalf of Israel and the Jewish people.
If I can be of any service whatsoever, please do not hesitate tt>
call upon me.
My kindest personal regards.
Sincerely yours,
Dr. Sidney Marks
Executive Director
ZIONIST ORGANIZATION OR AMERICA
Dear Sir:
In her March 19 column, Ruth Brodsky blithely sidestepped the
clear meaning of a statement on the dynamiting of synagogues
by Clarence L. ’Coleman Jr., president of the American douncil
for J(udaism. Also evaded, is the apparent growth of this sentiment
among religious leaders, laymen and organized gAmps, except
for the few Jewish* secular Organizations which seek to exploit this
manifestation of hoodlumism for their own financial and membership
gains.
Mr. Coleman’s reference to the bombing <of synagogues was a
criticism of those Jewish organizations which labor for funds in
the South, and that Jews can ^obtain “protection” against bombings
and other ravages, only by organizing and acting as organized Jews.
The fundamental principles of the Council, cited by Mrs. Brodsky,
are wholly in harmony with Mr. Cibleman’s appeal to American Jews,
that they refrain from entering as Jews, as self-separated, organized
Jews, in any issues which are the, concern of all Americans. Mr.
Coleman acknowledged the right of American Jews to express their
donvictions freely on any American issue, as individual Americans,
and through non-sectarian organizations which exist to express all
sides of the issues which confront the total American community.
Jews “can be just as free as everybody else - and still be Jews”,
if in acquiring from Judaism and its institutions the inspiration for
acting courageously as individual citizens, they restrain their sin-
gularity as a religious fellowship from revealing itself in this form
in llyon-religious matters. The serious racial question in the South
must be resolved by all Americans, of all faiths, without withdrawal
as political partisans into religious blocs.
Mr. Coleman did not urge Jewish religious leaders to maintain
silence, while approving the right of non-Jewish religious leaders
to protest. Mr. Coleman made no mention at all of religious leaders
of any faith.
If bigots and anti-semites attempt to link Jews with the desegrega-
tion issue, it is poor strategy for Jews t'o dignify such efforts by
concerted resistance, as Jews, to that specific element. The organized
anti-semites and their followers are in great and increasing disrepute.
They are vocal and they distribute tons of literature; but they are
ineffectual* rapidly diminishing, and are held in great disdain by
an almost unanimous whole of the American community.
Sincerely,
Ronald H. Marks
Chairman - Dallas-Fort Worth Chapter
AMERICAN COUNCIL for JUDAISM
did for present-day America. He
recalled Rose Schneiderman, Yid-
dish-speaking survivor of the fa-
mous Triangle Fire in New York,
who instead of going back to
the sweat-shops after her recovery,
spent the rest of her life agitating
against the abuses of the sweat-
shops, such as child labor and the
so-called “home work” or “bun-
dles” so familiar to the worker
of day if his family was to sur-
vive. To this woman, and to orga-
nizations which, like Pioneer Wo-
men, subsequently devbted them-
selves to the welfare of the la-
borers in this country and Israel,
he paid fond tribute as those who
did much of the spade-work that
now enables the average mill wor-
ker here to drive to work in a
new car, own a washing machine,
and send his wife to thei beafuty
parlor once a week.
Such women conscientiously at-
tended lower East Side lectures;
they went to English classes (at
6:00 A.M.!) before going to work;
they participated in a sort of
Jewish “Marshall Plan” wherin
every house had a blue and white
“pushke” from which every Friday
an fold lady came around to col-
lect the pennies, “and every Fri-
day she drank 90 glassess of tea.”
Turning to the problem of inte^
gration, Mr. Golden showed deep
understanding of Southern resent-
ment. He drew a parallel between
the South which, because it had
no immigration from Eastern
Europe, was a homogenous society
in which both private and social
life overlapped its public institu-
tions, and that of the lower East
Side where the Jewish immigrant,
equally homogenous in his environ-
ment, resented the intrusion of a
strange group when Italian child-
ren first entered the neighborhood
schools. He too had to be reminded
that “no man is an intruder in a
public institution.” Thus Mr. Gol-
den concluded: “It is nonsense to
ask the Jew to become a crusader
for the Negro. It must come fikrn
the white protestant. But for some
(of us) to actually help White
Citizens Councils—this is degrad-
ing and evil.”
Mr. Golden concluded with a
glowing tribute to Israel as the
one country which welcomed re-
fugees by asking for the stretchcer
cases first; the healthy could get
themselves there later. “Israel is
a tremendous story 'of the human
spirit, a great ethic of the Jewish
people, putting the blind and aged
j at the head of the table. This is
what Israel has done.”
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Wisch, J. A. Texas Jewish Post (Fort Worth, Tex.), Vol. 13, No. 25, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 18, 1959, newspaper, June 18, 1959; Fort Worth, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth754347/m1/4/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; .