Jewish Life August 1957

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luly-August, 1957

Av, 5717

Vol. XXIV, No. 6

• S aul B ernstein , Editor M. M orton R ubenstein D r. E ric O ffenbacher R euben E. Gross,- j R abbi J. S harfman L ibby K laperman

Editorial Associates

THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS........ THE C H A N G IN G C U R R E N T ........... M ESSAGE OF A N ILLUSTRIOUS VISITOR .....................................

Assistant Editor Inside Illustrations by N orman N odel

JEW ISH LIFE is published bi-monthly. Subscription two years $3.00, three years $4.00, four years $5.00. All rights reserved Editorial and Publication Office: 305 Broadway New York 7, N. Y. BEekman 3-2220 Published by U nion of O rthodox J ew ish Congregations of A merica M oses I. F euerstein

President

Dr. Samson R. Weiss, Exec­ utive Vice President.

3 7 8

A RT IC LE S M O S C O W REVISITED .................... 9 Gottfried Neuburger M IZZUG GALUYOTH— THE M A K IN G OF A N A T IO N ...................... 14 I. Halevy-Levin HASHKOFAH: THE CONCEPT OF K E D U S H A H ........ ....................... 21 Samson R. Weiss L'CHAYIM I .................................. 23 Gershon Kranzler RELIGIOUS STATE EDUCATION IN ISRAEL ....................................... 27 J. Goldschmidt THE QUARRELING FAMILIES OF CAVAILLON ................................ 31 David S. Shapiro RELIGION A N D STATE— A NEW LOOK 34 Reuben E. Gross LO N D O N 'S EAST END LIVES A G A IN . . 39 Joseph Yahalom THE FIFTH CO M M O N W EALT H ........ 45 Cecil Roth

M. J udah M etchik

Rabbi H. S. Goldstein, Williafn Weiss, Samuel Nirenstein, William B. Herlands, Max J. Etra, Honorary Pres­ idents; B en j am in K o e n ig sberg, Nathan K. Gross, Samuel L. Brennglass, S. David Leibowitt, Vice Présidents; Edward A. Teplow, Treasurer ; Reuben E. Gross, Secretary.

E D IT O R IA LS

BOOK REVIEW S GREAT IDEAS A N D STRANGE CO N CLU SIO N S ........................... Emanuel Feldman

53

FEATURES A M O N G OUR CONTRIBUTORS........

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©KASHRUTH DIREC T O RY............... 61


AmOSUf,

OuSlCoMitehuioSld*

GOTTFRIED NEUBURGER has visited the Soviet Union on several occasions on busi­ ness missions. After his April) 1956 trip Mr. Neuburger reported to Jew ish L ife readers ("My Visit to Moscow/' Av, 5716) on the projected plans for a new Moscow Yeshivah. Having just returned from his most recent visit, Mr. Neuburger offers a first-hand account of the development of the Yeshivah as well as a report on the status of Polish repa­ triates. A graduate of Columbia University, his articles have appeared in several AngloJewish periodicals. CECIL ROTH is a noted Jewish historian and the author of many outstanding works including "The Jews of Venice," "A History of the Marranos," and "A Short History of the Jewish People." He is a frequent contributor to J ewish L ife. GERSHON KRANZLER is the principal of the Chofetz Chaim Talmudical Academy of Baltimore, Maryland. The author of several Jewish textbooks, his articles, short stories and poems have been featured in numerous periodicals. REUBEN E. GROSS is Secretary of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America and Chairman of its Armed Forces Commission. JOSEPH YAHALOM is the pen name of a noted English journalist.^ His previous con­ tributions to J ewish L ife include "Paradox of British Jewry," (Adar, 5716) and "The Chelmer Naronim,," (Adar, 5717). RABBI DAVID S. SHAPIRO is the spiritual leader of Congregation Anshe Sfard of Milwaukee, Wisconsin and the founder of the Milwaukee Hebrew Academy. His cuticles on cases from the responsa literature appear in J ewish L ife from time to time. RABBI EMANUEL FELDMAN is the spiritual leader of Congregation Beth Jacob in Atlanta, Georgia. He received Semichah from the Ner Israel Rabbinical College of Balti­ more, Md. and B.S. and M.A. degrees from Johns Hopkins University. DR. JOSEPH GOLDSCHMIDT is the director of the Department of Religious Education of Israel's Ministry of Education and Culture.

■ ------------------- PHOTO CREDITS--------------------. Cover (Yemenite Jews in Israel participate in traditional folk dance. Cultural diversity of the Jewish Stated polyglot population is salient point in I. Halevy-Levin's article on Page 14), W ide World; 4 11, Sovfoto; 16, 18, 19, Sonnenfeld. Page 40, Emanuel, courtesy of David Moed; 42, 43, British In­ formation Service.

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JEWISH LIFE


ED IT O R IA L S

THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS LEGAL decision which bears promise of historic import to religious Jewry has recently been issued by a New Orleans court. The case devolved upon the question whether a synagogue may, on the strength of a vote of its members, introduce departures from the orthodox practice to which it is committed and whether the religious and property rights of the congregation in its historic capacity, and of those members opposed to the departure, are thereby infringed. In this case, suit had been brought by members of Congregation Chevra Thilim, an orthodox synagogue in New Orleans, to enjoin the officers of the congregation from instituting a change from separate to mixed seating of the sexes at religious services. Throughout its 70-year old history, separate seating, in accordance with Jewish practice, had been the rule. The change had been made without reference to recognized authorities in Jewish law and by resort to vote of the congregations membership. The proponents of the change contended that such procedure was entirely in order, and that the change to mixed seating was conformable with orthodox Judaism. Those demanding retention of the Jewish form of seating charged that its abandonment had constituted a violation of the sanctity and historic character of the synagogue, of the orthodox Jewish Violation religion which it professes, and of its charter, which stipulates that of Charter Chevra Thilim shall function in faithful accordance with the and Faith tenets and ritual of orthodox Judaism. Accordingly, they- main­ tained, the congregation as such, and those of its members who adhered to its principles, were deprived of the facilities for religious worship prescribed by the charter. The civil rights of donors whose gifts had been made and accepted conditional upon maintenance of strict orthodox observance had been breached. They further held to be invalid the proposition that questions of Jewish law and practice may be determined by vote of the laity. The court, after hearing exhaustive evidence and testimony from witnesses and experts of both sides, ruled unequivocally in favor of the plaintiffs on all points, the injunction they requested being granted.

TT IS to be noted that Conservative clergymen testifying in behalf of the proponents of mixed seating contended that Conservatism is a form of orthodox Judaism. Weighing the evidence offered, the judge unqualifiedly rejected this contention, for it was demonstrated beyond all question that Conservatism, by its own definitions, differs profoundly in theology from the orthodox Jewish August, 1957

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religion. Thus the premise that practices of Conservatism may be held forth as an acceptable criterion for orthodox Jewish synagogues was exposed as untenable. This was underlined by the admission of the same representatives of Conservatism that Jewish law does in fact require separate seating. Important as is the issue of "mixed seating,” the significance of this case lies in the fact that it comes to grips with problems of yet greater consequence, affecting non-Jewish as well as Jewish religious circles. The problems arise from attempts by dissident elements to impose upon established congregations departures from historic norms integral to their religion. The dissidents, desiring to avoid the onus of schismatism or heterodoxy and the consequent obligation to sever from the group, raise the claim that their doctrines are valid interpretations of those professed by the congregation. They proceed to by-pass the traditionally-recognized sources of ecclesiastical authority, and proclaiming that democracy vests power of decision in the membership at large, seek to attain their ends through a majority vote of the congregation’s members. Congregations so affected frequently face an impasse, with the mem­ bership divided and—since one party ignores or challenges the jurisdiction of ecclestiastical authorities—with no means of adjudicating the dispute within religious bounds. Many scores of Jewish congregations have been turned into battlegrounds as a result of such infiltrations. In most cases, Boruch Hashem, the memberships have spurned as gross sophistries the new tenets offered them, but in others the deviationists have succeeded in turning synagogues from the path of true Judaism. In the past, those in the subverted congregations who rose to the defense of their faith have been all too apt heretofore to deem themselves with­ out further recourse in the struggle. The New Orleans case, like a similar development in Mount Clemens, Mich., demonstrates that this assumption no longer prevails. ■JHE NEW ORLEANS decision makes history by resolving in definitive legal terms a complex of basic questions. Does the membership of a congregation have the right to effect, by vote of a momentary majority, a change in religious practice not conformable with the origin, historic character and . charter of the congregation? The court ruled, in this case, that the d u membership does not have such power. Is a congregation subject P °b in its religious practice to the laws and traditions of the religion K esoivea 0j wbich [t -ls begotten and to which it is legally and morally committed? It is, in the light of this decision. Is a congregation simply the membership as of any given time, or is it rather a corporate entity whose franchise is its original religious principles? A congregation is such an entity and is so enfranchised, in the view of this court. And finally, may ques­ tions as to the correct interpretation of the laws, tenets, rites, and practices of a religious denomination be determined by vote of lay members of a congre­ gation, or are they subject to the determination of the recognized organs of ecclesiastical authority of the denomination? The latter, and not the former, are competent to pass on such questions, the court held. 4

JEWISH LIFE


It is unfortunate that religious disputes arising within the Jewish community should be aired in the secular courts. Such a recourse is not only repugnant to Jewish sensibilities — it is contrary to the premise that questions of Jewish law and practice (Halochah) are to be adjudicated solely by Halochic authorities. Where, however, a party to such a dispute spurns the jurisdiction of Halochic authority, and where a question of public, as well as of Jewish, law is entailed, resort to the legal organs of the general community becomes the sole alternative and it is a necessity to exercise it. However Necessary regrettable is the need to resort to this measure, it is infinitely Recourse more undesirable to permit, by default of such action, the seducing of synagogues. The Jewish community, and the American reli­ gious community at large, is lastingly indebted to the Katz family in New Orleans and to Mr. Baruch Litvin in Mount Clemens, who, with indomitable purpose, have steadfastly pioneered the necessary course in their respective communities. May their example serve to guide and inspire others faced with a like invasion of the sanctity of their synagogues. It is greatly to the credit of those who formulated the presentation of the case that they addressed themselves to the basic issues, and did so with exacting care. The attorney for the plaintiff, Mr. David Gertler, earned high distinction for the manner in which he prepared and conducted this case. Credit is due also to a committee of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of Americaand the Rabbinical Council of America, which, under the chairmanship of Samuel L. Brennglass, gave important aid and guidance. Tribute is likewise due to the group of eminent leaders who presented, to conclusive effect, expert testi­ mony. The group included Rabbi Eliezer Silver, chairman of the presidium of the Union of Orthodox Rabbis of the United States and Canada, Rabbis Solomon J. Sharfman and David B. Hollander, respectively president and past president of the Rabbinical Council of America and Dr. Samson R. Weiss, executive vicepresident of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America. ■

PLACING the “mixed pews” question in broad legal context, the New Orleans case helps to bring this question into a sound moral and religious perspective also. The attestation given in the case that mixed seating violates Jewish law served to elucidate the point that the violation is at once the product and the instrument of influences foreign to the Jewish religion. Serious as is the violation itself in Halochic terms, the apprehension with which it is regarded derives from the role which “mixed pews” serves as the gateway to the adultera­ tion of Judaism. Mechitzah ( the separation between the men’s and the women’s seating sections required by Jewish law) is neither more nor less important than any other mitzvah; Shabboth, Kashruth, Tzedokah, Taharath Hamishpochah — these and every other of the 613 precepts of our faith are equally funda­ mental. All of them, in the final analysis, are endangered by anti-Torah influ­ ences. But the tactic of anti-Torah has focused upon Mechitzah as a spearhead of insidious attack upon the entire concept of Torah and Mitzvah, for the logical reason that the psychology of our time lends itself to this tactic. August, 1957

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The canard that separate seating at religious services marks a position of segregated inferiority for women, clashing with modem standards, Th p i was effectively demolished at the New Orleans trial. The concept n 6 Keal of “inferiority” of one sex to another is utterly foreign to Judaism, a n 9 er which assigns to men and to women some Mitzvoth equally applicable to both as well as others, of equal weight, which apply to each sex respectively. Separate seating is well known to be an institution, characteristic to Judaism, enjoined with the specific purpose of dignifying and honoring womanhood, as well as to foster undistracted concentration upon the Divine at public worship. Mixed seating on its part, far from being a "modern” development, has char­ acterized church practice throughout the centuries of Christian history. The attempt to introduce mixed seating into Jewish worship unquestionably is rooted in the desire, conscious or unconscious, to subordinate Jewish standards to those of the gentile world. Therein, of course, lies its danger to Jewry, and it is in this light that the battle for preservation of Jewish seating is revealed as a key phase of the battle for the total Jewish heritage. JtfO T THE LEAST important aspect of the New Orleans victory is its con­ tribution to the timeless cause of religious freedom. It is grimly ironic that Jews, who among all peoples and faiths have most cause to cherish and uphold religious freedom, should be guilty of attempts to rob their own brethren of this precious right. It is no less ironic that such attempts are usually themselves cloaked in the cry of religious freedom. American society affords any and every religious element the right and oppor­ tunity to establish and maintain its own form of worship. Equal right is afforded to abstain from forms of worship from which one dissents. Those Jews who — however tragically from the traditional Jewish viewD ^r° * f° r p o in t-b e c o m e attached to religious beliefs incompatible with R eligious Judaism, are free to abstain from the orthodox synaFreedom g0gue ancj to establish, if they wish, their own congregations. It is an unconscionable imposition upon the rights and religious freedom of others for such dissidents to seek rather to impose their beliefs upon orthodox congregations. It is a moral crime against the synagogues themselves, which were instituted and maintained solely for the purposes of orthodox Judaism. It is an outrage against the freedom of conscience of their members, who are told, in effect: you will perforce observe such religious practice as is dictated, not by your conscience and belief, not by the history of your congre­ gation, not by Torah law, but solely by the votes of the majority of members! An unhappy irony can be seen, too, in the demands laid upon those who resist the violation of their synagogues that they yield in the interest of "unity.” The call for unity is a mockery, it is a snare and a delusion, when it is premised upon the abandonment of Torah principle in a Torah synagogue. Evenuwere but a solitary member of the congregation to defend the historical religions char6

JEWISH LIFE


acter of the synagogue, and the entire remaining membership be ranged against him, there can be no unity at the cost of suppression of conscience. The opposite case, be it noted, does not hold true. The tenets of non-orthodox religious groups do not prohibit their adherents from worship in an orthodox synagogue. But the tenets of orthodox, Judaism do prohibit worshipping in a non-orthodox house of worship. Thus all Jews of whatever religious belief may in good conscience worship in an orthodox synagogue, just as all Jews, including those who disbelieve in Shemirath Kashruth and Shemirath Shabbath, may eat Kosher food and may observe the Sabbath. The issue of unity for an orthodox Jewish congregation can be validly based only upon maintenance of its or­ thodoxy. J^ONG OVERDUE is decisive action to put an end to the despoiling of or­ thodox synagogues. Havoc immeasurable has been wrought by the blas­ phemous inversion of the principle of religious freedom as a means whereby non-orthodox Jews destroy the religious freedom The of orthodox Jews. Incalculable harm has been done by the rav­ Turning aging, under cloak of unity, of the only focus of real unity in Point Jewish life. B’ezer Hashem, Torah-loyal Jews far and wide are now rallying spontaneously to defend their heritage against this evil menace. The latter-day battle of New Orleans marks a turning-point in American Jewish history.

THE CHANGING CURRENT It is significant that a showdown on the legality of substituting mixed seating for the Jewish form of synagogue seating should occur at a time when many signs point to a decline of deviationist influence and an upsurge of loyalty to Jewish sanctities. An example is found in a recent issue of J e w i s h A c t i o n , news organ of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, which gave data on synagogues which have re-erected, or have newly erected, the mechitzah. W ithin the past year alone, the report showed, fourteen congrega­ tions have thus restored the sanctity of their synagogues. In the preceding years, numerous other congregations have taken like action and it can be confidently anticipated that additional congregations will follow suit in the period to come. Just as the abandonment of separate seating is a key symptom of a de-Judaizing process, its restoration and unyielding defense manifest the resurgent strength of positive Jewish belief. Despite the ravages of the past, the solid core of synagogue life has steadfastly adhered to the Torah faith. Today, well over 3,000 synagogues—the great ma­ jority of all American Jewish congregations—are orthodox. Rooted in the Ameri­ can scene and increasingly well geared to serve an American constituency, they offer the basic potential for American Jewish life. In the months and years to come, with G-d’s help, this great force will attract to itself increasing numbers of other congregations which previously had strayed from Torah standards. This is the road to our American Jewish future. August, 1957

7


MESSAGE OF AN ILLUSTRIOUS VISITOR ^ H E RECENT visit to the United States of Haham Dr. Solomon Gaon, ecclesiastical head of Sephardic Jewry in Britain and the British -Commonweath, following that last year of Britain’s Chief Rabbi, Dr. Israel Brodie, further cements relationships between the communities of English-speaking Jews throughout the world. These communities comprise today the majority of world Jewry and offer the principle potential for Jewish development outside of Eretz Yisroel. The importance of closer inter-communal relationships can hardly be over-estimated. Dr. Gaon’s message to American Jewry can be summarized in a statement made at a reception given in his honor by the Rabbinical Council of America and the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America. "Jewish per­ petuity,” said the Sephardic leader, "depends upon the furtherance or traditional religious convictions.” That phrase, voiced by the head of a community with three centuries of experience in an English-speaking milieu, sums up the lessons of our time, and indeed of all Jewish history. American Jews will be well advised to reflect upon it. J ^ S THE spiritual leader of British Sephardim, Haham Gaon is also a link with Sephardic communities in many lands. In this connection too he brought a pungent message. Pointing to the development of greater unity between Ashkenazim and Sephardim, Dr. Gaon noted that "the differences in customs have not allowed us the dubious luxury of exclusive individualism.” The pertinence of this message is emphasized by the circumstances disclosed by Dr. Gaon’s tour of several Latin American countries. In these lands, separate communities of Ashkenazic and Sephardic Jews exist side by side, \ often with a most limited relationship with each other. AshK- , kenazim and Sephardim alike are in many cases in critical need D* ^ sP*r*tual and guidance. Though largely free, Boruch isc ose Hashem, from economic adversity, these communities of the Western hemisphere suffer gravely from the lack of rabbis, teachers, mohelim and other k’ley kodesh. W ith religious life but sketchily organized in some communities, altogether unorganized in others, religious morale and observance are at a menacing low among both Sephardim and Ashkenazim in South and Central America. Dr. Gaon’s survey brings home to us a situation calling for the urgent attention of the religious forces of American Jewry. Our moral responsibilities extend to our brethren in Latin America no less than to those in the rest of the world. The duty must no longer be neglected.

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JEWISH LIFE


Moscow Revisited By GOTTFRIED NEUBURGER

A n Account of a Recent Glimpse of Jewish Lite in Soviet Russia and Poland lllN llilllllllllllllllllllliH

Q U R large black limousine was roll­ ing along on the road to Lenin­ grad. It was a pleasant Sunday after­ noon, rather cool for the end of June, and there was little traffic. My guide and interpreter had proposed a visit to a museum but I wanted to see some of the rural life and have a chance to chat with some peasants. ’'One day I hope to be able to come to America for a few weeks,” said the guide, "because we all know that yours is the most industrialized and the rich­ est country in the world.” "That is not the reason why you should come,” I told her. "You should pay us a visit because ours is a free country, freer than any other.” She did not agree. She started to say "I don’t know about that . . .” when suddenly a militiaman waved us to the side of the road. He asked the uniformed driver and the guide to step out of the car and a lively discussion ensued. After a few minutes the girl came back to me, visibly embarrassed, and tried to tell me that a car had been stolen in the neighborhood and that this was a routine check-up. "Well, this is an official Intourist car and the driver’s papers are surely in order, why can’t we go on then?” I asked. There were some more argu­ ments and then I was told that the August, 1957

inspection was made for the purpose of finding drunken drivers. "They have been arguing now for five minutes, surely it must be clear by now that our chauffeur is perfectly sober.” It was with the greatest reluctance that the girl finally had to admit that we could not go further because I was a foreigner and had no special permit to travel on this road. W e had hardly left Moscow and were just six miles from the city limits, near the village of Nagornoye, The action of the militiaman had been a remarkable coincidence and in a way I was grateful to him for having proven my point so promptly. I de­ cided to carry the experiment a little further. W e turned around and drove back. After a little while we passed the river port from which small steamers left frequently for all parts of the country, some trips taking as long as eight or nine days. "Let’s take a boat to a nearby vil­ lage,” I proposed, and the girl eagerly accepted because she was most anxious to make up for the unpleasant incident. I sat down on the forward deck and the guide went to buy our tickets for the boatride. It was time for the boat to leave and the gangplank had been pulled in, but the interpreter had not come back. I went to look for her and 9


found her on the dockside in the midst As we walked back towards our car, of a circle composed of the captain, I said "You remember our discussion the ticket agent, a steamship line of­ about freedom? Many centuries ago ficial, and another militiaman. She there lived a great Bible commentator was in tears by now. W e had, of in the Rhineland. He defined freedom course, talked in English and she had as the right to be your own master and been told that no ticket could be sold to come and go as you please. He Was to a foreigner without advance notice. a Jew.” Changes in Russian Policy J T IS not possible now to write the real story about Russia, and it will be a long time before that can be done. Yet what appears on the surface and can be reported is interesting enough. Some significant changes have already taken place and many more are to come in the near future. In the sphere of religion the expected drive to ease the situation is in full swing. One can now see a tall bearded priest of the Orthodox Russian Church stroll through Red Square in his clerical garb and, while those former church buildings converted into warehouses or offices are in a rather neglected state, the places of worship in actual use are decorated in the fanciest colors and the onion-shaped spires of the chapels and churches dot the skyline in a new, brightly shining coat of gold. At serv­ ices the deacon collects donations from the faithful, moving slowly in his heav­ ily brocaded vestments among the women, who constitute more than 90% of the congregants. The Great Synagogue, l’haydil, also has a brand new coat of paint. But something much more important has been added. The former Sukkah in the courtyard now houses the new Yeshivath Kol Yaakov.* And a new little building, half brick and half * See "A Remnant Has Survived,” Jewish

Life, Nisan, 57X7.

10

wood, has been erected where the kitchen and dining room are located. For anyone who has visited Moscow before, it is a most wonderful surprise to see the bachmim learn during all hours of the day; to hear them sing zemiroth on Friday evening or during Seudah Shelishith is an unforgettable experience. The establishment of the yeshivah and the printing of the "Siddur Hasholom” are the crowning achievements of the late Rabbi Solo­ mon Schliffer. Both were accomplished shortly before his death. The rabbi who had been selected to lead the yeshivah, Rabbi Leib Levin from Dnepropretovsky, has now suc­ ceeded Rabbi Schliffer as chief rabbi of Moscow but remains also as head of the school, which is now seven months old. He has a most impressive staff of instructors to assist him in this task. Rav Shimon Trebnik, a talmid of the Chofetz Chayim during World W ar I when the latter lived in Snovsk in W hite Russia, is well known to American rabbinical leaders. He com­ bines deep wisdom and learning with a keen sense of humor that makes it easy to win the hearts of younger people. Equally learned is Rav Chaim Katz from Politzk, formerly rabbi in Mistislev in W hite Russia. A special instructor in the subjects of Milah and Schechitah is the young but inspired JEWISH LIFE


Bearing a fresh coat of paint and an abundance of glittering lights, the Great Synagogue in Moscow is shown here during Weekday Shacharith services. The late Chief Rabbi Solomon Schliffer is seated next to the Aron Hakodesh. New Yeshivah adjoins shook

Yaakov Kalmanson, like the Chief Rabbi formerly in Dnepropretovsky. J5^ COMPLETE schedule is posted in the Yeshivah listing the exact hours and subjects for each student. The talmidim are divided into three groups of three, five and nine, respec­ tively. Others learn individually. The hours of instruction are from 10-2 and from 3-7. At the moment the yeshivah has a total of nineteen students, who come from all parts of the Soviet Union. The youngest of them are nine­ teen years old. (A Christian monastery training school, l’havdil, in the Soviet Union, is accepting pupils from the age of 12 but, generally speaking, school instruction in religious subjects is not allowed below the age of 18.) August, 1957

When I talked to the students about their home town, I found that statistics were not too precise. I had to raise my eyebrows, for instance, when one student informed me that there were *'300 Baale Battim and 10,000 Jews/* After I called his attention to the fact that his figures would require the aver­ age Jewish family to consist of 30 members, he retracted and said, 'well, maybe there are only 1,000 Jews.” I was somewhat handicapped because the eight young men from "Gruzie” (Georgia) did not understand Yid­ dish. There was Zodek Dorfman from Tashkent in Uzbekistan (Central Asia) who told me that there were four synagogues there. Zodek is only nine­ teen but he related proudly that he had been the chess champion of Tash-

n


kent. Also from Uzbekistan, from the very ancient Jewish community of Bokharia, comes Yakov Chaimov, 20 years old. Three students arrived from the Ukrainian cities of Charkov and Lutzk, and Riga (Latvia) is repre­ sented by two students. Only four stu­ dents are Muscovites. Perhaps the most colorful group are the "Gruzim.” Several of them sport the moustache that is the landmark of the true Georgian. Shalom and Yitzchak come from Kutais where, they reported, are 8,000 Jewish families. (Yitzchak is a language expert; the only English word that he knows is "onion.”) Aron’s home is Poti (300 Jewish families), and I really was de­ lighted at the way he learned a "Blatt Gemoro”; there is Yitzchak from Panza and Joseph from Achaltyche. I would have liked to visit Gavriel’s home town of Kulashi in the mountains of the Caucasus because he told me that they

had 10,000 Jews there and only three non-Jewish families. The others are from Georgia’s capital, Tiflisf another Yitzchak, another Joseph and another Gavriel. The students include bachelors and married men. All stages of learning are represented. Most of them are quite advanced and several undoubt­ edly are outstanding Talmidey Chachomim. On the other hand, one of the boys told me that circumstances had not permitted him to learn pre­ viously and so he started to learn Aleph-Beth three months ago. Regard­ less of the motivation that led to the granting of permission to open Mos­ cow’s Kol Yaakov Yeshivah, it is a welcome duty to report that the stand­ ard of learning and practice there is on a high level and one can only hope that this small beginning will lead to larger developments in the future.

Polish Repatriates JtfO WHERE does one feel the Jew* * ish tragedy of our times more than in the city of Warsaw. Where a mil­ lion Jews once formed the greatest Jewish Kehillah in Europe, there is now not even a minyon on Friday evening. In a few years from now the new apartment buildings will have covered the ground where the Ghetto once stood but today one can still see the endless blocks of houses that were razed to the ground with such German thoroughness that only the cellers re­ mained where the bodies still are bur­ ied, covered by rubble and the grass that has mercifully sprouted to hide the scars in the shattered earth. There on a low wall hangs the stone tablet, stat­ ing in Hebrew, Yiddish and Polish that it marks the spot from which the 12

Nazi murderers took countless multi­ tudes of Jews to the extermination camps. There, between the new build­ ings, stands the monument, bearing the Hebrew inscription: "The Jewish peo­ ple: to its fighters and to its martyrs.” One synagogue, used by the Ger­ mans as a storehouse, remains standing. It is large and in the center of the city but, obscured by other buildings, not visible from the street. It is used on Sabbath mornings and on holidays. On one side there is a Mechitzah demar­ cating the women’s section; the former women’s gallery is walled in from the inside and has been transformed into apartments. Poland is a poor country and the economic standard of the Jew­ ish community is far lower than that of the non-Jewish. JEWISH LIFE


Warsaw’s rabbi is a wonderful old man, formerly Rav in Byalistok. Rav Bercovitz has met with personal trag­ edies that stand out even in this land of the dead, and yet he is of a cheerful hospitality that defies description. And his small Kehillah serves a good meal daily to the Jewish repatriates from Russia for the equivalent of ten or twenty cents. The problem of these repatriates is a most urgent one and American Jewry must take immediate steps to help them. Apparently some American Jews are aware of the situa­ tion; during my stay of only four days in Warsaw I met, individually, three rabbis from New York who — each in his own way — brought comfort and a bitterly needed feeling of broth­ erly interest to our co-religionists there. HEN thousands of Jews were re­ cently permitted to move from Russia to their native Poland, many of them immediately went on to Eretz Yisroel. It is more than understand­ able that they did not wish to settle in the very place where all their friends and families had perished. This in­ direct migration from Russia to the Holy Land, however, aroused the anger of the Arabs. The Russian authorities, anxious not to endanger their relations with the Arabs, therefore prevailed upon the Polish government to stop the repatriates from going on and they were obliged to remain in Poland. W hen the question of settlement within the country arose, the Polish authorities tried to direct the Jews into the largely empty formerly German territories near Poland’s western bor­ der. The Poles themselves have shown a most pronounced reluctance to move

August, 1957

into these areas, which one day might once more become an object of dis­ pute and conflict and a battleground. The Jews have plenty of reason to be even more reluctant. And so today one can find Jewish men, women and chil­ dren living in lonely, barren, wooden barracks, not knowing where to go or when they will leave. Even bits of barbed wire are there to bring back evil memories. It is difficult to obtain exact figures but the total involved probably doe? not exceed 10,000. Many of them re­ ceive fifteen Zloty per day from the Polish government. But even this tiny sum is denied to those whom the Rus­ sians considered as Poles, whereas the Poles look upon them as Russian citi­ zens. And some of these now sell their clothes, their few pitiful belongings, hoping that a solution will come before it is too late. JT

SHOULD be possible for an American Jewish relief organization to obtain permission to send one repre­ sentative to Warsaw to be stationed there for at least six or eight months. The sums needed for actual assistance are small, but the knowledge alone of the presence of such a representative of a Jewish relief organization would give renewed strength and confidence to those that have already experienced so many hardships. When I visited some of the repatriates in the forlorn camp in Bemowo on the outskirts of Warsaw, one or two asked me just out of curiosity how much it costs to fly to the United States. The question had no practical meaning. It was just like asking "how much is a ticket to Paradise?”

13


Mizzug Galuyoth— The Making of a Nation By I. HALEVY-LEVIN Je r u sa l e m :

J T HAS been estimated that 58 per­ the Jews of Turkey and Greece, but cent of Israel’s population are of not those of Morocco or Tunisia, many Ashkenazi descent, 12 percent are of whose forbears came from Spain Sephardim, 7 percent Yemenites and — but who today speak Arabic or 23 percent members of other Eastern French.* More than all other cate­ communities. The d is tin c tio n s are gories the term "Mizrachim” (Eastern somewhat arbitrary and a re ' in need communities) is a catch-all to include of amplification if the full measure all those non-Ashkenazi Jews who for of the problem of mizzug galuyoth— one reason or another are not regarded the fusion of the diverse components as Sephardim. It covers the Jews of of Israel’s Jewry into a single nation Morocco (the Maghreb — the W est) no less than those of Iraq or Persia. —is to be appreciated. The division of Jewry into two Only one of the four categories has main sectors, the Ashkenazim and the a clearly defined identity, the Yemen­ Sephardim, dates back to the military ites, the Jews of the Arabian Peninsula, conquests of Islam in the seventh and who, in the centuries during which eighth centuries. The limits of this they were cut off from the main division remained fluid, while even body of Jewry, developed a person­ within its borders distinctive com­ ality of their own. The heterogenity of the Yishuv is munities, different from each other no less than the Sepharadim from the better reflected in the main languages Ashkenazim, formed. The Israeli sta­ spoken. Besides Hebrew these are tistician uses the term "Ashkenazi” to Yiddish, Ladino, English, several varie­ cover the communities ultimately orig­ ties of mutually unintelligible Arabic, inating in Central and Eastern Europe Spanish, French, German, Polish, Hun­ —the bulk of the Jewries of America garian, some Russian (among the oldand England, no less than those of timers), even Mahrathi. Germany and Poland, who speak, or whose parents spoke, Yiddish. The T H E FRICTION generated by the juxtaposition of so many distinct term "Sephardi” has a narrower con­ notation today than in previous cen­ groups in the confined territory of turies, though it is by no means clearly Israel has given rise to many miscondefined. Largely it is co-terminous not * The designation “Sephardim” i$ also widely with the communal groups tracing applied to those communities whose traditional their ancestry back to the Jews of religious usage is that o f the order of prayers Spain, but rather with those who speak, (Minhag Separad) and ritual observances es­ tablished among the Spanish and Portugese o r w h o se p a r e n ts spoke, Ladino Jews— irrespective of whether such communi­ (Judaeo-Spanish). Thus it includes ties are of Spanish or Portugese origin:—Editor. 14

JEWISH LIFE


ceptions and distortions. One repres­ entative example was a question asked in the Indian Parliament regarding an alleged color-bar from which the darkskinned Beni Israel immigrants from India suffered in Israel. Another is the use of the term "segregation” in rela­ tion to the population pattern created in this country under the enormous pressure of an influx of almost one million newcomers in less than ten years. Closer observation must immediately reveal that, the problem created in Israel is not that of a dominant Eu­ ropean element seeking to maintain its hegemony over a subject people. Here the aspiration is not to keep diverse sections of the population apart, but to bring them closer, to create thè conditions for integration, or rather total fusion to create a new Israeli nation. The analogy is to be found not in South Africa or Algeria

but in the United States of America (in the "white” section of the com­ m unity); a reasonable parallel to the relationship between the Ashkenazi and non-Ashkenazi sections of our people must be sought in that between the Anglo-Dutch leadership stratum and the ethnic immigrants groups in America. In Israel the relations between the various edoth (communal groups) is à direct result of the widely disparate conditions under which Jews lived for many centuries in their world-wide dispersion. They are relations which have caused much misunderstanding, prejudice, and friction but little deli­ berate discrimination. It is one of the tragedies of the situation that the economic and demo­ graphic patterns developed in Israel over the past decade have accentuated these differences and put a solution further out of our reach.

"Immigrants Towns" ■JHE FIRST spate of mass immigra* tion in 1948-50 found the Govern­ ment and the people of Israel totally unprepared; but an easy method of dealing with the influx was close to hand. The Arab exodus that had been one result of the W ar of Liberation had left entire towns and urban quar­ ters uninhabitated. The immediate problem was to provide the hundreds of thousands of newcomers with a roof over their heads. The result was the creation of the "immigrants towns” of Beersheba, Ramlah, Lydda, Jaffa, Beth Shean, Ascalon. Later when a shortage of funds, steadily shrinking reserves of land and the need to avoid congestion in the coastal plain and the big towns stimulated the development of urban settlements, the result again August, 1957

was a series of immigrants towns — Kiryath Shemonah, Demona, Beth Shemesh, O fakim -g which shared one major feature with the older im­ migrants towns — most of their citi­ zens were newcomers to the country; with only a thin crust of vathikim — older - established residents— doctors, teachers, nurses, agricultural experts — many of whom regarded their place of employment as a stepping stone to something better and whenever pos­ sible returned to the nearest city when the day’s work was done. The population of these towns was almost exclusively made up of new immigrants, but these came from a large variety of communal groups. In the settlements the situation was less favorable. After several years of trial n


and error the colonizers were con­ themselves, will remain closed for a vinced that one indispensible pre-con­ long time to come. dition for the success of their work was a maximum degree of homogene­ ■pHE DANGER of the situation — ity among the prospective settlers. Of * and it is a real danger, for the time course this meant new villages settled will come when the newcomers will exclusively by Jews from Yemen or emerge from their present passivity — Morocco, or even from a single district lies in the fact that these communal or hamula (clan) in Yemen or Mo­ distinctions are strongly emphasized by rocco. Only too often where the prin­ social and economic differences. Broad­ ciple was not observed the outcome ly the non-Ashkenazi elements are was the emergence of rival factions, intellectually on a far lower level than violence and in a number of cases, the Europeanized and the more adapt­ desertion of the village. The colonizers able Ashkenazim. Even the new im­ decided to cross their bridges as they migrants among the latter, in the came to them. Their immediate task few years they have been here, have was to settle the newcomers on the learned a trade, or established them­ land. This they did — with remarkable selves in some occupation supporting success taking into account the mag­ a decent standard of living. The Mo­ nitude of their difficulties — but they roccans, the Persians, the Yemenites, dotted the countryside with hundreds even many of the Iraqis (one of the of little closed communities, which in more advanced of these communal view of the propensity among the groups) who have had little formal Eastern Jews to inter-marry among education or training have naturally

Recent olim from Poland seem to be adjusting to their new home in an Israel kibbutz.

16

JEWISH LIFE


gravitated toward the manual and menial occupations — the casual lab­ orers, unskilled building. workers, do­ mestic servants, scavengers, etc. In the villages of course they are developing into industrious, modestly prosperous farmers; but even here the difference between their standard and those ob­ taining in the kibbutzim and moshavim is wide. ^J*HE Jewish Agency and the Govern­ ment of Israel have made persistent and unremitting efforts to train the newcomers in various trades. They have set up scores of Ulpanim where adults can devote themselves entirely to the study of Hebrew. Thousands of scholarships have been made avail­ able for children of immigrants in secondary and technical schools, and even in institutions of higher learning. Many have succeeded in lifting them­ selves out of their rut. Yet the basic layer of less-esteemed' occupations is — and in view of the structure of Israels working population, must re­ m ain— the exclusive preserve of nonAshkenazim and a fertile breedingground of resentment, which is none the less dangerous for being objectively unfounded and irrational. The main field in which this battle for integration is being fought out is, of course, the schools. But here no less than elsewhere the pattern is one of unwilling segregation. Obviously, in the village schools the children all belong to the same communal group The new method of establishing four or five villages around a rural centre comprising among other things a dis­ trict school, mitigates the situation to some slight extent. However, the body of pupils remains made up entirely of new immigrants. August, 1957

It's hard work, but these Moroccan immi­ grants are not at all perturbed.

^7YEN in the big cities the situation is not much better. The education authorities have instituted a system of zoning under which children resident in any district must register with one of the schools in that district. And seeing that even urban quarters very often have a communal group char­ acter, the bulk of the pupils in any schools usually come from one sec­ tion of the population. This state of affairs is reflected in official statistics. In 25 percent of the primary schools the children of older-established resi­ dents (in Israel since before 1948-—• almost an euphemism for Ashkena­ zim ), constituted more than 80 per­ cent of the pupils; in 35.5 percent of the schools the children of new im­ migrants constituted more than 80 percent of the pupils. Thus in only 40 percent of the schools was the composition of the student body at all satisfactory, from this viewpoint. 17


In the secondary schools the situa­ tion is even worse, for secondary edu­ cation, unlike primary education, is not only not free or compulsory, but — in view of Israel's low wage and salary scales— expensive. The scholar­ ships available — most of them spe­ cifically earmarked for children of new immigrants and non-Ashkenazi com­

munities — cover only part of the cost of schooling, but in any case in the large families common among the latter it is inevitable that the older children would have to go to work, at least as soon as they finish primary school, to help in the support of the family.

Role of the Army *J*HE ARMY makes a more effective contribution towards the levelling out process. The comprehensive and compulsory nature of military life facilitates the inculcation of European ideas and manners, of habits of hy­ giene; standards of nutrition and the like. But even the Army is restricted and confined in this sphere. Special efforts are constantly being made to increase the number of officers ema­ nating from the Eastern communities.

A Jewess from Kurdistan.

18

But no better example of the com­ plexity of the situation can be given than of two closely related branches of the military service, both of which require personal courage, p h y sic a l stamina and training of a high order but different standards of education — the airborne troops and the air force. In the former — which, incident­ ally, bore the brunt of Israel’s-Sighting over the past two years—the «propor­ tion of the Eastern communities is high. Among the pilots, however, where the terribly high costs of train­ ing has made selection standards ruth­ less, it is very much lower. Characteristically enough, it i$SJKin the Army, too, that one facet of the religious aspect of the problem has been brought to a head. For obvious reasons the Army cannot permit the fragmentation into small synagogues and minyanim which is a normal fea­ ture of Orthodoxy. In the religious, as in other spheres, the Army insists on authorized norms. A major problem engaging the Army Rabbinate is that of evolving a uniform nussach for all soldiers. A number of solutions have been suggested but none has been given general approval. The suggestion that a neutral form of prayer be com­ piled (the assumption being that a neutral nussach has a better ch&hce of JEWISH LIFE


After serving their two-cmd-a-half-year tour of duty in the Israel Army these Yemenite Jews have settled on a cooperative farm in the Northern INegev.

general acceptance) based upon exist­ ing siddurim has been rejected, as it might deviate from the traditional liturgy. The venerable Rabbi J. L. Maimon has suggested that the Sep­ hardi prayer book — the Nussach Ari — which, he argues, is already accept­ ed by the Chassidic section of the

Ashkenazi community, should be util­ ized. The Army’s Chief Rabbi, Colonel Shlomo Goren, however, favors the Vilna Gaon’s nussach, which, based as it is upon the Kabbalah, has much in common with both the Sephardi and the Yemenite traditions.

Integration 'J IHE PROBLEM is no easy one, for extreme sectionalization of life in the after national defense integration Yishuv the very smallness of the coun­ is by far Israel’s main and most urgent try, which as stated is one cause of task, yet the situation is not without friction, also brings Israelis close toits more hopeful aspects. Despite the gether, in the farms, in the factories, August, 1957

19


in the offices, th e A rm y and th e schools, while the brooding presence of a hostile frontier acts as a powerful catalyst. In two fields, at least, wide and growing uniformity has been achieved. Well over a million Israelis use Hebrew as their first language, while, European dress has already gain­ ed the day over the more bizarre Ori­ ental shifts and pantaloons, which were quite common only some years ago. Even in gastronomic habits, the diver­ sity of which has been a constant source of worry to the food rationers, greater homogeneity is being achieved, though it is in the culinary arts that the Eastern communities are making a notable contribution towards the emer­ gent Israeli way of life. The tacit assumption of integration — among the Europeanized Ashkena­ zim, at least — is the Westernization of the more backward elements of the population. Westernization is the goal of all the awakening peoples of Africa and Asia, and indeed the process in this country does not run counter to Israels aspirations to integrate herself, economically and politically, into the Asian continent. But the Ashkenazim do not seem to conceive the possibility of any contribution being made by the other communities, nor do they take into account the fact that the inten­

sive educational work being performed must extract the latter from their pres­ ent passivity and make them more assertive, and that this, coupled with their numerical superiority (which they will certainly achieve as a re­ sult of their far higher birthrate) must, at some not distant date in the future, convert them into the dominant ele­ ment, giving the tone. T H E GOAL to which all sections of * Israel’s p o p u la tio n m u st —- and among the thinking section, do ■ — strive, is the highest form of integra­ tion, namely intermarriage which will liquidate all communal differences. In this direction there is room for cau­ tious optimism. From 1952 to 1954 in te rm a r ria g e between Ashkenazim and non-Ashkenazim rose from nine to eleven percent of the total number of marriages, and it is slowly but steadily increasing as the new immi­ grants settle down, and develop a sense of belonging, and above all as their rising economic and cultural standards raises them to that broad middle-class, mainly Ashkenazi, stratum, compris­ ing the farmers, the factory workers, the artisans, the teachers, members of liberal professions and the Govern­ ment service, who are the backbone of Israel.

ROLE OF THE WOMAN The chief influence transforming a man's house into his home is his wife. The Shechinah will not forsake his house if his wife keeps it according to the w ays of Israel. Zohar, 1, 50a

20

JEWISH LIFE


HASHKOFAH The Concept of Kedushah By SAMSON R. WEISS And Jacob awoke from his slumber and said: Truly the Almighty is on this place and I knew it not. And he was afraid and said: How awe-inspiring is this place. This is none other but the House of G-d and this is the gate of heaven. (B’reshith, 28:16-17) OF the fundamental tenets of Judaism is the belief in the Divine Omnipresence. As Maimonides eluci­ dates in the Yad Hachazokah, the con­ cept of this omnipresence flows from the Oness, the "Achduth,” of the Almighty. Being One and Infinite, he is necessarily both omnipresent and eternal, above and beyond all limita­ tions of space and time which are His creations. Certainly, our Father Jacob was aware of this omnipresence long before his vision on Mount Moriah. Abraham had recognized it and had taught it to his children and disciples. What, then, was- it that Jacob did not know about the Almighty’s presence on this place and what caused him to dedicate this place for the Temple to be built later on by his progeny As our Sages relate, Jacob went out of his way, on his flight* from Esau, to pray on Moriah where Abraham stood the test of the "Akeydah.” When he was granted the prophetic vision of the ladder placed on this earth and reaching up to heaven, it revealed to him that the Divine Omnipresence does not deny the possibility of setting aside specific places, endowed above others with sanctity, for worship and August, 1957

the communion with the Almighty. He recognized that man by his action can hallow, within the finiteness of earthly space, a meeting ground be­ tween him and his Maker, a "House of G-d,” above which will always be opened the "gates of heaven.” While omnipresent, G-d is closer to man in these sacred confines. While the entire earth is His footstool, there is yet the grace of immediacy bestowed upon these chosen points of juncture. The Hply Temple, and before it the Tabernacle, was the sacred place where this immediacy of the Divine Omni­ presence was experienced by Israel. There, they brought the sacrifices of atonement and purification, of thanks­ giving and gratitude. There, they bowed down before the Almighty and every day anew accepted his dominion. "Kodosh” — sacred — is the term denoting apartness and s e p a ra tio n , loftiness and elevation. Not only places of worship, but also the physical in­ struments set aside for the performance of worship and any other Mitzvah are "kodosh.” The Sefer Torah, the Tefillin, the Tallith, the Siddur and even the bookcase containing our sacred writings, are endowed with Kedushah. In this material world which tends to 21


blot out the thought and the action of spiritual dedication, they represent our affinity with G-d. They are apart and elevated above the common usage of matter. Our awe before the Almighty is expressed by the reverence with which we relate ourselves to them. The entire fabric of Jewish life is inter­ woven with the strands of Kedushah, resulting in the Jews constant aware­ ness of the Divine Omnipresence and in the sanctification of his entire ex­ istence. The focal point and wellspring of Kedushas, in the days of old, was the Holy Temple on Mount Moriah. TISHA B’AV, we mourn the de­ struction of the Temple. We mourn our removal from the imme­ diacy of experiencing His omnipres­ ence, our being cast away from before His face, our being denied the entrance to that gate of heaven which Father Jacob beheld in his vision. W ith the destruction of the Temple, there was taken from us and from the entire world the closest point of .juncture, the place of highest Kedushah. Our Synagogues are, as our Sages teach us, small replicas of the Temple. They draw their holiness from the same source of G-d-nearness. Their very structure is to follow that of the Temple, though its holiness will never be duplicated until the Temple itself will be rebuilt on its Mount by Moshiach. The Bimah in the middle, from which the Torah must be read, occupies the place of the altar. The Ark con­ taining the Holy Scrolls occupies the position of the "Kodshey Kodoshim” in which was placed the "Aron Hakodesh” and the Tablets of the Law. It is to be situated on the wall which the congregation and the Chazon face in prayer, in the direction of Jerusalem 22

and the Temple Mount. The balcony or the Mechitzah take the place of the "Ezrath Nashim,” the court of the women who were separated from the men in the Temple, so that no extrane­ ous emotion or thought may intrude into our worship. The Temple, and like it the synagogue, is to be dedi­ cated to one love only, to "Ahavath Hashem,” the love to the Almighty. ■pHE TALMUD tells us that any gen­ eration in which the Temple is not rebuilt must consider itself as guilty as the one during which the temple was destroyed. W hat shall we say to a generation which has permitted ruth­ less hands and irreverent, shallow minds to destroy even the remnant of the Temples sanctity retained in our Synagogues? Under the guise of mod­ ernization and under the slogan of the need to comply with the modes and moods of changing times, a concerted effort is being made to make our Syna­ gogues conform to the meeting places of secular character. But sanctity is precisely the aloofness from, and the elevation above, the profane. Kedu­ shah is precisely the conditioning of earthly space and matter, to make it a fitting meeting ground between G-d and man. How senseless, then, is it to approach the category of the sacred with the ephemeral and man-made irrelevancies of changing tastes and preferences* In the mourning of Tishah B’Av, the sanctity of our Synagogues and the study and the faithful observance of our Torah are our only solace. To rise to their defense and to proclaim their unchanging validity as the supreme manifestations of the Divine Omni­ presence, is an integral postulate of this day. JEWISH LIFE


L’chayim! By GERSHON KRAN ZLER

you MAY have sat all the way up in the galleries of the Metropolitan Opera House, with congenial longhairs, college kids and the stagestruck all about you. Or you may have yelled yourself hoarse at one of those mass affairs from the top balcony of Madi­ son Square Garden. Or you may have found bliss in the bleachers of Ebbets Field or the Polo Grounds, despite the distance from your heroes perform­ ing down there, far below or above you. But have you ever hung from the rafters of a huge, crude Succah on Shovuoth night, long after the rest of orthodox Jewry has returned to the 'normalcy” of routine life? No, I am not kidding. I do mean the rafters of a Succah, and on Shovuoth night. You see, the high point of the Yomtov celebration, the climax of the Farbrengen with the Rebbe, that mystic, yet so simple and little involved in­ volvement of the Chassid in the com­ munion of the spirit in the company of the Chassidic leader, or Tzaddik, attracts many hundreds of people from all over New York and beyond, to the "Court” of the Lubavitzer Rebbe. The close disciples and faithful leave their families and homes to spend the en­ tire Yomtov at "770,” meaning 770 Eastern Parkway, in Brooklyn, N. Y., an elegant thoroughfare of New York, which is the residence of the present Lubavitzer Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson^ as it had been the court of his late predecessor and father-in-law, Rabbi Joseph I. SchneerAugust, 1957

sohn, after his escape from the Nazi invasion of Poland. Those who can­ not leave their families, try at least to partake in the last Farbrengen that starts on the last day of Yomtov, in the afternoon, and keeps going strong deep into the night, until dawn sends the flock of the faithful home by the droves, in busses, subways, trains and private cars. jyjA K E no mistake. The scene is not a village, or a Shtetl of Eastern Europe. This is Dodger town, New York, in the age of the H-bomb, and some of the young faithful could eas­ ily win $64,000 with their thorough knowledge of the detailed doings of Duke Snider, the Say-Hey Kid, or the Mighty Mantle. And beneath the beard and peyoth you might discover a scien­ tist working on a nuclear physics proj­ ect, or a well-known concert artist, among those who leave the huge Suc­ cah in the backyard of "770” after the Farbrengen. On the other hand, if you look around the huge crowd, which could not be accommodated elsewhere as comfortably as in the Succah, you find the different types and faces of the Old World transplanted. You see the grave patriarchs with long, flowing beards, with the furrowed features that speak of years of intensive study in the depths of the exoteric and esoteric realms of the Torah. You see numer­ ous faces that bear still the marks of the concentration camps and D.P. ex23


istence, though somewhat mellowed now. You find kaftans or bekeshes, large velvet hats, kolpiks or shtreimels. And right by their side the Brooklyn or Bronx boys in garb and gear and appearance that are not at all different from those of their college classmates or job associates. They all are piled high into huge pyramids of inspired bodies, swaying back and forth, despite their precarious holds on edges of benches, boxes, chairs, holding on to poles or the top beams of the huge Succah. QOM EHOW you have fought your way through the throng to one of those pyramids of bodies reaching up to the rafters. You have gained a foothold on a bench, and there climbed to the high, narrow platform that is crowded with men and children who want to have a good look at the Rebbe facing you in the center of a large dais at the other end of the Succah. He is surrounded by a most impressive array of patriarchs. On the ground, between the dais and the high platform which serves you as a foothold, while you cling to the rough beam above you, sit rows of serious Chassidim, the inner circle, arranged along narrow tables, set with wine and chalahs. And all around them, and around you, and around the dais there are those rows of young and old Chassidim, standing, crowded, swaying back and forth in holy inspiration. Above the din of noises you hear the vpice that keeps on speaking, pene­ trating the hard shell of your curiosity with the intensity of emotion and the clear-cut rationality of a constant flow of thoughts. You are conscious of the deep-set eyes seemingly not fixed on anyone or anything in particular, yet 24

seeing all, seeing, penetrating you, too. Sometimes they are closed. Then sud­ denly they open and the whole subdued fire of a soul aflame behind the pale, framed face pours forth. Then, you wish you too were one of the faithful, a Chassid, not an intruder in this weave of holiness that binds together the assembled crowd. You envy the little fellow in the expensive coat and hat in front of you, perched at the edge of the narrow platform, holding on to his father with one hand. Only his long peyoth distinguish him from other ten- or eleven-year-olds in the streets of Brooklyn. But his crystal-clear voice rises above all the others, the high and low of the men who sing, slow at first, then loud and fast, when the Rebbe begins to clap his hands in ever accelerated tempo. The others clap, and the Rebbe marks the beat, exhorting, demanding, creat­ ing the message of the melody in the furioso of his own intensity. And above all, in perfect rhythm and har­ mony rise the bell sounds of the young boy's voice. The Rebbe looks up at the young face atop the pyramid of men, sway­ ing, singing, clapping. A smile of joy breaks through the seriousnesss of that pale face, still young, the black beard turning gray, the features molded by an inner concentration of spirituality. The boy smiles back, and his innocent voice rings out even brighter. Your eyes are perhaps the only ones who look. The others see. They see more, and wider, and hear better, as they live the crescendo of the simple melody that repeats itself over and over again. See that man in serious dark, formal clothes, standing by the Rebbe’s left, his one arm apparently supported by the shoulder of another JEWISH LIFE


young boy. His face is that of an ascetic, of a philosopher turned inward. He had stood motionless, his ear turned to the Rebbe, when the Rebbe had spoken. But now his whole reserved body sways in an awkward, but extremely rhythmic up-and-down motion, following almost trance-like the accelerando of the Rebbe’s beat. J H E MELODY breaks off, as sud­ denly as it had started. A sigh of song hangs still in the night-cool air as the Rebbe fills the cup with wine, recites the blessing, and wishes every­ body "I’chayim,” to life and good health.. Like an echo in a magic cave, the word I’chayim now breaks forth from all sides, as paper cups, filled with wine from the wine over which the Rebbe had said the blessing are passed around. Each of the men for­ tunate to get hold of a cup, raises it high into the air, shouting "I’chayim,” trying to attract the attention of the Rebbe in the center of the dais. The Rebbe turns his face left, right, up, down, here, there, answering a brief I’chayim, to life and health. The young boy before me, who only a few minutes ago had built a bridge across the huge, yawning space from one end of the Succah to the other, tries now desperately to attract the attention of the Rebbe. His father has procured for him some of the precious wine, and he too wants the good wishes of the revered leader. But he has a hard time. "Shreck zich nit, ruf I’chayim,” his father urges him on. Again and again the kid raises his hand with the cup high into the air. Then he seems to gather courage, and like a clear bugle his voice rings out, I’chayim. This time the Rebbe has heard him. But this time he does not smile the August, 1957

smile of recognition. The same brief bow, the serious, curt I’chayim answers across the Succah, from the dais to the top of the precarious perch, beneath the rafters, that meets the adults* re­ quests for health and happiness. For a moment the boy is no longer a child. Another soul communicates with him. ^ ^ N E OF the young men in the crowd has spied you as a stranger. It does not take much to see that you are an on-looker, observing rather than participating. He brings you a cup of wine. "Come on,” he urges you, "wish the Rebbe I’chayim!” You are sur­ prised by the flawless accent that comes from the young man with the black beard and long peyoth. Subsequent conversation proves him to a be na­ tive, as any of the youngsters that crowd the bleachers of Ebbets Field, only a few blocks from "770.” Em­ barrassed, yet grateful, you accept the wine, and try to attract the attention of the Rebbe. His motion goes all around you, 25


to the left, to the right, above and below. But you are still trying in vain. Somehow you don’t know how to at­ tract the eyes gazing at you, yet all around you and past, from across the hall. Again and again you try, rather meekly. Wait, this time the Rebbe nodded to you, when he said l’chayim. Or, perhaps he meant the stout fellow to your right who had just climbed up to the top of the pyramid and almost upset your precarious hold and spilt half of the wine in your cup. He only had raised his voice once to wish the Rebbe Vchayim. In fact, it seems al­ most certain that the Rebbe had meant him. But then he might have replied to you and wished you good health and happiness. It really does not matter. You empty what is left in the cup. It is a rather strong, dark red wine, full of aroma. But at that moment you do not per­ ceive the wine as wine. You are only an outsider, a spectator who has come to look and see, perhaps even to doubt. But you cannot remain a spectator for long. You are perhaps like one of the passersby who occasionally stroll into the backyard and enter the Succah, attracted by the crowd that moves in and out. They watch for a few seconds. Some stare incredulously, others shrug their shoulders, and some that have come together, meet in silence and leave again. Or, if you stay on, you become drawn into the sacred experi­

ence. You know little of the inner meaning of what is going on. You look at the silent, patriarchal faces in the row behind the Rebbe. They know and understand. You look at the young and old men all around you who sing and sway, who listen eagerly. And you feel something, something rather in­ articulate, but inspiring. Something that does not beg for articulation and rationalization. Something that is sat­ isfied to feel, and through the feeling become one with the mass of Jews crowded into the huge Succah. Some­ thing that experiences the flow of holi­ ness that emanates from that human being who is the Rebbe, and that reaches upward and down towards you. Y O U CANNOT stay on. You did * not expect to stay that late. You climb off your high perch. Eventually you reach the ground and make your way through the crowd into the yard, and out into the busy thoroughfare. It is now far past midnight. But you are not tired. Your spirit is still on the high perch, atop the pyramid of the faithful, searching for the face across the arena of the Succah. Your soul still clings to the rafters that hold you up, above the ground and the groundlings, in the Succah of peace and faith, to harbor you in the inspired sphere of Yomtov, long after Yomtov is gone.

HUMILITY As the vine has large and small clusters of grapes, and the larger clusters hang lower than thle smaller, so in Israel, the more learned the man, the more humble he is. Vayikraz Rabbah, 36:2

26

JEWISH LIFE


Religious State Education In Israel By JOSEPH GOLDSCHMIDT 'J'H E EDUCATION of the children of religious parents presents a prob­ lem in most countries where educa­ tion is compulsory and is provided free under the law. Since the United States of America strictly forbids religious education in a public school, religious parents who feel they can not let their children be educated in an atmosphere of indifference to religion have organ­ ized private schools, which receive no financial support from the State. The percentage of such parents is quite considerable — around 30% in the Chicago area or in greater New York. In Holland, on the other hand, the 1920 Education Act granted full fi­ nancial State s u p p o r t to p r i v a t e schools, and as a result of this liberal policy private schools are attended by some 72% of the school age popula­ tion, and only 28% go to the State Schools. The State Education Law, 1953, has led Israel to a different solution: it recognises the right of every citizen to have his child educated in a secular or in a religious school according to his choice, and it requires such schools to be opened and maintained by Gov­ ernment and the local a u t h o r i t i e s , wherever the minimum number of pupils has been enrolled. Both types of schools are state schools and on the same legal footing. There is, in defer­ ence to the principles of democracy, a legal possibility of establishing and securing r e c o g n i t i o n for p r i v a t e schools, but the obvious tendency of August, 1957

the State Education Law, 1953, is for the State to satisfy by its own organs the legitimate educational needs of its citizens, of which religious education is one. In fact only some 6% of Israels school age population go to private schools, all the rest use the State Schools System, of which 74% are secular schools and 26% religious State Schools. The State Education Law applies to children and youths of the ages 5 to 17, it provides for kinder­ gartens (compulsory for 5-year-olds, but largely attended from the age of 3 ^ or 4 years o n ) ; elementary schools (6-to 14-year-olds); and schools for working youths (for pupils aged 14 to 17 years, who have not completed a recognised elementary school). Al­ though not prescribed by law, post­ primary education is also divided into secular and religious education. The following figures will give an idea of the magnitude of the network of Reli­ gious State Education. By way of comparison it should be mentioned that the (private) Chinuch Atzmai schools have an enrollment of 24,005 pupils, of whom 1,125 are in post-primary education.* ^ H E CONCEPT of a system of reli­ gious schools run by the State, where * According to information given by American representatives of Chinuch Atzmai (independent Torah school system in Israel), more than 31,000 children are enrolled in approximately 278 schools and kindergartens operated by Chinuch Atzmai. 27


Type of Institution

No, of Institutions

No: of Pupils

517 (classes) 308 111 55 (classes)

1.7,500 71,648 3,274 1,100

Total, Primary E ducation................... .. Secondary, Vocational, Agriculture, 1 Teachers Training ..........................

991

93,522

65

6,617

Total ................................. . .

1,056

100,139

Kindergarten . . . . . ___ %............ Elementary School ...................... ... .. Working Youths Schools............... Special E d u cation............................

the State does not accept religious law been settled by these provisions of as binding upon itself, raises a funda­ the law. The answer to this quite pro­ mental problem: How is the religious per question is the Council for Reli­ character of those schools guaranteed? gious State Education, composed of Who appoints the teachers? W ho di­ 14 religious members, appointed by rects what is to be taught, and in what the Minister with the approval of Gov­ spirit? Let us hear, then, how the State ernment, by a procedure which safe­ Education Law, 1953, solves these guards the religious integrity of its members. problems. In the first instance it defines what This Council has been given by makes a school a religious school by law powers overriding those of the saying (Par. 1 of the Law): "Reli­ Minister! The law specifies: gious State Education is State Educa­ (1 ) The Minister can not intro­ tion whose schools are religious in duce a syllabus into Religious State respect of (a) their teaching staff, (b) Schools without the previous approval their inspectors, (c) their syllabus, of the Council for Religious State Ed­ (d) their organized school life, which ucation. must accord to Jewish religious law.” (2 ) The Minister can not appoint In other words, all teachers, school principals and inspectors working at a teacher, a principal, an inspector, or a Religious State School (including a kindergarten mistress without hav­ the teacher of handicraft or physical ing obtained beforehand the approval training) must themselves be religious; of the Council in respect of that can­ the syllabus of instruction will specify didate’s suitability as a religious per­ both the principles and the subject- son. (3) Conversely, should the Council matter appropriate to that type of education; and, last, not least, the find it necessary, upon proper inquiry, schools must train for observance of to disqualify, on religious grounds, a the laws of the Torah. So far, so good. teacher, principal or inspector appoint­ But it may be argued that since the ed to Religious State Schools, the Min­ Minister of Education may be non- ister may not continue to employ him religious ( and in fact so far no holder or her in a Religious State School. Further, in order to ensure the au­ of that office ever has been religiously observant) and his senior officials may tonomy of Religious State Education be irreligious too, nothing has really in the sphere of the religious character 28

*

JEWISH LIFE


center of the material and spiritual life of its institutions the law has created o f the nation of Israel.” the post of Director of Religious E d u ­ "B. The aims of teaching the Oral Law cation (with rank of a Deputy Direc­ in the elementary school are: tor General of the Ministry), and has 1. to plant in the hearts of the children the belief in the Divine origin of the Oral given him, among other functions, the Law as the authentic interpretation of the following statutory powers: He exer­ W ritten Law. cises in respect of Religious State 2. to train the students in the ideas and Schools the Ministers prerogative of actions, which are in accordance with the Torah. inspection, and stands, in that respect, 3. to make the children love the Talmud in the place of the Director General and to develop their will and habit to of the Ministry. He is the highest au­ study it, etc. thority in the Ministry in everything And in the introduction to the syl­ that affects the religious side of the labus of history we find, among others, education given in Religious State the following aims: Schools; he directs the inspectors, head­ "To lead the pupil to recognize that he masters and teachers of those schools is a son of the Jewish people, which was in educational matters, he issues guid­ chosen by G-d, and that he has to prove himself worthy of it and to observe a ance circulars to schools and approves conduct which will further the destiny of text books to be used in them. He his people as G-d’s chosen nation. To lead keeps in contact with all religious the pupil to the conviction that Divine State Schools and those who work in Providence is operating in the history of mankind and, in particular, in the them, and in all specific educational miraculous survival o f Israel among the matters those workers are responsible nations of the earth, and that the existence to him only. of our nation depends on our observance of It will be seen that Religious State the Torah, proving to them the dangers of spiritual or national assimilation in the Education is thus carefully protected past and the present from interference of irreligious per­ sons of whatever rank. The rights to autonomy as briefly outlined here have *£HERE IS no space here to describe now been exercised without meeting x in detail the syllabus and the time obstacles for nearly four years, and table of Religious State Schools. But there is every reason to believe that the reader will get some insight into the working of the system from the this will continue in the future. fact that a pupil (whether boy or girl) O O FAR, we have only dwelt upon ten years of age, who has completed the fourth grade of the elementary the legal aspects of the solution school will have covered the following of the religious education problem in books: Bereshith, Shemoth, Bemidbor, Israel. It will be well to say something, Devorim, and, in addition, Yehoshua, too, about its contents. Let us begin Shoftim, Shemuel I and II. Further­ with a few excerpts from the official more, the laws and customs of all the syllabus for Religious State Schools. In holidays have been studied, and noted the introduction to the syllabus of in special copy books, songs have been T o r a h S h e b ’al P e h (Talmud and learned, stories read related to those Mishnah) we read: topics, and many a handicraft lesson "A. The Oral Law, which G-d has has been devoted to the making oi given to Israel as a commentary of the models, utensils etc. which have a bear W ritten Law, forms together with the ing on the festivals. Prayers have beer latter one coihplete entity, and is the August, 1957

29


said daily, and the common parts of the Siddur have been explained. At the other end of the scale we may mention that the boys, upon completing a religious secondary school, are examined in writing, on 50 double pages (daphim) of Talmud, with the commentary of Rashi and Tossaphoth, and orally on an unannounced and un­ prepared "Sugya.” In many such schools the boys are examined on the whole of the Torah with Rashi, too, not count­

ing, of course "Nakh” and Hebrew literature, which mostly includes some mediaeval religious literature. ^ L L THIS does not mean that Re­ ligious State Education has no problems and no struggle for progress and improvement. But it does mean that it has a sound, religiously reliable and unassailable basis for its sacred work, within the framework, legal and organizational, of State Education.

TORAH AS A DELIGHT If it were not for Thy Torah, my delight, I would then have perished in my affliction.. Psalms, 119, 92

MAASER SHENI—THEN AND NOW In Yoi’3 Deah 249 w e read that w e are permitted to use part of our tithes (Maasser) to buy books of learning if w e are willing to lend them to others after w e are through with them for the present time. This liberal decision may b e retraced to cm interesting item in Midrash Tanhuma. Under the heading 'Asser Teasser' w e are advised thete that business men who ply the se a s give one tenth of their earnings to those who labor for the Torah. The Maaser Sheni with which the Script deals in that paragraph w as eaten in Jerusalem. That which could not be eaten there w as distributed to worthy scholars. The purpose of this phase of charitable work w as designed to teach us to 'learn to fear G-d.' The atmosphere in the Holy City in the festival season could not fail to impress the visitors from various parts of tbe country. By the same token, w e are counselled to turn some of our Zedokoh over to those who make the study of the Law their career.

30

JEWISH LIFE


• Cases from Re spansa Literature.

The Quarreling Families Of Cavaillon By D AVID S. SHAPIRO *pHE Montagus and the Capulets were * not the only feuding clans known to history. In the time of the great teacher and commentator, Rabbi Solo­ mon Yitzhaki, known as Rashi (10401105 C.E.), there were two contentious families in the vicinity of Cavaillon, near Avignon in Southern France. Un­ like the families that figure in Shake­ speare’s famous drama, those of Ca­ vaillon did not resort to violence. Their controversies found expression in mutual discourtesies, humiliations and abuses. These squabbles were bound to become tiresome, sooner or later, to the community. When the saturation point had been reached, the community council of Cavaillon im­ posed an oath upon the members of the two families obligating them to discontinue their wrangling. One of the families, however, re­ fused to bind itself by the oath. To the contrary, its members rashly swore not to abide by the judgment of the community. As far as they were con­ cerned, they would not recognize the right of the community to adjuration in this case. If they were doing wrong in the eyes of G-d, they argued, the adjuration of the council was not bind­ ing, since no oath can be imposed upon another. The abuses and insults, consequently, continued. The other family, in turn, refused to maintain silence. One of its mem­ bers came forward with the harsh August, 1957

charge that there had been apostasies in the other family in a time of re­ ligious persecution. T H IS SLUR was most humiliating A in an era when the readiness to undergo martyrdom was the mark of a true and loyal Jew. Someone (either a party to or a friend of the other side of the controversy) retaliated with an assertion that there had been a specific interdiction against hurling a charge of this nature against any Jew who, under duress, had left his faith. He made no mention, however, of the source of this interdiction. It later became known that it was Rabbenu Gershom Meor ha-Golah (960-1040 C.E.) who was the author of the ban and that he had placed penalty of excommunication of a lesser degree (niddui) upon anyone who violated it. One scholar who was hostile to the family that had raised the charge of apostasy maintained that there could be no release from the interdiction for the offender, since there was now no one as great as the author of the ban to release him. A precedent from the Talmud was cited to confirm this view. The others, however, maintained that they had no knowledge of the existence of the ban, nor had the name of its author been mentioned to them. Be­ sides, they claimed, they come from a community to which the authority of Rabbenu Gershom did not extend, and 31


so the interdiction did not apply to them. Even if the ban were valid, they asserted, it was still not intended to be applied perpetually. After accepting whatever judgment was imposed upon them, the offender certainly should be released. This opinion was buttressed with much learning. The problem was sent to Rabbi Solomon Yitzhaki, the great authority of French Jewry, for adjudication. R ASHI sought to clarify the prob* lem from all angles. If it could be proved that Rabbenu Gershom in­ tended that his ban be interpreted altogether rigorously, and if the of­ fender was warned in the name of Rabbenu Gershom, then the penalty of excommunication could not be re­ moved, since there was no one in this generation, so Rashi affirmed, to equal the great teacher in authority. The argument that the ban could not apply to the territory where Rabbenu Ger­ shom was not active was likewise rejected by Rashi. A ban is limited in

32

its effectiveness to the area where it is issued only where it is applied as a penalty for dishonoring a sage in Israel, he maintained. This limitation does not apply to a case where the in­ terdiction was issued to fortify a rule of the Torah. The Law of G-d forbids the humiliation of any individual, par­ ticularly a repentant sinner. Rabbenu Gershom issued his ban as a disciplinary measure. Besides, all the Jews of France, Germany and Italy are to be deemed the disciples of this great teacher, they are all members of his community. The fact that the oppos­ ing family had refused to accept the authority of the community of Cavaillon and had continued in its repre­ hensible behavior could not justify a course of abuse. True, this family had acted in a most shameful manner; its members deserve punishment for flout­ ing the authority of the community; they had taken an oath in vain and had humiliated their fellow-men. Never­ theless, their deceased ancestors had not sinned in this respect and no one

JEWISH LIFE


has the right to desecrate their mem­ ory. For indeed, Rashi continues, re­ pentance reaches unto the very Throne of Glory, and where the repentant sin­ ner stands there not even the perfectly righteous stand, as it is written: Peace, peace unto him who is both near and afar-of> The fact that the later generations do not come up to former generations, and that the present-day ban is not proclaimed as ceremoniously as in former times, does not in any way militate against its rigorousness, Rashi maintained. Passages from the earlier sources are cited to support this state­ ment. The judgment of every authority in his generation is as valid as that of the greatest in previous generations. If a contemporary judge were to issue a ban and no attempt was made by the offender to be released from it, no lower court had the power to absolve him from it. NEVERTHELESS, Rashi did not seek to make things hard for the of­ fender. He maintained that, without evidence to the contrary, it should not be assumed that Rabbenu Gershom meant to have his ban taken rigor­ ously. Rabbenu Gershom, Rashi as­ serts, must have realized that an un­ yielding application of his interdiction would lead to many difficulties and would also place a stumbling-block before .coming generations. He cer­ tainly must have intended that this

measure be treated as an ordinary ban, under which, after repentance, the ask­ ing of forgiveness and the receipt of due penalty, the disabilities are re­ moved. This principle should be fol­ lowed in interpreting Rabbenu Gershom’s decree. In this case there had been, in addition, no intention to dis­ parage the honor of Rabbenu Gershom, since his name was not used in the warning to the intended offender. Even if it were, it may not have been taken seriously, since the warning came from the camp of the enemy. Although it is a mistake to think that a community has the right to abolish the ban of Rabbenu Gershom — only a court greater in number and wisdom can abolish the decree of an earlier court — it can nevertheless be removed after amends have been prop­ erly made. Rashi rejected the proposal that he himself lift the ban. Not being a member of the community he would not arrogate such authority unto him­ self. He therefore adyised that the offending party accept the penalty im­ posed upon him, that he apologize to those whom he has offended and that then the ban should be lifted. W e thus see Rashi, the man of pro­ found respect for the great teachers of past generations, seeking to apply "the ways of pleasantness,” the ways of the Torah, to the offender who has got himself involved in a difficult situa­ tion. Rashi finds the way to extricate him from trouble.

WARNING W hosoever is haughty, the Holy One, blessed be He, sayeth, "I cannot dw ell with him in the world." Talmud, Sotah, 5a

August, 1957

33


Religion and State A New Look By REUBEN E. GROSS ^ H E PHRASE "separation of church and state” is heard with increasing frequency of late. Whether the subject is. religion in the public schools, * the relation of Torah to Medinath Israel, or subventions for books for parochial schools, someone is bound to ask, "How about separation of church and state,” as if that were a self-evident, sacred and undeniable principle. In­ deed, many have spoken of the "wall of separation between church and state” with such reverence that one might conclude that this "wall” was the very bastion of democracy. It has been the expressed policy of all major Jewish groups to oppose all manifestations of religion in public life. However, a re-examination of the application of the principle of separa­ tion of church and state in regard to these manifestations and a re-appraisal of our position in regard thereto as Americans and as Jews is always in order. This doctrine of separation presup­ poses that in society there is a fixed area within which government oper­ ates, and another area wherein reli­ gion operates, and that the two overlap only because of overzealous clerics or unwise legislators. To the eighteenth century liberal this was a valid and useful concept. He believed that the best government was the one that * See "L^t’s Keep Sectarianism Out of the Public Schools” by Rabbi Gilbert Klaperman in the Shevat, $717 issue of J ew ish L if e .

a4

governed least. The less it interfered with the lives of its subjects the better. Religion, moreover, was considered the very last area in which government should exercise control because reli­ gion was considered to be solely a matter of conscience. Furthermore, it was deemed desirable that the church refrain from‘interfering with govern­ ment. When the religious wars of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries demonstrated the futility and harm of battles over tenets of faith, the prin­ ciple was readily accepted that reli­ gion is a personal matter and of no compelling consequence to the com­ munity as a whole. Religion was sealed off from government and government from religion.. Shortly after the adoption of the Constitution, Thomas Jefferson wrote, in regard to the first amendment: "Believing with yon that religion i s . a matter which lies solely between man and his G-d, that he owes account to none . òthèr for his‘ faith or his worship; that the legislative powers of the Government , reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with solemn reverence the act of the whole American people which declared that theit Legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof’, thus building a wall of separa­ tion between Church and State.”

^ R E THESE conceptions of state and religion valid in the middle of the Twentieth Century? It is ob­ vious that the State today is vastly dif­ ferent from what the founding fathers JEWISH LIFE


pillllllllllllljlllllllllllllllllllllllllllllliu I B. f| |

The issue of "Church and State” on the American scene is one which increasingly commands the attention of the public. Previous discussions of this topic appearing in JEW ISH LIFE have been characterized by the view that measures towards the incorpora­ tion of religious practices in areas of life pertaining to the state itself— such as religious teachings in the,public schools—are. unB constitutional, are incompatible with the American scheme of things and menace the rights and position of minority religious 5 groups. W e are pleased to present to our readers, through Mr. Gross’ timely article, a further discussion of this issue, offering’ a U challengingly different point of view.— Editor lillillllilllllll^ conceived. The specific powers of the Congress enumerated in the Constitu­ tion relate only to banking, commerce, war, currency, post office, taxes and courts. The lives of post-colonial citi­ zens were rarely affected by govern­ mental action, whether federal, state or local. Today, however, there is a governmental representative at every step of ones life from the registration of a birth to the recording of a death. Compulsory education for the young, compulsory military training for youth, licensing of all professions except the clergy, licensing of numerous non­ professional occupations, licensing of the right to* drive on the roads, build a house, fix a pipe, run electric wire, operate a radio station or a dairy, or to keep an oil tank, are but some ex­ amples of the area of governmental control on the lives of its citizens to­ day; not to mention the ramifications of taxes, social security, governmentally-owned housing, transportation, air fields and baseball stadia. Religion, likewise, has been marked by a broadening of its area of influence. The traditional Jewish concept! of Torah as a way of life, and as a rule of conduct, not only between Man and G-d but also between Man and Man, is finding wider recognition in August, 1957

non-Jewish circles. The challenge of Fascism and Communism have made the democratic peoples more aware of the reciprocal inter-relationship of their religious principles and their political faiths. The addition of the phrase 'under G-d” in the pledge of allegiance and attempts to breathe some religious spirit into the public school programs are some of the symp­ toms of this trend. Today, the Jeffer­ sonian view "that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his G-d” is sharply challenged from all sides. K CCORDINGLY, to continue to speak of a "wall of separation be­ tween church and state” is to presup­ pose the existence of a world that has long passed. Today that formula is an anachronism, and the lip service rend­ ered to it by the Supreme Court in the last decade has served to confuse rather than to clarify the problem. If it were to be enforced vigorously and consistently it would result in the elimination of chaplains from the army and other public institutions. Invocations in legislative halls would be barred. Laws to prevent Kashruth frauds would be abolished. Xmas ad35


vertising in publicly owned subways and Xmas decorations in public parks would be banned. Tax exemptions for churches and synagogues would be eliminated and deductions from in­ come taxes for contributions to reli­ gious institutions would be disallowed. The Bible would be read only in pri­ vate gatherings. Even the Declaration of Independence, with its affirmation of reliance on "Divine Providence” would become a questionable docu­ ment. Many basic criminal laws would have to be eliminated, such as the prohibitions against incest and sodomy. The very warp and woof of society is now so interwoven with religious threads that any serious attempt to pluck those having the legal sanc­ tion of the state would result in the complete unravelling of civilization as we know it. JF W E turn from catch phrases to the simple words of the Bill of Rights we have a useful rule of law: “Coingress shall make no law respect­ ing an establishment o f religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.**

As orthodox Jews our primary in­ terest and emphasis in this connection is on the right of free exercise of religion, whether privately or publicly. Our highest democratic possession is the privilege to act in accordance with our religious traditions without fear. W e must place greater emphasis upon the second half of the first amendment, the right of free exercise. Reform and Conservative Jewry, with their ideal of "adjustment” to modern living, place greater emphasis upon the first half of this amendment. Whereas they prize most highly their right to be undifferentiated from the majority because of religion, orthodox Jews prize most highly the privilege of being different. Thus we find that 36

while the non-orthodox groups fervidly pursue anti-discrimination work, Or­ thodoxy is engaged in the erection of Day Schools. While non-orthodox forces view with alarm the drawing of any line between Jew and Christian, traditional Jewry indulges in activities which sharpen the difference. Up to a point these two approaches are merely differences of emphasis. The right to exercise ones religion freely and openly, to be different in religion, and to be undifferentiated economically and politically, are complementary rights. However, when discussing the issue of religion in the public schools, we are brought to opposite results, depending upon which of the two ideals embodied in the First Amend­ ment we would emphasize. If we em­ phasize- the danger of a state-estab­ lished religion we tend to exclude all manifestations of religion from StateJEWISH LIFE


related institutions. But if we em­ phasize the right to the free excercise of religion, a very different result is reached. J7ROM the point of view of the com­ munity as a whole, as Americans, which of these two ideals, when they collide, should call forth our greater loyalty? The answer to this depends upon what picture we draw of the ideal American community. Earlier in our history that ideal was the "Melt­ ing Pot.” Democracy in its youthful development looked askance at the preservation of the differences which people brought to these shores. Dif­ ferences of religion, like other differ­ ences, were regarded as p o te n tia l sources of disturbance which are best observed in the quiet corners of one’s home or church. Today, however, we are developing new ideals. Some may call it "cultural pluralism.” Others may have other designations. But the open and frank acceptance of people for what they are, with all their differences and idiosyncracies, is a firmer founda­ tion for unity than the surface uni­ formity of a melting pot. If the gen­ tiles would be Christians, and the Hebrews would be Jews, and each ready to accept the other as such, there is no danger in the open avowal of their respective faith and practices. On the contrary, such a situation creates a firmer foundation for a mature and secure democracy. Thus in treating religious mani­ festations in public life generally, and in public schools p a rtic u la rly , we should move warily before suppressing any one’s freedom of religious expres­ sion. If Xmas plays are rehearsed and presented, Jews may insist upon their right to be excused, rather than take the position that the play should not August, 1957

be presented. If certain recognition is granted to Christianity, an analogous recognition may be demanded by Juda­ ism. Granted that the latter entails grave difficulties and dangers for a minority religion, yet restriction of Christian action is not the solution. LIBERALS may cry that this is re­ actionary; that it is a movement from "integration” back to "separate and equal segregation.” If we accept the premise that religion is a meaning­ less thing in any case, and that differ­ ences of faith make as little sense as racial differences, then the liberal argument is indeed powerful. Meaning­ less differences are best glossed over or forgotten. Today, however, most Americans, and orthodx Jews particu­ larly, cannot accept the doctrine that religion is an inconsequential fact to which the accepted formulae for treat­ ing racial problems must be unthink­ ingly applied. Religion is a vital aspect of education. If most educators did not agree, they would not be so troubled by the difficult dilemma which the separators of church and state have created. As the matter now stands the public schools are damned i f they ignore religion, and they are damned if they don’t ignore it* True, recognition of religious values and practices in public life will create many delicate and difficult problems. But these problems can and should be worked out. They are not basic. They do not involve the infringement of principle, unless separation of reli­ gion and state be deemed an end in itself. On the other hand, solutions which would completely suppress all religious expression in public life in­ fringe a most basic principle of Ameri­ can life, the freedom of religious ex­ pression. 37


MEMO TO: ALL ORTHODOX JEWS FROM: Charles H. Bendheim, National Chairmain, OUA SUBJECT: ORTHODOX UNION ASSOCIATION 1. The goal of the Orthodox Union Associa­ tion, the individual membership arm of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, is to assist the Union in spreading the ideals of orthodox Judaism. 2. It is essential that every loyal Jew participate in this national, vibrant, traditional Jewish movement. O.U.A. mem­ bership identifies you personally with our great program of religious resurgence. 3. As an O.U.A. member you will receive: a. JEWISH LIFE. b. Holiday Pamphlet Service-bringing into your home informative and authentic booklets and pamphlets on Jewish holidays, beliefs and practices. c. Kashruth Bulletins — keeping you posted on the new (u) developments. d. JEWISH ACTION. 4. The annual membership fee is $10. *5. I urge you to join now by filling out and mailing the application below. Union of Orthodox Jewish Cong, of America 305 Broadway New York 7, New York Please enroll me as a member of the Orthodox Union Association. NAME _______ _________ i __________________________ A D D R E S S ___________ ______________________________

38

CITY _______________ __________

S T A T E ________

Check for $10 is enclosed.

Please bill me. JEWISH LIFE


London’s East End Lives Again By JOSEPH YAHALOM Lo n d o n :

JP^ DETERMINED effort is begin­ ning to be made to revive some of the great glories of London’s Jewish East End. Leaders of orthodox Jewry are beginning to take the right meas­ ures to make the East End again a center of colorful and living Judaism. The East End is the cradle of mod­ ern Anglo-Jewry. It was there — in Whitechapel, in Commercial Road, in Duke’s Place, in tens of other little streets — that the character of AngloJewry was formed. It was there that Anglo-Jewry learned the love of tra­ ditional Judaism which, despite the various changes, is still such a remark­ able feature of Anglo-Jewish life. Hitler and his bombers destroyed much of the Jewish East End but enough remains to remind the Jew of the glorious heritage. No Jew visiting London should omit spending some time in this center of Jewish life. Anglo-Jewry cannot be fully under­ stood without a knowledge of the his­ tory and achievement of the Jewish East End. At the end of the last century, and the beginning of this, great masses of European Jews, fleeing mostly from Tsarist persecution, settled in the East End. They came in their thousands to join their co-religionists. Rabbis, tradesmen, tailors and shoemakers all poured into this small area. Life was hard. Jews worked for sixteen or more hours a day for a mere pittance. They lived crowded together in dark and August, 1957

unhygienic conditions. But what a wonderful, pulsating Jewish life they created! How deep ran in them the love for all things Jewish, how they struggled to maintain their attachment to traditional Judaism! J H E GLORY of the East End was # A the Great Synagogue in Duke’s Place, which was destroyed by the Nazi bombs. This was the synagogue of Anglo-Jewry, where all the great celebrations of the community took place. The Great Synagogue congrega­ tion dates back to 1690. The building was constructed in 1772, enlarged and remodelled in 1790 and destroyed by the Germans in May, 1941. A tem­ porary building was erected in N o­ vember 1943. "The Great” symbolized Anglo-Jewry to the Jew and to the Gentile. It was . a magnificent build­ ing which expressed the suffering and hopes of the Jewish people. Alas, it is no more. The United Synagogue ( of which the. Great Synagogue is the parent) has decided not to rebuild it but rather to build a great new syna­ gogue in the West End of London — in Marble Arch — and "The Great” is now becoming a memory, even if a glorious memory. Another great building, which hap­ pily still survives, is the Bevis Marks Synagogue of the Sephardi congrega­ tion. The Spanish and Portuguese community of London was founded by Marranos in the middle of the seven39


Reproduction of an architect's drawing of the new Marble Arch Synagogue in the West End of London, England, replacing the famed Great Synagogue which w as destroyed by bombing in World War II. Architects, T. B. Bennett & Son. Courtesy of London Jewish Chronicle.

teenth century. The c o n g re g a tio n "Sahar Asamaim” worshipped in Creechurch Lane from 1657 to 1701, when the synagogue in Bevis Marks was built. Bevis Marks is the oldest exist­ ing and active synagogue in England. It is also probably the most beautiful in Western Europe. Not only Jews but many Gentiles have been deeply impressed by its dignified beauty no less than by the splendor of the Se­ phardi religious services which follow the traditions of the first Sephardi settlers. The great pride of the pre-war East End was the Jews* Free School which was attended by over 3,000 children. Israel Zangwill, the celebrated AngloJewish writer, who was a teacher there, found the prototypes of many of his immortal characters within this school. The institution was founded in 1817, so that until it was destroyed 40

by Nazi bombs the Jews* Free School played a great part in Jewish life for many generations. Many London Jews still speak of this school with great affection. This institution too is not to be rebuilt but another school which, it is claimed, will be its successor is to be established in Camden Town, an­ other part of London. JH E R E MUST be many American Jews who will recall with gratitude the Jews’ Temporary Shelter. As the thousands of Jews arrived in London they found an invaluable friend in the Shelter. Many of them were on their way to the United States or Canada but on arrival in London would dis­ cover that they had been swindled by agents in Russia and had not enough money even to buy a meal for them­ selves and their families. The Shelter JEWISH LIFE


officials met these helpless victims at the ports, helped them with the cus­ toms, gave them food and lodging and saved them from despair. Among those responsible for running the Shel­ ter were some of the finest characters that Anglo-Jewry has ever produced. I have been privileged to read the memoirs (which are still lying un­ published) of the late A b ra h am Mundy, Secretary of the Shelter for many years. Here are contained all the

anguish, the unbreakable optimism, the tragedy and the comedy — in their most tragic moments Jews could still smile-—of the Jewish people. Thou­ sands of British Jews owe their sur­ vival to the Shelter, and to such in ­ stitutions as the Jewish Board of Guar­ dians. The Shelter still survives and still is a haven for persecuted Jewry. Recently within its walls have come Jews from Hungary and Egypt, flee­ ing from new types of barbarism but

The Machzike Hadas (Spitalfields Great Synagogue) on Brick Lane in the East End o! London, is famed as a stronghold of Orthodoxy. Rabbi Beresh Finkelstein is its new Rav. August. 1957

41


Pre-World War II view ol Petticoat Lane, in the heart of the East End. Anything from keigels to binoculars could be purchased on this immortal London street. (Se«3 next page.)

finding the same kind of welcome as did the Jews at the beginning of the century, or during the Nazi period. Q R T H O D O X JUDAISM flourished in the East End. Whitechapel has an imperishable place in Jewish history. As ever ^increasing numbers of Jews 42

arrived in the East End an ever larger number of Synagogues were created. Many were already in existence before the great Jewish migration. The Federation of Synagogues, then consisting of sixteen small ,synagogues, was established in 1887 by Samuel Montagu who afterwards became the JEWISH LIFE


The ravages of war have left their mark on present-day Petticoat Lane. White crowds still flock to the area, the latter-day spirit is overshadowed by bombed out buildings.

first Lord Swaythling. Lord Roth­ schild was its first President. The Fed­ eration now has four constituent syna­ gogues. Under the leadership of Rabbi Morris Swift, its new Principal Rabbi, the Federation is showing renewed strength and vigor. There were also a number of very remarkable independent congregations, the most outstanding being the Spitalfields Great Synagogue (Machzike Hadas) which was founded in 1893 and which can claim many fine and lasting achievements. Many eminent rabbis served these congregations. One of them was Dayan L Abramsky, who now lives in Israel. The new spiritual head of the Machzike Hadas, known as the Citadel of the Orthodox, is Rabbi Beresh Finkelstein, widely rec­ ognized as among the leading rabbinic scholars in the world. August, 1957

£JOLORFUL Jewish characters have long delighted Anglo-Jewry. There were the beigel-sellers, the players of antique phonographs, the violinists, the old-clothes men and ,a multitude of others. Many of them eventually found their place in that hub of the commercial East End nSPetticoat Lane. In this narrow lane you could ^ still can — buy shoes and apples, herring and fish — in fact, nearly everything under the sun — at "bargain prices.” Even today when you walk down the lane and hear the raucous voices, and see the gaily displayed goods and hear the good-old heimishe Yiddish you might think for a moment that you are not in the center of an Empire but in some small Polish shteitl. It was in the East End, too, that Jewish culture flourished. There were several Yiddish and Hebrew news43


papers — now there is only one. Jewish labor, too, fought for its rights in organized groups. There were several Jewish unions who were not afraid to stage strikes to obtain better wages for their members. In this thriving, incredibly vibrant Jewish area there grew up, perhaps, the most extraordinary Jewish 'ghetto” in modern Jewish life. It was here that the deepest Jewish feeling was mani­ fested, that the most astonishing char­ itable acts were performed. Slowly, however, the character of the East End began to change. As some of the Jewish families established themselves and became more prosper­ ous -—their hard work became prover­ bial in England — they started to move out of the East End to other districts — to Golders Green, to Willesden, to Stamford Hill, to Hendon. This proc­ ess was greatly accelerated by the Second World War, when the East End was heavily bombed and many Jews lost their homes. fiF T E R the Second World W ar the East End looked a pitiful sight. Many synagogues were in ruin, many streets where Jews had predominated had been taken over by other immi­ grants from British Commonwealth lands. Some people were ready to write

an obituary notice about the Jewish East End. It cannot be denied that from the Jewish points of view the position was bleak. Many synagogues could hardly find a minyon. Many Jews had been cut off from Jewish life by the war and through being evacuated to non-Jewish areas. To revive the East End seemed a superhuman task. Yet, slowly, the position is improv­ ing. As Rabbi Swift has pointed out, the Jewish East End has never been dead. The East End still possesses a fine yeshivah—-the Y e sh iv a th Etz Chaim — numerous synagogues and many learned rabbis. Recently I at­ tended a conference on the East End, held in one of the synagogues in the district, and I was delighted to notice that everyone spoke in Yiddish. And it was a Yiddish which still had the unmistakable heimishe rin g , w ith hardly an English word included.' J T SEEMS as if the Jewish East End is again beginning to play a part in Anglo-Jewish life. An Anglo-Jewry without a vigorous, orthodox Jewish East End is an Anglo-Jewry impover­ ished and lukewarm. The Jewish East End may never regain its former glory — social causes may be too strong for i t — but it can still add strength and color to traditional, orthodox Jewish life in Great Britain.

SOUND ADVICE Said Rav Yosef: "A man should alw ays learn from his Creator. The Lord disdained all the lofty mountains to rest His Holy Count­ enance on Sinai# and disdained all the most precious trees and rested His Holy Countenance on the thorn bush. For thus it is written: 'And the broken ones and the humble of spirit' to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the hearts of the broken ones." SOTAH 5 44

JEWISH LIFE


The Fifth Jewish Commonwealth By CECIL ROTH P | JEWISH STATE is now in being again, within part of its historic boundaries in Palestine. W e are fre­ quently told that this is a revival after nearly two thousand years of the in­ dependent commonwealth which exist­ ed from the time of the return from Exile down to the capture of Jerusalem by the Romans in the year 70. To what extent is this correct? In other words, how many times before, and in what periods, has our people maintained an independent Jewish state on that his­ toric soil? The question does not com­ mand an immediate or a facile answer. It is best to pass the various independ­ ent Jewish commonwealths in Palestine in review, one by one, and to attempt to characterise them. 'p H E first such state was established *w hen the Israelites first entered into the land of Canaan, some time be­ tween the fifteenth and the twelfth centuries B.C.E. The term '"Jewish” as applied to this period is as a matter of fact somewhat anachronistic. It is best described as Israelite, or Hebrew, for the term "Jew” emerges only at a later period in our history. The state lasted in various guises, and passed through various vicissitudes, for a period of many centuries. In the Age of the Judges, large parts of the country were from time to time in enemy occupation. In the eleventh century, the Philistines nearly snuffed out the independent national existence. As a result of this, this formerly loose confederation of tribes, linked by their August, 1957

com m on h e r ita g e b ecam e united into a centralised monarchy (as had been attempted unsuccessfully once before, in the period of the Judges, under Abimelech, son of Gideon). Centrifugal tendencies at once reas­ serted themselves, the North and South of the country constituting separate states—briefly after the death of Saul, and definitely after the resplendent reign of Solomon (973-933). The northern Kingdom, that of Israel, lasted under nine dynasties and nineteen sovereigns until it was com­ pletely overthrown by the Assyrians in 721 B.C.E. That of Judah survived under the rule of successive sovereigns of the House of David for another cen­ tury and a half, until 586 B.C.E. Jerusalem was then captured by the Babylonians, a large part of the popu­ lation was deported, the last King was mutilated and carried away into cap­ tivity, the capital utterly destroyed, and all vestiges of independence abol­ ished. This marked the end of what may be termed the First Jewish Common­ wealth, after an existence of certainly seven, and perhaps as many as nine, centuries in various forms—"theocrat­ ic,” "republican” and "monarchical,” as we may term them. For a brief period after 586, a member of the former royal house, named Gedaliah, attempted to recon­ stitute a petty vassal state, with its capital at Mizpah, with Babylonian support and virtually as a Babylonian 45


official. He was assassinated not long afterwards by a patriotic leader who disapproved of his action, and the

experiment ended. It is impossible to include this in our survey of inde­ pendent Jewish commonwealths.

The " Cyrus Declaration" J N 538 B.C.E., Cyrus King of Persia issued what may be termed th^ Cyrus Declaration” recognising Pal­ estine as the Jewish spiritual (if not national) home, and permitting those deported by the Babylonians to return there and reconstitute their ethnic and religious life. A number of them did so, finding men like Zerubbabel, Ezra, Nehemiah, and the High Priest Joshuah to guide their destinies, and col­ laborating with some at least of the survivors of the Old Settlement, who had not left the country. It is im­ portant to note that, contrary to the general impression, the Return did not achieve immediate success, or anything like it. Indeed, the process after the Balfour Declaration twenty-four hun­ dred years later was far more rapid and effective. Large numbers of the exiles preferred to remain in their new homes, as "Babylonians of the Jewish persuasion,” supporting the colonising experiments with money and sending further contingents to re­ inforce them from time to time. A hundred years after the beginning of the process, the royal officer Nehe­ miah found conditions in Palestine religiously unsatisfactory and politically dangerous. It was not until after his valiant efforts, in the second half of the fifth century B.C.E. that it was possible to consider the foundations of the new state secure. But, indeed, the new state was not yet, properly speak­ ing, in being. It was as yet still what may be termed the Mandatory Period. The Jews occupied only a relatively small part of the total area of the 46

country. They enjoyed religious, and some degree of political, autonomy, under the High Priest. But they were in no sense independent. They were under Persian rule, and the country was part of the Persian empire, the High Priest being responsible to a Persian satrap who in turn had to an­ swer to his sovereign. Even when a Jew held a position of local authority as had happened in the case of Nehemiah it was in an unmistakably subordinate capacity. We have not sufficient materials to enable us to determine the constitutional posi­ tion of the country in any detail. But it would appear that its status was roughly comparable with that of the American Colonies before the War of Independence. There was a consider­ able degree of local autonomy. There was generally speaking no interference with religion. There was presumably no objection to organising local mili­ tary forces for strictly local purposes. It was possible to develop an active cultural life and an efficient educa­ tional system. But the authority of an alien ruler was paramount, his repre­ sentatives could always impose a veto on plans and decisions, there was no control of or voice in foreign policy, and there was heavy taxation for the support of the distant imperial govern­ ment. J^F T E R the invasion of Alexander the Great, Macedon took the place of Persia, and the High Priest defer­ entially hastened to do homage to the new world-ruler; many legends clusterJEWISH LIFE


ed around this episode, but they are unanimous in making it clear that there was no talk, thought, or pos­ sibility of independence. When the Macedonian Empire broke up, on Alex­ ander’s death very shortly afterwards, rule over Palestine was disputed be­ tween the Ptolemian kings of Egypt and the Seleucid kings of Syria, and the Jewish authorities obeyed whoever was in control. Although it seems that as a result of the bewildering variety of rule in those years the au­ thority of the High Priest in Jerusalem was strengthened so that he became directly responsible to the superior political authority, whether in Alex­ andria or in Antioch, there is no evi­ dence whatsoever that any attempt was made to assert Jewish independ­ ence. At length, in 168 B.C.E. the reli­ gious persecution of Antiochus Epaphanes drove the more devoted ele­ ment among the Jews to rise in revolt under the Hasmonaean brothers. This was not at the beginning a movement for independence, any more than the American Revolution of the eighteenth century was to be at its early stages. It was originally, like all such move­ ments, ‘'reformist,” struggling against abuses (this time in the religious field) while not repudiating political alle­ giance. ■After the rebels had secured some initial successes, indeed, Epiphanes’ general Lysias decided that it was best to come to terms with them, restored liberty of worship, and permitted the reoccupation of Jeru­ salem and the reconsecration of the Temple: it is this rather than the renewal of political independence that is in fact commemorated in the Chan­ ukah festival which Jews still ob­ serve. Nevertheless, th e successes against the persecutor had engendered August, 1957

a movement for political independence as well, which was fostered by the obvious tokens of disintegration in the Seleucid empire and by the mili­ tary ( and as was later to become ap­ parent, political) genius of the Has­ monaean brothers. In 142/1 B.C.E. Simon, the last survivor of this remarkable group, found himself strong (and his enemies weak)- enough to withdraw the titular allegiance that had hitherto been paid to the successive Syrian rulers and to procure the withdrawal of the Greek garrison from the Acra, the fortress which dominated Jerusalem. In the autumn of the following year, a pop­ ular assembly in the Court of the Temple confirmed him in the offices of High Priest, Prince, and military lead­ er, henceforth to be hereditary in his house. He now began to strike his own coins—the first ever issued by a Jew­ ish state, and considered in that age an attribute of independence.

TT IS from this time, then, that we may consider that the. autonomous Jewish state, brutally destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.E., was at last truly reconstituted, after four centuries of travail: and it is this, the Hasmon­ aean state, that may properly be termed the “Second Jewish Commonwealth.’’ This happy phrase, which has now entered into general currency, is due to the redoubtable Professor Solomon Zeitlin. To the best of my knowledge, however, he nowhere defined the ap­ plication of the term exactly. As a result, it is now sometimes very loosely applied, in general parlance, in a fash­ ion which is wholly indefensible. So far as I can judge, it is best and most accurately applied, as I have said, to the peripd of Hasmonaean hegemony, from 142 B.C.E. onwards. Loosely, it 47


Israel. At the beginning a Theocracy, ruled by members of a house who owed their authority mainly to their position as High Priest, it was subse­ quently converted by them into a Monarchy. But the monarchy lasted for only a relatively short period. In 63 B.C.E. internecine disputes between members of Hasmonaean dynasty led to an appeal for arbitration to the Roman general, Pompey, then in Dam­ ascus. The latter accordingly invaded Palestine, captured Jerusalem, estab­ lished Roman suzerainty, and abolished the Monarchy, while recognising Hyrcanus, one of the two claimants who had appealed to him, as High Priest. Thus, after a interlude of full inde­ pendence which had lasted in one form or the other for just sixty-two years, the Second Jewish Common­ wealth, properly so termed, came to an end.

may be applied to the entire Second Temple period, but in that case the innovation of the term was hardly worth while. But I cannot see how it can logically be applied, as now it is so often, to the period between the Hasmonaean revolt and the fall of Jerusalem in the year 70 C.E., which may have a cultural but has none of the political homogeneity which the term "Commonwealth” implies. The fully independent state, founded as we have described in 142 B.C.E., also knew its periods of stress and danger. It was almost snuffed out in 136, by Antiochus VII. His death in battle shortly afterwards saved the situation. There now began an unpre­ cedented period of expansion which made the national frontiers contermin­ ous with those of the historic land of 48

JJENCEFORTH, the country was for a very long period under Roman rule, more manifest or less. Its outward form varied. At the beginning, the type of constitution which had prevailed in the Greek period was restored, the country enjoying some degree of au­ tonomy under its High Priest (at first, a member of the former dynasty) who was however subject in all matter of importance to the alien authority. At other times, there was a local adminis­ tration responsible to the Proconsul of Syria. Over a long period, as for ex­ ample during the term of office of Pontius Pilate, all authority resided in the hands of the Roman Procurator. There were intervals—under Herod the Great, 37-4 B.C.E., and then under his grandson, Herod Agrippa I., 27-44 C.E.—when the country was nominally a monarchy, or else was divided into various-regions each with its own adJEWISH LIFE


ministration. But whatever the nominal condition of the country from the con­ stitutional point of view, and whether the degree of autonomy was greater or whether it was smaller, the ultimate authority rested with the Romans, and the Roman legionnaries were always present or near-by to suppress any show of independence: a fact which was made very obvious when Herod Agrippa seemed to be about to adopt a less submissive policy, so that on his death his son Herod Agrippa II was allowed to enjoy the royal title merely as a courtesy. One may compare the conditions with those which prevailed in India in the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth. The vari­ ous provinces and areas were in some cases under direct British administra­ tion, in some cases nominally governed by the native Rajahs or Nizams. But it made little difference—the British were the real rulers of the entire coun­

try, and its destinies in major matters were decided in Whitehall. Very simi­ lar was the case in Palestine at this period, whether the Romans exerted their authority nakedly, through a Roman Procurator, or to some extent disguisedly, through a native (or semi­ native) monarch. There was indeed a brief interlude (47-37 B.C.E.) when, at a moment of difficulty, for the Romans, a scion of the Hasmonaean royal house, Antigonus, was installed by the Parthians in Jerusalem as King and High Priest. W e know nothing about the internal affairs of the country at this period, but it is most unlikely that this is to be reckoned a momentary renewal of the independent Monarchy. Antigonus was dependent on the Parthians in just the same way as Herod was dependent on the Romans, and for the Jews of Palestine it was in fact simply a ques­ tion of exchanging one overlord for another.

The State Reborn ■J"HE PERIOD of subjection which we are now considering lasted in one form or another for about 130 years — from the capture of Jeru­ salem by Pompey in 63 B.C.E. to the triumphant ejection of the Ro­ mans in the autumn of 66 C.E. Com­ plete independence was now reasserted for them. It is wholly wrong to con­ sider this simply "the Jewish revolt" —a term which was created by Roman and later copied by Christian histori­ ans, but has subsequently been adopted unfortunately by Jewish writers as well. The armed rising was followed by a magnificient victory in the field. After this the country as a whole was once more organised as an independent August, 1957

state, which—partly owing to the trou­ bled political conditions of the Em­ pire at the time—was able to exert its authority almost throughout the former borders of Palestine and to maintain itself triumphantly for some while. It is not easy to determine precisely what was the political constitution of the new state. It seems as though at the beginning the Priestly party at­ tempted to reassert the old "theocratic" form of government, with the High Priest at its head. But "democratic" tendencies asserted themselves. The general assembly of the people, meet­ ing in the Temple courts, apparently vindicated their own authority. As in 49


all other revolutions, the Jewish Rev­ olution too tended to move further and further left, to become more and more extreme: the political power of the High Priesthood being undermined when it was decided, as a deliberate act of democratic policy, to fill that office by lot, notwithstanding aristocratic op­ position. ^pHE reborn state was however very short-lived. In the spring of 67 the Romans invaded Galilee, which (partly owing to the treachery of the Quisling general in command of the northern armies, the historian Josephus) they were able to reconquer without very great difficulty. Owing to conditions in Rome, the final campaign against Judaea was delayed until the spring of

70, so that in certain areas at least of the southern part of the country the new state was a reality for no insignifi­ cant period. The Jewish Independence which was ended by the capture of Jerusalem on the Ninth of Av in the year 70 had thus existed, not for six centuries as some persons imagine, but for a period of between four and five years: or if we take into account the diehard resistance which continued until 73 at Masadah (in the bastion of Herod’s palace, the ruins of which have re­ cently been rediscovered) for between seven and eight years. It is to this period that (on the analogy of those spoken of above) we may properly give the name of the Third Jewish Commonwealth.

Bar Cochba's Revolt J H E COUNTRY now reverted to much the same constitutional posi­ tion in which it had been before the beginning of the great War, adminis­ tered now by a Roman governor resi­ dent at Caesarea. But to consider the period of Roman rule as uninterrupted henceforth is to underestimate the zeal and fighting spirit of our ancestors, and to overlook one of the heroic chapters of Jewish history. In 132 a fresh revolt broke out, headed by Simeon Bar Cochba, or Bar Cosiba, fresh light on whom is thrown by the recent dis­ coveries and excavations near the Dead Sea. This episode has been consistently underestimated by historians. There was no Josephus to chronicle the events, so that our knowledge of them remains scanty in the extreme. The Romans found no cause for complac­ ence in events in which their military prowess displayed itself in such a bad light, and consistently minimised their 50

importance. The Christian writers fol­ lowed suit, having adopted an antiJewish viewpoint and moreover having established it as a point of doctrinal principle that the Jews had no inde­ pendent political life or military achievement after 70. The Rabbis, having by now taken up a pacifist at­ titude on the whole, objected to this activist interlude. But it seems nevertheless that what took place was at all events compar­ able with the famous and heroic story of 66-70. The Roman garrisons were driven out of the southern part of the country, at least, apparently suffering unprecedented disaster in the field. Coinage of a remarkable technical and artistic level of achievement was struck —obviously a token of autonomous administration, settled conditions and optimistic outlook. An independent state was established, this time it seems JEWISH LIFE


on a monarchical rather than demo-ways very similar to that of the Jews cratic principle. in 66-70, culminating in a heroic but Our authority for this is the fact unsuccessful defence against besieging that the names Simeon, Prince of Israel, armies) lasted for just over three years, and Eleazar, the Priest, appeared on from May, 1*52.7 to August, 1530. On the coins, these clearly being those a larger scale, and a far better known who whether simultaneously or suc­ instance, is the Second Republic in cessively were at the head of the new France, which has left its mark on state. Some of the coins moreover bear constitutional parlance in and regard­ the words For the Deliverance of Jeru­ ing that country. This lasted from salem, making it almost certain that February, 1848 to December, 1852, or the Holy City was recaptured, and ( in four years and nine months. W e there­ conjunction with the reference to the fore have adequate precedent for tak­ Priest on some of them) probable that ing into serious account in our present the Temple worship was restored. survey these short-lived Jewish states, Moreover, the wording Year One, Year which lasted for four and five years Two, shows that the independent, coin­ respectively. issuing state ( and not merely a guerilla After the catastrophic ¿defeat of Bar encampment) continued in being for Cochba, Jewish Palestine settled down some while. again sullenly under the hated Roman The documents recently discovered rule, the weight of authority of the in the Judaean Dead Sea caves throw Rabbis being thrown increasingly on some light on the organisation, the ex­ the side of law and order. The presi­ tent and the effectiveness of the ad­ dents of the Sanhedrin were recog­ ministration even in relatively remote nised as local dignitaries by the parts of the state. All this, taken in Romans, with the title of Patriarch, conjunction, justifies us in attaching and were allowed a certain degree of to the independent Bar Cochba state meaningless state and even some auto­ of 132-5 C.E. a good deal more im­ nomous fiscal and judicial powers. Dis­ portance than is usually the case. If content of course continued, and from the Republic of 66-70 is to be reckoned time to time resulted in open rebel­ the Third, then the Principality of lion—never with anything more than 132-5 is certainly the Fourth, Jewish local and temporary success. Commonwealth. The Jewish population now dwin­ dled, to such an extent that from the ^ H E R E may be some objection to fifth century even the limited local reckoning these two heroic but very and communal autonomy under the brief interludes-—the second especially Patriarchs could be abolished. There — as implying in a serious sense a were sufficient Jews indeed to give revival of Jewish independence and effective aid, led by one Benjamin of a Jewish state. It is perhaps worth­ of Tiberias, when the Persians in­ while therefore to call attention to two close parallels in European historical vaded the country in 614 and momen­ nomenclature. The "Last Florentine tarily ejected the Imperial Roman Republic” (which was set up when forces and representatives. An attempt the Medici were temporarily over­ has recently been made, relying on thrown, and had a record in many some far-fetched ecclesiastical records August, 1957

51


alleging Jewish persecutions, to dem­ onstrate that the Jews were in actual political control of the country for the next few years, until its previous masters reasserted their control under the skillful generalship of Heraclius. The sources hardly justify this picture. But in any case, nothing more than local autonomy can have been in ques­ tion: there could have been no conceivability of anything approaching political independence in the former and accepted sense.

managed to perpetuate itself for a few years (513-20) in Mesopotamia, around Machuza, after a revolt headed by the exilarch Mar Zutra II. Simi­ larly, the Khazar State, which played an important part in East European affairs between the eighth and tenth centuries, was for a time under Jewish rulers, though it is perhaps too much to describe it as a Jewish state. One can assemble some other instances of this type in various parts of the world. But they have no bearing on the pres­ ent discussion, which deals only with periods when an independent Jewish state has existed on the historic soil of Palestine.

JJO W E V E R that may be, this was the last vestige of political con­ sciousness among Jews in Palestine for well over one thousand years. Perhaps in this respect a more active spirit prevailed elsewhere, that is out­ side the country. It has been a favorite exercise of some historians to trace Jewish autonomous experiments in va­ rious parts of the world during the history of the Diaspora; three hundred years ago, Menasseh ben Israel col­ lected a number of instances in his Spes Israelis, at the time of his agita­ tion for the resettlement of the Jews in England, to demonstrate that the political "Hope of Israel” had never died. In most cases, a good deal of imagination or exaggeration is needed to elevate these into exemplifications of actual political independence. It looks as though a sort of inde­ pendent and self-sufficient Jewish state

G a rte n b e rg

PIONEER

y i E MAY thus conclude. The Jewish State, established by the Israel Declaration of Independence on May 15th, 1948, was a revival of the Jewish State which had been overthrown with the capture of Betar and death of Bar Cochba on (according to le­ gend) the Ninth of Av, or August 5, 135. It is the Fifth Commonwealth whose birth our generation has been privileged to witness. The Jewish State had been in abeyance for eighteen hundred and thirteen years.* * (If one decides to omit the two brief re­ assertions o f independence in 6 6 - 7 0 and 132-5 (the “First” and “Second” revolts, as they are commonly termed) the present State of Israel is to be reckoned the third Jewish Commonwealth, revived after 2010 years.)

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Sabbath and Kashruth strictly observed 52

JEWISH LIFE


Great Ideas and Strange Conclusions By EMANUEL FELDMAN

GREAT AGES A N D IDEAS OF THE JEW ISH PEOPLE, by Leo Schwartz, Random House, 515 pp$5.00, 1956. rpH E intelligent Jew of our day will be won o r. lost for Torah not by what he hears from the pulpit or lec­ ture platform, but primarily from what he reads and studies in his Jew­ ish periodicals and books. But almost every new serious publication in the field of Judaica points up the dearth of such works by writers whose out­ look is based on Torah MiSinai. If ninety percent of those who write on Halochah, tradition, responsa, Chasidism, and Torah hold views which are alien to the basic Jewish concept of Torah as the word of G-d, it is obvious that the influence they bring to bear will far outweigh the authentic Torah views. This has been the case in American Jewry. Orthodox Jewish thinkers and schol­ ars—and we have no lack of these— have either been unable or unwilling to enter the ideological battle where it counts heavily. They have been reluc­ tant to write; their Torah has been only baal peh. As a consequence, most major Jewish publications, month after month, carry writings on all the August, 1957

phases of Torah by talented and wellintentioned people whose orientations and ideologies are non-traditional, whose approaches are influenced more by Wellhausen than by Rambam, whose knowledge of Torah is super­ ficial. These articles and books are read and re-read by our people, they be­ come the subjects for lectures, discus­ sions, study groups, they become text­ books in adult courses and are a potent force in the thinking of our intelligent leadership. And all the time the leaders of Torah, those who by training and learning and stature can speak the authoritative word of G-d, remain silent and inarticulate. A CASE in point is the recently published “Great Ages and Ideas of the Jewish People,” sponsored by Hadassah and used by them in their educational groups. An ambitious un­ dertaking, it is an imposing corection of essays on Jewish history and think­ ing by some of the noted scholars of today. Names like Yehezkel Kaufman, Ralph Marcus, Cecil Roth, Salo Baron, among others, indicate the caliber of the writing found here. And while one may doubt the ability of the average Hadassah m other to absorb all of the ideas of these men^the book is stim53


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JEWISH LIFE


ulating reading. The essays are far from being shallow, and the approach throughout is generally a positive one. It is necessary to indicate, however, that though this is an excellent text, it must be read with care and selec­ tion. It abounds in opinions and stater ments which are a derogation of Torah. Especially Is the editor, Leo W. Schwartz, a former student of the Reform Jewish Institute of Religion and a noted anthologist, guilty of this. In his introducton he writes, for ex­ ample, th at the first two parts of the Bible iwlere created by an “anonymous writer who was (it is believed) a refu­ gee. . . . He selected out of numerous chronicles . . . codes . . . prophetic anthologies such material as suited his purpose. . (p. xvii). This is a crude repetition of the mouthings of the now greatly discredited Higher Criticism, and ¡has no place in a general introduc­ tion. Fortunately, the contributors to the rest of the book are a little more perceptive. It is regrettable that the editor should find it necessary to par­ rot the shopworn cliches of the 19th century. It is illuminating, too, that Mr. Schwartz seems to shy away from the use of the word “G-d." In the 14-page introduction, He is mentioned not even once. But amorphous phrases such as “Jewish culture" and “Jewish values" and “cultural tradition"— these are repeated endlessly. This reviewer is not being picayune when he points out that an essay dealing with the entire range of Jewish history and life must take into account the G-d of Judaism, and that a writer who omits Him is in so doing giving a commentary on his entire approach to Judaism. IT* AUFMAN, in his essay on “The Biblical Age," is also guilty of re­ August, 1957

peating an unfounded cliche when he suggests (pp. 61-2) that the Prophets elevated “morality" to a position superior to “ritual." While he admits that ritual and morality are both as­ pects of the Divine command, Kauf­ man makes the common error of read­ ing the prophetic denunciation of sac­ rifice as a condemnation of all ritual. It is obvious, however, th at the neviim were only condemning a ritual that serves G-d without kavcmah, without sincerity and humility and inward­ ness. Never did they denounce ritual per se. It is a misreading of the Bible to label morality as “prophetic Juda­ ism" and ritual as “priestly Judaism." The two were, and are, intertwined and equal. To place one or the other on a different level is to misinterpret Judaism. It is amazing that great scholars have fallen into the snare originally set by Christian theology, and recently baited again by Toynbee, to the effect that Torah merely gave monotheism and prophets morality—to set the stage for the greatest triumph by Christian­ ity. The book abounds with Toynbeeisms—the broad generalization predi­ cated on isolated facts ; the assumption of facts on the" basis of the author’s conjecture as to the probabilities (in the teeth of traditionally reported facts, which by some tacit convention of historians are deemed false until' proven otherwise), and the erection of mountains of conclusions upon these “probable" facts. In discussing the establishment of Yavneh by R. Johanan ben Zakkai, Gerson D. Cohen says it i$ : “. . . of course, more of a parable of Jewish survival and faith than a record of historical fact. Rabbi Johanan undoubtedly defected to the 55


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JEWISH LIFE


Romans in despair, and he was in all likelihood, immediately thrown into the Roman internment camp at Jamania. His “academy,” therefore, at first consisted of a group of scholars, discussing their tradition quite unofficially. . . ” (Italics ours) In one breath we have “likelihoods” and in the next breath these likeli­ hoods are established facts. Such logic has been used to question the historicity of Torah, so it should not surprise us that it is now used to undermine belief in the accuracy of the Talmud. Despite these reservations, it is true that this volume is a refreshing change from the mountains of “treasuries” and anthologies which are crowding Jewish libraries. For here we see orig­ inal scholarship at work, with real substance and thought. Of great interest to orthodox Jews is Salo Baron’s section, “The Modern Age,” particularly his paragraphs on

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American Jewish Orthodoxy. Baron shows that the orthodox group is “stronger today . . . than it has been for several decades past,” (p. 376) but he points a challenging finger of guilt at us when he writes of “the general superficialty of Orthodox allegiance.” The neglect of Shabboth, Kashruth, and prayer by so-called orthodox Jews, and their general laxity about Torah, Baron indicates, is “a great problem.” This is an understatement. It is the most serious crisis which our people has ever faced, this lack oiTconviction. It is little consolation that Conserva­ tism is shown in the same essay to suffer from an “indefiniteness of doc­ trine” apd an untenable on-the-fence theology. What Baron does not say is that the lack of real commitment to Torah on the part of the masses of American Jewry is basically due to Jewish ignorance and i l lite r a c y . Where Jews have ceased learning Torah, Am-haaratzuth is the inevita­ ble result. The tacit presuppositions of this book defeat the very purpose for which it is written. Treating Judaism as the subject of a socialogical study or as an ancient primitive faith which evolved under historical pressures will not pro­ duce answers to contemporary prob­ lems. Per contra, it invites every un­ learned boor to offer his formula for future Jewish development. Neither will it win adherents with a sense of committment to a Divinely binding law. Moreover, the reader cannot ac­ quire even the remotest feeling of love and warmth for Jewish life from such an approach, any more than one can acquire an understanding of animal life by dissecting an animal under a microscope. No society can be under­ stood from the inside by studying it from the outside. Judaism cannot be 57


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taught in the third person plural, but in the second person singular or the first person plural. In the traditional way, Judaism taught and still teaches great ideas. But, we never labeled them as such. The study of ideas in a vacuum was the specialty of Greek philosophers. The Torah, the Talmud, the Responsa, and all our great books taught great ideas as appendages to the Mitzvoth. The mitzvoth were the skeleton upon which the living flesh of ideas were hung. The ideas were great because they explained Divinely ordained laws and not because of fortuitous agree­ ment with the philosophy of Dewey or Hegel or Plato. “Great Ages and Ideas” is useful onjy because it illustrates the frigidity and barren intellectualism of Jewish

Heterodoxy when it tries to spell itself out in understandable terms. The thinking reader must be ready to follow the dictum of “Pirke Avos,” in which we are bidden in our studies to tie like a sieve which lets out the dour dust but retains the fine flour. There is much fine flour here to be re­ tained, but it must not be mixed with the dust. Just Published

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The © seal is your guarantee of communallyresponsibly Kashruth supervision and endorsement, conducted as a public service by the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregation of America, UOJCA. All items in this Directory are ©, receive the con­ stant inspection of and are passed upon by the Rabbinical Council of America, Rabbinic body of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations. CONSUMERS ARE CAUTIONED TO:

• Make sure that the © seal is on the label of every food product. • Make sure that the seal shown on the label is the © — beware of imitations ! • 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 supervision and endorsement is exclusively the symbol o f: Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America 305 Broadway, New York 7, N. Y. BEekman 3-2220 August, 1957

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CONDIMENTS, SEASONING © P G O L D 'S HORSERADISH (Gold Pure Foods, Brooklyn, N . Y.) © P V IT A 'S HORSERADISH (Vita Food Prod., Inc., N. Y. C.) H EIN Z Horseradish 57 Sauce Chilli Sauce Hot Dog Relish Barbecue Relish Worcestershire Sauce Tomato Ketchup (H. J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, Pa.) LAW RY'S SEA SO N ED SALT (Lawry's Products, Inc., Los Angeles, Cal.) © P MOTHER'S HORSERADISH (Mother's Food Products, Newark, N. J.) PRIDE OF THE FARM CATSUP (Hunt Foods Inc., Fullerton, Cal.)

63


UOJCA KASHRUTH DIRECTORY CORN PRODUCTS— Bulk O K PEARL C O R N STARCH O K POW D. C O R N STARCH O K W A X Y M A IZ E STARCH O K C O R N SYRUP U N M IXED O K DRI-SWEET C O R N SYRUP SO LIDS (The Hubinger Co., Keokuk, Iowa)

CORN STARCH— Packaged POPS TIGER (The Hubinger Co., Keokuk, Iowa)

COTTAGE CHEESE © P DELW O OD (Middletown Milk & Cream Co., Yonkers, N. Y.)

CRANBERRY SAUCE © P EATMOR © P APRIL O R CH A RDS (MorrisApril Brothers, Bridgeton, N. J.)

DEFOAM ERS • SWIFT DEFOAM ER F-42 & F-42L with © certification only. (Swift & Co., Hammond, Ind.)

DESSERT TOPPING QW tP P TRUE W H IP (Avoset Company, San Francisco, Cal.)

DIETETIC FOODS © P M O T H E R S LOW CALORIE BORSCHT (Mother's Food Products, Newark, N. J.) • SU G A R IN E LIQ UID SWEETENER (The Sugarine Co., Mt. Vernon, III.) • COTT LOW CALORIE SO D A (Cott Beverage Corp., New Haven, Conn.) * © P ZEEZ-TABS (Freeda Pharmaceutical Co., N , Y. C.) • MASTER DIETETIC HOL-RY (Zinsmaster Hol-Ry Co., Minneapolis, Minn).

DETERGENTS (See also■ Dishwashing Detergents) • ALL (Monsanto Chemical Co., St. Louis, Mo.)

GLIM • • • * •

64

(B. T. Babbit Inc., New York, N. Y.) AD FAB KIR KM AN K IR KM A N BLUE

* SUPER SU D S BLUE * LIQ UID VEL * VEL (Colgate-Palmolive Co., Jersey City, N. J.) * A M E R IC A N FAMILY ■ • CHEER * • DASH * DREFT * L IQ U ID DREFT JOY * OXYDOL * TIDE * • BLUE DOT DUZ * BIZ BLUE LIQUID (The Procter & Gamble Co., Cincinnati, Ohio) * TREND * LIQ UID TREND (Purex Corp. Ltd., South Gate, Calif.) * LESTOIL (Adell Chemical Co., Holyoke, Mass.) * • ASSO CIA TED (Associated Food Stores, Inc., Jamaica, N. Y.) * • FAIR MART ALL PURPOSE DETERGENT (Michael's Fair Mart, Brooklyn, N. Y.) * • W A LD BA U M 'S DETERGENT (Waldba urn's, Inc., Brooklyn, N. Y.) * ELM FARM ALL PURPOSE DETERGENT (Elm Farm Foods, Boston, Mass.) * KEY DETERGENT (Key Foods, Brooklyn, N. Y.)

DIAPER WASHING & DEODORANTS * DIAPER SWEET (Bu*Tay Prod., Ltd., Los Angeles, Cal.)

DISHWASHING MACHINE DETERGENTS (See also Detergents) DISH -W ASH ER ALL (Monsanto Chemical Co., St. Louis, Mo.) * FIN ISH (Economic Laboratory, Inc., St. Paul, Minn.) * C A SC A D E (The Procter & Gamble Co., Cincinnati, Ohio)

*•

DRESSINGS GARBER'S M IS R O C H I SALAD D RESSIN G (Garber's Eagle Oil Corp., B'klyn, N. Y.) H E IN Z FRENCH D R ESSIN G (H. J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, Pa.)

JEWISH LIFE


UOJCA KASHRUTH DIRECTORY Dressings (Cont'd) M OTHER'S Salad Dressing © P Mayonnaise (Mother'st Food Products, Newark, N. J.) W ISH-BON E ITALIAN SALAD D RESSIN G (K. C . Wishbone Salad Dressing Co., Kansas City, Mo.) * TRIM SALAD D R E SSIN G * TRIM CHEF D R E SSIN G (Trim Food, Philadelphia, Pa.)

* © P M O D ER N RECIPE GEFILTE FISH (Adlers Food Packing Co., Bklyn, N. Y.)

FLAVORS * © P MERORY FLAVORS, INC. (Clifton, N. J.)

FLAVOR IMPROVER ACCENT (Ac'cent International, Chicago, III.) * © P GREAT WESTERN M O N O S O D IU M GLUTAMATE (M SG ) (The Great Western Sugar Co., Denver, Colo.)

FOOD PACKAGES © P CARE (New York, D E M IN G 'S SA L M O N (Doming & Gould Co., Bellingham, Wash.) EATWELL TU N A (Star-Kist Foods, Inc., Terminal Island, Cal.) © P MOTHER'S GEFILTE FISH (Mother's Food Products, Newark, N. J .| ROYAL S N A C K Cream Herring Matjes Fillets Spiced Herring Lunch Herring Herring Cocktail Tidbits Salmon (in wine sauce) (Marine Foods, Detroit, Mich.) STAR-KIST Tuna Egg Noodles & Tuna Dinner (Star-Kist Foods, Inc., Terminal Island, Cal.) VITA— with © label only * Bismarck Herring * Lunch Herring * Cream Fillets * Party Snacks * Cocktail Herring Fillets * Herring in wine sauce * Spiced Anchovies * Pickled Salmon * Whitefish Roe Caviar * Salmon Roe Caviar * Anchovy Paste (Vita Food Products, Inc., N. Y. C.)

August, 1957

N.Y.)

FOOD FREEZER PLAN YITZCH O K GO LDBERG & S O N S (New York, N. Y.)

y fê Î J È P

FROZEN FOODS

* NIFTY FROZEN WAFFLES (Nifty Food Corp., Brockport, N. Y.)

* LADY ILENE FROZEN CAKES (Lady llene Inc., Brockport, N. Y.) M ILA D Y'S Blintzes (blueberry, cherry, cheese, potato— all are milchig) Waffles (Milady Food Prod., Brooklyn, N .Y .) © P MOTHER'S FROZEN GEFILTE FISH (Mother's Food Prod, Newark, N. J.)

* KARMEL KOSHER C H ICK EN PIE * KARMEL KOSHER BEEF PIE (Karmel Kosher Prod., N. Y.) * SU N K IST LEM ON CONCENTRATE * EXC H A N G E LEM ON CONCENTRATE * CAL-GROVE LEM ON CONCENTRATE * C A LE M O N LEM ON CONCENTRATE (Exchange Lemon Prod. Co., Corona, Cal.)

65


UOJCA KASHRUTH DIRECTORY Frozen Foods (Cont'd) * SU NK IST FROZEN CONCENTRATED O R A N G E JUICE (Exchange Orange Prod., Ontario, Cat.)

FRUIT (Dried)— bulk only © F C A L IF O R N IA P A C K IN G CORP. (San Francisco, Cal.)

FRUITS—-Packaged DROMEDARY Fruits dnd Peels Moist Coconut Shredded Coconut (The Dromedary Co., N. Y. C.) M U SSE L M A N 'S 1 Cherries Sliced Apples (C. H. Musselman Co., Biglerville, Pa.)

BRIGHT SAIL (A & P Food Stores, N. Y.) BRILLO CLEANSER BRILLO SO A P PADS (Brillo Mfg. Co., Brooklyn, N. Y.) C A M E O COPPER CLEANER BAB-O BABBITT'S CLEANSER G L IM (B. T. Babbitt Co., N. Y. C.) DURA SO A P FILLED PADS (Durawool, Inc., Queens Village, N. Y.) | • COM ET • SPIC & SP AN (The Procter & Gamble Co., Cincinnati, Ohio)

* • G EO RG E (Bu-tay Prod., Ltd., Los Angeles, Cal.)

GLYCERIDES * DISTILLED M O N O G L Y C E R ID E EMULSIFIER— with © label only (Distillation Products Industries, Division Eastman Kodak Co., Rochester, N. Y.) * A LD O 33K M O N O -D IG LY C E R ID E — with © label only. (Glyco Prod. Co., Inc. N. Y. C.)

GLYCERINE— Synthetic SHELL SYNTHETIC GLYCERINE (Shell Chemical Corp., N. Y. C.)

• LIQ UID TREND • NEW , BLUE DUTCH CLEANSER • TREND (Purex Corp., Ltd., South Gate, Cal.) M Y PAL (Pal Products Co., Brooklyn, N. Y.) SO ILAX (Economics Laboratory, Inc., St. Paul, Minn.) • SPRITE (Sinclair Mfg. Co., Toledo, Ohio)

HONEY ® P GARBER'S M IS R O C H I (Garber Eagle O il Corp., B'lclyn, N .

ICE CREAM, SHERBET

Y.J

HOUSEHOLD CLEANSERS (See also Scouring Powders, Detergents and Dishwdshing Detergents)

All items listed in this Directory bear the ©

© P BARTON'S B O N B O N N IER E (Barton's Candy Corp., Brooklyn, N. Y.) C O ST A 'S FRENCH ICE CREAM (Costa's Ice Cream Co., Woodbridge, N. J.) seal.

Items listed © P are kosher for Passover when bearing this or any other UO JCA Passover hechsher on the label. Items listed 9 are kosher for Passover without Passover hechsher on the label. * indicates new ©

66

endorsement.

JEWISH LIFE


UOJCA KASHRUTH DIRECTORY INDUSTRIAL CLEANSERS ARCTIC SYNTEX M BEADS * LOW FO A M DETERGENT (Colgafe-Palmolive Co., Jersey City, N. J.) IN STITUTIO N X O RVUS EXTRA GRANULES ORVUS HY-TEMP GRANULES ORVUS NEUTRAL GRANULES CREAM SU DS (The Procter & Gamble Co., Cincinnati, Ohio) INSTITUTIONAL BAB-O (B. T. Babbitt, Inc., N. Y. C.)

JAMS AND JELLIES

TABLE-KING (milchig) (Miami Margarine Co., Cincinnati, Ohio) MOTHER'S PAREVE (Mother's Food Products, Newark, N. J.) N A T IO N A L M A R G A R IN E SH O RT EN IN G (milchig) (National Yeast Corp., Belleville, N. J.) N E W YORKER (milchig) (Roslyn Distributors, Inc., Middle Village, N. Y.)

MARMALADE * K IN G KELLY O R A N G E M ARM A LAD E (King Kelly Marmalade Co., Bellflower, Cal.)

H E IN Z JELLIES

(H. J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, Pa.) © P BARTON 'S B O N B O N N IE R E (Barton's Candy Corp., Brooklyn, N. Y.)

JUICES H EIN Z TOM ATO JUICE (H. J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, Pa.) M U SSE L M A N 'S Apple Juice Tomato Juice (C. H. Musselman Co., Biglerville, Pa.) * SU NKIST LEM ON JUICE * E X C H A N G E LEM ON JUICE * CAL-GROVE LEM ON JUICE (Exchange Lemon Prod. Co., Corona, Cal.) * SU NK IST FROZEN CONCENTRATED O R A N G E JUICE (Exchange Orange Prod., Ontario, Cal.) * © P VERYFINE APPLE JUICE * © P VERYFINE PRUNE JUICE (New England Apple Prod., Littleton, Mass.)

MARSHMALLOW TOPPING M AR SH M ALLO W FLUFF (Durkee-Mower, Inc., East Lynn, Mass.) * PEN N AN T M ARSH M AL-O (Union Starch & Refining Co., Columbus, Ind.)

MAYONNAISE * © P MOTHER'S (Mother's Food Products, Newark, N. J.)

MEATS AND PROVISIONS

©P ©P ©P ©P ©P ©P ©P

MARGARINE CRYSTAL BRAND (milchig) (L. Da itch & Co., N. Y. C.) DILBRO (milchig) (Dilbert Brothers, Inc., Glendale, N. Y.) M AR-PAV (pareve) M IO L O (milchig— bulk only) N U -M A lD (milchig)

August, 1957

©P ©P ©P ©P ©P ©P

YITZCH OK GO LDBERG'S Meats Corned Beef Tongue Frozen Meats Salami Frankfurters Pastrami (I. Goldberg & Sons, 220 Delancey St., N. Y. C.) MT> S IN A I Bologna Corned Beef Frankfurters Pastrami Salami Tongue (Oxford Provisions, Inc., 135 Walton St., Bklyn., N. Y.)

67


UOJCA KASHRUTH DIRECTORY MEAT TENDERIZER AD O LPH 'S

(Adolph's Food Products, Burbank, Cal.)

M A Z O LA (Corn Products Refining Corp., N. Y. C.)

MEDICINES * © P EFFERVESCENT M IN ERA L SALT * © P D IG E ST IO N A N T A C ID C O M P O U N D (Freeda Pharmaceuticals Co., N. Y. C.)

MELBA TOAST

* * * * *

S K IN N E R 'S (Skinner Mfg. Co., Omaha, Neb.)

Corp.,

West

[Sophie Tucker Foods, Inc., Baltimore, Md.)

* STAR-KIST E G G N O O D LES & TU N A D IN N E R (Star-Kist Foods, Inc., Terminal Island, Cal.)

New

MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE CMSG) ACCENT (Ac'cent International, Chicago, ill.) * ® P GREAT WESTERN M S G (Great Western Sugar Co., Denver, Colo.)

MUSTARD H EIN Z Brown Mustard Yellow Mustard (H. J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, Pa.)

NOODLES & MACARONI PRODUCTS * BUITO NI M A C A R O N I PRODUCTS (Buitoni Foods Corp., So. Hackensack, N. J.) GREENFIELD E G G N O O DLES (Golden Cracknel & Specialty Co., Detroit, Mich.) H E IN Z M A C A R O N I CREOLE (H. J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, Pa.)

68

© P NUTOLA (N ufóla Products Co., B'klyn, N. Y.)

* SO PH IE TUCKER

* OLD L O N D O N MELBA TOAST * OLD L O N D O N MELBA R O U N D S * LADY MELBA (King Kone Corp„ N. Y., N. Y.) DEVO NSH EER Melba Toasts Melba Rounds Bar Bits Q'Bits Q'Bits Croutons (Devonsheer Melba N. J.)

P E N N SY L V A N IA DUTCH E G G N O O DLES (Megs Macaroni Prod., Harrisburg, Pa.)

© P GARBER'S M IS R O C H I (Garber Eagle Oil Corp., B'klyn, N. Y.) © P PURITAN OIL— with © label only (The Procter & Gamble Co., Cincinnati, Ohio)

OVEN CLEANERS * • HEP SAFE-T-SPRAY * • BESTWAY (Bostwick Labs, Bridgeport, Conn.)

PEANUT BUTTER BEECH-NUT (Beech-Nut Life Saver, Inc., Canaioharie, N. Y.)

PIE FILLINGS M U SS E L M A N 'S (C. H. Musselman Co., Biglerville, Pa.)

POPCORN TV TIME PO PC O RN (TV Time Foods, Inc., Chicago, III.)

JEWISH LIFE


UOJCA KASHRUTH DIRECTORY

KOBEY'S Potato Chips Shoestring Potatoes (Tasty Foods Inc., Denver, Col.) M O N A R C H SH O EST RIN G POTATOES (Monarch Finer Foods, Division of Con­ solidated Foods Corp., Chicago, III.) SU N G LO Potato Chips Shoestring Potatoes (Tasty Foods, Inc., Denver, Col.) @ P W ARNER'S POTATO CH IPS (East Coast Food Corp., Riverhead, N. Y.

POULTRY— Frozen • YITZCHÖK GOLDBERG & S O N S (New York, N. Y.) • M ENORAH * • NER (Menorah Products, Inc., Boston, Mass.)

Pickled Onions Sweet Relish Sweet Cucumber Disks Sweet Cucumber Sticks Sweet Dill Strips Polish Style Dill Pickles Barbecue Relish Hamburger Relish Candied Krink-L-Chips 'Garlic flavored Spiced Pickles Chips (H. J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, Pa.) DOLLY M A D IS O N

(H. W. Madison Co., Cleveland, Ohio) MOTHER'S

®p Pickles ©p Gherkins ©p Sweet Red Peppers ©p Pimentoes ® p Pickled Tomatoes ® p Pickled Country Cabbage Hot Cherry Peppers Pickled Country Deluxe Spears (Mother's Food Products, Newark, N. J.) C A RO LIN A BEAUTY LITTLE SISTER W A Y PACK PLAYMATES LITTLE REBEL M O U N T OLIVE PICK OF C A RO LIN A M O P IC O (Mount Olive Pickle Co., Mt. Olive, N. C.)

PREPARED SALADS M OTHER'S Cucumber Salad Potato Salad (Mother's Food Products, Newark, N. J.) VITA— with (0) label only * Tuna Salad * Spring Garden Salad * Herring Salad (Vita Food Prod., Inc., N. Y. C.)

RELISHES PICKLES, ETC. H EIN Z Pickles Dill Gherkins Dill Sandwich Chips India Relish Hot Dog Relish

August, 1957

SILVER LANE Pickles Sauerkraut (Silver Lane Pickle Co., East Hartford, Conn.) VITA Pickles Relish Gherkins * Peppers Pimentoes Onions * Kosher Chips * Cauliflower * Sweet Watermelon Rind * Spanish Olives (Vita Food Products, Inc., N. Y. C.) *

69


5

UOJCA KASHRUTH DIRECTORY

< >

Relishes (Cont'd)

SCOURING POWDER

* L'ART Sweet Cauliflower & Onions * L'ART Sweet Relish * M AN H AT TA N Sweet Pickles * M A D IS O N PICKLES (Green Bay Food Co., Greenbay Wise.)

RESORTS

(See also Household Cleaners, Detergents and Dishwashing Detergents) BAB-Ó (with Bleach) • BABBITT'S CLEANSER C A M E O CLEANSER

© P PINE V IE W HOTEL

(Fallsburg, N. Y.)

(B. T. Babbitt Co., N. Y. C.)

© P W A S H IN G T O N HOTEL

*•

(Rockaway Park, N. Y.)

COMET

(The Procter & Gamble Co. Cincinnati, Ohio)

© P M O N S E Y PARK HOTEL (Monsey, N. Y.) © P LAUREL PARK HOTEL (So. Fallsburg, N. Y.)

• AJAX BEN HUR (bulk only) • KIR KM ÁN CLEANSER (Colgate-Palmolive Co., Jersey City, N. J.) • GARBER'S M IS R O C H I CLEANSER

RICE

(Garber Eagle Oil Co., New York)

H E IN Z SP A N ISH RICE

(H. J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, Pa.)

KITCHEN KLENZER

(Fitzpatrick Bros., Chicago, III.) NEW , BLUE DUTCH CLEANSER

SALAD OIL

(Purex Corp., Ltd., South Gate, Cal.)

© P PURITAN OIL— with ©

label only

(The Procter & Gamble Co., Cincinnati, Ohio)

SALT • M O R TO N COARSE KOSHER SALT • M O R TO N FINE TABLE SALT • M O R TO N IO D IZED SALT (Morton Salt Co., Chicago, III.) • RED CRO SS FINE TABLE SALT • RED CRO SS IO DIZED SALT • STERLING FINE TABLÉ SALT • STERLING KOSHER COARSE SALT • STERLING IO DIZED SALT

(International Salt Co., Scranton, Pa.)

• LUSTRO P O L ISH IN G POW DER MY PAL • PALCO POLISH POW DER PAL-LO

(Pal Products Co., Brooklyn, N.Y.) • SAIL (A & P Food Stores, N. Y.)

SHORTENING * C R IS C O — with ©

label only

(The Procter & Gamble Co.) © P GARBER'S M IS R O C H I PAREVE FAT

SAUCES

(Garber Eagle Oil Co., Brooklyn, N. Y.)

H EIN Z SAVORY SAUCE

(H. J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, Pa.)

® P NUT-OLA VEGETABLE SH O RT EN IN G (Nut-Ola Fat Prod., Brooklyn, N. Y.)

All items listed in this Directory bear the ©

seal.

Items listed © P are kosher for Passover when bearing this or any other UO JCA Passover hechsher on the label. Items listed • are kosher for Passover without Passover hechsher on the label. * indicates new ©

70

endorsement.

JEWISH LIFE


UOJCA KASHRUTH DIRECTORY SHORTENING— Bulk * FLAKEWHITE— with © label only * PRIMEX— with ® label only * SWEETEX— with © label only * PRIMEX B. & C.— with © label only * GLO RO — with © label only * PURITAN— with © label only * M A R IG O L D — with © label only

(The Procter & Gamble Co., Cincinnati, Ohio) N A T IO N A L M A R G A R IN E SH O R T E N IN G

(National Yeast Corp., Belleville, N. J.) DELMAR M A R G A R IN E SH O R T E N IN G

(Delmar Prod. Corp., Cincinnati, Ohio) * HYDROGENATED VEGETABLE SHORT­ E N IN G — with © label only

(The Humko Co., Memphis, Tenn.)

MOTHER'S © P Borscht Cream Style Borscht Cream Style Schav

(Mother's Food Products, Newark, N. J.)

SOUP MIX NUTOLA Chicken Noodle Soup Mix Noodle Soup Mix

(Nutola Fat Products Co., B'klyn, N. Y.)

SOUR CREAM © P DELW OOD

(Middletown Milk & Cream Co., Yonkers, N. Y.)

* FLAVABEST * A D M IR A T IO N * N ATCO * SUPERCAKE

(Supreme Oil Co., N. Y. C.)

SOAP © P NUTOLA KOSHER SO A P

(Nutola Fat Products Co., B'klyn, N. Y.) © P BRILLO KOSHER SO A P

(Brillo Manufacturing Co., B'klyn, N. Y.) * © P LORI H A N D SO A P

(Freeda Pharmaceutical Co., N. Y. C.)

© P GARBER'S M IS R O C h W

(Garber Eagle Oil Co., Brooklyn, N. Y.) © P GENTRY PAPRIKA— with ©

label only

(Gentry Division of Consolidated Foods Corp., Los Angeles, Cal.) LAWRY'S SEA SO N ED SALT

(Lawry's Products Incs, Los Angeles, Cal.) S E A S O N IN G * C O M P O U N D S — with label only

©

(Wm. J. Stange, E. Paterson, N. J.)

STEARATES G O LD 'S © P Borscht Schav Russel

(Gold Pure Food Prod., B'klyn, N. Y.) H EIN Z Condensed Cream of Mushroom (Dairy) Condensed Cream of Green Pea (Dairy) Condensed Cream of Celery (Dairy) Condensed Gumbo Creole (Dairy) Condensed Cream of Tomato (Dairy) Condensed Vegetarian Vegetable

(H. J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, Pa.) August, 1957

* PLYMOUTH C ALCIU M STEARATE M K— • with © label only (M. W. Parsons-Plymouth, Inc., N. Y.)

SUGAR © P FLO-SWEET LIQUID SU GAR ® P FLO-SWEET GRANULATED SU GAR

(Refined Syrups & Sugars, Inc., Yonkers. N. Y.) * • SU G A R IN E LIQUID SWEETENER

(The Sugarine Co., Mt. Vernon, III.)

SYRUP © P BARTON'S B O N B O N N IER E

(Barton's Candy Corp., Brooklyn, N. Y.) 71


UOJCA KASHRUTH DIRECTORY TZITZITH

VITAMINS (Bulk)

LEON VOGEL

COLLETT-WEEK CO.

(66 Allen Si., N. Y. C.)

(Ossining, N. Y.)

M. W O L O Z IN & CO.

(36 Eldridge St.f N. Y. C.) Z IO N TALIS MFG. CO., INC.

VITAMIN TABLETS

(48 Eldridge St., N. Y. C.) *

VEGETABLES DROM EDARY PIM IEN T O S

(The Dromedary Co., N. Y. C.) * C AVERN M U SH R O O M PRODUCTS (K-B Products Co., Hudson, N. Y.)

VEGETABLES (Dehydrated) © P BA SIC VEGETABLE PROD — with © label only

* * *

KOBEE KOVITE KOVITE M VITALETS PANLEX KO-LIVER HI-KOVITE

(Freeda Agar Prod., N. Y. C J

WATER SOFTENER & BLUING * R A IN DROPS

(Bu-tay Prod., Ltd., Los Angeles, Cal.)

(San Francisco, Cal.) @ P GENTRY, Inc.— with ©

label orfly

(Los Angeles, Cal.)

WINE & LIQUEURS © P HERSH'S KOSHER W IN E S

(Hungarian Grape Products, Inc., N. Y.)

VINEGAR © P GARBER'S M IS R O C H I

(Garber Eagle Oil Co., Brooklyn, N. Y.) H EIN Z Cider M alt Salad Vinegar Tarragon White Rex Amber (H. J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, Pa.) M U SSE L M A N 'S Cider Vinegar

(C. H. Mussulman Co., Biglerville, Pa.)

* © P CARMEL— bearing hechsher of Chief Rabbinate of Israel

(Carmel Wine Co., Inc., N. Y.) * © P RU TM AN'S BRAND (Rutman Wine Co., Cleveland, Ohio) * © P YEHUDA BRAND (Yehuda Wine Co., N. Y. C.) * © P SH O LO M BRAND

(U. S. Wine Co., St. Louis, Mo.) * © P G A N -ED EN BRAND

(U. S. Wine & Liquor Co., Chicago)

ALWAYS LOOK FOR THE

It ’s Y o u r G u a r a n t e e of K a s h r u th 72

JEWISH LIFE


T R Y THESE FAMOUS KOSH E R AND

V E L makes dishes shine without washing or wiping! I STO«»*«5

tWO*"** pool*"5 So Gild »0 Hoads!

M/40

Vel soaks dishes clean. Don't wash, just soak; don't wipe, just rinse. And the hand test proves there’s no “Detergent Bum” to hands with VEL. It's marVELous!

turn

A JA X Cleanser with “Foaming Action Foams as it cleans all types of tile, porcelain surfaces, pots and pans. . . up to twice as easy, twice as fast! Floats dirt and grease right down the drain!

HiWTgJ I

¿SSB.

N ew form ula FAB gives you more active dirt rem over! Milder to hands, new FAB gets the dirt out of EVERYTHING you wash. Wonderful for dishes, too! __

COLGATE-PALMOLIVE COMPANY


T H E Y ’R E ALL K O S H E R Here are some of the many strictly Kosher Heinz Foods -each and every one bearing the © seal of approval of TH E U N IO N OF ORTHODOX JEW ISH CONGRE­ GATIONS OF AM ERICA! Among the Heinz line of Kosher foods, you’ll find six delicious soups, a wide assortm ent of Baby Foods, Heinz, famous Vegetarian Beans and a host of other Heinz Varieties. Next time you’re out shopping, Stock up on these wonderful H e in z K o s h e r F o o d s. Look on the label for the all-im portant © seal! For a complete list of © Heinz Foods, write a postcard or letter to H. J. Heinz Co., P. 0 . Box 28, Dept. D-21, Pittsburgh 30, Pa.

©


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