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THE JEWISH CHRONICLE.
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T HE: JEWISH CHRONICLE
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RABBI LEO M. FRANKLIN,
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Entered as second-class matter March 3, 1916, at the Post Office at Detroit,
Mich., under the Act of March 3, 1879
FRIDAY, OCT. 19, 1917
The Postponement of the Congress
The announcement that the Executive Committee of the Ameri-
can Jewish Congress has decided that it is inopportune to hold the
meeting on November 18th, as planned, and that it is, therefore, to be
postponed again, will be welcome news not only to those who have
heretofore opposed the Congress, but as well to many of those- who
have been in the outmost sympathy with it. The men on the Execu-
tive Committee who voted for postponement against the objections of
a few, are men of standing and authority in American Jewry, includ-
ing among 'their number such men as Henry Morgenthau, Louis
Marshall, Dr. Stephen S. Wise, Dr. Samuel Schulman and others of
equal prominence. They realize, like many of those who had set
themselves in opposition to the Congress movement from the begin-
ning, that at a time when the affairs of our nation are in the balance,
it is not fitting to insist upon the recognition of Jewish rights as a
thing by itself. Moreover, these men are wise enough to recognize
what some of us urged at the outset, that the Russian revolution had
practically accomplished what the original sponsors of the Congress
had aimed at, and that, therefore, the proposed meeting in Washing-
ton had lost its raison d'etre. Should the Congress be postponed, as
now seems possible and likely, until the conclusion of the war, it may
be that many of those who most bitterly opposed it, may find them-
selves in sympathy with the holding of a meeting in which all shades
of Jewry shall be represented and which shall discuss the best means
of obtaining for the Jews of the world those rights to which, in com-
mon with their fellow citizens of every land, they are entitled. That
it shall be necessary to urge upon those who sit in authority, the
claims of the Jews to recognition, is by no means beyond doubt. The
service which the Jews are rendering in all the armies of the various
countries is of such high order that only the veriest ingrate among
nations shall close its eyes to it. But should it come to pass that the
rights of the Jews are disregarded, some representative organization
will have to speak to the powers that be in their behalf. It may be
•that the Congress as at present constituted may or may not prove to
be a body sufficiently representative of Jewish opinion to speak for
the Jews. Time alone will tell. In the meantime it is a happy thing
that the opinion of men of wisdom and foresight prevailed in the
Executive Committee of the Congress and that the meeting has, for
the present, at least, been postponed.
The
Appointment
of Justice Brandeis
The appointment by President Wilson of Justice Brandeis to co-
operate with Col. House in studying the situation of the eastern coun-
tries with a view, perhaps, to sit at the peace table with those who
Shall settle the destinies of the nations at the close of the war, is an
honor well deserved and one that any man may covet. The appoint-
ment does credit to the President's discrimination. Yet greatly as we
rejoice with Mr. Brandeis in the fine recognition that has so justly
come to him, we cannot share the raptures of a large portion of our
Jewish press, that Mr. Wilson should have selected a Jew for this
high and important post. We give Mr. Wilson credit for having
chosen Mr. Brandeis on other grounds than his religious affiliations,
and we trust that we are right in believing that the fact that Mr.
Brandeis is a Jew played no part in the appointment. We do not wish
the Jews discriminated against in matters of preferment because of
their Jewish allegiance, and in the name of consistency we cannot
then be glad when, because they are Jews, men are chosen for posi-
tions of honor and authority. To believe that the appointment of
Justice Brandeis was dictated by such consideration would compel us
to regard the President not as a statesman, keen in his discrimination
as to the fitness of men to serve in high positions, but as a mere poli-
tician, alert to fill places at his disposal in such manner as to win the
plaudits of his constituents. The tendency among the Jews to over-
emphasize the . significance to Jewry of an appointmpnt such as this is
indicative of poor taste as well as poor judgment. Let us be glad that
Justice Brandeis has won this high honor and let us believe that he
has received it in virtue of his fitness to fill a high office and because he
is a loyal and devoted American citizen.
Are Our Women. Slackers?
Gratifying word comes from the local Red Cross headquarters
that the work turned in by the Jewish women of Detroit is qualita-
tively and quantitatively equal to the best that is received. Certain
it is, moreover, that a considerable number of the women of our com-
munity are bringing appreciable sacrifices in the rendering of this pa-
triotic service to which every other duty is made secondary. How-
ever, a study of the situation reveals the fact that however generous
the share which our Jewish women are contributing to furnishing
their woman's quota in the great relief work for which the times call,
it is being contributed by it mere handful as compared with the total
numbers who ought to be working and giving.
In saying this we recognize clearly - that our Jewish women are no
more blameworthy in this matter than are the women of other
churches. But this does not excuse them. There are too many women
of all denominations and of all sections of society who are content to
fritter away their time in selfish pursuits which bring no satisfaction
to themselves and no comfort or help to others. It passes our imag-
ination, for instance, how women in times like these can content them-
selves, as some do, to spend several afternoons a week at the card
table or in other farms of pleasurable indulgence while the country
is calling upon them for patriotic service. In all the leading syna-
gogues sewing days for the Red Cross as well as for the local chari-
ties have been established, and while, as has been said, those who
work are working nobly, the workers are far too few. To those who
are content to sit idly by, no other terms may be applied than slack-
ers, and to the women this term applies no less opprobrium than to the
men. This then should be a call to all the Jewish women of the
community. Let them not shirk the task that should be holy to them.
The Jewess should lead in this work of patriotic service as she has led
in so many another noble cause. Not to give up at least a portion of
her time and energies at this time is to prove herself false to the best
traditions of Jewish womanhood.
A Record of Progress
Congregation Shaarey Zedek is to be heartily congratulated upon
the record of progress indicated in the reports of its officers submitted
at its recent annual meeting. Few are the Orthodox congregations in
this land that have as proud a record of achievement as has been at-
tained by this synagogue under the splendid leadership of its minister,
Rabbi A. M. Hershman. This congregation fills a most important
place in the religious life of our community. Consistently true to Or-
thodox tradition and practice, it has yet been mindful of the changed
conditions amid which we live and has wisely looked to the stimula-
tion of the Jewish interests of its young men and its young women.
Housing, as it does, in addition to its own affiliated organizations, the
Young Men's Hebrew Association, this congregation is rendering a
real community service. Its fine growth in membership indicates that
it is sharing in the general prosperity of our city, and that its message
is meeting with that ready response at the hands of the people which
it merits. May it go from strength to strength.