QETROIT JEWISH CHRONICK and The Legal Chroniclq
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Friday July 20, 1945
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Detroit Jewish Chronicle
and THE LEGAL CHRONICLE
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CHARLES TAUB, Advertising Mgr.
JOSEPH J. CUMMINS, President and Editor
Detroit 26, Michigan
FRIDAY, JULY 20, 1945 (A6 10, 5705)
Vol. 47, No. 29
Jewish Colonization
The Looted Jewish Books
The Freeland League, organized for the
purpose of establishing a Jewish colony
in the Kimberly section of Australia, is
making a strenuous effort to interest Am-
orican subscribers in its program. On the
surface there is nothing objectionable in
the idea of establishing several thousand
homeless, destitute European Jews some-
where outside of the European hell-holes
they now inhabit. From a humanitarian
standpoint the idea is a heart-appealing
one. Its protagonist, Dr. I. N. Steinberg
makes an excellent impression with his
idealism and sincerity of purpose at lun-
cheons for those in the upper income
brackets.
To save a Jewish life is a mitzvah — as
it is to save the life of any human being,
and that there is a certain amount of re-
sponse in the philanthropic hearts of the
Jew to Steinberg's appeal is quite under-
standable, and even laudable.
If Dr. Steinberg were a contemporary
of the Rothschilds who believed in Jew-
ish colonization — and if we were con-
temporaries of that era, we might hail Dr.
Steinberg as another benefactor of the
Jewish people. But neither Dr. Steinberg
nor his Freeland idea of a colony in Aus-
tralia seem to meet the realistic needs of
the Jews today. They are both an ana-
chronism on the Jewish world scene.
Colonization with its sole philanthropic
approach as an answer to the Jewish prob-
lem is just as outmoded as the "soup-
kitchens," the "poor houses," the "let's do
something for the poor Jews on the other
side of the track" attitude of the past cen-
tury. Amelioration of social evils without
amelioration of political sins are mere
court-plasters on cancers, and Dr. Stein-
berg's plan is just one more of these amel-
ioratives that do not cure.
Ideologically such a scheme is impos-
Oble. Politically' and practically, it is im-
possible for. a' very good reason. Neither
the central government of Australia nor
the State government of Kimberly is in
favor of it.
To Zionism Dr. Steinberg's propaganda
offers a great danger. Should he succeed
in his propaganda, and take a large num-
• ber of the pitifully small remnant of Eu-
ropean Jewry to Australia (something
which' by the farthest stretching of our
imagination we cannot conceive),- it will
create an irreparable injury to the cause
of Zionism.
Most of the atrocities committed by the
Germans cannot be repaired. The millions
of mothers, fathers and little children mur-
dered in the death camps cannot be re-
vived. Most of the property destroyed by
, the Nazis will likely, too, not be restored,
although in time there will probably be
some restitution, but there was one species
of property which may be restored in
great part — the Jewish literary treas-
ures.
These will be saved strangely enough,
though the first attacks by the Nazis were
made against books. Before Hitler began
burning people, he burned books.
And the paradox of the saving of Jew-
ish books is all the greater and the strang-
er when we realize that these books were
saved, not that the Nazis wanted to spare
them, not that the Nazis had any lurking
love for Jewish books, but on the con-
trary, that the Nazis hoped to use these
books to help destroy all the more the
Jewish people.
Strictly Confidential
Sidelights on Jewish Affairs
By CHAIM SONNENSTAND
(in the absence abroad of Phineas J. Biron)
NEW FORCES . . .
The Jewish Theological Semi-
nary of America has been mus-
tering "new forces," largely
from the Reform elements in
American Jewry. Not only are
these now well represented on
its board of directors, but its
faculty too now includes men
who formerly served in rabbini-
cal seminaries of the Reform
Jews.
Prof. Shalom Spiegel, who
teaches medieval Hebrew litera-
ture at the Jewish Theological
Seminary, served as professor
and librarian at the Jewish In-
stitute of Religion for quite a
number of years. And Dr.
Abraham Heschel, a refugee
scholar whom the Hebrew Union
College brought to this country,
has now gone over to the fac-
ulty of he Seminary . . . . On
the other hand, rumors are per-
sistent in New York that the
Trustees of that city's Congrega-
tion Emanu-El are considering a
"Conservative" rabbi to fill its
pulpit when and if it becomes
vacant . . . .
Returning to the Jewish Theo-
logical Seminary, a campaign is
now being carried on for it in
cooperation with the United
Synagogue and the Rabbinical
Assembly. According to Dr.
Robert Gordis, the ultimate ob-
jective of this campaign is to
lay the foundations for an
"American Judaism" farsighted
in its contemplation of the fu-
ture. Perhaps you recall that
the term "American' Judaism"
was often used as a synonym for
Reform Judaism in America.
Apparently the leaders of Con-
servative Judaism in this coun-
try are bent upon appropriating
the title for their own use
The Jewish libraries of Europe were
looted and the books sent to Dr. Alfred
Rosenberg's Institute for the Study of
Jews. The Nazis hoped to use the Jewish
books as a weapon to "expose" the Jews.
Fortunately, they were thus saved. Ca-
ches amounting to approximately 1,000,-
000 Jewish volumes were discovered near THE WAR EFFORT . . . .
read a great deal about
Frankfurt by an American Jewish officer, the We
rabbis who have entered the
who, strangely enough, bears the name of armed forces as chaplains. But
Lieutenant Buchman.
there are other rabbis who, while
not eligible for military service,
There can be now scarcely any question have managed to find opportu-_
of returning these books to the institutions nities to' contribute to the na-
and organizations from which they were ion's war effort. Thus, for exam-
ple, the Rev. Simon Cohen, for-
looted. These institutions no longer .exist. merly
of New York's Temple
The proper place for these books is un- Beth-El,
and more recently re-
doubtedly, the Jewish National Library, search director of the Universal
affiliated with the Hebrew University.
Jewish Encyclopedia, has been
building airplane wings for B-
There is a great library already on Mt. 29's. He has been doing this
Scopus. The addition of this great looted work fqr, more than a year and
literary treasure will be a highly valuable a half now • . .
Many Bibles , are ,being dis-
addition.
tributed among the men and
.
Spiritual Kidnapping
Under the auspices of the Chief Rab-
binate of London, a Commission has been
set up to seek to restore to the Jewish fold
the many children who, after being given
The Three Power Conference
shelter in Christian monasteries and other
during the Nazi occupation,
The meeting' of the United Nations at institutions
have
been
"spiritually
The
San Francisco is now followed by the Christian institutions in kidnapped."
large
numbers
of
meeting of the Big Three in Germany. This instances are refusing to return the Jew-
fact makes clear the point that notwith- ish children now, and in Rome alone, it is
standing the "world charter," the realis- said,
1,000 children have been converted
tic fact remains that power is exercised to Christianity.
by those who have the, power.
The Office of the Chief Rabbinate makes
In fact, the charter of the United Na-
tions very frankly conceded this truism it clear "that no one in Israel fails to ap-
by giving the five great powers a dominat- preciate the self-sacrifice and human kind-
ing control in the United Nations, and a ness of those who, at grave risk to them-
selves, saved children from the terrible
vetoing power as against one another.
fate of their parents." Nevertheless, it
All of this boils down to the fact that points out that this does not justify the
the political and diplomatic ways of do- Christian institutions' failure to restore
ing business have not greatly changed de- the children now that the danger is over.
spite the war.
There is no question but that the Lon-
In some respects, as far as specific Jew- don Chief Rabbi is entirely justified in his
ish issues are concerned, this is not an demands. The devout Christian who takes
entirely undesirable thing. Thus, it was a a Jewish child, doubtless in some instanc-
fact that at the San Francisco conference es, feels that he has achieved something
the Jews had no standing as delegates, for his faith by making a convert of a
whereas the Arabs were a power. At a Jewish child, but the intelligent Christian
diplomatic conference at which the Big will fully agree with the Chief Rabbi.
Powers are represented it would seem Forced conversions, conversions of chil-
that the Jewish demands may have a dren, can scarcely be counted gains.
fairer hearing.
A faith can only take pride in the con-
Whether the Palestine question is to be verts which it makes in the free and open
taken up at the meeting of the Big Three forum of argumentation. The intelligent
is not yet known, but it is not unlikely Christian, we believe, will not seek to
that it will be broached, though perhaps make converts in any other way. The very
not too much may be expected right now kindness of the good people who saved
when so many problems of more im- the children during the Hitler crisis be-
mediate pressure to the great nations comes questionable if they now fail to
i return the children to the Jewish fold.
press for solution.
Ben
Berl
Not
women 'in the armed forces. The
story goes that some of these Bi-
bles were made • availiible -as a
result of the practice of liquor
wholesalers who forced retailers
to purchase copies of the Good
Book at $16.50 a dozen in order
to be permitted to buy whiskey.
We wonder whether those Bibles
are Catholic, Protesant or Jew-
i sh
. Incidentally, the Na-
tional Jewish Welfare Board has
been distributing many thou-
sands of Bibles among the
armed forces without resorting
to such questionable methods of
paying for them . . . .
QUESTIONS . . .
The Hillel Foundation is func-
tioning on the campuses of the
several municipally owned col-
leges in Greater New York, and
doing a grand job there. But
why doesn't Hillel extend its
very good work to benefit the
thousands of Jewish students at
private colleges such as Colum-
bia and New York University?
Is there any special reason?
FORUM . . . .
New York is to have a new
Jewish institution—a public fo-
rum where Jewish communal
problems, both national and lo-
cal, are to be openly discussed.
This forum is to be established
very soon indeed. And we are
reliably informed that this fo-
rum will be directed by a dis-
tinguished liberal and aggressvie
rabbi who is now the spiritual
leader of a progressive syna-
gogue in Brooklyn . . . .
ABOUT PEOPLE . . . .
Friends, admirers and col-
leagues of Dr. Chaim Tcherno-
witz, formerly rabbi of Odessa
and now professor of Talmud at
the Jewish Institute of Religion,
are planning a gesture of ho-
mage to this distinguished schol-
ar. It will take the form of a
tribute volume of learned essays
on Jewish lore and literature by
eminent scholars and writers
from every part of the world.
Professor Harry A. Wolfson of
Harvard has drawn a deep sigh
of relief now that his two-vol-
ume work on Philo, the founda'
tions of religious philosophy in
Judaisni, Christianity and Islam,
has gone to press. e
t book is
to be issued by the h Harvard
University Press, and is expected
to stimulate a great deal of new
interest in the study of the phil-
osophy of monotheistic religions.
850,000 Jewish
Books Discovered
In Nazi Cache
FRANKFURT ( WNS ) —Three-
quarters of a million volumes
looted from Jewish rabbinical li-
braries in Vilna, Paris and Am-
sterdam have been discovered, so
far, in the small town of Hun-
gen, north of here, and • 100,000
have been found in the "Insti-
tute for Research Into the Jew-
ish Question" in Frankfurt.
Among the nearly 1,000,000
volumes are priceless treasures,
including illuminated manuscripts
and examples of the earliest
printing in Europe.
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