THE JEWISH
Page Four
As the Editor
Views the News -
NEWS
The 'Good' Nazis Abandon Ship
What is the Seder Olam Rabbah? —S. L.
It is the oldest post-exilic chronicle in Hebrew.
It consists of 30 chapters, from Adam to the Bar
Kokhba revolt, but is only detailed to the period
of Alexander the Great. The Talmud contains
passages from this chronicle which show, how-
ever, that it was a more extensive work. The
accepted Hebrew Biblical chronology is based
of the Seder Olam Rabbah.
on the calculations
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How long, is it since the Jews existed as a
—B.
nation in Palestine?
The Kingdom of Israel was destroyed by
Assyria in 722 B. C., and that of Judah by Baby-
lon in 586 B. C., and thereafter the Jews ceased
to exist as a national entity in Palestine. Jewish
nationhood, now being reconstructed, already has
a nucleus of 600,000 Jews in Palestine.
e
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What are "Chatzoth" prayers?—M. N.
Special "Chatzoth" prayers are recited by
Orthodox Jews at midnight (Chatzoth) for the
restoration of Jerusalem and the Temple and for
the return of the Jews to Palestine.
Talmudic Tales
(Bases upon the ancient legends and philosophy found in
the Talmud and folklore of the Jewish people dating back
as far as 3,000 years).
By DAVID MORANTZ
Switzerland and Refugees
Theresianstadt and Switzerland have become important
place-names in Jewish news.
There is a serious controversy over the ethical issues
involved in the rescue effort which resulted in the settle-
Dr. Daniel A. Poling, co-editor of the ment of 1,200 refugees from Theresienstadt in Switzerland
Christian Century, has been among the most
consistent fighters against anti-Semitism. through a "deal" with the Nazis. It may have to be left to
He has pleaded eloquently for justice for subsequent historical events to provide judgment as to the
the Jewish people and has propagated the justice of such a "deal."
cause of a Jewish Palestine through the
But the more distressing news relates to the report from
Christian Council for Palestine and the Switzerland that about 12,000 refugees may have to find a
American Palestine Committee.
haven elsewhere because the country can not accommodate
As the father of one of the first Chap- all of them.
lains to lose their lives in this war, Dr.
Switzerland has been among the most liberal of all the
Poling knows the value of fair-mindedness neutral countries which have welcomed Jews and non-Jews
and justice in dealing with war issues. It who had been forced to leave Nazi-held territories. If the
was therefore most effective that he should Swiss decision regarding the housing of refugees should
have been the man to cite in the New York prove final, it will be a- severe blow to efforts in behalf of
Post the case of a Jewish wife of an army
major who charged that she was being an- rescue activities.
It is sincerely to be hoped that the Swiss statement of
noyed by anti-Semitic hoodlums who smear-
ed swastikas and "J's" on her home while last week will be. modified and that important movement
like the Joint Distribution Agency will exert their influ-
her husband is somewhere in the Pacific.
"Yes," Dr. Poling wrote, "as I read that ence to assure that Switzerland will remain a haven of
letter my color heightened and my head refuge for the oppressed.
went down in shame. Of course, they were
`hoodlums' and 'thoughtless' and all the
other things that I might add, but clearly
they were not the children of Jewish homes.
In the discussions that now are current regarding the
And since I am a Christian, or trying to be, punishment of the Germans for the crimes they had com-
that letter is written to me."
mitted during the past 12 years, it is important that none
If most Christians could be made to feel should be misled by appeals made in some quarters that
as Dr. Poling does, that every manifestation there ought to be a differentiation between "Nazis" and
of bigotry by a Christian is a mark of shame "Germans."
upon their conscience, the disgraceful dis-
The fact remains that while among those of German
play of anti-Semitism, and all phases of in- descent
outside of Germany there has been and there are
justice and intolerance, could be speedily
very many anti-Nazis, all Germans within Germany are
eradicated.
responsible for what had happened to the Jews as a result
of German acceptance of Hitlerism.
A most interesting commentary on the subject came from
Stockholm recently. The report quotes Swedish newspapers
Member of Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Independent-
Jewish Press Service, Seven Arts Feature Syndicate,
as warning against the return of Jews to the Reich.
Religious News Service, Palcor News Agency, Bressler
Cartoon Service. Wide World Photo Service, Acme
*
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Newsphoto Service.
Member American Association of English-Jewish News-
For
example,
Upsala
Nyatidning
expresses pessimism
papers and Michigan Press Association.
over the possibility of re-educating the Germans after Hitler's
Published every Friday by The Jewish News Publish-
ing Co., 2114 Penobscot Bldg., Detroit 26, Mich. Telephone
fall and declares that all those who believe Germans will
RAndolph 7956. Subscription rate, £3 a year; foreign,
*4 a year. Club subscription of one issue a month.
change their outlook when confronted with the Nazi "death
"'published every fourth Friday in the month, to all
factories and mass exterminations will be disappointed."
subscribers to Allied Jewish Campaign of the Jewish
Welfare Federation of Detroit, at 40 cents a club sub-
scription per year.
This newspaper declares that "the method of persecu-
Entered as second-class matter August 6, 1942, at the
tion used by the Nazis against Jews long before the outbreak
Post Office at Detroit, Michigan, under the Act of
March 3, 1879.
of the war were known to the majority of the German
"The English-Jewish newspapers of America have the
people,
but none of them protested."
common objective of rendering a specialized service to
tneir respective communities, to America and to the
Helsingborg
Oeresunds, another Swedish newspaper,
wider American Jewish community-.
"These periodicals have for their common ideal the
states that "the majority of Germans, as a result of the Nazi
further advancement of Jewish journalism, the attain-
anti-Jewish propaganda, will not tolerate the Jews for a
ment of the highest literary and professional standards,
and the maintenance of a militant, fearless approach to
long time, just as Germany's neighbors for a long time will
all Jewish problems.
The fulfillment of these ideals is the fundamental and
not tolerate the Germans."
vital task of the Jewish newspaper as a basis for the
*
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growth •.nd enrichment of Jewish life in ilmerica."
•
—Credo of American Association
The
Nazi
propaganda
methods,
resorted to after the
of English-Jewish Newspapers.
declarations by the Big Three, in which the Jews again were
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
MAURICE ARONSSON
PHILIP SLOMOVITZ
singled out for blame for United Nations' policies, prove the
FRED M. BUTZEL
ISIDORE SOBELOFF
THEODORE LEVIN
ABRAHAM SRERE
Swedish contentions.
MAURICE H. SCHWARTZ HENRY WINEMAN
It is important, therefore, that _all democratic nations
PIITLIP SLOMOVITZ, Editor
A. R. BRASCH, Advertising Counsel
should be on guard against Nazi affirmations of repentance,
VOL. 6—NO. 26
MARCH 16, 1945
and that Jews especially should avoid being misled into a
spirit
of over-confidence by possible Nazi "promiseS" to
The Week's Scriptural Selections
This Sabbath, the third day of Nisan, 5705, be good.
It is high time that all should know that Nazi pledges
the following Scriptural selections wil be read
always are made to be broken, and we must not forget that
in our synagogues:
the entire German people has condoned the horrors for
Pentateuchal portion—Lev. 1:1-5:26.
which all Germans must be held to complete account.
Prophetical portion—Is. 43:21 44:23.
Shame of Anti-Semitism
ng Over-Confidence
Avo idi ing
THE JEWISH NEWS
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to • .1 . • •
Facts You Should Know
Answers to Readers'
Questions About Jews
The N.Y. Anti-Bias Bill
Governor Thomas E. Dewey of New York,
upon signing the Ives-Quinn Bill which bars
racial and religious discrimination in em-
ployment in the Empire State, has issued a
statement in which he declared:
"Passage of,-the Ives-Quinn bill to com-
bat racial and religious discrimination in
employment is a historic step. I am happy
indeed that our state has led the entire
nation in this great social advance which
will assure equality of opportunity for all
our people, regardless of race, color, creed
or national origin."
Governor Dewey is right in calling New
York's action "a historic step." Now, with
the states of Massachusetts and New Jersey
already planning the adoption of similar
measures, we may soon hope for Federal
action to outlaw bigotry in this country.
As we have indicated in these columns on
the eve of the adoption of the Ives-Quinn
measure, its emphasis on the need for edu-
cating the people not to tolerate prejudice
and its provisions to lead the nation on such
a path are among the most significant por-
tions of the revolutionary effort being made
to establish justice in employment.
We are on the right road towards assur-
ing an equal opportunity for all, and New
York's Governor and Legislators have earn-
ed the gratitude of the entire nation for
their efforts.
Friday, Mare, 16, 1945
PREPARE
There was once a king who spent all of his time
seeking pleasures, giving no thought to the welfare
of his people.
As the land of his kingdom was very fertile,
there had always been, as lona as he could re-
member, .plenty of food and it b did not occur to
him nor his officers to lay up supplies, or prepare
for a possible famine.
Finally, one year, for lack of rain, there was no
crop and famine threatened the land.
"Why should I worry?" boasted the king.
"Mighty hunter that I am, I can always find plenty
of game to supply me with food."
However, he was soon to learn that the famine
likewise affected the supply of animals available
for his hunting. The vegetation upon which they
had fed, being parched and withered by the ex-
treme heat, they died off in large numbers.
Before long there was no more game to be found
in his kingdom as they had all died for lack of
food.
Then he decided to try ,lie hunting in the land
on the other side of the mountains that bordered
his country.
Gathering about him a company of his best
hunters they crossed the mountains and came to
a beautiful and fruitful land but what seemed .
most strange to them was the fact that there was
no sign of habitation.
For days they searched for some indication but
It seemed
neither man or beast could be .
as though the entire land had been deserted.
Finally they came to a huge castle surrounded by
a high wall which was covered by thick tangled
masses of vines and weeds, apparently the wild
and uncultivated growth of centuries.
This thick vegetation concealed the entrance.
After days of searching, they discovered a secret
gate and thereon they found inscribed the fol-
lowing:
"We lived in comfort and luxury for many years
but failed to prepare for the future. When the
famine came, we were unprepared and therefore
we died, leaving our remains to the eagles who
will devour our bodies."
The king read this inscription over and over
and finally he said:
"This is verily a lesson to us. In our thoughtless
search for pleasure we have overlooked the im-
portant fact that in times of plenty, we must pre-
pare for times of stress and famine. Come, we
shall return to our land, and take heed that we
do not meet the same fate as this people who
failed to give thought to, and prepare for the
future."
(Copyright 1945, by David Morantz)
For a handsome 195-page, autographed gift volume cos-
taining 128 of these tales and 500 Pearls of Wisdom, send
$1.50 to David Morantz, care of The Jewish News, or
phone PLaza 1048.
Children's Corner
Dear Boys and Girls:
Passover is such a great festival that there is
justification, for devoting the entire month pre-
ceding it to discussing its importance. That is
why today's column and next week's will be used
for Passover material, in addition to the column
in our Passover issue.
Today I am printing some important facts you
should know about Passover as well as a poem
by the late Philip M. Raskin.
A pleasant Sabbath to all.
UNCLE DANIEL
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PASSOVER FACTS
MO-OSCHITTIM is a Hebrew term. for Passover
funds which are voluntarily contributed to pro-
vide for Passover needs of the Jewish poor who
are entitled to extra provisions over and above
the meager relief allowances. There are also
many families not on relief who, but for this
Passover fund, would not be able to observe the
Festival.
HAGGADAH means "story." It is our duty to
tell the story of Passover, particularly to the
children.
FOODS FORBIDDEN ON PASSOVER: Bread,
biscuits, ice-cream, syrups, candies, cereals,
wheat, barley, oats, spelt, rice, peas and beans.
FOODS WHICH NEED A RELIABLE KOSHER
LABEL: Soda water, candies, milk, butter,
cheese.