Page Two

THE JEWISH NEWS

Conversion of Synagogues Into
Centers Urged at Rabbis' Parley

New CCAR President

Rabbinical Assembly Adopts Resolutions Supporting Jewish
Immigration to Palestine, United States; Rabbi Israel
Goldman Reelected President

NEW YORK (JTA)—A pro-
gram of action to convert the
Conservative Synagogue into a
synagogue-center to combat the
growing tendency of large sec-
' tions of the Jewish population to
regard the synagogue solely as a
house of worship was outlined
here by Rabbi Israel M. Gold-
man of Providence, president of
the Rabbinical Assembly of
America.
In his presidential address to
the Assembly, meeting at the
Jewish Theological Seminary,
Rabbi Goldman said that the
rise of the Jewish center has
weakened the role of the syna-
gogue in the community and has
resulted in a view of Jewish life
as ethnic-cultural in character,
rather than based on Judaism
as a religious faith.

Three Point Program

Rabbi Goldman suggested the
following three-point program to
revitalize the synagogue as a
community institution: Appoint-
ment of a committee to formul-
ate a pronouncement on the cen-
tral position of the synagogue in
American Jewish life, conversion
of the synagogue into a syna-
gogue center through the con-
struction of synagogue buildings
that provide adequate facilities
for meeting the varied needs of

Our Columnists

Other regular columns of The
Jewish News will be found in

this issue as follows:

Boris Smolar's "Between You
and Me," and Arnold Levin's

"Heard in the Lobbies," Page
16.

the Jewish community; expan-
sion of the synagogue staff to in-
clude an executive director, a di-
rector of Jewish education, a di-.
rector of youth and club activi-
ties and a director of social and
recreational programs.
Rabbi Goldman reported that
plans were under way to con-
vene at an unspecified date a
conference of all national rab-
binic and synagogal 'bodies to
discuss ways and meads of in-
suring the unimpeded progreig
of the synagogue. Such a body,
he added, could also study means
of bringing the Jewish chap-
laincy under the aegis of reli-
gious agencies, as is the case
with the Protestant and Catho-
lic churches.

Key to Palestine Issue

He also advocated passage of
the Stratton Bill, which provides
for the entrance of 400,000 DP's
to this country within the next
four years and reiterated the
Assembly's support of Jewish
statehood for Palestine.
The key to the Palestine situa-
tion lies in Washington, and the
United Nations Special Commit-
tee on Palestine is not in a posi-
tion to formulate essential pro-
posals for the solution of the
problem without some real
knowledge of the intentions of
the United States, it was empha-
sized by both Hayim Greenberg,
member of the Jewish Agency
executive, and Dr. Emanuel Neu-
mann, vice-president of the Zion-
ist Organization of America,
addressing the opening session.
Dr. Neumann asserted that
President Truman, Secretary of
State George C. Marshall and
Senator Arthur M. Vandenberg
"have it in their power to ex-
pedite a just and internationally
•
acceptable solution." Mr. Green-
berg called upon the President

Purely Commentary

By PHILIP SLOMOVITZ

'Forgiving Spirit of the Jew?

Here is a paragraph, written nine years ago by one of the most
eminent Christian leaders in the world, which has great bearing on
the present situation affecting Jewry and Palestine:
"I wish I had the forgiving spirit of the Jews. _They set an

example to all the rest of mankihd. They are perfectly right
about it 1-- there is nothing in revenge. But I wish they were
not quite so forgiving and forbearing about the English that
give them the double cross, hang a boy for firing a revolver
and are playing a despicable game to keep the oil pipe line and
the gun bases by truckling to the Arabs and trampling upon the
covenant."

This single paragraph, incorporated in a letter to this Commen-
tator written from Washington, D. C., on Aug. 4, 1938, is an eloquent
expression of resentment by a man who knew the Jews, had lived
with the English, had a passion for justice and fought to have it
enforced.. ,
They are the words of-the late Charles Edward Russell who passed
away five rears ago in his ninetieth year. He was one of the pioneer
organizers of Christian Palestine committees in America. A great
Socialist, he despised the pledge-breaking tactics of British labor
governments of his time. He was a U. S. Consul in England and he
returned to this country with an abhorrence for British divide-and-
rule colonial politics.
Thoroughly applicable to our own day, the statement we have
quoted from the late Mr. Russell's letter is an indication of the un-
changeability of British policies. That which Mr.- Russell found nec-
essary to condemn nine years ago became merely aggravated perf-
idy in 1947.
The result of Britain's perfidy is that Jews have become less for-
giving.

An Apparently Friendly UN Committee-

Anxiously awaiting the results of the activities of the United
Nations Special Committee on Palestine, there is excellent ground
for believing that a friendly group, representing-the 11-nation com-
mittee, is attempting to arrive at a just solution in Palestine.
The appeal for clemency for the condemned Irgunists was de-
cided upon by a 9 to 1 vote—Australia voting against the resolution
and Jugoslavia abstaining out of the conviction that the decision did
, not go far enough. This is in itself an indication that the committee
has no intention of permitting itself to be hamstrung.
Disclosure of what transpired behind closed doors when the Pales-
tine government presented its initial testimony provides even more
interesting proof that the British anti-Zionists will not be able to
get away with anything at the hearings.

It is revealed that Palestine's Chief Secretary Sir Henry
Gurney had tough sledding. The Guatemalan delegate de-
manded to know if the British interpretation of the term "ille-
gal" with reference to Jewish immigration was a violation of
the White Paper or a contravention of the Mandate. The Guate-
malan made it clear that the Mandate provides for free Jewish
immigration to Palestine, the inference being that if there is
anything "illegal" about the present Palestinian situation it is
the White Paper.
Gurney met with indirect rebuffs on two other points: he was
corrected by Dr.' Lisicky, Czech delegate, an encyclopedist, when

the British official stated erroneously that the Arab seaport town of
Jaffa had no Jews. Dr. Lisicky pointed out that Jaffa has two Jewish
wards which were provided with public services by Tel Aviv; and
Gurney also was forced to admit that there is a labor shortage in
Palestine and a marked difference between Jewish and Arab stand-
ards of living.
,
By calling the British bluffs, the UNSCOP is arriving at the truth
in its research work in Palestine.

Friday, July 4, 1947

Reform Rabbis Urge Jews 'Speak
As One Voice' Before the UN

CCAR Convention Asks US Government To Exert Efforts
For Interim Immigration to Palestine; Endorses
Stratton Bill For DP Admission Here

Dr. Abraham J. Feldman, ra • bi
of Congregation Beth Israel,

Hartford, Conn., was elected pres-
ident of the Central Conference

of American Rabbis to succeed
Dr. Abbe Hillel Silver at its 58th
annual convention.

and Mr. Marshall , "to come out
with a clear, unequivocal state-
ment of policy on Palestine, in
the spirit of the many moral
committments already made by
our government."

Open Six Regional Branches

The establishment of six region-
al branches of the Rabbinical As-
sembly of America, organization
of Conservative rabbis, was an-
nounced by Rabbi Segal, execu-
tive vice-president of the assem-
bly.
The move, Rabbi Segal said, is
in\ line with the Assembly's pol-
icy to implement its national
local scale. The
work on a
branches will be opened in Bos-
ton, Hartford, New York, Phila-
delphia, Chicago and Los An-
geles.
The delegates toured the Jew-
ish Museum where they studied
examples of Jewish art with a
view toward the design of the
many new synagogues which are
expected to be built during the
next few years. Dr. Stephen S.
Kayser, curator of the Museum,
and Jacques Lipschitz, pledged
their aid to the rabbis in planning
the new structures.

Backs Stratton Bill

A resolution supporting the
Stratton Bill for the admission
of 100,000 displaced persons to the
U. S. was adopted by the Rab-
binical Assembly at its conclud-
ing session.
Another resolution favors the
establishment of a Jewish home-
land in Palestine and supporting
the demand for free immigration
of Jews to Palestine. Other reso-
lutions urged congregations to
make their institutions syna-
gogue centers and recommended
reactivating the Social Justice
Committee of the Assembly "to
the fullest measure of its respon-
sibility" in dealing with social
problems..
Rabbis Israel M. Goldman of
Providence, R. I., and David
Aronson of Minneapolis, Minn.,
were re-elected president and
vice-president for the coming
year.

Extension of Hebrew
Cultural Activities
Voted by Convention

CINCINNATI, (JTA) — The
23rd annual convention of His-
tadruths Ivrith, organization of
Hebrew writers and educators
in the United States, closed here
with the adoption of resolutions
calling for the extension of He-
brew cultural and educational
activities in this country.
The delegates also decided to
strengthen the 'bonds between
the Jews of America and the
cultural institutions of Palestine
as well as to support cultural
activities in the surviving Jewish
communities of Europe. A three-
man praesidium was elected to
head the organization during the
next year. They are: Samuel J.
Borowlky, Dr. A. Dushkin and
Boris Margolin.
(Bernard Isaacs headed the De-
troit delegation to the conven-
tion. Other Detroiters, at the con-
vention included Solomon Kas-
dan, Morris Nobel, Norman Rut-
tenberg; Miriam Gold, Miriam
Kaplan and Mrs. Julius Ring.)

MONTREAL, (J T A) — The
American Jewish Committee and
the American Jewish Conference
were urged to meet jointly "to
the end that American Jewry and
other groups be united and speak
as one voice for all of Jewry be-
fore the United Nations," in a
resolution adopted here at the
58th annual convention of, the
Central Conference of American
Rabbis, attendea by more than
400 of its 575 members.
The convention also. adopted a
resolution endorsing the Stratton
BM to admit 400,000 displaced
persons to the United States. An-
other resolution urged the Na-
tional Jewish Welfare Board to
set up a Jewish history council,
similar to the Jewish Book Coun-
cil and Jewish Music Council, to
promote a Jewish history week
"devoted to furtherance of the
study of our people and their
ideals."

Urge UNSCOP Visit Europe

The convention resolved to
urge the United Nations Commit-
tee on Palestine "to visit the
European DP camps in the course
of its itinerary," because the
problem of Palestine cannot be
divorced from the problem of
Europe's homeless Jews. The con-
vention deplored "the use of vio-
lence in Palestine as both immor-
al and harmful to the Jewish
cause," but also vigorously con-
demned "the repressive measures
invoked by the British authorities
in Palestine which give rise to
a violence born of desperation."
It urged "free immigration and
colonization in Palestine and im-
mediate revocation of the British
White Paper."
The CCAR convention express-
ed "profound regret" that the
United States Congress failed to
sustain President Truman's veto
of the Taft-Hartley labor legisla-
tion. The rabbis also expressed
opposition to compulsory military
training and endorsed the enact-
ment of Federal FEPC legisla-
tion and -anti-lynching legisla-
tion, and asked the President to
free conscientious objectors still
in jail.
The United States Government
was urged to "exert itself anew
in behalf of interim arrangements
which would make it possible for
a substantial number of displaced
Jews in Europe to go to Palestine

at once, pending the final recom-
mndations of the Assembly of the
United Nations," by Rabbi Abba
Hillel Silver, in his presidential
address opening the convention.
Describing the Palestine situa-
tion as having deteriorated since
last year, Dr. Silver demanded
"decisive" action on the part of
the U. S. to give the United Na-
tions Special Committee on Pal-
estine some idea of its policy on
the Holy Land, "not in order to
exert pressure," but to save the
committee "from the fate of
spending itself in futile abstrac-
tions" and prevent the UN Gen-
eral Assembly "from acguing it-
self into a humiliating impasse."

Oppose •teleaseti Time'
A statement expressing strong

opposition to "released time" by
public schools for religious in-
struction was adopted by the
convention.
The statement emphasized that
"to participate in any form of
cooperation of this type—mild,
or even harmless, as it might
seem—positively means to con-
sent to a compromise on the
principle of separation of church
and state, which may finally
jeopardize the very basis of
American life, for no principle
is more fundamental to the
maintenance of a free demo-
cratic American life than this
principle."
The conference also reaffirmed
its resolution of 1909 declaring
that mixed marriages "are con-
trary to the tradition of Jewish
religion and should therefore be
discouraged by the American
Rabbinate."
This almost unanimous action
was taken after another resolu-
tion, which - would have pro-
hibited under any circumstances
marriages between Jews and un-
converted Gentiles, was barely
defeated by a vote of 74 to 72.
Another resolution said: "The
Central Conference of American
Rabbis considers all sincere ap-
plicants for proselytizing as ac-
ceptable whether or not it is
the intention of the candidate to
marry a Jew." Other action
taken on marriage and conver-
sion included the recommenda-
tion that whenever a civil mar-
riage between Jews has taken
place, it be followed as soon as
possible by a Jewish religious
marriage ceremony.

Strictly Confidential

By PHINEAS J. BIRON

(Copyright, 1947, Seven Arts Feature Syndicate)

•
The Klan Will Ride Again
Eugene Cook, Attorney General of Georgia, is under fire, and
deservedly . . . He dropped three of the four charges against the
Klan—the most important ones, those involving criminal penalties.
. . . The only charge the Klan had to answer referred to its sales of
robes, hoods and other paraphernalia, a practise violating its "be-
nevolent charter" . . . Now that its record is whitewashed the Ku
Klux Klan of Georgia is free to reincorporate, Drew Pearson tells
us . . . Grand Dragon Dr. Samuel Green has already advised his
followers that the KKK will ride again, thanks to the generosity
of Attorney General Cook .
O r was it a political deal?
•
•
•
Miscellany
•
A delegation representing the Women's League for Palestine
will proceed to Eretz Israel this summer, to prepare for the building
of its fourth Pioneer Home for Girls.

Leonard Bernstein, conductor of the New York City Sym-
phony Orchestra, is back from Palestine, where he conducted
nine concerts of the Palestine Philharmonic Orchestra. . He
says that the Jewish Palestinian orchestra is one of the very best
musical organizations in the world today.
Yehudi Menuhin, giving joint recitals with his sister, Hephzibah,

is breaking all box office records in Europe . . . Incidentally, if you
see the movie, "The Magic Bow," and hear the playing of Paganini,
you'll actually be hearing Meuhin, who recorded the Paganini music
for the film.

We recommend to the United Jewish Appeal that it sponsor
a national touring exhibit of Max Band's masterly painting
"Refugee Ship" . .. The facial expression the DPs is this paint-
ing tells the tragedy of European Jewry more =vyingly than
anything we've read or seen.
Maurice Samuel, in Palestine since April, is writing the great

Palestinian novel.
Dr. Weizmann will come to the United States in September,
although the United Jewish Appeal has refused to invite him to
this country.
An award is in order for Sinclair Lewis in recognition of his
most recent novel, "Kingsblood Royal" ... . It strikes a mighty blow
against racial discrimination . . . Its sharp sarcasm and biting irony
will make the bigots squirm and shiver . . . And besides, it's fas-
cinating reading from cover to cover.
The American Jewish Labor Council informs us that it has re-
quested the American Jewish Congress to sit down for a joint con-
ference and thrash out its objections to the Buckley Bill to outlaw
anti-Semitisin.
The Canadian province of Saskatchewan has just passed,
through its Legislative Assembly, on anti-bias law which "prohibits,
without limitation, the right to punlish or display any matter tend-
ing to cause racial or religious discrimination."

