Page Four THE JEWISH NEWS As the Editor Views the News . • A Prayer for the World SOS Call to Detroit Starting on Sunday, an entire week will be - devoted by the Jewish community of Detroit to the SOS (Supplies for Overseas Survivors) Drive for food and clothing for the surviving remnant of our people in Europe. The drive will culminate with a full day's activities in behalf of SOS on Sunday, Dec. 7. Canned goods and warm clothes are needed for the displaced persons in Europe. It is imperative that the response of the Jewish community of Detroit should be as wholehearted as it has been in the past. Every Detroit Jew is obligated to start packing his or her contribution at once and to have the gift for the current SOS effort ready for pick-up on Dec. 7. No one is, exempt from this obligation. Our kinsmen's needs are great, and until they are completely liberated, none of us dares to rest peacefully in the comforts of our American homes. Respond liberally to the SOS drive and help speed the hour of liberation. Freedom versus Disaster Dr. Daniel A. Poling, one of America's most eminent Christian leaders, reveals in his column "Americans All" in the New York Post that he has read a "confidential" state- ment issued by an Arab committee affirm- ing that "the Jew in Palestine is an atheist, that he has no God and Wants none," and emphasizing what should be the solidarity of all who believe in one God—meaning Mohom- medans an& Christians. Pointing out that his column in the Post stands for unity without uniformity—"unity for freedom, brotherhood and world peace" —Dr Poling states that there are atheists among Jews in Palestine just as there are atheists among all faiths in America. "but the leadership of Jewry in Palestine, as in Amer- ica and throughout the world, is profoundly religious, sacrificial, inspired and dynamic." Dr. Poling proceeds to point out that the majority UN plan for Palestine calls for the protection of the Holy Places in Pal- estine, and adds that "to call upon Christians to oppose Jewish aspirations in Palestine be- cause of Jews who are atheists, to charge that the Jewish community in Palestine is atheistic, is as false to freedom and democ- racy as.the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem is." "The part played by the Grand Mufti in the liquidation of 5,000,000 Jews is one answer to the present document," Dr. Poling writes, "Also, -State Dept. records include a signed contract in which Hitler agreed to pay the Grand Mufti 50,000 marks a month to stir up Arabs against the Allies. This is the man who now labors to defeat the United Nations' settlement of the Palestine issue." Dr. Poling's concluding statement is sig- nificant. He declares: "No gentlemen, your document does not support unity. Rather it is a declaration for division and disaster." This great American statement is a sig- nificant contribution to the cause of free- dom for all men. Jews—and all libertarians —owe a' debt of • gratitude to Dr. Poling and the N. Y. Post -for fearless repudiation of bigotry and courageous adherence to the cause of justice. They who fight so consistent- ly in defense of the Jew also will battle for justice for all peoples. THE JEWISH NEWS Member Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Independent Jewish Press Service, Seven Arts Feature Syndicate. Religious News Service, Palcor Agency, King Features, Central Press Association. Member American Association of English-Jewish News- papers and Michigan Press Association. Published every Friday by The Jewish News *Publish- ing Co., 2114 Penobscot Bldg., Detroit 26, Mich., A. 7956. Subscription, $3 a year; foreign, $4. Club subscription, every fourth Friday of the month. to all subscribers to Allied Jewish Campaign of Jewish Welfare Federation of Detroit. 40 cents pei year. Entered' as second-class matter Aug. 6, 1942. at Post Of- Ace. Detroit, Mich., under Act of March 3, 1879. BOARD OF DIRECTORS Maurice Aronsson Philip Slomovitz Fred M. Butzel Isidore Sobeloff • Judge Theodore Levin Abraham Srere Maurice H. Schwartz Henry Wineman mum, SLOMOVITZ, Editor VOL. XII—NO. 11 NOVEMBER 28, 1947 Sabbath Scriptural Selections This Sabbath, the 16th day of Kislev, 5708, the following scriptural selections will be read in our synagogues: Pentateuchal portion—Gen. 32:4-36:43. Prophetical portion—Hos. 12:13-14:10 or 11:7- 12:12 or Obadiah 1:1-21. ( Courtesy Institute for American Igmocracy, ins The Hour of Liberation As this is being written, it is only a matter of days before the UN will take final steps to plan for an independent Jewish state. We are witnessing the rebirth of the Jewish nation. From this point on, the responsibility for Eretz Israel's complete redemption is not for Zionists alone but for all Jewry. We have a great task ahead of us. We must not be found wanting. Libya, Britain and the Jews An appeal by the Jewish communities of Italy to the United Nations in behalf of the Italian request that it be permitted to administer its former North African colony of Libya has international significance. A staff correspondent of the Christian Science Monitor, writing from Rome, provides adequate reasons for the inter- cession of the Italian JeWs. "Apart from the natural patrio- tism of Italian Jews toward a country which has shunned anti- Semitism," the chief reason given is that exactly two years ago the arrival of Arab leaders from Moslem countries "re- sulted in one of the worst anti-Jewish pogroms to occur in Italian North Africa." The four-day massacre took place under the very eyes of the British administrators who, the Monitor correspondent writes, could have stopped it, accord- ing to "universal agreement," by the "smallest show of strength." The Jews of Italy are anxious that Libya shotild not be placed under a Moslem trusteeship, such as Egypt, and that it should not be under irresponsible British control. * * * The situation in Libya has deeper implications. Great Britain's failure in the Middle and Near East, her muddling policies in Moslem countries and in Palestine, have resulted in bloodshed. The frightful Libyan pogrom of 1945 is only one of many examples of maladministration. A precarious situation exists. in Moslem countries, and Jewish lives are insecure. The affirmations of friendship by Arab leaders before the UN and in radio debates have been exposed as insincere attempts to mislead public opinion, and apologists for the Arabs, like Kermit Roosevelt, have, unfor- tunately, placed themselves in the path of progress and the liberation of the dispossessed European Jews. A typical example is the fate of 400 Jews from Morocco, Tunis and Algeria who were prevented by French police from embarking on a vessel destined for Palestine. These Jews did not undertake a perilous journey out of sheer love of adventure. They feel compelled to leave the danger zones of Moslem countries where the Mufti spirit is pursuing a Jew- ish population that has lived - there for more than a thousand years. The 400 Jews whose journey was interrupted were cap- tured at the Guyotville port near Algiers. * * * It is evident that French interference with Jewish im igration efforts is ascribable to British pressure. Foreign Sec- retary Bevin was in France at the time the ill-fated Exodus 1947 was to take off from the French port. Frederick Courtney, a British intelligence agent, was responsible for the shadowing and final capture of the Exodus. He is the evil inspirer of attempts to sabotage visaless Jewish immigra- tion efforts in France. The charges leveled against him that he is acting in matters which belong to diplomatic channels may, at last, lead to his expulsion from France. While British rule in Palestine is nearing its end, the sit- uation in Libya calls for vigilance. Nearly 150 Jews perished in the 1945 pogroth. Therefore all possible precautions must be taken to prevent future massacres. That is why the inter- cession of the Jews of Italy in behalf of their government should be looked upon with sympathy and receive support from UN. F riday, November 28, 1947 `Rabbinic Anthology' Fascinating Collection By 2 Eminent Scholars "A Rabbinic Anthology," selected by Dr. Claude G. Montefiore, the venerable British Re- form Jewish leader, and H. Lowe, Reader in Rab- binics 'at Cambridge University and Fellow of Queens' College, Cambridge, an orthodox author- ity (Macmillan), is not a new book. It was pub- lished several weeks after Dr. Montefiore's death in 1938. But it neverthless is a very good and a most important book—perhaps the best on the subject. Drawing upon rabbinical thought in the eras before and after the advent of Christianity, the book assumes significant authority by virtue of the fact that it was compiled jointly by two extremists in Jewish theological ranks. ' There are about 1,700 excerpts from rabbinic wisdom—incorporated in the book's 900 pages—on a wide variety of subjects. God's love for Israel and Israel's Love for God; The Law, Reward, Merit, Atonement, Prayer, Charity, Poverty, Riches, Asceticism, Peace, Sufferings, Proselytes, Gentiles; The Sab- bath, Man's Repentance and God's Compassion, Hope and Faith, Resurrection and Judgement— these are among the topics quoted from the rabbis. The book assumes a position of true greatness by virtue of the personal views expressed in two introductory essays by the authors. They form a sort of symposium of Jewish religious thinking and in themselves nearly justify the cost of the book. In addition, there are several other essays by the authors and an additional essay on "Rabbinical and Early Christian Ethics" by R. H. Snape. Dr. Montefiore wrote a very scholarly article on The Use of the Adjectives, 'Jewish' and 'Christian' in England." Mr. Loewe wrote on "The Rabbis, Their `Generations' and Their Countries" and "The Dating of Rabbinic Material." There also is ap- pended a list of rabbis, a glossary, lists of editions, Biblical, Greek, Latin and Rabbinic passages used in the text and a general index. Hilldring: Liaison Man With the Jewish Agency rBY BEATRICE HEIMAN (Copyright, 1947, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Inc.) LAKE SUCCESS.—That boom through the United Nations corridor was not an international reverberation. It was genial Maj. Gen. John H. Hilldring, alternate United States delegate on the Palestine committee, emerging for a breather from the windowless, smoke-filled conference room. "How are things going, General?" waiting re- porters called out. The General's bright blue eyes twinkled and he shook his head. "Look at my face when I come out at the end of the meeting." Diplomacy, he was frank to say, was not his forte. He tackled his Palestine assignment at the UN from a professional standpoint and a per- sonal feeling. Hilldring has the soldier's sense of duty to carry through a project to a successful conclusion. As chief of the Civil Affairs Division of Army during the war, working intimately with General Marshall, then chief of staff, Hill- dring came to know, and sympathetically to deal with, the displaced persons problem at first-hand. This led, in turn, to familiarity with the Palestine issue. When he transferred to the State Depart- ment, as Assistant Secretary of State for Oc- cUpied Areas, Hilldring moved closer to problems connected with Palestine. Bluff, hearty and warm-hearted, he took on the grueling job at the UN despite -the state of his health and other personal considerations which earlier prompted him to resign from the govern- ment. At Lake Success, Hilldring played an active and cooperative part in the Palestine deliberations. With' Herschel V. Johnson, American representa- tive on the Palestine committee, the general help- ed to carry through the long, detailed and arduous plan to implement partition. He served under-. standingly and in friendly spirit, as liaison man with the Jewish Agency. Fine Study of Our Holidays Dr. • Samuel Sussman and Abraham Segal are co-authors of "Holy Days and Holidays: The Whys and the How of Sabbath, Festivals, Fast days and Other Occasions During the Jewish Year," pub- lished by Bloch. This small, moderately-priced volume of 100 pages is excellent for use in the home and the school room. In addition to its brief and thorough explana- tions of all Jewish holidays, it contains a chapter on Palestine Days and reviews the various Zionist observances, for the Jewish National Fund in the interest of the Zionist organizations. The work- sheets which follow each chapter encourage the reader and student to pursue further studies on the subject and enable teachers to use the volume as a textbook. Facts You Should Know What is the origin of the name "Fayvel?" This name has a most interesting source of de- velopment. Originally it was "Uri" which comes from the word "Or," the Hebrew word meaning light. The Aramaic translation of light, as found 'in the Targum for the Bible is "Shraga" (e.g. Tar- gum to Psalms 119:105, Proverbs 31:18 where the Hebrew word for light or lamp is translated as "Shraga.") From the Greek there developed the name "Phoebus" which was another name for Apollo the "Sun God" and a poetic appelation for the name "Sun" (which is the source of light.) From this the Eastern-European Jews derived the nickname "Fayvush," for the Hebrew "Uri" or the Aramic "Shraga." "Fayvush" is sometimes called "Fayvel." It is easy to understand from the fore-. going why we sometimes find the name referred to as "Uri-Fayvel" or "Shraga-Fayvel" which is simply a means of combining the nickname with its logical antecedent.