Page Four
Friday, February 13, 1948
THE JEWISH NEWS
As the Editor
Views the News ...
groundwork for
New Judea
Wealth of Information
In ZOA's Latest Issue
3 Distinguished Guests
On Sunday evening, Dr. Jorge Garcia
Granados, Guatemalan Ambassador to the
United States and his country's representa-
tive on the United Nations Special Committee
on Palestine, will address a public meeting
under auspices of the Zionist Organization of
Detroit. This meeting will provide us with
an opportunity to honor. a great UN leader
who was among those responsible for the
decision on Palestine.
*Another distinguished .visitor in Detroit
will be Dr. Leo Baeck, former Chief Rabbi of
Berlin, whose firm stand in opposition to
Nazism, at the risk of his life, placed him in
the front ranks of those who dared defy
Hitler within the German Reich. His visit
here as a participant in the American Jew-
ish Cavalcade of the Union of American He-
brew Congregations will provide an oppor-
tunity for members of Temple Beth El and
Temple Israel, co-sponsors of the dinner in
his honor, to pay deserved honors to an emi-
nent Jewish leader.
Golda Meyerson's visit on Wednesday
should go a long way in inspiring Detroit
Jews in behalf of the forthcoming unprece-
dented Allied Jewish Campaign.
It is a privilege to welcome these three
distinguished leaders to Detroit.
.
Judge Charles C. Simons
Judge Charles C. Simons has earned the
honors to be according him next Friday by
his fellow-citizens, at the dinner of the De-
troit Bar Association on the occasion of his
completion of 25 years of service as Judge
in the Federal Courts.
As Judge Ernest A. O'Brien 'points out' in
the tribute to Judge Simons, appearing in
this issue of The Jewish News, the eminent
jurist has from his early youth shown a na-
tural equipment for judicial thinking. He
possesses, the great gift of being able clearly
to define the' basic elements in our law and
of interpreting it -in the traditional American
fashion. It is no wonder, therefore, that he has
risen to a very high iposition'in the judiciary
and that he has-earned—by dint of hard work
—the esteem of lawyers and judges through-
out the land. -
The honors to be accorded Judge Simons
by the Detroit Bar Association are well de-
served. We join in wishing . him well and in
expressing the hope that he be granted
strength to continue his services to our land
for very many years to , come.
Make-Your Voice Heard
In spite of the gloomy reports coming from
Washington that the State Department's Near
Eastern Division is battling hard to defeat the
UN decision on Palestine, it is doubtful
whether President Truman will be swerved
from his consistent stand in support of the
Jewish position. On the contrary, there is
every reason for believing that the President
will remain firm in his position in support
of a Jewish state.
The necessary thing today is to inform the
President, by post card, letter or wire, of the
anxiety of American Jews and our wish that
our Chief Executive act quickly to provide
arms to the Jews of Palestine for self-defense.
We are confident that the President will act
when he hears from the overwhelming ma-
jority of American Jews.
Make certain, therefore, that YOUR voice
is heard in support of the Jewish position in
Palestine. -
NEWS ITEM: MIN1STRY OF I5 IN FIRST
PROVISIONAL QOVERNMENT IN PALESIINE 11•1
2000 YEARS
Perfidy Continues Its March
Perfidy is on the march in England, in this country, and
in Palestine.
The prize for inhumanity last week went to a member of
the British Parliament who told his colleagues that British
Jews had raised $800,000 "for arming Jews in Palestine," and
he urged therefore that the transfer of the money be halted
and that the funds raised by the Joint Palestine Appeal in -Eng-
land should be frozen and preyented from reaching Palestine.
Rejection of this inhuman appeal by the British govern-
ment in no sense entitles -it to thanks—just as we would re-
fuse to expresi thanks to anyone for a very elementary ad-
herence to duty and to basic law. The mere fact that the
spokesman for the British government gave as his explana-
tion that no action can be taken -to prevent transfer of funds
"under existing legislation" is proof of a lack of concern over
the status of the Palestinian Jewish community.
The British need to be reminded of the very elementary
human right for self-defense. W. K. Kelsey of the Detroit
News said it well when he wrote:
Jews are being killed, and their property destroyed.
Naturally, they are fighting back—and are being told
not to by the British, because they are thus contributing
to disorder! Can you think of greater nonsense than to
tell a man he must not defend himself, even though the
authorities cannot or will not defend him?
Unfortunately, perfidy is not limited to Great Britain.
It has spread to our own shores. Jewish-owned New York
Times has aggravated the situation by .raising the false cry
that .Communists infiltrated into Palestine. "Fantastic and
m ud
untruths" is the description given to these charges
by .V:oshe Shertok. Nevertheless there is reason to believe, in
spite of its denial that it has endorsed the "Red Agent" re-
port, that U. S. State Department officials have given en-
couragement to such rumors.
It is especially,. disturbing that the N. Y. Times should
have been a. party to the spread of false rumors about the
Jewish position in Palestine. The one-sided reporting in the
N. Y. Times—especially its use of photographs intended to
show the "kindness" of Arabs who gave safe conduct to in-
valided Jews from the old walled city of Jerusalem, brought
a rebuke from Mrs. Rose Halprin, president of Hadassah, who
asked the Times these challenging questions: •
Why was no mention made of the Arab blockade?
Why has there been so far no feature exposing the dast-
ardly sniping by Arabs against Jewish medical teams
carrying women in labor, and the wanton murder of
doctors? Why has there been no feature on the heroism
of Jewish doctors and nurses?
As/in the instance of Great Britain, such appeals to reason,
to the N. Y. Times, fall on deaf ears. This, too, is perfidy.
Meanwhile, as the Jewish Agency has charged, the Arab
Jewish telegraphic Ageno. independent Jewish
states
are violating the UN charter by resorting to aggression
Press Service, Seven Arts Feature Syndicate, Palcor
Agency, King Features, Central Press Association.
against Palestinian Jewish settlements. They are preparing
Member American Association of English-Jewish NeWs-
for further aggression and are conspiring against the lives
papers and Michigan Press Association.
Pubiisned every Friday- by The Jewish News Publish ,
ing Co., 2114, Penobscot Bldg., Dctroit,26, Mich., WO. 5-1155. of UN representatives who are about to leave for Palestine as
Subscription. $3 a year; foreign, $4. Club subscription. officials of the UN Implementation Commission. Major re-'
eveey fourth. Friday of the month. to all subscribers to
.Albed Jewish Campaign of Jewish Welfare Federation of sponsibility for this can be charged up to the British author-
Detroit, 40 cents per year.
ities in London and in Jerusalem and to the weakness of the •
Entered as second-class matter Aug. 6. 1942. at Post Of-
fice. Detroit. Mich.. under Act of March 3, 1879.
UN. Unless firm steps are taken we shall be faced with in-
creasing tragedies.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Maurice Aronsson •
Ph*lip Slomovitz
If we are to overcome these collective difficulties, Jews
Fred M. Butzel
Is*ctore Sobeloff
must stand united in the battle for justice. Fortunately, only
Judge Theodore Levin
braham Srere
the Council for Judaism and its British equivalent, the anti-
Maurice H. Schwartz Henry Wineman
Zionist "Jewish Fellowship;" are the only groups that are in-
enrur SLOMOVITZ. Editor
terfering with unity in our ranks, thereby lending comfort
VOL. XII—No. 22
s. FEBRUARY 13, 1948
to our enemies with their anti-Zionist platforms. By remain-
ing united and by being firm in our demands upon the UN,
Sabbath Scriptural Selections
This Sabbath, the fourth day of Adar 1, 5708, the U. S. and Great Britain, we not only shall be doing our
the following Scriptural selections will be read in duty but will, in the end, contribute greatly towards the
our ,syna gogues:
ultimate realization of the dream for the re-establishment of
Pentateuchal portipn—Ex. 25:1-27:19.
the Jewish state.
Prophetical portioA---I Kings 5:26-6:13.
THE. JEWISH NEWS
Member
Palestine Year Book
The third volume of "The Palestine Year Book,s
published by the Zionist Organization of America,
contains such a wealth of information that It
assumes the'role of the best background material
dealing with Zionism and Palestine.
Like the preceding volumes, the latest year-
book was edited 'by Miss Sophie A. Udin. While
it carries material for the year ending Sept. 15,
1947, it is brought up to date by a foreword—
"The Jewish State"—in which Dr. Emanuel Neu-
mann, president of the ZOA, evaluates the sig-
nificance of the Nov. 29 UN decision.
Political, economic, cultural and fund-rais-
ing problems are covered in various sections
of the book, and a special portion is devoted
to a discussion of the Arab issue. The latter
is especially timely. The Arab League, the
influence of Jewish colonization on Arab de-
velopment and Middle-Eastern minority prob-
lems are the three' sub-titled chapters in this
section.
.UNSCOP'S report is fully qdoted and the
speeches before the UN by Dr. A. H. Silver and
Moshe Shertok are incorporated in the political
summary.
There is also a section on the status of DPs,
the position of world Jewry before and after the
war, Youth Aliyah and immigration objectives.
Outstanding world authorities on Zionism
and Palestine contributed to the volume.
David Horowitz's "Palestine's Economic and
Geographic Position" will be found especially
valuable. Histadrut's co-operative economy
is surveyed and the cultural growth of Pales-
tine's Jewish community is fully analyzed.
The directories in this volume should serve as
important guides for Zionist leaders 'and for stu-
dents of current Jewish history. There are lists
of Zionist periodicals and books, the newspapers
and books published in Palestine and scores of
other sets of data.
"The Palestine Year Book" deserves a very
large circulation. It carries just the type of in-
formation which the average Jew desires to have
in the present important period in our history.
Facts You Should Know
Answers to Readers
uestions
Why do the mourners recite the "Kaddish"
for 11 months after the burial of the deceased?
The deceased is judged during the first 12
months following his burial. The pious deeds
performed by the heirs bring to the departed ' one
a quicker and better verdict. The longer duration
of the judgment process proportionately repre-
sents the corresponding lack of virtue in the man.
Hence the ideally righteous would immediately
be granted their heavenly reward while the less
virtuous would be given advantage of the maxi-
mum of 12 months for added virtues accomplished
by their children which would balance the scale
in their favor. One . of the spirited tenets of the
Jewish Faith is that no man is to be regarded by
his fellowmen in the extreme sense of evil. Since
reciting the "Kaddish" for 12 months would indi-
cate that the fullest measure of repentance, etc.,
is necessary to rid him of what might appear as
extreme sin, it was decreed that the "Kaddish"
be said for only 11 months -- giVing each person
that much margin of confidence as to his charaCter
and virtue. On the other hand, requiriic all
mourners, even those of universally recognized
"saints and scholars," to recite the Kaddish for
11 months, represents the equality of all man-
kind. (RE: Shulchan Oruch: Yoreh Deah; Rarflah;
Chapter 376, Art. IV.).
*
*
What meaning does the traditional braid on
Jewish Challah have?
The most popular reason seems to be related
to the fact that the braiding bears a marked
resenblance to a ladder. In the Talmud the
word "sulam" means a "ladder." (Talmud. Babli,
Tractate Sabbath 26a) and a "chain-stitch" (Tal-
mud Babli, Tractdte Moad Kotan 26b) indicating
that the latter (which resembles braiding)
term gains its name from the .fact that it
resembles a ladder. Iii many books we find
mention of the customs of making High Holi-
day Challahs - in the "form of ladders," (proba-
bly 'braided or trimmed with braids.) The reason
for this form is taken from the Midrashic
portion (Midrash Rabbah-Genesis) which claims
that the Lord "makes ladders in heaven" upon
which he "lowers some people' while he rises
others." The High Holidays, during which the
fate of humans is decided upon, is similarly
considered as a "raising and lowering" process
where one man is elevated while another may
be degraded. From this the custom must have
spread and been applied to the Challahs of
every Sabbath—perhaps implying that the arrival
of the Sabbath raises an individual to the loftiest
down again to material considerations.
* * *
When did the Sunday school movement in
America originate?"
The first practical application of the Sunday
school idea in America is credited to Roxbury,
Mass., where in 1674 children are claimed to have
been gathered for Sunday religious instruction.
The movement was sporadic until a Sunday school
"boom" began around 1816 in New York City and
Philadelphia.
* * •
What does Targum mean?
Targum is the Hebrew term for translations
and usually refers to - specific translations of the
Old Testament. The most important of these was
the- Greek translation known as the Septuagint,
or the Targum of the Seventy, so called because
it was executed by a commission of 70 scholars.
,
-