Roth Hashanah: Happy New Year on Spiritual Plane By DAVID SCHWARTZ (Copyright, 1948, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Inc.) There is a great deal of difference -between Rosh Hashanah and the secular New Year, but one thing may be said for the former. Rosh Hashanah leaves no hang- over. Perhaps you might say that it has a religious hangover, but that is intended and you don't need any cold towels and aspirin for it. On both the secular New Year and Rosh Hasha nah, we greet each other with "Happy New Year," but the old Jews really meant it when they said it and their religion required that they work for it by seeking out their enemies and asking and giving for- giveness at the time. In the synagogue, they might, through prayer, attain forgiveness of their sins against God, but they could obtain forgiveness for their sins against man and the happiness that results from it only by mutual forgiveness. The holiday and the period of the year in which Rosh Hashanah falls seem to coalesce. Rosh Hashanah comes in our Indian summer. The summer lushness is more- subdued, yet for all that, nature seems more beautiful, arrayed in colors of brown and gold than in the splashing and gaudier green of summer. Life is pleasant. It is as though nature itself were preaching a Rosh Hashanah sermon, saying in effect, that truer happiness is to be found in moderateness than in extremes. The long glow of love is better than the fleeting tempest of high passion as cool temperate breezes are better than torrid rays. We children always got our new suit of clothes for Rosh Hashanah. We had to look our best. SigMund Freud, in his analysis of wit and humor, tells one of the Jewish jokes about Rosh Hashanah—how two Jews look at each other at the bath house and sigh: "Well, another year has passed." Even the poorest Jew would go to the bath house to prepare for Rosh Hashanah. Of course, ,everyone goes to the synagogue and there a lot of praying to do on Rosh Hashanah, - but is pleasant to meet people and, besides, you spend so much of your time around the synagogue, talking with everyone that it is like attending a Greeting the New Year Remnant of Italian Jewry 'Comedy Genius' Abe Burrows Wins Fame Renews Consciousness As Entertainers' Favorite 01 World Responsibilities By LEON GUTTERMAN By LEO BERNSTEIN (Copyright, 1948, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Inc.) HOLLYWOOD—He's famous for making the great laughmakers themselves laugh most, at Hollywood's funniest private parties. He's long been the entertain- er's favorite performer, the comedian's funniest comic, the wit's sharpest wit! And for years, Abe Burrows has also been one of radio's great comedy-writers, heading up Duffy's Tavern's stable of scriptwriter and gagsters; writing his sharp-edge, sparkling comed for Joan Davis, Dinah Shore and others. Last summer the Columbia Broadcasting System sat him down to a coast-to-coast microphone, and proved something else about him ... in sound! For Abe is now revealing to millions what the great comedians have always known: that no one can get as many laughs out of a Burrows song as Burrows; no one can get the laughs out of his lines that he himself does. Abe has great faith in the American public, and will argue both loud and long with anyone who pro- fesses to believe that the average American is no smarter than a reasonably bright twelve-year-old. In fact, his most devastating satire is directed at songs, travelogues and other entertainment forms which pro- ceed on the assumption that the average citizen is not overly intelligent. Abe Burrows, is 37, a native New Yorker, a veteran of Hollywood. He majored in Latin at the College of the City of New York and at New York University. He was also a certified accountant, Wall Street clerk, run- ner and board boy, and salesman of maple syrup, wall- paper and clothing labels. Even after he began writing scripts for radio, he continued to sell labels and became known around - Radio Row as "Abel the Label Man"— a name that still sticks! Abe is married, has a wife and two children. His advice to budding satirists: "The difficulty increases in direct proportion to the excellence of the original pro- duct." Abe believes that many a sin of racial bigotry is perpetrated under the guise of humor, and such stuff is strictly out—no matter how big a laugh must be sacrificed. (Copyright, 1948, Jewish Telegraph Agency, Inc.) ROME—The_ emancipation of the Jews began in Italy at the end , of the 19th century. Slowly the ghettos were closed down, and - assimilation of the Italian Jews made great progress. In time not only did they forget the Hebrew language (Yiddish was never known in Italy), but they generally remembered that they were Jews only on the High Holidays, when they went to listen to the synagogue organ render selections from Bach. In Italy there was no anti-Semitism at all. Eco- nomic rivalry did not exist, and there was never place for race discrimination. 'So, in Italy, there was prac- tically no Jewish question until 1939, when Hitler re- minded his friend and colleague Mussolini of his duties as a Fascist. * * * IT IS INTERESTING to note that the revolutionary ideals, as well as the ideals of Zionism, as they lived and grew in the hearts and minds of the masses of Jews in Eastern Europe, did not find a fertile ground in Italian Jewry. Indeed, there were in Italy rabbinical seminaries, Jewish cultural-centers, religious schools and even publishers of Hebrew literature, but it was solely a religious spirit which dominated these institu- tions. Italian Jewry lost 20,000 souls in the last year. That great loss, and the disturbances of the war, had their profound effect, which seemed, however, not to last too long. At the end of the war the presence of the Jewish Brigade in Italy, its successes and the allied victory impressed the Jews. At that time, some Italian Jews immigrated to Palestine, mainly girls going to marry Jewish fiances. Also, before the war, there were already some Jews from Italy who had settled in Palestine. But when the war was over, the effect of all this weakened, and it seemed that Italian Jews forgot that 10,000 co-religion- ists were still living in camps in Italy, with conditions far from ideal. Italian Jews never visit these DP camps. • * * THE MAJORITY of. Italian Jews seem to be quite By I. ZAAC indifferent to the Jewish question, despite the fact that (Copyright, 1948, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Inc.) at the head of -Italian Jewry there are leaders who are * * not only fully conscious of their responsibility to Jewry, DOUBLE-TALK: "You know," said Mrs. Goldenson but also have considerable authority on the great polit- ical stage. In the first place may be mentioned Raf- to her neighbor, Mrs. Farber, "according to the Jewish faello Cantoni, the president" of the society of Italian religion, people should make up and forgive each other Jewish communities. at Rosh Hashanah." Mention must also be made of Professor Prato, "That's right," said Mrs. Farber, "it says so in the Italy's Chief Rabbi, a well-known philosopher and a Siddur." person of international repute. There is also a noted "Yes," said Mrs. Goldenson, "why should we be politician, Terraccini, president of the Italian Constitu- enemies, let's be friends." ent Assembly. "Sure, why not?" said Mrs. Farber, "it's better to * * * AT THE TIME of the proclamation of the Jewish_ be friends than enemies, any time." "So now," said Mrs. Goldenson, "let's be real friends state, a large delegation of prominent Jewish personali- ties visited the Italian President. The President told the and everything you wish me, I wish you." "So, you are starting to fight right over again," delegation during the reception: "Italian Jews have a double task: one, construction; two, reconstruction." snapped Mrs. Farber. * He meant that Italian Jewry had to contribute both to PROGRESSIVE JUDAISM: "Rosh Hashanah, I the construction of Palestine, and to the reconstruction of Italy. know what holiday that is," said Mr. Bixby to Mr. Levy, It. seems that Italian Jews, who were always good "that's the day you eat those white phonograph records patriots of their hospitable country, have taken these --Matzos." "No," said Mr. Levy, "we eat Matzos on Passover." words of their President to heart. "Oh yes," said Mr. Bixby, "on Rosh Hashanah, you The situation seems to be as stated above, but now don't eat anything, you fast." we have occasion to see that the national consciousness "No," said Levy, "that's on Yom Kippur." of Italian Jewry is awakened. We saw it recently in "Oh yes, on Rosh Hashanah," said Bixby, "Jews the fund-raising drives for the defense of Palestine. make a lot of noise and eat those poppy seed cakes." There - are hardly 40,000 Italian Jews, yet it is expected "No," said Levey, "we do that on Purim." that they will contribute more than 200 million lires "Well, what on earth do you do on Rosh Hashanah?" (about $350,000) this year. said Bixby. "On Rosh Hashanah," said Levy, "we blow the THE JEWISH NEWS 10 Shofar." Friday, October 1, 1948 "Well, think of that," said Bixby, "I never knew convention. And the inside of the synagogue has its temptations too—the lover of music can regale him- self. "Even when the gates of Heaven are closed to prayer," said the old Hasidic rabbis, "they are open to song." Jewish music was centered around the synagogue. It is here that the Cantor most nearly approaches the operatic plane. The prayers of Rosh Hashanah are also on a height- ened plane. Alas, many of us do not grasp their wealth, spoken as they are in Hebrew. You may have been moved as the cantor, Hershman, chanted, "Uvchan Tayn Pachdecha" or perhaps you have heard it on a phono- graph record. It is beautiful, but the words recited without song, are beautiful in themselves. "Let Thy awe descend on all the creatures Thou hast fashioned that they may be led to form one , society to do Thy bidding. • • "Let the dominion of arrogance cease among man and all evil disappear as smoke." Rosh Hashanah commemorates the creation of the earth and man. Such a theme naturally stirred the Jewish fancy through the ages. In the Agada, telling of these great deeds, all things become alive. The Torah takes on corporeal form and they tell us that the Torah warned God that unless He were disposed to be forbearing, it were better that, man not be created. God replies: "Am I not known as the long-suffering and merciful?" The words of the alphabet too become flesh, and after the creation of the alphabet, the letter "aleph" is chosen to head the alphabet because of the modesty of that letter. The rams' horn, we are told, is bloWn on Rosh Hashanah to symbolize the ram which was offered as a substitute for the sacrifice of Isaac, in the story of Genesis. It was on Rosh Hashanah, too, we are told, that God heard the plea of the barren Sara for a son and at that time, the lame were made to walk, the deaf to hear and the blind to see. It is in these stories that we find the true spirit of Judaism, better perhaps than in the formal credos, as they stand clad in the raiments of poetry. • To the rabbi, the pulpit of Rosh Hashanah offered the supreme opportunity. The most dramatic stories of the Jewish pulpit are associated with the High Holy Days. We like to recall how the famous Rabbi of Berdichev arose in his pulpit and thundered to God, that unless He, God, bestowed a good year on the Jews, that he, Reb Isaac Leib of Berdichev, would brand the phylacteries which God wore as not "kosher." The old Jews felt so close to God that they indulged in the fancy that God Himself also played and donned phylacteries. They felt so close to their Father in -Heaven that they could even rebuke Him at times as a loving child might on occasion chide his parent. Man, on Rosh Hashanah, beat his breast and con- fessed his sins. Have you ever looked at the translation in English and seen the sins which we confess at this time? They are indeed a formidable host; and what was the greatest of the sins? A midrash offers a parable for the answer. Once upon a time, a King had a son who embarked on evil ways and the tension between father and son grew to such a pitch, that the son left the palace. For many years, friends of the King and his son sustained the son with donations, but in time, these friends died off, and the son even forgot that he was a prince. In order to sustain himself the prince became a shepherd. Many years after, the King; who was Very long-lived, made a journey throughout his kingdom and in accordance with the custom of the times, the people in whatever province he traveled, would send in their requests for favors, which the King would grant or not, as he saw fit. When the King came into the province in which lived his son, he received from the latter a letter in which it was asked that a little shelter might be built for him among his flock, like to those which other shepherds had to shelter them during rains. The King recognized the handwriting of his son and sent for him. "Why did not you make yourself known to me all these years?" asked the King to the son who had forgotten all about his royal paternity. And this, concludes, the Rosh Hashanah moralist, is tilt greatest sin—"that we do not esteem ourselves properly, that we forget that we are all chileren of a great King." o tot /. the JUil y - I 3 Jews had progressed so far as to have a holiday for chauffeurs. HARD TO TRANSLATE: Mr. Cohen was arraigned in court, charged with stealing a bushel of oats. Mr. Cohen had little knowledge of English and the court interpreter was a very literal minded translator. "Ask the defendant," said the Court, "whether he stole the oats." "Mr. Cohen," said the. interpreter, "Hast du geganvet die huber?" "Ich hab geganvet die huber?"' exclaimed the Jew indignantly. "Your Honor," the interpreter said, "this man says: 'I stole the oats.' " , "Ask him," said the Court, "what did he need the oats for?" - "Mr. Cohen, fur vas hat ihr gedarft die huber?" "Auf Kappores," answered Mr. Cohen. "Your Honor," said the interpreter,. "Mr. Cohen said he needed the oats for chickens.' * * OLD RELIABLE: The staple High Holy Day joke, of course, is about the man who approached 'the police- man standing outside of the synagogue on Rosh Hashanah and said to him that while he had no ticket, he wanted to enter to look for a friend and that he would be in a minute. "All right, go in," said the cop, "but God help you, if I catch you praying." • * * , A FAST HORSE: Did you know that there used to be4n English race horse with the name Yom Kippur?. I