As the Editor Views the News ... Ile Who Betrays . . The London Jewish Chronicle reprints the following striking item from its issue of Aug. 1, 1851 (Ab 3, 5611) : To Further the Development of Israel R3,- 4 ?to Z r o misT 146 1 'Pe- hi -„ s- August co046 - a- A Jewish officer, to curry favor with N poleon, baptised himself. Relying on the privi- leges he fancied he should acquire by em- bracing the religion of the majority of the French, he solicited a. preferment, of which he considered himself certain. But the Emperor, who despised all interested apostasies, admin- istered the following rebuke: "I will give him no promotion whatever; I have no longer con- fidence in Iilm. He who has betrayed his God will not hesitate to betray his country." This story undoubtedly will interest stu- dents of the life and attitudes of Napoleon. But it is more especially interesting to those who are concerned with the problem of loyal- ties to one's people and faith, to family and friends. Napoleon added weight to the view that "once a betrayer always a betrayer." Disloyalty received a jolt from the great Bonaparte. We Mourn 2 Losses World Jewry has lost two great personal- ities in the death, last week, of Rebekah Kohut and Dr. Abraham Shalom Ezekiel yahuda. Mrs. Kohut was one of the very great women of our time. She was an inspiration to two distinguished scholars—her husband, Dr. Alexander Kohut, and her stepson, Dr. George Alexander Kohut. She was an inspir- atiorito the women of America and a leader in Jewish women's ranks. For more than 60 years, this great wom- an, who died at the age of 86, was in the forefront of Jewish activities. It has been pointed out that to her, more than to any other woman of our time, the following, words from Proverbs can rightfully be ap- plied: "Many daughters have done valiently, But thou excellest them all" Prof. Yahuda became internationally fa- mous as a Biblical scholar. His fame, how- ever, extended to other fields, especially his repudiation of unjust claims made by anti- Semites in dealing with problems affecting the Jewish position in countries that were under Spain's influence and in matters in- volving Jewish-Arab relations. A native of Jerusalem, one-time head of the department of Biblical studies and Se- mitic languages at Berlin University, holder of a special chair in Hebrew language and literature at Madrid University, he became an authority on Spanish-Jewish and Arab- Jewish questions. He lectured at Oxford and Cambridge universities in England, the He- brew University in Jerusalem and the Uni- versity of Cairo, and in this country has taught at Yale University and the New School for Social Research. His best known works include "The Ac- curacy of the Bible," a translation of the Book of Daniel from Aramaic into Bibli- cal Hebrew, written when he was a boy of 10; a history of the Arabs before Mahomet, published when he was 16, and scores of oth- er important works. Prof. Yahuda will best be known for his powerful letters to New York and other newspapers in defense of the Jewish position in Israel and in -refutation of anti-Semitic and anti-Zionist utterances by non-Jews. He has earned great tribute from world Jewry and his name will be written indelibly in Jewish history in recognition of his scholar- ship and his fighting spirit which refused to permit libels to pass by unanswered. Basic Cures for Anti-Semitism Milton Steinberg's posthumously - published essays, which have just been issued by Harcourt, Brace & Co. in a new volume, "A Believing Jew," compiled by his widow, Edith A. Steinberg, deserve more than a passing review. They merit serious study in view of the frankness with which they dis- cuss current Jewish issues, the position of the Jew in Ameri- ca and the need for a practical approach to the issues created by anti-Semitism. The eminent scholar, who was called by death 17 months ago at the early age of 46, in his discussion of Judaism on the American scene, expressed sorrow over the fact that our people have become "deficient in indignation" in matters involving our people's dignity. He ascribed as the reason for such a condition that Jews "lack as Jews a sense of worth," that "too many of us Jews have no God and no Torah, no Jewish knowledge and no Jewish practices—only the penal- ties of being Jews." His essays must be read in their totality for an under- standing of this viewpoint. It is important, however, to in- dicate, even in their brevity, his conclusion, in which he as- serts: "We never enjoy Judaism—we only suffer for it and even that not only heroically. The Jew who knows Judaism has his head and heart too full of positive healthful values ever to be invaded by self-contempt. But the Jew who is a hollow shell, a Jewish Zero, a Hebraic cipher, a vacuum, is flooded inevitably with hostile notions about Jews. The anti-Semite convinces him. He comes to doubt his work and to despise Judaism, Jews and even himself." Dr. Steinberg offered a program of action against anti- Semitism. But what concerned him mainly is that Jews should utilize the advantages derived from a knowledge of Judaism which gives them "a high, clear religious faith." "It can supply them with a system of ethical values, per- sonal and social, idealistic and practical at the same time. It can grace their lives with poetic observances and with the treasures of an ancient tradition. It can make them nobler, stronger, better human beings and more valuable citizens." "This," he stated, "is the last and climactic contribution of a living Judaism to the Jew—it delivers him from being a worm; it guarantees that he will be a man." In his indignation over the loss of the Jewish virtue of indignation, Dr. Steinberg proposed seven measures as cures for anti-Semitism: 1. A sustained campaign of education against all forms of group prejudices; 2. the encouragement of friendship and cooperation between Jews and non-Jews; 3. preservation of political democracy; 4. economic justice for all; 5. establishment of Fair Employment and Fair Social Practice codes; 6. promulgation of legislation "which, while protecting legitimate freedom of _expression, would make it a crime to incite hatred against a group because of race, creed, or color; 7. development of increased co-ordination among Jewish civic defense agencies. Rabbi Steinberg, whom many of us considered-"the fore- most Rabbinic figure of his generation"—a tribute paid to him by Maurice Samuel who assisted Mrs. Steinberg in THE JEWISH NEWS editing and rearranging the essays in "A Believing Jew"— believed that this program provides the answer to our prob- Incorporating the Detroit Jewish Chronicle lems. "But in the meantime," he declared, "let us be sure of commencing with issue of July 20,1951 one thing. Whenever anti-Semitism raises its head and we are Member: American Association of English-Jewish News- papers, Michigan Press Association. certain it is the real thing, after every device of reason and Published every Friday by The Jewish News Publishing persuasion has been tried and has failed, then let us hit it as Co. 708-10 David Stott Bldg., Detroit 26, Mich., W0.5-1155. Subscription $4 a year; foreign $5. hard as we can. Let us, as lawyers say, throw the book at it Entered as second class matter Aug. 6, 1942 at Post Office, in every way permitted by the Constitution, the Ten Com- Detroit, Mich., under Act of March 3, 1879. mandments, and the Marquis of Queensberry." PHILIP SLOMOVITZ, Editor These are more observations. They form a credo for SIDNEY SHMARAK, Advertising Manager action by American Jews. The advice was given by a man FRANK SIMONS, City Editor who was thoroughly imbued with American and Jewish August 24, 1951 spiritual values—by a teacher who, admitting that the tactics Vol. XIX—No. 24 Page 4 he proposes "may not stop the anti-Semite," nevertheless is Sabbath Scriptural Selections willing to wager that "it will exert a salutary influence on This Sabbath, the twenty-third day of Ab, him too—it will in any case be very good for American de- 5711, the following selections will be read in our mocracy and very good for our self-respect." synagogues: "A Believing Jew" is at one and the same time a great Pentateuchal portion—beut. 7:12-11:25. tribute to a noted scholar and a splendid lesson in democratic Prophetical portion—Is. 49:14-51:3. Jewish living for American Jewry. McDonald's Mission in Israel Book Tens How Truman Differs with State Dept. Dr. James G. McDonald, the first U. S. Am- bassador to Israel, is confident that the Jewish state's future is substantially assured. He says so emphatically in his book "My Mission in Is- rael" (Simon-Schuster) the closing words of which are: "The future of Israel as a spiritual force is not without danger but it is pregnant with splendid hope. After two and one half re- warding years, I close this account of my Mission, confident that Israel will triumphantly vindicate the faith of its builders! The entire story of his stay in Israel, the dark and the pleasant days, the periods during which there were con- flicts between Jewish leaders and the State Department, is replete with action and is marked by a- deep-root- ed interest in the coun- try's upbuilding. Dr. McDonald Of special importance, however, is the tension that was created at the outset by the attitude of the State Department. It is the first problem touched upon by the noted friend of Israel and it is referred to time and again throughout his book. It is clear from Dr. McDonald's story that President Truman often acted "against his experts' advice." The State Department want- ed to reduce the American office in Israel into a small Mission. Nevertheless, it grew into an Embassy. Given "inadequate briefing," Dr. McDonald never was given a chance to learn what the State Department's attitude towards Israel actually was. From the story of his Mission we learn who were the good friends of Israel and who were the hesitant or the obstructive. Later in the volume, in his report on the regional conference of the U. S. Chiefs of MisSions at Istanbul, some old fears are confirmed, fears about enemies in Arab countries who conspired against Israel. In the course of his report, Dr. McDonald refers to the anti-Zionism of U. S. Ambassador to Turkey George Wadsworth and states that "in comparison to Wadsworth the Mufti is a Zion- ist." But at the conference Wadsworth gave no intimation of his traditional anti-Zionist attitude. However, William C. Burdett, Jr., Acting Consul General in Jerusalem, is exposed in a rather un- favorable light. Dr. McDonald includes the fol- lowing in his report on the Istanbul conference: "We canvassed a great number of issues, coming back again and again, in the discussion of Israel and its neighbors, to the familiar headaches: territory, refugees and Jerusalem. And of course, as was inevitable, someone suggested sanctions. In this case, it was Bur- dett, who asked why United Jewish Appeal contributions could not be stopped. Someone pointed out that such an attempt would -be illegal; and Burdett's venture in the higher Realpolitik came to an early end." This book leaves the reader without doubt that the late British Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin was an anti-Semite. Dr. McDonald refers to his "arrogant distortions." Bevin emerges as one of the ugliest characters in view of his vile and passionate hatred for Israel and Jewry. In fact, Dr. McDonald compares him to Hitler and Mussolini. "My Mission in Israel" will serve, in many re- spects, as an important reference work for ali who desire to know the attitude of governments towards the Jewish state. The noted scholar- statesman will be quoted in his references to David Ben-Gurion and other Israeli leaders. The chapter on the Israel Premier will draw special attention. He speaks of B-G as "one of the few great statesmen of our day." The intimate stories about the Jewish leader will aid to the interest of the book. It is a story well worth reading. - New Novel Describes Refugees' Adjustment "Room for a Son," a novel by Robert D. Abra- hams, is the latest book of the Jewish Publica- tion Society of America, (222 N. 15th, Philadel- phia 2). It is the story of a refugee boy who was brought to this country by a Pennsylvania couple whose only son was killed in the U.S. army's battle against the Nazis. Aaron Levy, the young boy, is a namesake of the foster father. He comes to America with suspicions. Abrahams' story leads him through the adjustment periods into an acceptance of the American way of life. While the younger Aaron's early experienceS interestingly view the integration of a new- comer into this land and his acceptance by non- Jews as well as Jews, the wholesome attitudes of the foster parents, who were crushed by the death of their own son, forms an important part of the story. Their gifts to the community, their willingness to cooperate in building a bet- ter society, win for them the respect of their neighbors. The fairy tale about a mysterious trunk which arrives prior to Aaron's coming and is taken away unopened when he finally fits into his new environment is not very convincing. But the dreams about the Levy's hero son who offers advice to the refugee fit in well into the story. "Room for a Son" is a worthy addition to fiction literature about refugees.