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THE JEWISH NEWS
Incorpo-rating the Detroit Jewish Chronicle commencing with isitee of July .20, 1951
Member American Association of English-Jewish Newspapers, Michigan Press Association, National Editorial Association
Published every Friday by The Jewish News Publishing Co, 17100 West Seven Mile . Road, Detroit 35, Mich., Y. 1-9364
$4 a year, Foreign $5.
Entered as second class matter Aug. 6, 1942, at Post Office, Detroit, Mich., under Act of March 3, 1879
rambscription
PHILIP SLOMOVITZ
Editor and Publisher
VOL. XXVII, No. 2
SIDNEY SHMARAK
Advertising Manager
FRANK SIMONS
City Editor
Page Four
March 18, 1955
Sabbath Scriptural Selections
This Sabbath, the twenty-fifth day of Adar, 5715, the following Scriptural selections will be
read in our synagogues:
Pentateuchal portions, Ex. 35:1-40:38, 12; L-20• Prophetical portion. Ezek. 45:16-46:18.
Rosh Hodesh Nissan Readings of the Torah, Thursday, Num. 28:1-15
Licht Senshen, Friday, March 18, 6:22 p.m.
Henrietta Szold Exemplar of Great Tradition
ter in which particular activity she is en-
World Jewry recalls with affection and
gaged. It is her character which she
respect the great contributions made to Zion-
brings to whatever she does that is her
ism, to Israel, to Jewish life generally and
contribution to Palestine." A friend sum-
especially to Hadassah—the great movement
marized for me Miss Szold's relation to her
founded by this great woman—on the occa-
many works, 'She took chaos into her
sion of the tenth anniversary of her death.
hands and it became order.'
Louis Lipsky, the Dean of American Zion-
"Henrietta Szold's life was full and
ism, in an opening paragraph of his informa-
fruitful to an extraordinary degree. She
tive tribute to Miss Szold in Congress Week-
was richly endowed with personality, with
ly, summarizes the record of Henrietta
a quiet charm, with dignity, modesty and
•
Szold's work as follows:
intelligence.- On meeting her, one sensed
"An army of American women followed
at once the quality of greatness. She had a
Henrietta Szold; the Jews of Palestine
mind that could grasp big ideas and apply
loved and revered her; but she was not the
itself as well to minute details, a mind that
conventional Zionist leader—the orator on
was
scholarly yet eminently practical. In
the platform, the ready writer on Zionist
language she was a purist. She spoke Eng-
themes, a controversialist in the 'general'
lish, German, French and Hebrew, and
debate. Her life was devoted to service—
expressed herself with grace. Her heart
not on the battlefield or in the hospital.
as well as her mind penetrated to the cares
She was the humble maid of all work, the
of the individual. This ability to identify
housewife whose work is never done, hav-
herself
with those who needed her made
ing no personal aversions, no special hob-
her
a
person
of rare wisdom and insight.
bies, very little of a life of her own."
Her compelling drive was always 'The work
In the main, this is a correct evaluation.
is great and the time is short.'
But she had started as a writer—she trans-
"She never tried to impose her views
lated Heinrich Graetz's "History of the Jews"
on others. She could see more than one
and several volumes of Prof. Louis Ginz-
side of a situation and used to say repeat-
berg's monumental "Legends of the Jews"
edly, 'I can only analyze it and then leave
for the Jewish Publication Society. She loved
it to you to act.'
.music, was a good dancer, loved to listen to
"In Henrietta Szold, the road from
and to tell a good story.
Maryland to Judaea, covering the period
Then came the most serious role of her
from 1860 to 1945, marked a happy
life: her entrance into Zionist ranks, her crea-
synthesis of East and West. She exempli-
tive efforts in founding the Hadassah move-
fied what was best in the Jewish traditions
ment, her able direction of the education
and the flowering American ideals — the
department of the Zionist Organization of
stuff of her moral fibre which radiates the
America.
light of her rare personality against the
murk of the Jewish tragedy of modern
Her work in Palestine is well known. She
times.
was the creator of the Youth Aliyah move-
"Through Henrietta Szold was clearly
ment and thanks to her efforts thousands of
manifested the adaptability and pliability
children were rescued from persecution and
still left to an ancient people, ready to fol-
were settled in the Jewish National Home
low the West in the best it has to offer,
which, three years after her death, became
without forfeiting its own deeply ingrained
the State of Israel. Rose G. Jacobs, a former
idealism."
national president of Hadassah, who was one
of the original group that, with Miss Szold,
We concur in this sentiment. It is heart-
established Hadassah in 1912, paid her this ening to see that the fruits of her labors con-
tinue to blossom, that Hadassah is strong,
tribute:
"In 1921, when the question arose as to thereby adding to Israel's strength and to the
whether to advise Miss Szold to return to creative genius of American Jewish woman-
America during a crisis in Hadassah, Jus- hood.
Blessed be the memory of Henrietta Szold,
tice Louis D. Brandeis helped make the
decision by saying: 'Miss Szold's presence one of the truly great personalities of all
- in Palestine is important. It does not mat- times.
The Metropolitan Detroit Building Fund
Inauguration of the Metropolitan Detroit parking space."
Then there is an allocation of $590,000
Building Fund, for the purpose of assisting
45 agencies in their building programs, is for the Jewish Community Center which
being hailed as "another Detroit first in hu- "provides opportunities for cultural, social,
man service." This drive, by combining 45 physical, and personality expression and de-
essential and immediate needs, will reduce velopment for the Jewish Community," to'be
the number of potential drives from 45 to
one, it will conserve the time of volunteers, is for construction of an Evergreen Branch
at Seven
Mile
Road $250,000
and Ever-
of the as Center
follows:
"Of this
amount,
it will cut campaign costs and, for five years, used
will obligate the agencies involved to refrain green to meet da - - ands growinc, out of a shift
in Jewish population. $90,000 of the alloca-
from fund-raising.
The nearly 100 agencies, whose applica- tion is for a gymnasium at the Dexter-Davi-
tions totalled $113,000,000, have been re- son Branch. A $250,000 Jewish Community
duced by the allocations committee to 45, for Center Branch also will be built in Southern
a total of $16,500,000. Included are three Oakland County."
The latter allocation needs further ex-
vital Jewish agencies—the Jewish Commu-
nity Centers, the Jewish Home for Aged and plaining. The planned new Centers branches
will include elaborate facilities for the 'United
North End Clinic.
- Allocating the sum of $700,000 to the Hebrew Schools. The new program will,
therefore, facilitate the expansion of our edu-
Jewish
fqr the 120
Aged
for
"an
wing
. . Home
. to contain
beds
for
the infirmary
care of cational system and will provide additional
the chronically ill and infirm aged," the classrooms for our children in the newly-
Metropolitan Detroit Building Fund pros- developing suburban areas and in the Ever-
pectus describes the Home for Aged as an green section.
Great benefits will be derived by the Jew-
agency that "provides institutional care for
aged Jews who are unable to care for them- ish community from the Metropolitan Build-
ing Fund. Sufficient manpower is assured
selves in the community."
To North End Clinic, described- as an this effort, which will in no sense interfere
agency that "provides medical and dental with the current Allied Jewish Campaign or
care to ambulatory patients, both adult and with any other major Jewish undertaking in
children, who are unable to pay for the serv- our community, or with the United Founda-
ices of a physician or dentist," is allocated tion. The agencies that have pooled their
the sum of $375,000 to be used as follows: forces for this vitally-needed project also as-
"The Clinic will be moved to become a diag- sure the drive, when it is launched, the funds
nostic clinic for Sinai Hospital. Of the total that will be needed to care for the needs of
allocation, $325,000 will. defray • the cost of the 45 causes. It is a cooperative effort that
the Clinic floor of the Hospital, $20,000 is for does credit to "another Detroit first in hu-
equipment, and $30,000 for access road .,and rnpn service .,"
•■••,^
.,
`The Oldest Old Testament'
Thomson's '.Septuagint Bible'
From the Foreword to "The Septuagint Bible: The Oldest
Version of the Old Testament," in the translation of Charles
Thomson, secretary of the Continental Congress of the United
States of America, 1774-1789; as edited, revised and enlarged
(1954) by C. A. Muses, M.A., Ph.D. (published by the Falcon's Wing
Press, Indian Hills, Colo.), we quote the. following:
"The Septuagint (pronounced Sepluajint and meaning
Seventy—referring to the approximate number of traditional
translators, given as 72, conveniently abbreviated as LXX) is
the only version of the Old Testament dating from the third
century before the Christian Era, being then begun to be trans-
lated in Alexandria, Egypt, from Hebrew and later from Aramaic
(or Chaldean) originals that were already in those early times
the oldest original manuscripts of the Bible in existence. Un-
fortunately, those ancient originals are lost in the mould of.
ages; but not irretrievably, for their text was transferred to
that Greek translation just mentioned, begun in the reign of
the famous Hellenistic patron of learning and promoter of the
great Alexandrian Library, Ptolemy II, surnamed Philadelphus,
who also in several ways, directly and indirectly, befriended
Hellenistic Jewry. His later successor continued that friendship
by not only offering much wanted Egyptian asylum to the Jew-
ish refugees from the violent Syrian, persecutions near the turn'
of the third century before the Christian Era, but in donating a
building in Alexandria to the Jewish priesthood, so that their
temple services could proceed without interruption and in dig-
nity."
This explains in small measure the. Septuagint Bible the
translation of which into English by Charles Thomson (b. in Ire =
land, 1729, died in U.S., 1824) was "a painstaking work of decades,
finally published at Philadelphia in 1808."
The story of Thomson and his efforts, as recorded in the pre-
face of the new edition, is most interesting. We are told that his
"work of translation and scholarship was sound and honest as
were his official activities, and he has left us a valuably basic
translation, deserving all the more merit in view of the limited
state 'of ancient discoveries in his day, and also of the fact that
he worked practically isolated."
Thomson's search for truth is described in his own words
in a letter he wrote in 1801.
Material omitted by Thomson froth. the Book of Esther found.
in the Septuagint Bible was restored in the new text. Dr. Muses
declares this to be desirable "for the interpretation of Mordecars
dream."
Dr. Muses, who has consulted scholars of all faiths, asserts
that "the oldest Old Testament is now ready to assume its right=
ful 'and respected place as a basic source-wor"k and essential sup-.
plement to whatever other volume of the Bible may be on the
reader's bookshelf."
As an indication of the style pursued by Thomson, let us
quote a well known text, Psalm XXIII, which is translated by
Thornson ,as follows:
"A Psalm by David. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall want
nothing. (2) In a verdant pasture He hath fixed my abode. He
hath fed me by Gently flowing water (3) and restored my soul.
He hath led me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake.
(4) For though I walk amidst the shades of death: I will fear
no ills, because Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff have
been my comfort. (5) Thou hast spread a table before me; in
the presence of them who afflict me. -With oil Thou hast an-
ointed my head; and Thine exhilarating cup is the very best.
(6) Thy mercy will surely follow me all the days of my life; and
my dwelling shall be in the house of the Lord to length of days.'
This historic book carries with it many fascinations. All who
possess it will cherish it for its historic memories and for the re-
markably fine scholastic pains incorporated in its making.
American Jewish History Facts
Charles M. Segal, the publicity director of the American Jew-
ish Tercentenary, has compiled an interesting set of facts about
the Jews of this country. His book, "Fascinating Facts About
American Jewish-History," produced by Twayne Publishers, 34 E.
23rd St., New York 10, covers a vast field—about-.the New World,
North America, the Jews in the Colonial, Revolutionary, Civil War
and subsequent periods.
Unusual, data about Jews in politics, religious activities, labor
and other endeavors will be found in this volume which is pub-
lished in the form of questions and answers.
Those desiring to know who was the first Jewish settler in
Cincinatti will find this book a ready reference. You can turn to
this book about the first Jewish freeman in colonial Rhode Island.
Unfortunately, it is not a complete story. There is nothing
here about Detroit or _4Iichigan, except for the listing of Michigan
among the states in which were founded farming settlements.
But for what it offers, this is a truly fine book, replete with
knowledge made available in capsule form.
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