Purely Commentary
By PHILIP SLOMOVITZ
The Prophet Hosea: Mrs. Patai's Fine Historical Novel
The Minor Prophets often are overlooked in the study of
Hebraic historical developments. Surely, the limited amount of
material about the Prophets themselves makes it difficult for
those devoting themselves to research in that field to present
a thorough picture of the time in which these Prophets lived
and of the character, family background and the relationship
to their neighbors of these Prophets.
Irene Patai has overcome these difficulties and has written
an unusually strong novel about the Prophet Hosea. Random
House (457 Madison, N. Y. 122) is publishing it under the title
"The Valley of God." Scholars may debate many points in it,
and there may be differences of opinion over the novelist's
license in developing a theme for a narrative out of a Biblical
book. However, there undoubtedly will be general agreement
that Mrs. Patai has created one of the finest character studies
of a Prophet who, through her work, must become better
known and more clearly understood by readers and students
of the Bible.
Mrs. Patai is the wife of Prof. Raphael Patai, one of our
most distinguished fible scholars and anthropologists, professor
of anthropology at Dropsie College, • Philadelphia, • and visiting
lecturer at Princeton University. •
Mrs. Patai, mother of three children, wrote her novel as
part of a course at the New York School for Social Research.
It is a remarkable study of Hosea, his faithless wife Gomer
and the conditions of the time in which they lived.
.
Fully to appreciate this novel, it is advi4able that the
reader should know the Hosean story. While some have main-
tained th.it Hosea's narrative is allegory, it has become estab-
listed that it is historical fact; that Gomer's misdeeds repre-
sented the harlotry of the time, that Hosea drew upon her
faithlessness to apply it to-his castigations of Israel for unfaith-
fulness to God. _
This point is well developed in Mrs. Patai's description of
Hosea's preachments of the great values of ethical monotheism.
The vividness of the new novelist's evaluations, the links of
Hosea to Antos which she traces, in "The Valley of God," en-
courage the reader of the novel to turn student of history. Thus,
the reader will soon learn, by checking into historical facts, that
Hosea was a contemporary of Isaiah; that while the Book of
Hosea is the first in the group of Minor Prophet in our Bible,
Amos actually was the first of the literary — known as the
Minor —Prophets. Thus, Mrs. Patai is historically correct in
recording Hosea as a disciple of Amos, and, in large measure,
his successor.
Hosea lived in the Northern Kingdom of Israel, in the days
when the kingdom began 10 decline, in the period of Jeroboam
II. (782-741 B.C.E.) and his son "Zechariah. What sort of man
was this Prophet Hosea? Let us turn to the Patai novel:
Jeroboam, remembered Amos' prophecy . and the earth-
quake which had followed. Amaziah (the Chief Priest)
was dead, but so was Amos, killed by the Lion of Judah.
"Let Hosea preach." Jeroboam argued. "How can he
harm me? Does not the land prosper? The people will not
heed him. while their stomachs are full. I am content that
/svae/ has but a sole voice' lifted in prophecy. Look to Judah.
The piophets burgeon there like mushrooms. Cut one down
and three spring up in his place."
Nevertheless he commanded Aaron ben Diblayim, to
come before him.
He respected Aaron for his judgment and was well aware
..that he was the brother of Hosea's wife and the son of the
prophet's. mentor.
"What manner of man is Hosea?" Jeroboam asked, coin-
ing straight to the point.
Aaron regarded the King with some hesitation but did
not shrink from giving an honest answer. "A man of virtue,
My Lord, and you know how rare that is. A man of courage,
rarer still."
This is the Hosea of the Bible, of history—and of the Patai
novel, in which the able author describes the declining condi-
tions in the Kingdom of Israel.
The first chapter., of Hosea comes straight to the point,
Hosea being commanded by the Lord, "Go, take unto thee a wife
Of harlotry and children of harlotry; for the land cloth commit
great harlotry, departing from the Lord."
Hosea goes forth to compare marital infidelity to Israel's
unfaithfulness to God, prophesying punishment for Israel and
destruction of Samaria, but also the eventual salvation and
redemption.
A powerful chapter closes the novel, recording the payment
by Hosea of 15 pieces -of silver to redeem Gomer from the
man to whom she had given herself in harlotry. It is a strong
conclusion to,a splendid novel: the type of book that inspires
further study.
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illThkfort's 'The Strong Hand': Aguna Question
Michael.Blankfort's novel, "The Strong Hand" (Little, Brown
& Co.), in addition to its values as a good novel, serves the im-
portant purpose of creating new interest in the Aguna problem,
an issue that has disturbed rabbinic thinking for generations.
This problem of the abandoned wives comes into focus with
a . significant decision that has just been made in London. We are
indebted to the London Jewish Chronicle for this item:
"K'neteres Ba'anun Aguna, by Dayan Abraham Rapoport
(London Beth Din), is a lengthy responsum on an Aguna prob-
lem which recently arose in this country. A refugee Jewish woman
applied for permission to remarry on the ground that her hus-
band had been sent to a Nazi extermination camp. Dayan Rap-
oport's opinion, based on a thorough analysis of the case in the
light of Talmudic' and Responsa literature, is that she may re-
marry, because (a) the overwhelming majority of these inmates
of camps where they could not buy their lives did not survive;
(b) at the time when he was last seen, her husband was among
those very ill and unlikely to survive; (c) no trace of him has
ever been found, although elaborate searches were organized.
His death could, therefore, be presumed with virtual - certainty."
This solves a single case. It leaves the Aguna problem un-
solved. It is the duty of Our rabbis, Orthodox and Conservative,
as well as the Reform, for whom it has not been a problem, to
convoke .an assembly to.deal with it and to resolve it, in order
that grave injustices, now being imposed upon women who do
not know the whereabouts of their husbands, should be removed.
Truman Reveals His Middle East Plan
to Pearson; Columnist to Be Here April 10
In one of his recent columns,
newspaper columnist Drew
Pearson reminisces with former
President Harry S. Truman re-
garding the latter's "develop-
ment plan" for the Middle East.
Pearson, who will be in De-
troit to address an open meting
of the Young Marrieds Group
of Temple Isn el this Tuesday
evening, in the temple audi-
torium, quotes the following
plan as revealed by . Truman:
"First, I would siphon water
from -the Mediterranean into
the Dead Sea — dig a ditch
across. The Dead Sea is 1,200
feet lower than the Mediter-
ranean, and the rush of that
water dropping 1,200 feet would
supply electric power for all
the industries you needed."
Actually, this plan was first
developed by Pinhas Rutten-
berg for the electrification of
Palestine and later proposed as
a water development scheme by
Dr. Walter Lowdermilk.
However, Truman would add
to that plan by making "Israel
FOreign Affairs," an analysis of
the Israel-Arab problems in the
Near East.
Earl and Joy Hordes are
chairmen of the program, which
is the first fund-raising event
undertaken by the Young Mar-
rieds Group. Proceeds will be
given to the temple activities
building fund.
The new addition to the
temple is currently under con-
struction and will be completed
in the fall of this year.
Sidney Dworkin, president of
the Young Marrieds Group,
states that tickets may be ob-
tained in advance by calling the
temple office, UN. 3-7769, or at
the door.
Professional Division Boosts
Allied Drive Total to $ 365,000
the industrial country of the
Near East" and letting "the
Arabs raise crops to feed the
Israelis and themselves. They're
cousins. They don't have to
fight. This could be one of the
breadbaskets of the world," the
Pearson report concludes.
Pearson, whose daily column
appears in newspapers through-
out the country, will speak here
on "Behind the Scenes in Our
JWB Parley Told of
120,000 Increase in
Centers' Membership
NEW YORK — Jewish Com-
munity Centers and Young
Men's-Young Women's Hebrew
Associations affiliated with the
National Jewish Welfare Board
have increased their member-
ship by 120,000 since the end
of World War II, according to
JWB's 1955 annual report, sub-
mitted to delegates attending
the JWB convention at the
Waldorf Astoria Hotel. The
Jewish Community Centers
and YM-YWHAs 565,000 mem-
bers represent a 21 percent in-
crease over the 445,000 figure
reported in 1946. grhe number
of Centers and YM-YWHAs
have likewise grown, from 295
in 1946 to the present figure
of 348.
The report was presented by
Charles Aaron, Chicago attor-
ney and JWB president.
The ' 1956 Frank L. Weil
Awards of the National Jewish
Welfare Board have been voted
to Ernest Bloch, world-fambus
composer; Jack . Nadel, execu-
tive director o _ f New Yorks
92nd St. YM & YWHA, and
Joseph F. Barr, Washington,
D. C., former national com-
mander of the Jewish War
Veterans of the U. , S. Presen-
tation will be made at the
JWB convention.
Another Jewish
News Editorial
in the Record'
For the fifth week in suc-
cession, Jewish News edi-
torials dealing with the Is-
rael-Arab crisis were inserted
in . the Congressional Record.
On March 28, Congress-
man Charles C. Diggs, Jr., of
Michigan, inserted in the
Record T h e Jewish News
editorial, "T h e Anti-Israel
Game Must End," from our
issue of March 16. In re-
marks accompanying the in-
sertiop of our editorial in the
R e c o r d, Rep. Diggs urged
that aid be given to Israel to
offset "the preponderance of
power" which the Arabs en-
joy as a result of arms they
receive from the Commun-
ists.
.2—Detroit Jewish News
Friday, April 6, 1956
Dr. Martin Naimark (standing, left), counselor of the
dentists and dental technicians', shows (left to right) Drs. Ted
Winshall, Samuel Krohn and Alvin B. •Lezell y section chair-
man, that the $22,000 raised to date in their section brings
the professional division total to the $365,000 mark in the 1956
Allied Jewish Campaign.
Between You and ge
•
By BORIS SMOLAR
(Copyright, 1956, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Inc.)
Congressional Currents :
A Congressional study group recently sent to Israel m a de
some important accusations against the State Department . . .
The three-member mission was sent by the House Committee on
Foreign Affairs- and its findings are not much to the liking of
Secretary of State John Foster Dulles . . . First of all, the mis-
sion recommends that "the United States should make it possible
for Israel to obtain the defensive weapons which Israel has re-
quested" . . . Secondly, the mission charges the State Department
with deliberately concealing from Congress the news of the
Czech-Egyptian arms deal..... It establishes that the State De-
partment knew of this deal late in June or early in July, but
did not report it to the House Foreign Affairs Committee . . .
Members'of this committee learned about the deal from news-
paper reports and from foreign diplomats only several 'months
later.
The mission stresses the fact that the U.S. must act favor-
ably on Israel's application for defensive arms "These arms,"
the report of the Congressional group says, "Israel must have to
protect herielf against the offensive weapons being sold at ridic-
ulously low prices to Egypt and offered to other Arab countries
by the USSR" . . . The mission also insists that the State Depart-
ment should revise its present Arab-Israel policy . . . The mem-
bers of the mission visited the trenches in the - Gaza area and
describe how the Israelis in that area are "wrestling a living
from soil literally under the fire of Egyptian guns" . . . They
were "deeply impreAed" with the spirit and courage of the
people in Israel in the face of physical danger , with which they
are confronted.
Is6e1 Reflections:
The Congressional study mission says that its visit to Israel
was enlightening, impressive and inspiring . . They found
"tangible evidence. on every hand" of the progress which had
been made in transforming a primitive country into a productive
nation . • . They established that everyone in Israel believes and
practices the doctrine of hard work, and that the methods used
are most efficient and up to date . . . The mission lauds American
Jewry and the U.S. Government for the "generous aid" to Israel
. . • This aid, the mission established, is being utilized fully 'for
the benefit of the people ... The mission also deals with Israel's
problem of absorbing immigrants . . . It cites the difficulties
which Israel faces in establishing the newcomers and the tre-
mendous costs of getting a newly arrived immigrant family
started on its own . Nevertheless, the mission notes, the stan-
dard of living in Israel ranges from superior to greatly superior
compared with the neighboring states . . . At the same time, the
mission points out that Israel cannot yet pay its own way and
that, at present, Israel produces only 70 percent of its food .. .
It emphasizes that Israel, with its present plan for irrigation, may
_be able to raise all its own food by 1960 . . . The mission ,does
•not see why the dramatic achievements in Israel in one decade
cannot be du • licated in other Middle Eastern countries.