•

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEW S — Friday, August 24, 1982 —.

32

rY

Gerald Abrahams' The Jewish Mind': Great
Contribution to Jewish Scholarly Research

How has Jewry attained its
identity as a great spiritual force
in the world?
What effect has modern think-
ing had on the practicing tradi-
tional Jew, what influences have
affected his world attitudes, how
has the Jew preserved his lan-
guage and how does he react to
anti-Semitism, to the negative
forces surrounding him?
What, in brief, is the Jewish
mind and how does it function
in relation to the new issues
created by Israel as well as the
international developments that
intrude upon the lives of people
everywhere?
Questions akin to these can
be multiplied when dealing
with one of the great books of
the year, "The Jewish Mind,"
by Gerald Abrahams, pub-
lished by Beacon Press (25
Beacon St., Boston 8). The
author of this most informative
and excellently compiled study
approaches the numerous prob-
lems involved in Jewish life
with such skill that his work

deserves being viewed as a dis-
tinct contribution to Jewish
scholarship.
The author, an international

chess master who is currently
professor of law at Belfast Uni-
versity, touches upon nearly
every issue involved in Jewish
life today. He commences his
discussions by asserting that
"some ethical significance, some
moral force, attaches to Jewish
history and Jewish continuity, if
only by reason of the fact that
Jewish existence owes something
to the world morality that it has
helped to create."
Dr. Abrahams admits that the
term "Jew" remains - indifIn-
able," but he declares that it is
not "an abstract universal but
something in the nature of that
concrete universal which cannot
be fully apprehended until one
apprehends the whole universe."

In his search for Jewish
identity, he discusses Jewish
traditions, the Sabbath and the
festivals, as well as the habits
attributed to Jews. On this
- score he refers to "acquired
characteristics," shows that
"hand gestures are continen-
tal," and declares: "Special
gestures may develop, but most
`talk with hands' is not pecul-
iarly Jewish. As for the lisp
of the 'stage-Jew,' this is com-
pletely fictitious."

guages of the world," he states.
"If Gentile Byron and Moore
and godless Heine were con-
scious of the sadneSs—Jewish
poets proper how much more
so! They are the minstrels of
exile recapturing the mood of
there who wrote on earlier
exiles. In the long period be-
tween, Jew: . escaped, as it
were, into another world. The
recent generations. have es-
caped back into a reality which
is not less sad, not less poetic."

The roles of Prophets and

on, we can also be sure that
among human beings, there will
always be some city of refuge-
for human feelings: some place
where one can distinguish be-
tween sacred and profane, be-
tween good and evil, between
the custodians of the 'extra soul'
and those miserable ones to
whom any soul is a sorry illu-
sion treasured by refugee exiles
from some effete aristocracy."
That is how Dr. Abrahams
proves that there is a Jewish
mind, that "the Jew plunges into
the delights of science for its
own sake, as his ancestors
plunged into the Torah. But if he
retains something of the tradi-
tion of the Torah, he remembers
that the teaching is inseparable
from the way of the world."
The skill with which Prof.
Abrahams proves these points

Priests are reviewed in "The
Jewish Mind," and the chapter
"Theocracy Without Theology"
throws light on many issues —
including the rights of women,
rabbinic decrees, Karaite her-
esies, and orthodox rules. He
makes the interesting point that
"when an aggregate of Jews as
the State of Istael finds itself makes his book, "The Jewish
working out the implications of Mind," one of the outstanding

Jewish religion for the State, the Jewish critical and historically
religion that it has to consider evaluative works.

is orthodoxy—conventional mis-
naggidic orthodoxy. The higher Bonn Lists Figures
demands of some sects of Has-
sidim are not irrelevant: but the of Nazi Judges Still
relatively lesser requirements of
Reformers do not constitute any Active, in Courts
BONN, (JTA) — Figures pre-
problem other than that of
suming to show the number of
tolerance."
He adds the following inter- former Nazi judges and prosecu-
tors who still worked in the
esting comments:
German Judiciary appara-
"What applies to the State West
tus as of last June 30 were made
of Israel applies to all Jewish public
here.
communities and f a m i 1 i e s,
The figures alleged that there
which are specimens of the
were 157 such judiciary officials
State of Israel writ small."
The reader of Dr. Abrahams' still holding office as of the end
book will find special delight in of June, and that all but 14 re-
reading his analyses of Jewish tired by the June 30 deadline.
wit and humor. The 15-page chap- That deadline had been set by
ter devoted to the review of the Bundestag, lower house of
elements inherent in humor parliament, last winter, under a
among Jews shows a deep under- law giving the ex-Nazi officials
standing of Jewish approaches the opportunity for "voluntary"
to many problems and to internal retirement.
Those who did not retire, are
Jewish challenges.
"If Jews laugh and have now subject to dismissal and
laughed, it is because they are consequent loss of pension rights.
all too human, because they have These 14 are the officials whose
been able to treat their Torah as "voluntary' 'retirement may now
not in heaven," Dr. Abrahams be facilitated by the extension
writes. "As a Hassidic Rabbi said of the deadline for a brief
of his noisy garrulous congre- period, according to plans an-
gants: even on their most im- nounced by the Ministry of Jus-
portant commercial occasions tice.
they utter an occasional word of
However, it was pointed out,
prayer."
the total of 157 judiciary mem-
Differentiating between bers who had served Hitler's
humor and wit, the author Peoples Court as judges or prose-
states: "Humor is found among cutors did not include ex-Hitler
Jews, and is in evidence among collaborators who now serve as
Rabbis and Jewish writers. judges in the administrative,
But more frequent among the labor or social welfare courts.
Jews is wit, which is a weapon Some data concerning ex-Nazi
of defense and of aggression. judiciary collaborators still in
Intellect, however, is capable the West German service now-
of irony without bitterness. In had claimed the number may be
judging Jews, it is important to as high as 3,000.

lie then turns to the blood
accusation against Jews, which he
brands as wicked and absurd,"
and, commenting on the 200 in-
famous accusations, he states:
"Confessions have been extorted. remember that there is educa-
Jewish renegades have, on occa-
tion in humor: and that many
sions, participated." But he adds
that "honest Christians never • Jews come from areas where
life is hard and competition
initiated the accusations;" that
"Emperor Frederick II held an keen, and the people amongst
inquiry and found the belief to whom they grew up were men-
be without founda tion ;" that tally unyeilding and ungener-
a
"Franciscan monks dissuaded ous. Let it be added that
Henry III of England from con- habit system in the nature of
tinuing the murders that he had acquisitiveness is cognate to
initiated at the time of the Lin- humorlessness.
Problems between Jews in
coln defamation."
Dr. Abrahams devotes con- Israel and those in the Diaspora,
siderable discussion to reviewing Christian - Jewish relations, the
the stains of Yiddish as well as status of Zionism and the influ-
Hebrew, with reference also to ence of Israel upon world Jewry;
the Judeo-Spanish dialect of matters involving educational
Ladino. Linguists will find this processes, philanthropy in Jewish
author's evaluation based on life, Jews and Socialism and
well-founded facts that will en- Marxism, and many other sub
lighten those who are interested jects are discussed with clarity
in the present status of language and understanding.
studies among Jews.
"If the Jew ... retains some
As "The People of the
vestige of Jewish identity, . . .
Book," the- Jewish literary
he will be preserving his
creations, the Aggadah and the
material order against the ter-
Mldrash, the philosophic works
rifying nothingness that would
through the ages, are enumer-
supervene in him if the spirit,
ated and explored in enlighten-
and things spiritual, were to
ing chapters. Modern Yiddish
vanish from his picture of
and Hebrew writers as well as - reality."
Maimonides, Spinoza, Mendels-
And he makes this concluding
sohn and many others, those assertion: "So long as the Jewish
who wrote in many languages, intellect remains in some sense
are among those evaluated. Jewish, for so long as we are
"It was the poets of a deep- assured that one spirit, at least,
. seated melancholy that wrote is moving in the void and giving
Hebrew melodies in the Ian- it shape. And if the tradition goes

Israeli Story in UN Statistics

By SAUL CARSON
JTA Correspondent
at the United Nations
UNITED NATIONS, N.Y. —
Each year, the United Nations
Department of Economic and
social Affairs publishes a
statistical yearbook. The 1961
roundup of economic and social
f i g u r e s, just issued, makes
fascinating reading.
In this 680-page v o l u m e,
containing 186 tables, one finds
in cold, hard figures the facts

behind the facts.
Here you find a profile of

Israel. You find such interest-
ing comparisons as these:
Israel's population, as of May,
1961, was 2,170,000, occupying
an area of 20,700 square Idiom-
eters of land, with a density of
102 persons per square meter.
Neighboring "little" Jordan
had a population of 1,329,174;
occupied nearly four times Is-
rael's space, an area of 96,610
square meters, with a density
of only 18 persons per square
meter.
Next time you read about
Jordan's demand that its
Arab "refugees" from Pales-
tine must "return" to their
former homes in Israel—this
is a good statistic to bear in
mind. It is true that about
half of Jordan's population
claims "refugee" status. But
consider the actual size of
the- two countries, Jordan and
Israel, and the density of
their respective populations.
Is it difficult to deduce an
answer to Jordan's "refugee"
claims?
The crude death rate and
infant mortality in a country
are always excellent yardsticks
when one attempts to answer
that question. None of Israel's
neighboring Arab countries fur-
nished the UN with figures in
these categories—and there is
no explanation to show whether
those statistical holes were due
to the Arabs' failure to keep
figures or, perhaps, to their
lack of concern about the hu-
man element. But Israel does
show these figures. We find

Israel Is A
Tourist Country

A country that wishes to develop
tourism must have advantages such as
beautiful scenery, good climate, his-
torical sites and a special way of
life. There is no question that Israel
is blessed with these advantages and
she can be an important tourist
centre.
Israel, the country of the Bible, is
holy to Jews, Christians and Muslims.
Many engaged in research—historians,
archeologists and people doing re-
search in religion and languages—
came to the country to find rem-
nants of her past. The excavations
proved that Israel is one of the oldest
countries of culture in the world.
She absorbed the cultures of various
nations. Her historical sites are a
giant museum of the culture of the
Hebrews. the Egyptians Assyrians,
Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Ro-
mans, Crusaders and the Arabs.
In Israel the climate is mild, a
long sunny summer and a mild
winter. Only 30-60 rainy days during
the year and those only in the
winter. When it is cold and there
are snow storms in Europe, the sun
shines in Israel.
The various districts of the country
—the shore area, the hills, valleys,
the Negev and Eilath—enable the
visitor to enjoy a variety of climates
and scenery.
The sons of the Jewish nation that
gathered in Israel, make up a giant
gallery of various traditions, customs
of folklore: Yemenite and Buchurian
Jews live together with European and
Indian Jews, while close by, are old
Arab villages and Bedouin tents.
(Translation of Hebrew column.
Published by Brith Ivrith Olamith,
Jerusalem.)

Israel had a net registered ton-
nage of 2,011—but that figure
had risen only to 2,602 by 1960.
The tonnage of goods loaded
and unloaded in Israel did not
keep pace, according to these

statistics, with Israel's expan-
sion of its own merchant fleet.
Israel's exports went up from
$60,000,000 in 1953 to $220,-
000.000 in 1960; imports from
that, in Israel, the crude death $281,000,000 in 1953 to $5,000,-
rate (number of deaths per 000,000 in 1960.

1,000 population) was 6.7 (Jew-
In a table entitled "Balance
ish population only) in 1948, of Payments" are these figures
has since declined to 5.5 in affecting Israel:
Official
Private
1960. If you look atkthe figures Private
Donations
Capital
supplied for 1960 by certain Donations
To Israel
Inve.sted
To Israel
civilized Western countries you
In Millions
Dollars
find that the USA crude death 1953 $84.6 of $17.1
$88.2

rate stood at 9.5; Britain's at
1L5 and Sweden's at 10.0—
every one of them much higher

1954 $133.3
1955 $128.4
1958 $111.8
1959 $99.0

,trkt70-1;;I ,t3'3177
.L1'117;71

1".17_ ,1311 n'i'x
.57 Inn, mom iltoV
nW? tIt!4 "Tr 60-3o

Irts

_ 1PP .91671
tr'13P
ntp nyinlp
nniir
n; 2-W7z7
.12$1.fr. ti70,1
•
— tr4itjn nkir ri
mArt ,tr7??1)51
ni3717 n7=p5 nntgpkip -
.1pp li31 n'z77tt':12V?
,2 i7_2714tg
n1.1rj
rri7.417 .71:1zPanlriP ,5$'71f7:
sii5r?iD '7,147pi
5t#
▪ ro,,:n
n177
t:17
,rrn,
tr7'1. 117 n":4117
1:114
.13"11A t;TItt'l
(ri,7?‘7iv m1711
ra34inl)

$129.3
$112.2
$151.8
$143.9

$11.2
$8.7
$26.0
$32.1

•
nin:n n$-5t3.7.fp:,

C ' nn=znn
• T -

Hebrew Corner

than the rate for Israel's Jew-
ish population.
As for infant mortality the
Israeli rate for deaths of chil-
dren under one year, per 1,000
live births, was 36.3 in 1948,
down to 26.9 in 1960. Israel's
infant mortality was only
slightly higher than that of the
United States (25.6).
Egypt did supply figures
showing something about foods.
In 1957, Egypt produced 1,093,-
000 metric tons of milk. In
1953, Israel produced 325,000
metric tons of milk. But when
you remember that Egypt's
population was more than
26,000,000 to Israel's more than
2,000,000—you have a real corn-
parison.
For its small population, Is-
rael had 4,756 physicians—
approximately one doctor for
every 420 people. Egypt had
only 8,854 doctors for its
entire population. It may be
worth noting in this connec-
tion that even the United
States had only one physi-
cian for every 700 to 800
people among its population.
In 1959, Israel had a total
of 3,827 schools of all kinds-
fiom pre-primary to institutions
of higher learning and special
schools. More than a quarter
of the country went to one
school or another—a total of
546,580 students were enrolled;
388,443 of them in the primary
schools. A total of 24,639
teachers were on the staff of
all the schools, 16,159 of them
in the primary schools.
Israel's merchant fleet had
grown from 119,000 gross reg-
istered tons in 1953 to 338,000
gross registered tons in 1961.
In 1953, vessels that entered

•

U. • E.,
I I ;Di
T •

T

I

n11:n nnn 1 7 n*iirj r -1$
ri?_z n517 .= ni,nz?
tr'?p),, t ,np:
,niz2177z
'17:1 trnivt?? tr -1111i
Prir4 7P.9 m r$
r371 .
nix rii51774 71 1;r)4 5$147 7
r a nn
: nini5
: • 5in , N'Tn

T

,T2nn

•

•

n1-1

•tn,7 2'?w,a5,n'14i3L2 , t141.17r5

,trsiniupn —

re?, nrlpiro

•

1 H4

nivizip nnx tvn 5rn
.razTiu; ni7 ,ns.n7 rnn
rj,12- T aii miritj
n4pa
7457
n1;17 anivano
Ar14??Ti ,t3"""Pl..77,1
,trainn ,no?;mn ,tiVzirj