THE JEWISH NEWS

FOUR STAR FeRFORMAgee

1951
Incorporating the Detroit Jewish Chronicle commencing with issue of July 20,

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., VE 8-9364. Subscript,on $6 a year. Foreign $7.
Second Class Postage Paid At Detroit, Michigan

PHILIP SLOMOVITZ CARMI M. SLOMOVITZ SIDNEY SHMARAK

Editor and Publisher

Advertising Manager

Business Manager

- - ..ctra •

-114i

CHARLOTTE HYAMS

City Editor

.17f

Sabbath Scriptural Selections
5724, the following Scriptural selections will
This Sabbath, the second day of Adar,
synagogues.
be read in our
portion: I Kings 5 - 26 - 6:13.
Pentateuchal portion: Exod. 25:1-27:19. Prophetical

Licht Benshen, Friday, Feb. 14, 5:45 p.m.

Page Four

VOL. XLIV. No. 25

•

Feb. 14, 1964

•

Brotherhood as Envisioned by Our Presidents

On the occasion of the annual observ-
ance of Brotherhood Week, this year set
for Feb. 16-23, Americans of all faiths will
be called upon to strive for the highest
ideals of good will under the slogan
"Democracy at Work."

BROTHERHOOD

NF National
Conferenoe
of Christians & Jews

ness of all of our fellow citizens. It is a time
for us to renew our dedication to the practices
of understanding and justice.
"We are now engaged in a mighty struggle
to preserve our free institutions and to extend
the boundaries of liberty. It is therefore most
urgent for every American to pledge his devo-
tion anew to the fundamentals upon which this
nation has been built. Without brotherhood
there can only be chaos; with brotherhood we
may look forward to reaching the ultimate goal
of mankind—peace with freedom and justice.
"I. therefore, heartily join with the National
Conference at Christians and Jews in urging all
Americans to participate in a nation-wide ob-
servance of Brotherhood Week, Feb. 16-23, 1964,
with the hope that they will do so in whole-
hearted affirmation of the spirit and ideals
underlying this important observance.

Dr. Minkin's Posthumous Study
h I
of Great Jew's Philosophers
From Ezra to Dr. Chaim Weizmann

•

•

1

These statements are in line with simi-
lar declarations upholding Brotherhood
Dr. Jacob S. Minkin, who passed away last year, had to his
by earlier Presidents, starting with George credit a number of important books about Hassidism. Abravanel,
Washington. Here are some of their note- Herod and Maimonides. These will remain among the authorita-
worthy assertions:
tive works available about the Hassidic movement, the Jews in

George Washington: ": . . Happily the Gov- Spain and the important personalities in Jewish history.
It fell to the lot of Fanny R. Minkin, the eminent rabbi's
ernment of the United States, which gives to
bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assist- widow, to edit and to prepare for publishing his latest work,
ance, requires only that they who live under its "The Shaping of the Modern Mind—The Life and Thought of the
protection should demean themselves as good Great Jewish Philosophers," just published by Thomas Yoseloff
The basic ideals of Brotherhood have citizens."
(11 E. 36th, NY16). It is an impressive work that covers sue
been endorsed by . many
of our Presidents,
I would not be a I a vast field that it is certain to occupy a very valuable place
Abraham
Lincoln:
"As
.
b
and a most realistic messa b e,
slave, so I would not be a master. This expresses among authoritative works.
the practical-minded President Lyndon B. my idea of Democracy. Whatever differs from
The personalities evaluated in Dr. Minkin's book commence
Johnson, who serves as honorary chair- this, to the extent of the difference, is no with the Biblical Scribe Ezra and conclude with Dr. Chaim Weiz-
mann. Interspersed are the most famous Jews who fall into the
man of Brotherhood Week in accordance Democracy."
Herbert Hoover: "The National Conference category of "great Jewish philsophers."
with an established tradition that elevates
Hillel, Philo, Saadia Gaon, Rashi, Judah Halevi, Maimo-
our Chief Executive to that post, declares: of Christians and Jews was established by men
of great character and love of country who nides, Joseph Albo, Rabbi Meir of Rothenberg, Don Isaac Abra-
"My fellow Americans:
saw religion as a potentially unifying rather
vanel are among the earlier personalities included. Then there
"Brotherhood Week 1964 is a time of than a divisive force in our national life. In its are Israel Baal Shem Tov, the creator of the Hassidic move-
thirty-five years, the Conference has justified
ment, and Rabbi Elijah Gaon of Vilna, who was a leading Mit-
deep appraisal for all Americans.
the vision and aim of its founders to see the nagid—an opponent of Hassidism. Modern figures, in addition
from
the
nd
and
a
funda-
"Tragedy is in our la
brotherhood established as
principle of t bro
to Weizmann, dealt with by Dr. Minkin, are Moses Mendelssohn,
American way of as • life."
ene o of the
merican
e."
th therh
tenet
darkness of our sorrow ought to come a men t al
Solomon Schechter, I. L. Peretz, Mendele Mocher Seforim (Solo-
new dedication to the ideals of love and
Franklin D. Roosevelt: "All men are chil- mon Jacob Abramovich), Saul Tchernichovsky, Ahad Ha'am
dren of one Father and brothers in the human
(Asher Ginsberg), Simon M. Dubnow and Louis Ginzberg.
brotherhood.
family. Brotherhood dedicates us to the practice
Dr. Minkin had written the preface to this book before his
"Democracy cannot live in hate and of understanding and justice through which
death. In it he wrote that 17 of the 21 essays were previously
fear. Prejudice and bigotry are the ad - freedom and equality flourish in human society." published
in various publications, and that in its totality he
vance guard of failure.
Harry S. Truman: "The true foundation of aimed at presenting "diversified portraits of Jewish heroes of
"No better time exists for a searching the brotherhood of man is belief in the knowl- the spirit—men who differed from one another in language, cul-
edge that God is the Father of mankind. For
and approach to Judaism." He admitted certain omissions,
of our hearts and mind than this National us, therefore, brotherhood is not only a generous ture,
among them that of Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise; who left an imprint
Observance of Brotherhood. Let us hear impulse but also a divine command."
on the Reform Jewish movement. He expressed an indebtedness
again the faith of our forebears; let us
D. Eisenhower: "Our abundant plains to his wife, to her "sound judgment and critical sense," and
listen again to the inspired hopes of our and Dwight
mountains would yield little if it were not dedicated the volume to her, not knowing that she would be the
national conscience; let us obey again the for the applied skill and energy of Americans author of a tribute to him in an introductory appreciation.
working together as fellow citizens bound up
word of our religions.
Mrs. Minkin, in . her tribute, states that she had planned to
common destiny. The achievement of brother- write about her father, and now is called upon to pay honor to
"In this time, still heavy with sadness, in
hood is the crowning objective of our society." her husband and the "50 years of trials and triumphs" with him.
] urge all my fellow Americans to join
of
From
all areas where human rights Her tribute states that Dr. Minkin, "a true son of his people . • .
National
Conference
with me and the
of reli- followed the Jewish pattern of setting Torah above all else." To
Christians and Jews in this national com- are valued, where the principle
that "he added academic knowledge as an equal 'must' for him."
truth
and
gious
freedom
is
treasured,
come
endorse-
celebration
of
tolerance,
munity
It is a memorable essay evaluating the life of an eminent scholar.
ments
of
the
ideal
promulgated
by.
the
wherever
charity toward our neighbors,
In a sense, Mrs. Minkin's recollections about her husband
they live, whoever they are." inter-faith forces in support of the idea contain evaluative data about American Jewish life. She tells
President John F. Kennedy was to of Brotherhood.
how Dr. Minkin first began to study for the Reform rabbinate
Once again we pray that this idea and later turned to the Conservative Jewish Theological Sem-
have spoken to us in behalf of Brother-
hood. Tragically his life was cut short. would not be a one-week-in-the-year prin- inary, to his association with Dr. Solomon Schechter, his friend-
But just before his untimely death he had ciple but a basic and sacred obligation to ship with Jewish leaders, including Dr. Stephen S. Wise, Dr.
prepared the following statement for the be practiced all-year-round. May Brother- Cyrus Adler, Dr. Louis Finkelstein and many others. She re-
current Brotherhood Week's observance: hood become the major hope of all faiths lates how her husband found time for Zionist and other activi-
and all nations. Then the aspiration for ties, and relates about his efforts for a Jewish homeland with
"The annual observance of Brotherhood
peace for all mankind will be easy to the leading world Zionists—Weimmann, Nahum Sokolow,
Week is a time of remembrance when we pro-
Jabotinsky, Shmarya Levin.
attain.
claim our concern for the welfare and happi-
Dr. Minkin's personality studies form a great collection of
•
•
biographies as well as elaborations on the philosophic thoughts
of the leaders under discussion.
Ezra is viewed as the man who was torn between his duties
for peace in Cyprus as a pro-Israel move to the community that was established in Babylon and his desire
Now it is Cyprus that is being used as
to stem assimilation among Jews and he returned to the Land
in that area.
a smoke-screen by Arabs in their hate-
Some of the excuses resorted to for of Israel to pursue his task of restoring and maintaining the purity
mongering campaign against Israel.
attacks on Israel are fantastic, and the of Jewish traditions. Dr. Minkin made this observation that has
Because U. Alexis Johnson, Undersec- Cyprus distortion is one of them. Appar- relevance to our own time: failed, had they not succeeded in
"Had Ezra and his group
retary of State for Political Affairs, had ently it is not the last nor the least of stemming
the tide of paganism which resulted from intermar-
warned against aggression in the Middle them. The crew of propagandists that is riage with the surrounding nations, the loss to Judaism and-
touring
our
universities
to
spread
venom
East and implied that Israel would be
to the world would have been incalculable."
protected by this country in the event against Israel points to continuing ten-
The other historic figures are treated with understanding,
sions.
That's
what
happens
when
hate
the Israel water project would be utilized
with a deep knowledge of the issues that faced them, with an
grips
the
hearts
of
men.
It
is
an.
interest-
for an attack on the Jewish State, the
appreciation of the great gifts made to Jewry and to the world
Arabs now say they view the U.S. offer ing subject for psychologists and sociolo- by our most eminent philosopherS.

'I

Cyprus a New Hate Excuse for Anti-Israeli

to participate in an international force

gists during Brotherhood Week.

