The Bodenheimer Memoirs

PRELUDE TO ISRAEL: THE ME-
MOIRS OF M. I. BODENHEIMER; Edit-
ed by Henriette Hannah Bodenheimer;
Translated by Israel Cohen (Thomas
Yoseloff).

ambition was to publish her fath-
er's writings.
In October 1898, Theodor Herzl,
accompanied by M. I. Bodenheimer,
• •
David Wolffsohn, M. T. Schnirer
By JOSEF FRAENHEL
and Ing. Seidener, went to Con-
Often heard, is the sad comment
stantinople and, from there in
on the children of Zionist leaders,
November, to Jerusalem, where
that they stray from the path and
turn away from Zionism. Such he was granted an audience with
the German Kaiser, William II.
cases are not numerous though
During these travels Bodenheimer
frequently quoted. In general we
reminisced about his youth and
can rejoice that children of well-
explained how he, a German Jew,
known Zionists have been, and
had become a protagonist of Zion-
still are, proud of their fathers'
ism. Herzl was interested in his
achievements and maintain the tales and suggested that Boden-
Zionist tradition. A long list of
heimer put them in writing, and
the names of such offspring could
thus gradually he wrote his
be produced, as well as of those
memoirs. In 1935 Bodenheimer
who aspire to the publication of
settled in Jerusalem where he
a book in memory of their illus-
finished his autobiography shortly
trious father. They preserve the before his death. Edited by his
letters and material, left by their
daughter, it appears first in a
fathers, or present them to the
Hebrew translation (Jerusalem,
Zionist Central Archives • in Jeru-
1952), later In the original German
salem to be studied by historians (Frankfurt, 1958), and it has now
and scholars.
been published in English.
Henriette Hannah Bodenheimer,
M. 1. Bodenheimer had at first
daughter of Max I. Bodenheimer,
regarded himself as of "Teutonic
a Zionist pioneer, left Cologne in
ancestry" and Swabia as his
1933 for Jerusalem. She has visited
home. His eventual emergence
London on a number of occasions
as a conscious Jew was due not
and told me that she had put her
only to anti-Semitism but also
father's voluminous archives in
to Jewish literature.
In his
order, a task which had occupied
grandfather's library he discov-
her for several years. Her one
ered Josephus's "Jewish War"

Why We
Support
Ely

Elly Peterson is the kind of person

who has a great and sincere interest

in people ... who makes every effort

to learn everything possible about
an issue before making a decision

. . . who thinks clearly, talks directly.

She is moderate in her political phil-
osophy, and will be responsive to the
will of the people.

...„..-. ............

which aroused his enthusiasm
Hess. But Bodenheimer was the
for the heroes of Jewish history.
first to awaken a fresh interest in
Over and over again so many
the book.
of our "lost sons" find their way
Bodenheimer was one of the
back to Judaism through the
principal architects of German
works of Graetz, Dubnow or
Zionism. President of the Zionist
Hyamson.
Federation in Germany, he en-1
After an intense spiritual con- gaged in some dramatic contests
flict, Bodenheimer at last came and often undertook political
to realize that the purpose of his action. But Bodenheimer's role in
life was to fight for a Jewish Zionism was not confined to
Palestine. When pogroms were Germany. He influenced the de-
rife in Russia in 1891, he published velopment of the Zionist World
his pamphlet, "Whither Russian Organization and of the Jewish
Jewry?", in which he pleaded for National Fund, of which he be-
Jewish colonization in Palestine. came chairman of the Board of
A lawyer by profession, he had Directors. His services are record-
settled in Cologne where, in 1892, ed in Zionist history.
he met Wolffsohn. They both be-
The Jewish problems dealt with
came the standard-bearers of Zion-
in his book are still topical today.
ism in Germany.
Bodenheimer was a delegate at To read his reminiscences, expert-
the first Zionist Congress in Basle ly and affectionately edited by his
in 1897 where he delivered an ad- daughter, is to read Zionist history.
dress on the "Zionist Organiza-
tion", and participated in the de-
bates on Prof. H. Schapira's
Vote For
proposal for the foundation of the
Jewish National Fund. From then
on he was active in almost every
area of Zionist endeavor, but his
particular interests, to which he de-
voted his energy and passion, were
Republican
-
Zionist organizational problems
For State Representative
and the Jewish National Fund.
15th District
The first Zionist classic was
KNOWS HER DISTRICT
Moses Hess's "Rome and Jerusa-
CAN BE A FULL TIME
lem", publihed in 1862. This book
REPRESENTATIVE
was soon forgotten, but Herzl's
• Married, 3 children, 35 yrs.
appearance led to its re-discovery
resident in District
and it was Bodenheimer who. in
• Active in civic, social and
1899, published a second edition.
church affairs
Later, Theodor Zlocisti made his
• Budget experience, finance
contribution and today there is a
chairman, YWCA
considerable literature on Moses
.4.10.1,000k
• University of Michigan,
Detroit College of Law
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Dorothy C. Caswell

Dorothy C.
CASWELL

Friday, October 30, 1964-23

r

GOVERNOR GEORGE

1101VINE

(Michigan's hardest-working governor)

LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR BILL

'MILLIKEN

(Majority floor leader, Mich. Senate)

SECRETARY OF STATE ALLISON

G EEN

(Michigan's "Air. Speaker" )

ATTORNEY-GENE RAL

That's Why We Endorse
ELLY PETERSON

for United States Senator

Mr. and Mrs. Jay Allen

Mr. and Mrs. Fred M. Ginsberg

Mr. and Mrs. Max Fisher

Mr. Merle Harris

Mr. and Mrs. Harold L Frank

Mr. and Mrs. Jason Honigman

No human endeavor has con-
tributed more to the progress of
civilization than the art of print-
ing.

MIKE

WARSHAWSKY

(La•—without fear or favor )

VOTE TO KEEP MICHIGAN MOVING AHEAD
WITH THE ROMNEY-REPUBLICAN TEAM • NOV. 3

Mr. and Mrs. Charles Gershenson Mrs. Pauline Levy

Mr. and Mrs. Samuel H. Rubiner

[ WATCH "CAMPAIGN COUNTDOWN" ON TV, ELECTION EVE., NOV. 2