THE JEWISH NEWS
Incorporating The Detroit Jewish Chronicle commencing with issue 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 48235 Mich.,
VE 8-9364. Subscription $6 a year. Foreign $7.
Second Class Postage Paid at Detroit, Michigan
PHILIP SLOMOVITZ
Editor and Publisher
CARMI M. SLOMOVITZ
SIDNEY SHMARAK
Business Manager
Advertising Manager
CHARLOTTE RYAMS
City Editor
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Sabbath Scriptural Selections
This Sabbath, the 20th day of Iyar, 5725, the following scriptural selections will
be read in our synagogues:
Pentateuchal portion: Levit. 25:1-26:2; prophetical portion: Jerez.
Licht benshen, Friday, May 21, 7:33 p.m.
VOL. XLVII, No. 13
Page 4
The Lessons
May 21, 1965
of a Great Campaign
Inspired by good leadership, this year's the needs of the less fortunate—all these fac-
Allied Jewish Campaign reached a new high tors are part of the demonstration of loyalty
in subscriptions, attesting to the confidence and solidarity that makes Detroit Jewry such
expressed at the very outset that a commun-
ity that has for many years shown leadership an inspired element in American Jewry.
Our campaigns have became noteworthy
in philanthropy again will emerge triumph-
ant in a great task to fulfill obligations to in the effective manner in which the younger
elements have joined with their elders in sup-
many causes.
The most noteworthy result of the drive porting and working for our major commu-
is that by the time all the pledges will have nity needs. This should be encouraged to
been accounted for there will be 25,000 con- assure continuity for our joint efforts to
tributors. This number, which will exceed strengthen Jewish life and to guarantee the
last year's by more than 1,500, represents dignity that is inherent in our communal
additional enlistees in the great effort to functions.
Jewish Welfare Federation and Allied
provide for the overseas and national causes
and for the educational, recreational and Jewish Campaign leaders have earned high-
est commendations for the significant results
health needs in our own community.
It is the participation of the largest num- attained in the 1965 drive. What has been
ber that counts, and enrollment of many hun- attained this year serves as an assurance
dreds of contributors who have not given in that our schools may look for unstinted sup-
previous years means that the campaigners port in the future, that the many other causes
have reached out to make this community will not be abandoned, that Israel can count
a vast participant in the movements chosen on our people as partners in the task of
for inclusion in the major fund-raising effort. state-building and security. The fund-raising
The priority that is being given to edu- victory may well be viewed as a triumph for
cational and cultural projects, the interest a people that is traditionally a merciful and
in Israel, the devotion of Detroit Jewry to compassionate folk.
Israel Museum: High Mark in Artistic Attainment
Whether or not the inclusion of sculp-
tures as well as drawings, prints, paintings
and other art works mark a change in the
interpretation of the biblical injunction
against graven images, the fact remains that
the new Israel Museum which was opened
last week on a Jerusalem hilltop marks a
new era in the method of viewing Jewish
cultural values.
The injunction is part of the Decalogue
(Exodus 20:4 and Deuteronomy 5:8) : "You
shall not make for yourself a sculptured
image, or any likeness of what is in the
heavens above, or on the earth below, or in
the waters under the earth." But immedi-
ately following it is the added admonition:
"You shall not bow down to them and serve
them."
Thus, the new interpretation is that the
word pesel image against which the order
appears in the Ten Commandments prohibit-
ing its worship refers to idols and to idol-
worship.
Now, in modern times, Jews, as lovers of
art—many among us are the creators of art
—admire the creative works and love them.
—
—
There is no question today of idol-worship.
That is why, in the Jewish Museum, in
the Hakirya area of Jerusalem which will
house, in addition to the Hebrew University
and Hadassah's installations, the new Knes-
set (Parliament) building and many other
Israel government structures, there are on
display art works that are valued at $35,-
000,000. That is why, in the new Jewish.
Museum, there are biblically-inspired sculp-
tures by Marc Chagall, Jacques Lipschitz
and other sculptors; paintings depicting Old
Testament themes by Rembrandt; antiquities
unearthed by archaeologists; and other un-
usual objects.
The Shrine of the Book—now protecting
the Dead Sea Scrolls — which adjoins the
Jewish Museum; the Billy Rose Art Garden;
the 15 pavilions of the Samuel Bronfman
Biblical and Archaeological Museum—these
combine to make the new Israeli museum
one of the most impressive in the world. It
is another step in the direction of high art-
istic and cultural attainments which distin-
guished Israel and provide for the Jewish
State a place among the most progressive
nations in the world.
Congress Protests Against Soviet Anti-Semitism
Congressional protests against Russian
anti-Semitism, coupled with the appeals to
the Soviet Union for fair treatment of its
Jewish population and its needs made by
Jewish organizations, could bring the de-
sired result: USSR's ending its policies of
religious and cultural genocide.
It has been established that the claim of
impartiality in the application of the Rus-
sian anti-religious program to all faiths alike
is untrue. While other faiths have been given
the right to publish prayerbooks, to issue
periodicals, to conduct cultural and enter-
tainment programs, the Jews of Russia have
been deprived of their newspapers—except
the single monthly magazine that reaches a
limited number of readers — and of their
theater. While more than half a million Jews
in Russia declared Yiddish to be their moth-
er tongue, there are restrictions stemming
from official prejudice that interfere with
the fullest use of the language.
The hearings in Washington last week,
before the House Foreign Affairs Commit-
tee, established the truth of the charges that
Jews are discriminated against in the USSR.
They also established another fact: that there
is discrimination in government wherefrom
Jews have practically been eliminated.
While anti-Semites continue to accuse
Jews generally of being in control of the
Communist regime in Russia, it has been es-
tablished in figures presented at the Con-
gressional hearings last week by Dr. Joseph
Schechtman that the number of Jews in the
USSR government has been reduced dras-
tically. He showed that: "In 1934, Jews corn-
prised 4.1 per cent of the membership of the
two houses of the USSR Supreme Soviet.
By the end of 1937 there were 32 Jews in
the total of 596-5.3 per cent. By 1946 the
percentage dwindled to 0.8 and to 0.4 in
1950. Now, among the 5,679 elected members,
only 13 are Jews-0.22 per cent—as against
a Jewish population ratio of 1.09 per cent—
a fifth of the proper percentage.'
It is unfortunate that it has come to pass
that protests against Soviet Russian anti-
Semitism must assume the same role and
proportions as the condemnations that were
made 50 years earlier against Czarist per-
secutions. But this seems to be the only way
of forcing the issue, of arousing public opin-
ion and of inducing the Russians to change
their attitudes towards their Jewish citizens.
No one is immune to criticism. Therefore it
is to be hoped that the current protests
against the USSR will bring the desired
results.
High Standards in Learning
Bentwich's 'Education in Israel'
Tells Current Conditions, Needs
Interesting revolutionary steps marked the development of ed-
ucational institutions in Israel, and an able researcher, historian and
educator, Joseph Bentwich, who is now in the• Israeli Ministry of
Education, tells the story in "Education in Israel," the newest Jewish
Publication Society volume.
In the last century, the author, who is a member of the famous
Bentwich family, reports, "the more emancipated Jews" in Central
and Western Europe had set up schools in their communities with
German as the language of instruction. Philanthropists felt it their
duty to establish schools in the Levant, and the first school in Jerusa-
lem was set up by wealthy Austrians in 1856 and was known as the
Laemmel School, named after the benefactors. German was the
school's language of instruction.
In 1864, the Evelina de Rothschild School was established for girls
and it was later transferred to the Anglo-Jewish Association and
English became the instruction language.
Influenced by Kalischer, the Alliance Israelite Universelle set
up the famous Mikveh Israel agricultural school in 1870. Boys'
schools were formed in 1880 and 1882 in Haifa and Jerusalem.
Opposition by the orthodox was organized against these schools,
and the ram's horn was blown at the Wailing Wall to pronounce ex-
communications, but they nevertheless served as the foundations fe —,,
Israel's present excellent school system.
Bentwich traces Israel's school history from these backgrounds.
By the time of the outbreak of World War I, Hebrew became the
language of the school system in Palestine. The need to apply the
language to modern needs and the coining of new words marked the
new era in education, but a dedicated community began the establish-
ment of the school system that includes modern kindergartens, ele-
mentary and high school classes, and now the schools of higher
education.
The revival of Hebrew is reviewed in the Bentwich book which
devotes considerable attention to the teacher problem—the training
of teachers, the elevation of their standards, the formation of teachers'
organizations which played a role in the country's educational devel-
opment.
Bentwich shows how the Zionist movement has influenced
the educational functions of Palestine and then of Israel. He
shows the need for strong Zionist influence until this every day.
His book deals at length with the status of the schools of higher
learning, and he evaluates the Arab educational programs and the
progress made in Arab educational programs and the progress made__
in Arab ranks with Israel's official government encouragement and
The standards of a compulsory educational system, the status
the secondary schools and the need to expand that program, the role
of religion in the schools are among the items under discussion,
resulting in an illuminating' analysis of Israel's system of education.
Recognizing the difficulty of including religious teachings in all
schools, Bentwich suggests:
"The only way out of this tangle is to interpret "religion" in
a much broader sense. Every teacher, 'religious' or 'non-religious'
(in the technical sense), can be a humble seeker of the Truth,
and can profitably search for it in the Bible and the rich literature
of the past (though not only in these). Every teacher can be
trying to find out what God requires of us as a 'holy people'
today, and doing his best to fulfill these requirements in his own
life. Thus judged, there are many 'non-religious' Jews who are
more truly religious than many of their more orthodox brethren;
and the number of religious—or at all events potentially religious
—teachers is much more than that reckoned by official standards.*
Bentwich's point is that religion concerns not so much ritual "as
conduct in daily life." On this score he is not entirely conclusive
with his approach to a problem, the existence of which he certainly
recognizes.
In its totality, the Bentwich analysis is a valuable and timely
resume of Israel's educational standards, conditions, needs. "Education
in Israel" is a timely and vitally needed work for this period.