THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS could be more mistaken." And he
20—Friday, July 29, 1966
Prof. Reik's 'Curiosities of the Self'
Raises Many Issues, Is Filled With
Debatable Views About Jewry's Status
Prof. Theodor Reik of Ade1phi
College, Garden City, N.Y., has
written on many subjects of in-
terest to Jews. The famed clin-
ical psychologist has discussed
and written on the subject of
Jewish humor. He has analyzed
pagan rites in Judaism; ritual, dog-
mas, myths compulsions.
His newest work, "Curiosities of
the Self," published by Farrar,
Straus and Giroux, deals with a
variety of subjects, among which
are many of direct interest to
"leitmotifs of the Jewish sym-
bols."
(Reik's "Curiosities of the Self"
also has been issued by Noonday
Press, 19 Union Sq. W., NY3, as
a paperback).
Discussing communism, he as-
serts that "in certain respects
Karl Marx was anti-Semitic," and
he shows how under Stalinism the
USSR "turned against Zionism as
well as against Judaism." He
states:
"The lot of the Jews under
the Communistic regime was al-
most as unhappy as under the
Czarist tyranny. There are,
strangely enough, people who
maintain that one must also be
tolerant towards intolerance."
Writing on the subject "Israel,"
he says: "Almost everyone — that
is, all hommes de bonne volonte
— will welcome the creation of
.
.
ELECT
LINCOLN
WELTON
Your NEW
(8 Year Term)
PROBATE
JUDGE
OAKLAND COUNTY
* Lawyer-26 Years
* Treasurer Probate
Section, State
Bar of Michigan
* 20 Years Youth Work—
Boy Scouts, etc.
* Past President, Kiwanis
Club
* Past President North-
west Lawyers
Palestine as a haven of refuge for
the numberless persecuted people
from all over the world and as a
philanthropic shelter for the poor
and aged Jews. Everyone without
exception will applaud the enthus-
iasm and the work of the Jewish
pioneer and the defenders of the
old-new country." Yet he poses
these challenging, questions:
"Someone called the Jews 'God's
experiment with man.' Should the
experiment He had formed in His
mind have failed? If the Jews
would become a nation like any
other, it would mean the failure
of their mission as the religious
people would call it."
He had been in Palestine in 1937.
One wonders whether deeper study
will cause him to alter his chal-
lenge.
On the issue of anti-Semitism,
he affirms an old conclusion:
"Enough, perhaps even too much,
has been said about the mean,
ing of anti-Semitism. However
you twist and turn the question,
it remains a problem of the
gentile nations. It is not ours—
not a Jewish problem."
On the question of survival he
also presents a view that is subject
to debate. He believes: "The Jews
would have perished had they con-
tinued to live in Palestine for
2,000 years. . . . Their lot would
have been the same as that of the
Greeks, the Romans and the Baby-
lonians.-I believe that the Diaspora,
or the exile which the Jews call
Galuth, does not have the char-
acter of a haunting curse, but of a
blessing in disguise. Am I 'a dream-
er of dreams' to believe this? I
know how heretic such a view
must sound to the religious as well
as to Zionist Jews, but some bio-
logical and psychological consid-
erations would speak for its truth."
He adds, in his conclusion, that
"the Jews were, so to speak, kept
alive by their migrations and by
their repeated transplantation into
different cultures. In this way,
they became the nearest thing to
an 'eternal people.' "
Dr. Reik has a warning to us
When he speaks of the position
of the Jew in the United States.
He declares: "Recently the neo-
Nazis held a parade in the heart
of New York. The Birch Society
and the Ku Klux Klan still pro-
claim that Jews have no place in
the United States. The news-
papers of today report continu-
ing discrimination against Jews
who seek apartments in New
York's upper East Side. The
Constitution still protects Jews,
but how long will this protec-
tion be granted to them? Can't
it happen here? Perhaps not in
the next few years, but some
day in the foreseeable future it
can happen here in America,
which is not only our country
but also belongs to our children
and grandchildren."
Dr. Reik differs on many issues.
He states: "It has become fash-
ionable even among historians to
glorify the qualities of the ancient
Hebrews, to see ,them as being so
different from other Amorite tribes
and as forerunners of a higher
civilization. They were nothing of
the kind. They only became so, and
only after going through a very
hard school in which they had to
suffer a great deal." He qualifies
this view by stating:.
"Jewish religious teachers have
tried to convince us that the an-
cient Hebrews were filled with
loathing for the lasciviousness and
obscenity of the religious cere-
monies of other nations. The ab-
sence and the ban of a mother-
goddess was often attributed to
this *instinctive hatred. Nothing
adds: "The Hebrews daydreamed
of Canaan, promised to them a
Lady Bountiful, as a country over
flowing with milk and honey,
Here was a picture of a freeling
giving foster-mother, of the 'good
earth' in contrast to the original
land that had become parsimon-
ious and mean."
On the question of "fatalism
in Jewish history," Dr. Reik re-
ferred to the questions that
were directed to Dr. Salo Baron
by Adolf Eichmann's defense
attorney Robert Servatius who
wanted to know whether under-
lying Jewry's fate there are ir-
rational forces behind human
understanding. Dr. Reik's com-
ment is: "We do not believe in
that divine remote control, and
can thus without the least scru-
ple of conscience dismiss this
aspect of the Jewish problem."
"The Recurring Pattern" in
Jewish experience, as seen by Dr.
Reik, is: "The Jews immigrate
into a new country, sometimes as
welcome guests, where in a short
time they become prominent in
science, medicine, literature, com-
merce and finance. Some acquire
high social position. The envy of
the host people is then awakened
and increases to hostility. A secret
storm starts brewing. Often an
insignificant incident has a trig-
gering effect and unleashes the
storm. There are accusations
against the foreigners, and finally
outbreaks of violence, riots, pog-
roms and massacres. The end is
always the same. The Jews are
either exterminated or are forced
to leave the country."
This and many other assertions
make "Curiosities of the Self"
("Illusions We Have About Our-
selves") a thought-provoking and
very challenging and debatable
Work. The author has raised many
issues -- many not new — which
may indeed lead to serious dis-
cussions in Jewish ranks.
—P. S .
Pol, Adv.
ELECT
Michael L.
STACEY
STATE
REPRESENTATIVE
16th District
Republican
VOTE STACEY AUG. 2
Daniel S.
RE-ELECT
OPE R
DEMOCRAT
State Representative • 69th District
Voted the most out-
standing new Demo-
crat in the House of
Representatives by the
Michigan Press Poll.
.
Daniel S. Cooper
"EXPERIENCE COUNTS"
RE-ELECT COOPER
ON TUESDAY, AUGUST 2
Political Advertisement
ELECT
KASOFF
CIRCUIT
JUDGE
* Endorsed by AFL-CIO and Wayne County Democratic Party
* Qualified by 34 Years of Court Room and Trial Experience
For a strong, effective Circuit Court, we need judges with a solid back-
ground of court room experience. KASOFF MEASURES up 100%!
We need judges who have represented clients in all walks of life—from
corporations to union locals. KASOFF MEASURES UP 100%! We need
judges who have demonstrated their knowledge of the law and their
willingness to work hard. KASOFF MEASURES UP 100%!
A STRONG CIRCUIT COURT BENCH IS UP TO YOU — KASOFF MEASURES UP '100%
* NO. 495 NON-PARTISAN BALLOT
PoL Adv.
GOODMAN Recorders JUDGE 1