'1'HE 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
‘ssociation.
Published every Friday by The Jewish News Publishing Co., 17100 West Seven Mile Road. Detroit. Mich. 48239.
VE 8-9364. Subscription S7 a year. Fo.eign
$8. Class Postage Paid at Detroit, Michigan
second
PHILIP SLOMOVITZ
Editor and Publisher
SIDNEY SHMARAK
CARMI M. SLOMOVITZ
Advertising Manager
Business Manager
CHARLOTTE DUBIN
City Editor
Sabbath Scriptural Selections
selections
This Sabbath, the seventh day of Tevet, 5729, the following scriptural
will be read in our synagogues:
Pentateuchal portion, Gen. 44:18-44:27. Prophetical portion, Ezekiel 37:15-28.
Fast of Tevet Scriptural Readings, Tuesday.
Er. 32:11-14, 34:1-10. Prophetical portion, Is. 55:6-56:8.
Pentateuchal portion Candle
lighting, Friday, Dec. 27, 4:48 p.m.
VOL. LIV. No. 15
Page Four
December 27, 1968
A New Year .. . and New Hopes
As we prepare to usher in a new year, we
face new problems, some old ones that have
remained unsolved, challenges that are tor-
menting the hopeful as well as the despond-
ent.
At best, we are assured that the Vietna-
mese war may not terminate until the end of
1969.
The situation in the Middle East is so up-
setting that there appears to be little hope for
peace.
Domestically. the•race issue is among the
major of the distressing elements in our life.
Yet, one must face the future with a sense
of confidence, with hopes that eternally
beckon to us to have faith in the goodness of
man and to reject the pessimism of those who
view evil as all-pervasive and as dominating.
While a new administration in Washing-
ton may, in the main, merely pursue the
policies of Presidents who have preceded the
man who assumes office on Jan. 20, the con-
stant exploration of means to establish peace
must hearten us to believe that the quest for
peace will succeed.
It is so urgent that there should be peace
in our communities, that the unnecessary bat-
tle between the white and black communities
must not only be resolved but must end in an
understanding of the common needs of all
citizens.
Perhaps reason will rule over hate and
there may be a new approach to peace in the
Middle East.
The existing conditions are not bright, but
men of faith must never live in a state of
hopelessness.
That is why we hold to the optimistic view
—that better times are ahead, that the New
Year 1969 holds in store for all of us a sense
of security as well as of peace.
May this be our lot in the year ahead for
which we wish the community the joy that
goes with amity.
"Proselytism in the Talmudic Period" by Dr. Bernard J. Bam-
berger was a classic 30 years ago. Its reappearance in a new edition,
with an additional explanatory introduction and a foreword by Dr.
Julian Morgenstern, published by Ktav (120 E. B'way, NY2), is certain
to be welcomed by students of the era
under discussion and all who are inter-
ested in conversions and the proselitiz-
ing and missionary activities by Jews in
olden times.
Dr. Morgenstern's foreword is in It-
since the Six-Day War, Arabs from all Arab self an interesting review of scholarly
attainments
by American rabbis, and Dr.
countries are permitted to worship on holy
is commended for his re-
days in Nazareth, in Jerusalem, wherever Bamberger
search and his "first-fruit" attainment
there are holy places for both Christians and in this work which won the Kaufmann
Moslems.
Kohler Memorial Prize of Hebrew Union
For 20 years, contrary to decisions of the College in 1936.
Addenda contained in the new in-
United Nations for free access of Jews to holy
troduction review the advances that
places, Jews were not permitted to approach
have been made in the study of the
the Western (Wailing) Wall in Jerusalem. But
subject of conversions in the talmu-
the moment Jews regained that area, it be-
dic era. Dr. Bamberger points out
came a free place for worship by all faiths.
that "the most striking triumph of
Jews fought and regained Hebron, where
Dr. Bamberger
Jewish missionary efforts after tai-
there was a massacre of theological students
mudic times was the conversation of the royal family of the Khazars
in 1929 by Arab gangs, and other territories
in the 8th Century." He states "There is some evidence...that the
whence came the worst evidences of terror-
rabbis of northern Spain, like those of France, favored conver-
sionist activity, despite the increasing threat of the Iiiquisition."
ism, and they instituted humane methods
He states that "in medieval France, down almost to the time of
aimed at establishing good relations with
the expulsion, conversions seem to have been relatively frequent."
Arabs. Yet it becomes necessary to convince
Commenting on the status of the Marranos, "many of whom
the prejudiced that the aim of Israel is to
died as martyrs for reverting to Judaism," he states: "Jewish legal
establish peace in the entire Middle East, and tradition classified such persons not as converts, but as Jews who had
there are deaf ears to these appeals!
sinned under duress and were returning as penitents. The circumcision
What a tragic way of introducing a new of Marranos was regarded not as an initiatory rite, but simply as the
civil year—and how markedly sad that even delayed performance of commandment."
In the original text, Dr. Bamberger outlined the scope and signifi-
those who know the facts are either silent or
become parties to the dirt-spreading that is cance of proselytism and missionary activities, explaining: "Whereas
Christianity
and Islam were from the start universal and world-con-
infesting the great New York metropolis!
The tragedy of such dissemination of filth quering faiths, in which missionary work was a central and essential
Judaism began as a national faith, which even after it had
might have been minimized if it had been in element,
been universalized by prophetic teaching, never lost- its particularistic
evidence only in Harlem. But it was also part color. The idea of making converts only emerges gradually in the his-
of a pattern in Washington and in Watts and tory of the Jewish religion; and organized activity for this purpose
in other communities. It can not be waved does not appear to have started until the Maccabean period."
away simply by pointing to the good will
Outlining the origins of Jewish proselytism, explaining the Halakha
spokesmen for the NAACP which, too, has and Aggada regarding converts, Dr. Bamberger's thorough study is
been subjected to attacks by the irresponsible replete with data containing basic historical material on the vast
militance. Will the representatives of both the subject, and his historical survey concludes by indicating:
"That the Rabbis did not resort to the pseudo-universalism of
black and white—and Jewish— communities
conversion by force is perhaps not to their credit, since they lacked
be able to get together in an effort for accord,
the
means
to do this. But that in the face of all discouragements
for true cooperation that would negate the
they continued to seek converts, and that they secured such despite
destructive extremists? If this can not be
all the disabilities and dangers that the convert had to face, testify
attained, we may be due for even more seri-
eloquently to the persistence in Israel's darkest days of a vivid
ous headaches than we are experiencing pres-
Messianic hope, an expectation of the Kingdom of Heaven, when
ently over the race issue.
the Lord should be One and His name One."
Dr. Bamberger states in his concluding analysis that "The uni-
versalism of the Rabbis was perhaps more genuine - than that of the
daughter religion (Christianity)." He states: "It was expressed in
policies which did not compromise the religious ideals of Judaism for
the sake of missionary success. Even the Pauline gospel attained its
condemned by Israel. But Israel's enemies wide appeal as much by the addition of pagan mythical elements to
keep referring to them, without apologies for Jewish dogma as by the abrogation of the Law; and later Christianity
the many indecencies by Israel's enemies. conquered the Roman world and lost its own soul in so doing. Moham-
Israeli civilians have been murdered in cold med, also, after his first attempts to win adherents by persuasion were
resorted more and more to unscrupulous trickery and
blood, and as Dayan stated on the TV pro- unsuccessful,
merciless force, until his early religious teaching was lost in a great
gram, "not one Arab civilian has been killed." military-political adventure. The Rabbis never considered trading the
But the communications media are silent on name of universalism for its essence. It was their aim to change the
that score. It was not in anger alone that non-Jews so that they might be amenable to the universal truths of
Dayan's attitude should be judged, but, also, Judaism, not to water those truths so as to make them palatable to the
in his having spoken for all of Jewry con- heathen. Thus the converts who came to Judaism increased the num-
demning the silence of those who should know bers and strengthened the morale of Israel without appreciably chang-
ing the essential character of Jewish life and thought."
right from wrong.
'Responsible Militance' vs. Hate Psychology
"Responsible militance" is the description
that has been given by the chairman of the
Bnai Brith Anti-Defamation League to the
group of Negro leaders who are rejecting
"rabid extremism." But in the interim a large
audience is gathering around the slogan that
has been introduced by the new hate-mongers
who speak in terms of "Zionist bandits" when
attacking the United Federation of Teachers
in New York.
It is an established fact that the NAACP
is opposed to the spread of hate and terror in
Negro ranks, that it recognizes the injustice
of injecting anti-Semitism in the race issue.
But the extremists have not been deterred—
and that's where our tragedy escalates into a
problem that is growing in seriousness.
Could it all come from Cairo, as analysts
of the new anti-Semitism seem to believe? It
is in the Egyptian capital that the nefarious
Protocols of the Elders of Zion are being
distributed again, that the vicious and medi-
eval blood libel again is resorted to in the
course of the mingling of anti-Semitism with
anti-Israelism. Perhaps that is why the Har-
lem Tenants Party, led by Jesse Gray, stated
in its pamphlet, addressing itself to the head
of the teachers' union in New York, Albert
Shanker: "This is not Egypt—You ain't com-
ing here. Zionists kill black people in their
own lands in the Middle East. They run
people out of their own communities."
Dore Schary, head of the ADL, said the
Harlem Tenants Party "dirties the city with
anti-Semitic flyers." It may be useless to
debate with this Negro group's brain trust.
But how can those who are reached by this
dirt-spreading group be advised that for the
first time Arabs enjoy freedoms—the liberty
to travel from Tel Aviv to Amman, the right
to do business between areas held by Israel
and those in Jordan; that for the first time
Dayan's Anger Over Atrocities Charge
Outrageous charges are being repeated ad
nauseam about atrocities committed by Israel.
The lie has had free traffic over airways,
in newspapers, on public platforms.
Is it any wonder that Israel's Defense
Minister Moshe Dayan displayed anger when
the charge was mentioned to him on the tele-
vision program over which he was inter-
viewed?
There were two retaliatory acts by irre-
sponsible Israelis during the nation's history
as an autonomous state, and they have been
Dr. Bamberger's 'Proselytism
in Talmud Times' in New Edition