2 Rabbis, Jesuit Only American Clergymen to Visit Rabbi Levin on Birthday LONDON (JTA)—Two New York rabbis and an American Jesuit priest were the only American spiritual leaders in Moscow Sunday to pay tribute to Rabbi Yehuda Leib Levin of the Central Syna- gogue on the occasion of his 75th birthday. Rabbi Arthur Schneier of the Park East Synagogue spoke to the congregation. Rev. C. J. McNaspy, editor of the Jesuit weekly Amer- ica, joined a crowd of 2,000 Moscow Jews who jammed the synagogue at special birthday services. Rabbi David Hollander of the Mount Eden Jewish Center in the Bronx was delayed in London and arrived in thet Soviet capital too late for the services. The New Yorkers, close friends of Rabbi Levin, were the only American rabbis who managed to obtain Soviet visas. Visas were de- nied the others although all had been invited by the head of the Moscow Jewish community with the apparent approval of Soviet authorities. Rabbi Schneier brought Rabbi Levin a book about New York from Mayor John V. Lindsay, a silver cup from the Rabbinical Council of America and a curtain for the syna- gogue ark. Addressing the throng in the synagogue, he called for greater contacts between Jews in Russia and those in the West in order to help bring Soviet Jews "into the mainstream of Jewish life." "I would have liked with all my heart to come and congratu- late you personally but I have been prevented from this by So- viet authorities who have not granted me a visa." Israel's Sephardic Chief Rabbi Itzhak Nissim cabled Rabbi Levin. Rab- bi Nissim was another of the spiritual leaders, including Chief Rabbi Immanuel Jakabovits of Britain, who were invited but did not receive visas. •Rabbi Nissim said that despite the receipt of an invitation by the chairman of the Central Syna- gogue, he was not admitted be- cause of a "fear that Jewish 'eel- ing in the Soviet Union would have erupted despite the walls of iron set up around it." He called the Moscow Jewish community a "show window" designed to conceal the real condition of Soviet Jewry. Rabbi Schneier reportedly re- ceived a visa before getting the in- vitation. Chief Rabbi Jacob Kaplan of France, Chief Rabbi emeritus Israel Brodie of the British Com- monwealth and Isser Untermann, Israel's Ashkenazic Chief Rabbi did not accept the bids. More than a 1,000 Jews attended a Sabbath service in the overflow- ing 90-year-old Central Synagogue Saturday. Among the participants were Jews from Soviet Georgia and Armenia and 'rom beyond the iirals. Rabbi Levin voiced gratitude to the Soviet government for de- livering the .Jewish community from the "barbarians" (Nazis). Hungary was the only Socialist country represented at the cere- mony. Geza Seifert, head of Hun- gary's Jewish community, drew gasps of surprise from the congre- gation when he told them that there Were 30 synagogues -in-131de- pest, a rabbinical seminary, a high school, hospital and other institu- tions. Most In attendance were older people. One young man denied that he was there because he is religious, but said "we are try- ing to keep alive the Jewish na- tional tradition." Grigory Manevich, a member of Rabbi Levin's congregation, said that many American Jews had "very strange ideas" about the life of Soviet Jews. He said, "Many of them think that all our rabbis have died out and that our communities are run by officials of the state security service." Meanwhile, a group of Scandi- navian intellectuals who have de- clared their solidarity with the influenced not by our experience but by our expecta- tion of life. - -George Bernard Shaw. Our conduct is Jews of Russia called on Soviet au- and representatives of the profes- dons in other Eastern Euro- the situa- The resolution condemned official anti-Semitic campaigns in the So. viet Union, Poland and other East- ern European countries and the pean countries and to to accord the Jewish com- sions and arts in Sweden, Norway, tion in Arab countries where munity the same rights and privi- Denmark and Finland. Observers Jews have been deprived of citi- hangings of Jews in Iraq. Mosco w legs that the Soviet constitution and were present from other countries. zenship rights, imprisoned and Radio angrily assailed the gather- Communist ideology grants to all Speakers declared that Russia ing. executed. other ethnic minorities. was the source of anti-Semitism Presiding at the symposium on which radiates to the "peoples" 6—Friday, February 28, 1969 THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS the plight of Soviet Jews was Prof. democracies." They said the recent Johannes Sanens of Oslo. The gath- Iraqi executions and the harass- ering adopted a resolution urging ment of Jews in other Arab coun- full rights for Jews in the USSR, tries generally was connected with including the right to emigrate if the Soviet anti-Jewish campaign they wished to join relatives abroad. which made anti-Semitism respect- SUNDAY, MARCH 9th at 5 P.M. 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