VV.!. UNT-T -101A diMINIGNA - awirars,-, fr irwint- axii—aam TAWVitritml Claim of American Jewry's 'Over-Commitment' to Israel Is Challenged by Israeli Spokesmen TEL AVIV (JTA) — A former Knesset member who is now a New York resident and an Ameri- can theologian touched off spirited exchanges Tuesday night at the American-Israel dialogue with charges that Israel was "intellec- tually totalitarian" and the Ameri- can Jews were "over-committed" to Isra'el psychologically. The totalitarianism charge was made by Hillel Kook, who also was a leader of the pre-state under- ground Irgun. He told the partici- pants meeting at Rehovot in the American Jewish Congress-spon- sored talks with Israel had "too little dissent, too little discussion of vital issue, too little debate on fundamental questions." Arthur A. Cohen, New York theologian and philosopher, elaborating his charge of over- commitment, asserted, that the American Jewish community had to define its priorities in rela- tion to Israel. The "crisis" of American Jewish life, he as- serted, was the development of a belief that every phase of Ameri- can Jewish behavior had to be measured "and validated" by its relationship to Israel. Vigorously challenging the Zion- ist axion that a Jew can lead a full Jewish life only in Israel, Cohen asserted that "in fact, there is greater opportunity outside Israel to maintain one's Jewish identity without public scrutiny and surveil- lance." He added that "there is an enormous advantage in not living in the goldfish bowl of Isarel as far as leading a Jewish life is concerned." He argued that "an American Jew can live a rich and complex Jewish life without public visibilty and wthout the need of public endorsement." In Israel, he contended, "this remains impossible, in part be- cause Israel's society today de- mands not unity but unanimity." CARS-TO BE DRIVEN To any state. Also drivers furnish- ed to drive your car anywhere. Legally insured and I.C.C. licensed DRIVEAWAY SERVICE 9970 Grand River Detroit, Mich. 48204 WE 1-0620-21-22 The result, he said, is that there is a kind of monolithic aspect to Israeli society that needs a kul- turkampf to bring' about change." Those views were strongly chal- lenged by Prof. David Landes of Harvard University and by two Israelis — Dan Leon of the Jewish Agency and Dr. Nathan Lerner, executive director of the Israel branch of the World Jewish Con- gress. Prof. Landes asserted that the American attachment to Israel represented "a healthy instinct." He declared that the founding of Israel had been a "watershed" in American Jewish life, bring- ing about a change in the charac- ter of American Jews and open- ing "a new dimension" in Dias- pora life. Prof. Landes argued that there was far more dissent and criticism in Israel than in any other new country in history. He criticized as "a gross distortion" the use of such "Apocalyptic" language as "totalitarian" to describe Israeli intellectual life. Leon and Lerner agreed that there was "ample dis- cussion" in Israel on many prob- lems vital of Jewish life, though in some cases, they said, Israelis prefer to argue crucial isues in practical rather than in abstract terms. A member of the Knesset asserted that if American Jews did not turn "inward" and aban- don their stress on "universalis- tic values such as civil rights and the peace movement," Jew- ish life in the United States was more likely to vanish than flourish. That prediction was of- fered during the dialogue by S. Z. Abramov, a member of the rightist Gahal coalition. Abramov contended that Jewish life in America could not center Russian Jews thought about the activities on their behalf by the Jewish Defense League. - Prof. Zand said Soviet Jews were divid- ed on that question. He said his own opinion was that such hostile actions as those of the JDL were harmful in respect to Russian pub- lic opinion. He added that youth in Russia might support Jewish revival but that they would not accept demonstrations against Soviet cultural teams and artists abroad. BOB STERN BUILDING COMPANY • ADDITIONS • KITCHEN • FAMILY ROOMS • REC. ROOMS, etc. Predicament: The wage of con- sistency. —Ambrose Bierce. LARRY M. STEM% Thanks all his customers for their past patronage and is proud to announce his affiliation with Dexter Chevrolet • Good Deals • Good PeOpie • Good Location • Good Service 20811 W. 8 MILE Between Evergreen and Lahser Large Selection of Cars & Trucks 534-1400, 358-2232, 358-8519 ■ 11111111 ■ , .1•1=11 LINCOLN CENTER 101/2 MILE 8c GREENFIELD New Inflation Trend Seen JERUSALEM (JTA) —Currency in circulation in Israel increased by nearly 15 per cent in the last six months, Treasury sources dis- closed. They said the cause was mainly deficit budgeting by the government, which borrowed more than $350,000,000 from the Bank of Israel during April, May and June. Offical circles said there was no alternative to new taxes, which will remove from the economy the inflationary purchasing power put into it. Estimates are that the new taxes will be designed to secure an additional $175,000,000-$255,000,- 00Qoper year. . Fatah Trains Turks ISTANBUL (ZINS)—According Merrillwood Mall Birmingham For Appointment, , . 645-5070 around Israel alone and needed' a r vital and authentic Jewish com- munity in the United States. Earl Raab, a socioligist, executive direc- tor of the Jewish Community Re- lations Council of San Francisco, also stressed the "danger" to Jew- ish life in the U.S. which he said was inherent to the American trend toward becoming "a true cultural melting pot" for the first time in U.S. history. He said that development posed a threat to the maintenance of group identity in the United States in general and to Jewish identity in particular, not becauset of anti-Semitism but be- cause the environment was one "increasingly hostile" to the asser- tion of senarate ethnic identifi- cation. Prof. Irving Louis of Rut- gers University drew a distinction between the political tasks of Israel as a Jewish state and the moral and cultural tasks of the Jewish people. A participant in the dialogue today was Dr. Michael Zand, the Soviet Jewish scholar who arrived in Israel last month after suffer- ing considerable harassment by Soviet authorities in his efofrts to obtain an exit permit. He told the participants that the revival of Jewish aspirations among Soviet Jews was primarily one of young Russian Jews "who never knew before" the Six-Day War that they were Jews. Abie Nathan, Israel's "peace pilot," asked Prof. Zand what THE DETROIT JEWISH N 10—Friday, August 6, 1971 to the Istanbul daily, Milliyet, Arab guerrilla leader Yassir Ara- fat has confirmed that approxi- mately 100 Turks are training in. Palestinian guerilla camps. Asked wherther Al Fatah was involved in the kidnaping and mur- der of Israel's consul general, Ephraim Elrom, Arafat said, "Our organization is not responsible for the acts of volunteers who train in our camps, after they return home." WATCH FOR THE MYSTERY SHOP THIS WEEKEND! 32 STORES AND SERVICES FOR YOUR SHOPPING CONVENI Adler and Reese Jewelers Allstate Insurance Barton's Candy Baskin-Robbins Big Boy Restaurant Carl's Kosher Meat & Poultry Market Checker Bar-B-Q City National Bank Colony Accents Cunningham Drugs Drivers License Bureau Elkin Travel Elkin Tours Kroger's Supermarket Furs by Bricker Lincoln Barbershop Magic Touch Beauty Shop Marc William Studio for Flowers Metropolitan Optical Mister Marvin's Modern Bakery Nosherie Delicatessen Midwest's Largest Mall Antique Show ANTIQUE SHOW Arlie Tel-Twelve Mall Telegraph itd. at Twelve Mile ile Southfield Peerless Cleaners Radio Shack Richards Boys' and Girls' Wear Ross Music Shifman's Sibley's Shoes Standard Wall Covering Towne Theatre Wear House Winkelman's Bring your antique in to be ap. by experts any m ou to wn dealer 4