Sachars—Abram and Howard—Add Valuable Studies to World History Abram L. Sachar Sachar is a name with distinction for a father-son team. They work sep- arately, each is high in his field of endeavor; they write separately, yet there is much more than the devoted kinship. Their writings are historically allied. Both have the universal outlook. Both are students of international experiences as they affect all nations. Each has attained authoritative status in dealing with Israel and the Middle East. They have authored many books, and last month there was to the credit of each an outstanding book. Dr. Abram L. Sachar Is the author of "The Course of Our Times—The Men and Events That Shaped the 20th Century." It was published by Knopf. His son, Prof. Howard M. Sachar, has added to his creative literary efforts "Europe leaves the Middle Fast, 1936- 1954." It, too, was published by Knopf. Howard M. Sachar Abram L. Sachar has produced a noteworthy analysis of world events in his newest book, The Course of Our Times." While the subtitle explains that the eminent pres- ;Went emeritus of Brandeis University was describing the men and events of influence in the 20th Century, the reader finds much more in these pages : He reads a summary of all the important happenings of the century. He meets every person of note, and all conceivable situations are under review. All of the occurrences that affected mankind in more than half a century, the crises, the tragedies, the changes that caused revolutionary developments, are discussed in detail. We have here, in detail, the Zionist, Palestinian and Israeli developments chronicled into an historical outline presented with the skill of a trained historian. The Sachar treatment is distinguished by the research which has provided the author of behind-the-scenes facts that make his new work of value to historians, to students, as well as to lay readers who will be greatly enlightened y the eminent author. More than anything else, it is the anecdote that sparkles in the elder Sachar's writings. An old hand at drawing upon historical nuances, be goes to the root of problems when he digs up witticisms and applies them to his historical records. And there are the debates over major issues, the reparte from great minds, the quick retorts to unjusti- fied claims. A typical story is included in Dr. Sachar's chapter on "The Rise of Israel." The tragic era of Chamberlain and the White Paper is summarized by Abram Sachar as fol- lows: In the fall of 1938, Hitler and Mussolini burst through the status quo. The Chamberlain government had been re- treating from obligations that threatened the peace, and it was determined to avoid a dangerous confrontation with `,..oe Arabs. In May 1939, Chamberlain released a White Paper that, in essence, scrapped the Balfour Declaration. It decreed that, after a 10-year period of transition, dur- ing which immigration would be severely restricted, Pale- stine would become an independent state with the popula- lion frozen permanently in a ratio of two Arabs to one Jew. Churchill and the anti-appeasement Conservatives joined with the Labor Party in denouncing the White Paper, labeling the action as a betrayal of pledges and a blemish on British honor. But the debate was soon aca- demic. Appeasement did not stop the Axis powers, and Britain found itself drawn into the war for survival that it had tried so hard to avert. David Ben-Gurion, the Jewish leader in Palestine, immediately pledged the support of his people to the Allied war effort. He declared, "We shall fight the war as if there were no White Paper, and we shall fight the White Paper as if there were no war." Thirty thousand men and 3,000 women, an extraordinary proportion in relation to the total number of eligibles in Palestine, enlisted in British fighting units. "Throughout, the Arab leaders remained hostile. General John Glubb, who was in command of the British. trained Arab Legion in Transjordan, said later that with the exception of his own unit, 'every Arab force previous- ly organized mutinied and refused to fight for the Allies or faded away in desertions.' The Grand Mufti, who headed the Arab League, took up residence in Nazi Germany as Hitler's personal guest, and from there, as a rabid par- tisan of the Nazis, he continued to direct Arab opposition to the Allied war effort. The British vowed, as they had during World War I , that they would never forget who had been friend and who had been foe when survival itself was at stake." It is in a footnote, in the matter of two Arabs to one Jew ratio, that Dr. Sachar related this reparte by Dr. Chaim Weizmann, taken from Sachar's "Sufferance of the "Dr. Weizmann made an unavailing appeal to Chamberlain to dissuade him. Chamberlain tried to re- assure him. 'I will guarantee the Jewish minority rights,' he said. 'Perhaps.' Weizmann responded Icily, 'but who will guarantee the guarantor?' It is not politic be so bitter.' Chamberlain warned. 'I am a friend of the Jews.' You were also a friend of the Czechs,' Weizmann quickly retorted." This is only one example of a brilliant approach to issues. Dr. Sachar had begun to outline his historical views in the television programs over stations in many city's including Detroit's Channel 56. His great contribu- !tins as a teacher and guide are now expanded by the inclusion of most of these lectures into "The Course of Our Times" book to be greatly treasured. 48 — Friday, Nov. 10, 1972 ti THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS A number of European nations clamored for roles and power in the Middle East. They are all out of it. Britain is gone. France left her heritage in Lebanon and Syria. The Germans sought inroads and failed. Competitive hatreds, struggles for power, bitter feuds, Arab intransigence—these were among the in- volvements. The Zionist cause had its triumphs, and Israel is now an integral part of the Middle East. The processes that marked the numerous develop- ments have been screened, traced to their roots, developed with unusual skill worthy of his genius as history schol- ar, researcher, by Prof. Howard M. Sachar, in "Europe Leaves the Middle East," in which he reviews the events in the years 1936-1954. It is a continuation of the eminent author's "Emer- gence of the Middle East: 1914-1924," and it is a bril- liant resume of events that affected world history and were marked by scores of crises involving numerous nations. Certainly, the emergence of Arab nationalism had much to do with the developing situations, and Israel's position and national rebirth contributed immensely to- ward the evolving historical occurrences. Dr. Sachar points out that "even the most enlight- ened of Western efforts to modernize and liberalize the Middle East foundered on the rock of Moslem Immobilism. A socioreligious tradition that suffused all life and thought, that once, long before, had known three glorious cen- turies of vitality and creativity during the Islamic Ren- aissance of the Middle Ages, had lapsed during the sub- sequent half-millenium into fatalism and intellectual paralysis. If by contrast Western institutions took root in Israel and Lebanon, this was surely not the result of special mandatory favor. Even the higher literacy rate in Jewish and Lebanese communities (the infrastructure for all subsequent accomplishments) was by no means the result of preferential educational facilities supplied by Britain and France. Those opportunities were available to Syrians and Egyptians, as well. Rather, literacy and democracy flourished precisely where the instinct for these achievements was cultivated by the local peoples themselves. It was an elan uniquely characteristic of the Lebanese Christians, guardians of a historic and cherished relationship with Catholic France, and of the Palestinian Jews, for whom Zionism blended a fierce, 19th-Century romantic nationalism with a 20th-Century socialist mes- sianism. It was not characteristic of the Arab world as a whole." All of the foreign ventures are thoroughly reviewed and their aims defined by Dr. Sachar. The role played by Jews, and the background of Zionism, is described extensively, and in a chapter, "The Imbroglio of Pales- tine," the author deals with the extensive Jewish im- migration, with "the seeds of Arab revolt," the historic sessions that led to partition and later to statehood. The world conflicts, the German aspirations, the Italian interests, and, of course, the part played by the United States, have their due share of Dr. Sachar's researched and well chronicled history relating to the Middle East and the struggles for power. He does not attribute "Western failure to exert a permanently leavening influence upon the Arab world" to "the 'inevitability' of a hostile Arab reaction to alien, Christian rule." He maintains that "the failure of Western institutions in the Middle East was not one of encounter but of duration." Such rule, as in the instance of Anglo- French presence, was too short-lived, he points out, to leave a stabilizing Influence. In the instance of Israel, his view is that in the latter 1940s "the power of world opinion and the support of a world body served the Zionists as formidable weapons." Dr. Sachar asserts that Cairo managed to avoid ac- cepting foreign rule, and in the case of Soviet presence since 1954 the field of choice narrowed dramatically: "For during this latest era of Middle Eastern turmoil, the confrontation with Israel has taken priority in the Arab struggle for identity and self-assertion. And it is thus not remarkable, in a campaign that has become a debilitating and self-imprisoning national jihad, that the Arab peoples have been presented with the choice of experiencing another, Soviet ; alternative. Once this op- tion has arisen, for whatever duration of time or im- pulsive alternation of use, Western Europe's brief tenure in the Middle East conceivably may fall into its proper perspective at last." In the meantime, after this book had gone to press, the Russians were expelled from Egypt and we have a continuation of the theme: the Europeans have left the Middle East. Whatever the future, the thorough study by Dr. Sachar provides much material to learn from and many lessons to teach a wondering world about the ten- sions and revolts of the Middle East. There is a highly deserving tribute to Dr. Sachar in the introduction by William L. Langer, who asserts that Boris Smolar's 'Between You ... and Me' Editor-in-Chief Emeritus, JTA (Copyright 1972, JTA Inc.t CJFWF ASSEMBLY: Anyone who wishes to see how or- ganized Jewish communal life is expanding in all directions year after year should attend a general assembly of the Council of Jewish Federations. The positive impact would be immediate. A general assembly—like the one under way in Toronto —is actually a congress of the Jewish communities in the United States and Canada. All problems of major Jewish concern are being discussed there in depth. Decisions taken there are later reflected in all fields of Jewish communal life. At the Toronto gathering, there are more than 2,000 delegates from Jewish communities in all parts of the United States and Canada. This is the largest attendance" the assembly ever had. It indicates growth of interest in Jewish life. Not long ago the communities used to send two or three delegates to the assembly. This year some com- munities have sent as many as 50 delegates. I remember the years when the number of delegates was very small. This was in the early period of the Council of Jewish Federations. Established 40 years ago, the coun- cil had only 15 federations associated with it. Today the CJFWF is the national association of more than 235 local federations and welfare funds, serving to note that 95 per cent of all Jews in the United States live in 200 cities— with 90 per cent residing in about 100 cities, including six cities where two-thirds of the entire American Jewry live. The CJFWF is looked upon by all organized Jewish communities in the US as their "mother organization." It is the guiding spirit whose advice is sought and followed on all matters of the Jewish communal concern. Its pro- grams embrace evaluations and directions in all fields of Jewish communal life—fund-raising, education, health and welfare, community relations, cultural needs, youth - serv- ing, family and child care, homes for the aged, Jewish population studies and many others. At the general assembly all these problems of Jewish concern—and the action priorities to meet them—are wide- ly discussed, including the participation of American Jewry in helping Israel and helping to alleviate the plight of Jews in the Soviet Union. • • • REMARKABLE DEVELOPMENTS: Two remarkable devel- opments mark the Toronto parley. One is that about 85 per cent of the delegates attended previous general assembly meetings. The other is that more than 15 per cent of the delegates are young people coming into community life and aspiring to leadership in their communities. The fact that so many hundreds of communal leaders come year after year to the assembly is a healthy indica- tion that Jewish leadership is not tired of its obligations and is eager to fulfill them. Even more important is the fact that more and more young people are beginning to take an active interest in the CJFWF assembly and are endeavor- ing to let their presence be felt by participating in discus- sions on basic issues. Only a fcw years ago some of these young people hardly knew of the scope of the activities of the federations. Now there are several hundred of them as delegates seeking to come to the forefront of Jewish communal life and to bring with them young ideas into communal activities. They come to the assembly and they learn much about the problems and requirements in Jewish life of which they knew little or nothing. They return to their communities in- spired. This is the "young blood" which the communities look for and which CJFWF is eager to provide through its leadership development program. How Jewish is Jewish leadership? This is a question often heard in various Jewish circles. It will come up at the Toronto parley. However, the answer to this question is practically given by the fact that attendance of the as- sembly is growing bigger with every year. It is the largest this year in the 40 years of existence of the CJF. The assembly will be marked by a change in the CJFWF presidency. Max M. Fisher, who is now completing his third successive term—the maximum under the coun- cil's constitution—will be succeeded by Irving Blum of Baltimore, who has been active in CJFWF leadership for many years. He is considered the "father" of the Institute of Jewish Life, recently created by the CJFWF to improve the quality of Jewish life. "no other work compares with Prof. Sachar's for com- prehensiveness, erudition, critical acumen and above all objectivity." Regrettably, when he referred to the Balfour Declaration of November 1917, he stated that by it "the British promised the Zionist Jews 'a national home' in Palestine, with no explicit reference to the Arabs and without clear definition of the term 'national home.' " There was no clear definition—true'—but there was in- direct reference to the Arabs, and it was understood that by national home Jews meant to realize the dream of statehood. But the injustice in the Langer statement was to speak of Zionist Jews. The Balfour Declaration was addressed to all Jews. The designation resorted to by Langer is like borrowing an invitation to prejudice from Arabs, the Kremlin and anti-Semites. —P.S.