Purely Commentary
A Salute to a Great Scholar and a Great President
Israel's Retiring President, the Man of Great Learning and
Courage . . a Tribute and a Good Wish . . . Our His-
torians, Their Lonely Roles and Their. Inevitable Influences
By Philip
Slomovitz
Historians: Spiritual-Cultural Minority and the Generation to Come
From the wisdom of Abraham Lincoln we select a six-word sentence:
"Fellow citizens, we cannot escape history."
Fewer than 100 at any one session of the three-day convention of the American
Jewish Historical Society held here last weekend attested to an appreciation of this
truth. Nevertheless, the timelessness of history is irrefutable, and therefore the role
of the historian predominates even if he is a minority.
How else can we have historians other than as minorities among the scholars?
They are the men of research and what they do is for the imperishable in literature.
Therefore, while not always among the acclaimed, they are themselves the acclaimers
of truth about their generation and their environment.
The Hebraist will appreciate this 'annotation in the form. in which historian
receives his Hebrew meaning. He is referred to as a yodeah—one with knowledge; he
is also described as baal divrey hayamim—one who interprets the happenings of his
time; and also as koreh hadorot—the chronicler (reader) of the generations.
How marvelous a collection of definitions! It is any wonder that Judah Leib
Peretz, the great Yiddish writer, should have written (in "Vegn Geshikhte, in 1890):
"A people's memory is history; and as a man without a memory, so a people without
a history cannot grow wiser, better."
Therefore, when a handful of scholars gathered here to encourage knowledge by
perpetuating their activities as historians, they gave to history—in the case of the
group that met here Jewish history—the dimension of wisdom and retention of the high
standards Of Jewish historicity.
How many read Heinrich Graetz and Simon Dubnow and Salo Baron and Abrah.
Karp and Jacob Marcus? Perhaps their works are limited in circulation, but
authors have made available information about basic developments in Jewish life. They
have retained the records of Jewish life and Jewish creativity. They have enriched
our libraries.
They are not best sellers ! But their works are the very core of the instruments
which make certain that people will not escape what is inescapable: their history!
Historians came here, they planned to continue their labors, they left, a few
interested men and women came to hear their messages and they may have forgotten
them in a matter of a few days. But they won't escape the effects of such efforts! His-
tory is indestructible!
We could draw so many lessons from the gathering of a handful of people here,
whose labors received material encouragement from this wonderful Detroit community.
There will be some funds for the labors of the historians. Will the men viewed as
leaders in the community benefit from such labors? Will they read and be imbued by
the knowledge gathered for them? Or will they pursue a policy that has been so
evident in rabbinic and lay leadership ranks: they come to dinner (or lunch), they
applaud, they give the money and they vanish.
But the historian stays on. He labors. He researches. He studies. If his con-
temporaries will not read him, the next generation may. The accumulated works
remain. That's why the labors of a dedicated man like Dr. Abraham Karp, the president
of the American Jewish Historical Society; the studies and teachings of Dr. Jacob
Rader Marcus, the labors of so eminent a layman as Dr. Maurice Jacobs, and the works
of so many others, are inerasable.
They were few who gathered here, but the works of their minds will pursue this
and the coming generations who will become their captives.
Role of Anti Semites in Ellsberg Case
-
Daniel Ellsberg's experience might be called a fantasy. The end of the trial has
been described as still "under clouds." But the incident may remain inerasably as part
Israel has a change of guard this week. Weizmann University Professor Ephraim
of the early 1970 scandalous pages in our nation's capital. And the occurrences, when
(Katchalski) Katzir has risen to the helm as president of Israel. The welcome to him,
they first began at Ellsberg's indictment, had their anti-Semitic undertones.
with good wishes for success, is accompanied by hearty greetings to the retiring presi-
Note the accompanying
continue
granted
many
years
in
which
to
that
he
be
Zalman
Shazar,
dent, Shneur
photograph in which a self-
to render the important services he has contributed toward Israel's advancement.
styled Polish freedom fighter,
President Shazar is one of the most distinguished men in world Jewry. He is a
Joseph Mlot-Mroz, is shown
man of great dignity and his scholarly approaches to Jewish life and to Israel have
on the right heckling Mr. and
made all of us his debtors.
Mrs. Ellsberg. He displayed
He is loved by all who have had the privilege to know him and to learn from
a sign that read "Fight Jew-
him. He is a master of languages. Not only in Hebrew, but in Yiddish and English he
ish Communism" and shout-
has inspired two generationS of fellow Zionists.
ing "You're a Red Jew,
you're a traitor," he lunged
Not only in Israel, but on the world scene there is the indelible mark of the
at the couple and was re-
Shazar cultural gift that is felt by world Jewry now and will be valued as a legacy by
strained by 'attorneys who ac-
generations to come.
companied the Ellsbergs.
American Jewry especially appreciates the great contributions that have been
The Polish bigot also struck
made to Zionism and Jewish life by Zalman Shazar. As head of the Jewish Agency's
television cameramen during
cultural department he labored in New York for some years, and his efforts have been
that incident that occurred
an inspiration to very many of us.
while the Ellsbergs were on
Israel's retiring president assumed the name Shazar from the initials of his name
their way to the court in Bos-
Shneour Zalman Rubashov. His early education was in the Academy of Jewish Studies
ton nearly two years ago.
in Leningrad and in the Universities of Freiburg and Verlin. As editor of the Hebrew
While a single hate monger
daily Davar he rose to great heights in journalism. He was the most effective Zionist
does not represent over-all
propagandist. His mastery of Yiddish, German, Russian and Hebrew; his skill as an
public opinion, there is no
essayist; more than all else—his ability to befriend people and to link them fraternally
doubt that a 'measure of anti-
to Israel: those have given him the high status he acquired as president of Israel.
Semitism was in evidence
when charges first were pre-
He will be making new gifts to Jewry's cultural programs as head of research
ferred against Ellsberg.
tasks for the Hebrew University Institute of Jewish Studies. The new assignment is
It might have done the Polish anti-Semite some good to go back to Poland and
Shazar
never
removes
himself
from
Jewish
ranks
and
remains
that
Zalman
an indication
there join his fellow anti-Semites who rule a Communist state. But apparently there
active in the cultural spheres. As a leader, as friend, as a great human being—as an
are comrades to be enrolled also in this country's field of insane delusions.
activist!—the Shazar name earns the honors it will always receive from the people and
*
*
*
the state of Israel.
he inserted in his "60 Minutes" show last Sunday? How
Israel: Strange Blind Spot for Arabs
Magnificent piety distinguishes the retiring Israeli
he happen to fall for the Diaspora angle that could be dis-
leader. On every one of his visits to the United States, he
Sensible Arabs, including their spokesmen at the
torted into a hate mongering slogan against Jewry? Are
remembered the Rebbe. Himself a Hasid, he did not wait United Nations, for a time refrained from speaking about
Arabs with their 17 states in a Diaspora? What kind of
Israel
as
Israel.
They
have
abandoned
it,
and
in
that
sense
for the Lubavitcher to come to him. He traveled to Brook-
business is this that begrudges Israel the right to live? Is
have recognized the reality of Israel's existence.
lyn to converse and to study with the Rebbe.
it like the effort of bigots to emulate the Anti-Defamation
Yet,
so
many
blind
spots
remain
in
anti-Zionist
and
The Shazar role is more universal. Only two weeks
League when they recently chose to use an ADL name in
ago, a delegation from Dropsie University headed by the anti-Israel ranks that it is both amusing and puzzling.
order to mislead the public? (They were stopped by court
the
world-
and
university's president, Abraham Katsh,
Take the large paid advertisement in the World in
action).
Review section of the New York Times' May 13 issue.
famous authority on the Second Commonwealth, Prof.
There are many ways of creating hatreds and the
Solomon Zeitlin, traveled from Philadelphia to present Dr. There was a call for a "World Youth Gathering" in
pity is that the very genuine desires on the part of pro-
Tripoli,
Libya,
May
12-15.
An
agenda
was
listed
to
include
Shazar with the first copy of a "Festshrift" published in
gram-makers to be fair often lead them into such traps
his honor. Shazar and Zeitlin were classmates in Lenin- as the final in a three-point program "Zionism: the Other
as creating diasporas where they do not exist. Mike
Face of Imperialism." The advertisement referred twice
grad. They embraced and renewed a lifetime friendship.
Wallace will be sponsoring programs of a positive nature
to
"the
Zionist
state."
Not
once
was
Israel,
the
target,
It evidenced additionally the affetcions for scholarship.
about the Middle East that will have the image of giving
mentioned by name.
equal-time-equal-space to all sides. But while the nega-
Shneur Zalmon Shazar is rightfully admired in all
That's how animosity blinds Israel's and Jewry's
tions dominate, they create resentment that emanates from
Jewish ranks. May he be granted the strength to pursue
despair.
the tasks of his mind and his courage for Israel the people enemies to the realities of the Middle East.
In the long run, truth must emerge—"ha-emet
Is the public "taken in" by this type of propaganda?
and the state.
titzmakh." That is why the confident delimit despair and
Why does a man like Mike Wallace, the ultra-sensible pro-
hold fast to faith.
gram planner, fall for the propagandistic type of material
2—Friday, May 25, 1973
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS