THE JEWISH NEWS

THE RIDDLE. Of THE SPHINXES

Incorporating The Detroit Jewish Chronicle commencing with the issue 0(July 20, 195.1

Member American Association of English-Jewish Newspapers, Michigan Press Association, National Editorial Association.
Published every Friday by The Jewish News Publishing Co., 17515 W. Nine Mile, Suite Sti5, Southfield, Mich. -18075.
Second-Class Postage Paid at Southfield, Michigan and Additional Mailing Offices. Subscription $10 a year.

PHILIP SLOMOVITZ

Editor and Publisher

CARMI M. SLOMOVITZ

DREW LIEBERWITZ

Business Manager

Advertising Manager

flan llitsky, News Editor . . . Heidi f'ress,

I . N1

EditOr

Sabbath Scriptural Selections

This Sabbath, the ninth day of Elul, 5735, the following scriptural selections will be read in our synagogues:
Pentateuchal portion, Dent. 21:10-25:19. Prophetical portion, Isiah 54:1-10.

Candle lighting, Friday, Aug. 15, 8:15 p.m.

VOL. LXV11, No. 23

Page Four

Friday, August 15, 1975

Too Much Satire Too Little Humor

As true as the admonition in Proverbs the presidency. Columnists are so anxious to
(25:18) that "where there is no vision, the people pose as witty that all rumors, miscalculations,
perish" is the warning that a lack of humor is puns coined for the sake of etymological arrog-
dangerous to human endeavors. ante, assume the menacing roles of 'exaggera-
Another truth inherent in a notable saying, tions.
that "wie es christelt sich, so judelt sich," that as
An instance in point is the candidac'y for
the Christians react, so also do the Jews, ex- President of U. S. Senator Henry Jackson. Too
plains the universal effect of such human re_ac- many have already chosen to refer to him as
tions as a lack of good, wholesome humor.
"the Jewish candidate," all stemming from his
Tragic experiences have made the Jew more numerous appearances at Jewish gatherings, his
amenable to the lighter side of life than could support for Israel, his position on detente and
possibly be expected under distressing condi- trade with Russia.
tions. Even in the concentration camps, under
Last week a National Observer writer, au-
the Nazi tyrannies, Jews joked, poked fun at the thor of the "Mainstreams" column, (Edwin A.
enemy and at themselves.
Roberts, Jr.), writing on politics and Democratic
Sigmund Freud, in "Wit and Its Relation to candidates, has this to say: "What about Scoop
the Unconscious," thus complimented the Jew Jackson? I like him personally and agree with
for his ability to joke about his own plight: his support of a strong American military pos-
". . . determination of self-criticism may make ture . . . But he seems to be almost a captive of
clear why it is that a number of most excellent the aircraft industry and the Israel lobby."
jokes should have sprung into existence from This was not written in fun. But it faces the
the soil of Jewish national life. I do not know danger of being translated into cynicism border-
whether one often finds a people that makes so ing on ridicule in the accelerating prejudices ar-
merry unreservedly over its own shortcomings." ound a score of presidential candidates.
Nevertheless, the more recent experiences
The point is that a suspician of one becom-
reveal a slackening of humor, a lessening of wit- ing "a captive of the Israel lobby" immediately
ticisms. It was evident in Israel after the Yom introduces the possibility of exchange of feuding
Kippur War, and now, with a stiffening of will- which
inevitably drag in the prejudices
power.in a resistance to pressures the witty are that so may
easily divide the unknowing on matters
emerging anew. This is an especially welcome
relating to the ethnic questions and foreign rela-
indication of a resumption of normalities in tions of our government.
Jewish life.
Inevitably, also, the coming presidential
The slackening of the wit of Jews, especially
in current literature, is, in fact, a symptomatic campaign is certain to evidence many conflict-
element in American life generally. If we have ing attitudes on the Russian emigration prob-
fewer Sholem Aleichems it is because our coun- lems, the detente with the USSR, the Arab-Is-
rael conflicts. The moment there is a tendency
try at large has less Mark Twains.
Regrettably, those who struggle to attain a to resort to smart-alecky approaches there is
sense of humor more often adopt the slurs of the bound to be animosity and hurt feelings. That's
satirical which approaches the cynical. That's when the searchers for witticisms may prove to
when humor assumes the danger of becoming be satirists whose ridicule will not be too palata-
ble.
galgenhumor, the wit of the gallows.
There may be an approach to the danger of
There is need for more humor, but it must
cynicism, emerging under the cloak of humor- not be spoiled by objectionable satire and ridi-
ism, in the approaching political campaign for cule.

Lunatic Fringe on Loose Again

When the lunatic fringe begins to scribble
offensive signs on public buildings it is a sign
that the medieval prejudices have again reap-
peared in all their ugliness.
Anti-Semitic signs on Detroit's public foun-
tains, buildings and alleyways in the downtown
area have created anxieties among Jews who
have been confronted by them and non-Jews
who have expressed embarrassment over the
occurrences.
To the credit of sound American thinking and
devotion to fair play and human tolerance it
should be emphasized that religious and racial
prejudices are the products of a small minority.
The sick minds are the few and the obligation of
a community is to treat it so that--the intolerant
will not be given opportunities to spread their
venom and to instill their hatreds into additional
insensitive minds.
An earlier incident of a nature similar to the
new spate of anti-Semitism in Downtown De-
troit last week; when a church was besmudged
with inerasable paint three months ago, proved
the unacceptance of intolerance. The minister of

that church exercised the firmness that served
as an example of resentment to intolerance. This
is the type of Americanism that rejects hatreds.
Yet there are scares from bigotries that are
harmful to society, and their repetition must be
avoided at all costs.
The naturalness of these concerns is unde-
niable. No matter how extreme the hate-in-
spired manifestations, they are certain, in the
long run, to be repudiated. But because similar
experiences were events that led to pogroms in
enlightened lands like Germany and the back-
ward ones in Eastern Europe, caution and alert-
ness is necessary.
Since the hate signs inspire violence against
a portion of the city's.population, the obligation
to prevent such insults to an entire community
rests with the City Fathers and the police de-
partment. If manifestations of hatred against
Jews, such as have been smeared shamelessly in
this community, are permitted against Jews,
they could be repeated against Blacks, Catho-
lics, Mexicans and others. That is why lunatic
fringe tactics must be condemned.

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'The Roots of Anti-Semitism
Evaluates Jew and Gentile

There have been several books and re-prints in recent years that
have systematically dealt with the rise of anti-Semitism, but few offer
the clear, concise realism of the every-day history expounded by Er-
nest L. Abel's "The Roots of Anti-Semitism" published by the Farleigh
Dickinson University Press.
Dr. Abel, a native of Canada now living in Buffalo, N.Y., presents
an historic document of rare importance for its brilliant insights into
the way a fledgling religion and way of life not only rejects its neigh-
bors, but offends them to the point where anti-Semitism was born and
developed over a period of 2,400 years.
The first half of "the Roots of Anti-Semitism" is especially impor-
tant for its treatment of the pre-Christian development of anti-
Semitism. Dr. Abel states:
Monotheism and Messianism were not familiar concepts in the
Greek world. In the Greek mind, all gods had a right to share the
pantheon; syncretism was the way of life in the ancient world and not
the exception. But the Jewish deity, Yahweh, would not tolerate such
an entente with pagan gods; in fact, he would not even recognize their
existence, which was a serious insult to the Greek, the Egyptian, and
to every other polytheistic people.
Furthermore, Yahweh's followers also seemed to consider them-
selves superior to those who worshipped pagan gods.
Yet it was not the Jewish religion as religion that gave rise to anti-
Semitism in the Greek world, but rather the obligations of that reli-
gion, for it compelled the Jew to remain aloof from his neighbors.
For example, the orthodox Jew could not take part in the social
life of the city, since this centered around recognition of the city's
patron gods. This meant that the Greek theater and the festivals that
formed an important and cherished part of Greek life could not be
attended by the Jew.
In addition, the revered Hellenistic institution, the gymnasium,
was anathema because the Jew regarded display of the body as im-
moral and heathen.
Participation in the social life of the city, especially the gymna-
sium, was an unavoidable antecedent to political life, but though the
Jews aspired to politics, they were unwilling to take part in Greek
society.
Yet during the Raman period they precipitated numerous out-
breaks against themselves by insisting that they be treated as citizens
and residents of their cities and by demanding the same privileges as
were enjoyed by the Greeks, even though they refused to participate
in the social life of the Greek community.
As long as there was no attempt to infringe upon the rights of
citizenship, the Greeks were willing to tolerate Jewish unsociableness.
Although they were resentful that the Jewish god regarded their own
gods with contempt, they could just as easily reverse this feeling.
But when the Jews eventually did try to maneuver their way into
the long-cherished responsibilities of citizenship, Greek resentment
and contempt finally turned to hatred.
In the latterhalf of the Ptolemaic period the social conflict be-
tween Jew and Greek within the cities (and especially in Alexandria,
site of the first recorded pogrom) raised tempers almost beyond con-
trol. However, during this era anti-Semitism only took a characteristic
literary form in which the Jew became a target for derision and
contempt.
Defamatory writings about the Jews came to be widely circulated
in the ancient world and as a result, whenever the Jew traveled to a
new location, he found that the description goven him by his Greek
and Egyptian enemies had preceded him.
The second half of Dr. Abel's book deals with the conflict between
the Catholic Church and Judaism, and again the author provides valu-
able insights into the everyday life and thinking of the followers of the
two diveregent viewpoints.

