THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS 18 December 19, 1975 MORRIS BUICK Temple Israel's Rabbi Leon Fram an Energetic 80 By FRANK SIMONS IS THE GUY Administrator, Temple Israel On Dec. 12, Rabbi Leon Fram of Temple Israel marked his 80th birthday, and to observe the occasion, the Youth Group of Temple Israel wrote and,dedicated a creative service in his honor. For many octogenarians, the moment would have been reserved for nostalgia and for reminiscenses, but in his response to the trib- ute given him ; Rabbi Fram looked to the future. He called for an outpour- ing of efforts on behalf of Is- rael and for the security of Is THE BUY You Get More Buick For Less Money ! AT MORRIS BUICK 14500 W. 7 Mile AT LODGE X-WAY 342-7100 . / Jte • cltectoe ,9t Creative Weavings Quality Yarns Instructional Classes 26019 Woodvilla Place Southfield, Mich. 48076 Hours by Appt. 557-6993 15% 'OFF All Yarns - Presceipton Optical Co. 26001 Coolidge Oak Park 543- 3343 the Jews throughout the world. He urged a deeper com- mitment to Judaism and to Jewish education. He sought the strengthen- ing of Reform Judaism. He asked the support of members of his congrega:- tion as it prepares to move, in the next few years, to a new area of Jewish popu- lation growth. Born Dec. 12, 1895 in Ras- eines, Lithuania, Rabbi Fram throughout his life- time has been a visionary, a battler for what he feels to be the just cause. It has sometimes cost him friend- ships, but it has consist- ently gained him the respect and even the grudging admi- ration of his detractors. On the last Sabbath of this calendar year and the first Sabbath of 1976, Rabbi Fram will deliver two ser- mons. They have been tradi- tions of long standing at Temple Israel. that Rabbi Fram will bring to a year that most people regard as a calamity and to the optimism he will ex- press toward the challenge of a new year. Today, Leon Fram is the dean of the local rabbinate, marking his 50th anniver- FLEA MARKET (Indoor) and ANTIQUE SHOW (Heated) Our Second Year ' , mil OPEN YEAR 'ROUND FRIDAY EVENING—ALL DAY SATURDAY—ALL DAY SUNDAY 578 Dealers • 1,000,000,000 Items • Parking for 2000 cars 1 3/4 miles of goods • Antiques • Hobbies • Collections Arts & Crafts • Clothing • Metalware. • Glassware • Gold • Silver • Nostalgia • Books • Musical Items • Magazines • Automotive • Tapes • Records • Tools • Paper Goods • China • Gifts • Plants • Toys • Clocks • Furniture • Guns • Coins • Stamps • Jewelry • Comic Books • Musical Instruments • Electronics • Lamps • Sports Items SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE COUNTRY FAIR FLEA MARKET 13899 1 Eight Mile Rd. For Further Information WARREN at Schoenherr 74 Perms sary in the Detroit area and 55 years as a rabbi. It was in 1925 when Rabbi Fram answered the call of Temple Beth El, at that time the only Reform syn- agogue in Detroit, and came here as an assistant to the late Rabbi Leo M. Franklin. Shortly after his arrival, an article appeared in The On Dec. 26, he, will Detroit News, commend- speak on "1975 — the Year ing him for a sermon he of the Triumph of Zion- had delivered. Under the ism," while his Jan. 2 ser- headline "Keep an Eye on mon topic will be "1976 — Rabbi Fram," the article the Bicentennial Year of read. in part: "Rabbi Leon American Greatness." Fram is yet a young man Nocynicism here, it will and theprediction is made be reinvigorating to hear that he will go far in his the spring-like approach chosen career." Come Visit, Browse and Shop at the Country's Largest NEW AND USED RABBI FRAM 779-3070 Actually, Leon Fram al- most became a chemist. He had come to Baltimore in 1900, having been brought here by an older sister, who had worked hard to bring the family to America. He was steeped in Ortho- dox tradition, went to the Yeshiva in Baltimore and graduated from high school there. He was an excellent student, a top debater in his class. He had won a scholarship to study chemistry at Johns Hopkins University. How- ever, a chance meeting with Rabbi William Rosenau of Baltimore's Eutaw Place Temple, turned him to the rabbinate, and he entered Hebrew Union College in 1916. Four years later, he was ordained from HUC and, at the same time, received a master's degree from the University of Cincinnati. He accepted his first pul- pit in Chicago — a pioneer- ing congregation in that it was the lone Reform syn- agogue in an area of 100,000 predominantly Orthodox Jews. During his 15 years at Temple Beth El here, Rabbi Fram made a major impact on the community. He re- Men's Hair Shop Styled Any Hair Length Fros Body Waves private rooms Lincoln (101/2 Mile) East of Greenfield in the Lincoln Towers For appointment 968-0999 JOHN Di CARO I ...L.. 16 ;1 4 1 ii;ii4 • , i0i4i?.!ALsiiiiiiii0iitittAtl - Nucleic Acid Products ceived national acclaim for the formation of the College of Jewish Studies, now un- der sponsorship of the Met- ropolitan Detroit Feferation of Reform Synagogues with a listing of 20 courses and an enrollment of nearly 400 pupils. He was one of the first lo- cal Jewish leaders to warn of the dangers that were emerging from Nazi Ger- many under the dictatorial regime of a former paper- hanger named Adolf Hitler. He visited Europe in those tumultuous years of the mid-30's and cried out against the abuses and the injustices and the tyranny he saw — from the pulpit, in a series of newspaper arti- cles and in a pamphlet, "Inside Germany," which was an expose of the Nazi manace. And he took on a young priest, Fr. William Coughlin of Royal Oak's Shrine of the Little Flower. Yet, in the late 1950's, in fairness to a land he felt had repented and had de- stroyed the roots of Naz- ism, Rabbi. Fram risked the wrath of the Jewish community by returning to Germany and reporting what he then saw,"a new land growing up as a dem- ocratic stronghold." In 1941, Rabbi Franklin was retiring at Temple Beth El after a distinguished ca- reer. Many members of the congregation supported Rabbi Fram as his succes- sor. It was not. to be. Accord- ing to Irving I. Katz, then as now Executive Secretary of Temple Beth El, Rabbi Franklin was opposed to Rabbi Fram's succession, primarily on the grounds that Rabbi Fram was a Zionist. In those days, prior to the full impact of the holocaust and before there was a hint that a Jewish state would be formed just seven years later, only a handful of Re- form rabbis were Zionists. Rabbi Fram was one of the leading figures in the fore- front of the movement. Also, there was a need for another Reform Congrega- tion in a city with a Jewish population of 100,000 souls. Rabbi Fram resigned from Temple Beth El, and with the backing of 30 families, they formed Temple Israel, which this year marks its 35th anni- versary. Many of the congrega- tion's charter families still recall those early days un- der Rabbi Fran's leadership when the synagogue offices were inrented offices down- town and services were con- ducted at the Detroit Insit- tute of Arts. In only nine years, how- ever, membership reached 1,000 families, and Temple Israel moved to its building in Palmer Park. As Rabbi Fram continued to become more and more immersed in the affairs of the community and the city, the congregation continued to grow, and today it is the largest of the area's Reform temples with a membership of 1,550 families. When Temple Israel built and dedicated its so- cial hall in 1955, it was named the Leon Fram Hall in his honor, and a like- ness of Rabbi Fram in bronze adorns that room — not as an idol, but in love and appreciation. And while he has relin- quished the spiritual leader- ship of the congregation to his successor, Rabbi M. Rob- ert Syme, Rabbi Fram is still active and a vital for as Founding Rabbi. He took major stands in issues regarding trade unionism and served as mediator in many labor- management disputes; he headed the campaign to save the Diego Rivera murals for the Detroit Institute of Arts; he crusaded for better school programs and in- struction; he was and.re- mains in the forefront in the field of Jewish education. Of all the awards he has received, he treasures the Amity Award given him by the American Jewish Con- gress, which cites \him for being a strong, clear voice when other voices were si- lent. • Another of his cherished possessions is the Prime Minister's Medal of the State of Israel, which was presented to him in 1970 by the Hon. Abba Eban, then the Foreign Minister of Israel. On that occasion more than 2,000 members of the community came to pay him tribute, and at the same time, subscribed to nearly $2 million in Israel Bond purchases. At a time when most indi- viduals would be pleased to rest on their past achieve- thents, Rabbi Fram, at .80, remains uniquely involved in any form of endeavor that promotes the well-being of humanity and fosters good will among all segments of society. Yordini Rate May/ Soon Equal Aliya . JERUSALEM (JTA) — About 70,000 Israelis emi- grated during the past four years and the yordim rate is coming perilously close to matching the rate of aliya, according to figures pre- pared by Ephraim Dovrat, adviser to the Finance Min- ister, which were release . The figures were a pended to the Treasury's proposed IL 84.2 billion aus- terity budget for fiscal 1976-77 which was pre- sented to the Cabinet. The figures showed that in 1972, 12,000 Israelis left the country for good and in 1973, the year of the Yom Kippur War, 15,000 de- parted. Emigration reached a peak of 24,000 last year when most reserve soldiers were demobilized. This year it was down somewhat to 19,000. a I: 'a a ti • - .