June 25, 1976 21
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Synagogue Council Commends Pastoral Statement on Jews
NEW YORK — In the
first official response to ma-
jor Catholic statements on
Christian-Jewish relations,
the Synagogue Council of
America issued a statement
last week commending the
Catholic Church — and par-
ticularly the American bish-
ops — for "continued en-
deavors to foster better
understanding between the
Christian and Jewish com-
munities".
"We are impressed with
the acknowledgment of the
pastoral message that at the
heart of the old hostilities
toward the Jewish people
was an anti-Judaic theol-
ogy," said the Synagogue
Council statement. "In deal-
ing with the old notion that
the Jews were guilty of dei-
cide, the pastoral letter
makes a point of observing
that the 'Jewish people
never were, nor are they
now, guilty of the death of
Christ.' The pastoral letter
reaffirms the position enun-
ciated in the Vatican Guide-
lines of 1975 which call on
Christians to see 'post-bibli-
cal Judaism as rich in reli-
gious values and worthy of
our respect and esteem'."
"We particularly welcome
the pastoral message's em-
phasis of the importance of
Israel in Jewish thought and
life," the SCA statement
continues. "The pastoral let-
ter declares that, 'Chris-
tians should strive to under-
stand the link between land
and people which Jews have
expressed in their writing
and worship throughout the
two millenia as a longing for
the homeland, holy Zion'."
Editor's Note: The
reviewer, Susan Kanfer, a
1973 Wayne State Univer-
sity graduate, is now com-
pleting her studies for the
J. D. (Juris Doctor)
degree, in the December
1976 class of WSU Law
School.
By SUSAN KANFER
Bernard Meislin's new
book "Jewish Law in
American Tribunals".
The plot of seemed in-
triguing — where else than
in the American courtroom
does the dichotomy of the
Jew in America truly
blossom?
Meislin's book portrays
the role of the American
courts in the adjudication of
disputes over aspects of
Jewish domestic and insti-
tutional life. Adopting a
case-by-case approach, he
delineates the law today in
reference to such disputes.
AIIon Goes to Bonn
for Trade Meeting
TEL AVIV (JTA) — For-
eign Minister Yigal Allon
left for Bonn Tuesday for a
series of economic confer-
ences aimed, he said, at re-
ducing Israel's $430 million
trade deficit with West Ger-
many. Allon is heading the
Israeli delegation to the
first meeting of the joint
Israeli-German Ministerial
Commission on Economic
Relations.
The group was set up by
the two countries to encour-
age trade; investments and
exchange of scientific and
technological information
on the governmental level.
Yeshiva U. Elects
Law School Head
NEW YORK — Attorney
and communal leader Mor-
ris B. Abram was elected
chairman of the board of the
Benjamin N. Cardozo
School of Law of Yeshiva
University.
Abram served the United
Nations as a U.S. Repre-
sentative, U.N. Commission
on Human Rights, and as
senior adviser to the U.S.
Mission. Abram has held
several government posts,
including the National Advi-
sory Council on Economic
Opportunity, and first gen-
eral counsel, Peace Corps.
He was also counsel and
public board member, Re-
gional Wage Stabilization
Board for the South, in
1961.
He was president of Bran-
deis University, president of
the American Jewish Com-
mittee, and currently chair-
man of the Moreland Act
Commission on Nursing
Homes and Residential Fa-
cilities, appointed by New
York Governor Hugh L.
Carey last year.
It is no easy process. The
precise role of Jewish law is
still a bewilderment — the
courts just don't know how
to interpret and apply it.
Meislin presents some
interesting legal questions.
Is Jewish religious law
running afoul of
Constitutional standards,
or is it cognizable as foreign
law provable by expert rab-
binic testimony? What
about relations between law
and morality? (Jewish law
incorporates religion,
ethics, and morality; in the
United States the law and
morality are not necessarily
one and the same.) How
should Holy Writs be inter-
preted in regards to legal
writs? Should a Jewish
divorce be recognized in
American courts? Or what
about contractual
references to Jewish law
and documants, particu-
larly a marriage contract?
"Jewish Law in
American Tribunals"
opens with the coming of
the Mayflower. Massa-
chusetts is coined as the
original American Bible
belt. The law of the Puri-
tans is none other than the
Jewish law — the Old Tes-
tament. Hebrew authority
is applied to Puritan liti-
gations. Analogies are
made between the Puritan
and Hebrew legal atti-
tudes. One similarity in
attitudes was the merger
of religion, ethics and mor-
ality into the whole of the
law.
With opposition to
Biblicism always _running
as an undercurrent through
anti-Puritan Christian
thought, only the legacy of
the Hebrew laws, nourished
Maccabiah Team Player Set
for U.S. Olympic Quintet
It is Grunfeld's intention,
By HASKELL COHEN
at least at this point, first of
(Copyright 1976, JTA, Inc.)
Ernie Grunfeld of the all, of course, to make the
University of Tennessee, a Olympic team and then he
United States Maccabiah hopes to play in the next set
team performer in the 1973 of Maccabiah Games which
Games, was selected to the are slated for July 1977.
15-man U.S. Olympic bas- There will be considerable
ketball squad after the pressures on him to sign a
week-long trials conducted professional contract as
at North Carolina State soon as he concludes his
Tennessee career next
University.
The U.S. team will ulti- March, but Grunfeld liked
mately be pared to 12 play- what he saw in Israel in
ers, but at this point it 1973 and it is his hope and
seems extremely likely that expectation to return again
Grunfeld will survive the with a United States team.
There is considerable
final cut involving three
pressure being brought to
players. ,
by militant groups to
Arnow Heads UJA bear
make quite a fuss over a
Fundraising Drive
public memorial service
NEW YORK (JTA) — for the massacred 11 Is-
Robert H. Arnow, Jewish raeli athletes.
It seems likely that a
community leader and
board chairman of the Jew- memorial service of a reli-
ish Telgraphic Agency, has gious nature will be held in
been named general chair- one of the large synagogues
man of the 1977 Joint Cam- in Montreal at which time it
paign of U.J.A.-Federation. is hoped that leading inter-
Arnow will begin organizing national Olympic officials
volunteers for the campaign and administrators will
for funds for local Jewish lend their presence to the
programs, Israel and for occasion.
Another Israeli team,
needy Jews throughout the
which has as of this moment
world.
not qualified for Olympic
Israel Will Hold
participation, is the basket-
13th Fashion Week ball five which must partici-
TEL AVIV — The 13th Is- pate in a pre-Olympic tour-
rael Fashion Week will be nament at Hamilton,
held in August at the Jeru- Ontario, the latter part of
salem Hilton. Summer fash- June.
At least three Americans
ions for 1977 will be fea-
will be in the Israeli lineup.
tured.
This is the first time in These include Tal Brody,
the 12-year history of Israel who has been a dual citizen
Fashion Week that two in Israel and the U.S. for the
fashion events will be held past 12 years; Jack Arzner,
in the same year. The extra late of the University of Cin-
show will be held because of cinnati and Steve Kaplan,
the success of the February who performed for Rutgers
before he migrated to Israel.
Fashion Week.
by the Massachusetts
Puritans, remains a part of
the American -heritage.
Meislin thus concludes his
historical introduction with
the dissolution of the
Massachusetts Bay Colony
and the establishment of
the United States. He then
begins the substance of his
volume — the spectrum of
Jewish influence.
A wide range of cases are
discussed: synagogue dis-
putes, 'the Sabbath and
holiday observances, and
the laws of kashrut.
Specific issues are dealt
with. What to do if a
hospital doesn't perform
the circumcision as
ordered? What about the
validity of a will which con-
ditions receipt of a bequest
upon the beneficiary's
marriage within the Jewish
faith? Can a rabbi be dis-
charged from his synagogue
by the membership despite
the existence of a civil con-
tract? What if an Orthodox
synagogue decides that men
and women should be able
to sit together, but the
membership does not total-
ly agree?
Reading Meislin's
analyses is like reading a
legal textbook page
after page of cases and
citations from cases;
chronology of cases and
issues; jurisdictional
differences in final
judicial decisions. The
language is tiring and ‘at
times slow and confusing.
The footnotes at the con-
clusion of each chapter
seem longer than the text.
This makes the reading
very inconvenient.
"Jewish Law in American
Tribunals" was a disap-
pointment. By the title, I
had anticipated in-depth
discussions and com-
parisons concerning Jewish
and American law, per se.
What I did find was a key
research-.and organizational
tool for the lawyer handling
Jewish litigations. In this
respect Meislin's book is a
very significant volume. It
codifies references to Jew-
- ish law reflected by the
court records of the United
States. It is not, however, a
book to read on a lazy after-
noon or evening.
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