16 Friday, July 8, 1977
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Russian Peasants Find Haven in Adopted Homeland: Israel
By MALKAH RAYMIST
From the World
Zionist Organization
JERUSALEM—The latest
newcomers to Israel are
Russian farmers, peasants
from Central Russia who
consider themselves Jews.
Except racially, they are
for all intents and purposes
Jews. They are of Slav
stock and have the Slav eth-
nic characteristics. Very re-
ligious, proud of their Jew=
ishness and meticulously ob-
servant.
Their present is rather
strange and tragic while
their past is vague. They
have been Jews for several
generations. All are very re-
cent arrivals, the "old
timer" among them having
lived a whole year in Is-
rael.
They speak the thick peas-
ant dialect of Central Rus-
sia and come from a com-
JEWISH NATIONAL
FUND
Comfort %>
ComfortcYe,
c71/Ir People
•
You who have in the past been contributors to J.N.F., can justly be proud.
J.N.F. played -CI vital part in the establishment of the / State of Israel.
Tisha b'Av is the time when the Jews' thoughts turn to the destruction of the
temple. Yet this is also the time to think of the reconstruction and the
upbuilding of the privilege of witnessing the beginning of the redemption of
our ancestral national home and of the Holy City of Jerusalem. -
MAKE YOUR CONTRIBUTION
TO THE
JEWISH NATIONAL FUND
MORE GENEROUS THIS TISHA b'AV
As we observe the 10th Anniversary of Jerusalem Reunited, we call upon
you to urge your congregaris and Jews wherever they are, to contribute
readily and generously, and help Jewish • National. Fund plant a green.
perimeter of millions of trees around the Holy City, in order to unify it
physically and bring life to a region which has been wasteland for many
years.
We -therefore ask you to answer the Appeals in your Synagogue for
the Reclamation of Jerusalem, on Shabbat Chazon, before Kinoth
on Saturday evening, July 23rd, and Sunday morning, July 24th.
J.N.F. supports the whole Israel economy - it grows Israel's food - on it
stands Israel's religious, educational, and welfare institutions - and it
guards her frontiers.
THOSE NOT ATTENDING THE SYNAGOGUES
_ ARE REQUESTED TO SEND THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS
TO THE OFFICE OF THE
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JEWISH NATIONAL FUND
22100 Greenfield --
Oak Park; .Mich: 48237
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KE•IN KAYIME TM UISAMt
Contributions to OM Are Tax Deductible
munity known as The Jew-
ish Farmer, but the Soviet
authorities took this name
away and re-named a group
of three such Jewish kol-
khozes by some mean-
ingless name.
The Soviets do net know
how to cope with the strage
phenomenon of Russian
peasants calling themselves
Jews, demanding to be reg-
istered as such and wanting
to go- to Israel. The author-
ities tried various ways to
stifle and separate them, in-
troduce strife and division
among them, but have so
far dismally failed.
For as long as these
peasants were content to
practice the Jewish reli-
'on, they were more or
l ess left alone, but when
they began to apply for exit
visas to go to Israel, the
screw was tightened.
Only 20 families wereper-
mitted to leave, only old
people, but they refused to
go without at least some of
their children, mostly
grown men and women
with children of their own.
The authorities finally gave
in.
On the subject of their ori-
gin they are vague. "Oh,
many generations. We have
always been Jews". The
older men, large bearded
Russian peasants, vigor-
ously octogenarians in skull
caps, are barely literate.
Probing offends them as a
sign of doubt. The younger
ones, with an education of
sorts, have no memories
and no tradition except
strict observance of reli-
gion.
They are all happy in Is-
rael: free, happy and
proud, yet somewhat dis-
mayed to find themselves
praying in a Sephardi syna-
gogue.
United Hebrew Schools Trial
All-Hebrew Class is Successful
Alio)
,
BY PHILLIP
APPLEBAUM
At a time when both par-
ents and pupils are clam-
oring for less time in Hebr-
ew school, a group of
United Hebrew Schools stu-
dens at the Beth Achim
branch have recently com-
pleted a school year of clas-
ses meeting not only more
frequently, than regular
Hebrew school, but con-
ducted entirely in Hebrew,
and with a totally voluntary
enrollment.,
The special class is the
brainchild of the UHS staff,
and Dr. Jay B. Stem, UHS
superintendent.
"What is different about
this class is that the pupils
come four afternoons a
week. That is," Dr. Stern
explained, "they voluntarily
spend more time at Jewish
education than anyone else
in the UHS system, and of
course far more time than
anyone in a Sunday school
class."
Regular classes at UHS
meet three days a week,
for a total of six hours
weekly of Jewish instruc-
tion. Decades ago, after- ,
noon Hebrew school was
conducted 10 hours weekly
at four or five days a week,
but pressure from students
and their parents demand-
ing more leisure time have
whittled that time down to
the present six hours, and
there is a growing demand
for even less school hours,
said Dr. Stern.
The Hebrew School as a
learning device is beginning
to lose its effectiveness, Dr.
Stern believes. He pointed
out that presently, all the
hours of afternoon school,
from beginning to Bar Mit-
zva age, add up to no more
than one school year of
public education. "It's the
afternoon school that people
have begun to write off,"
he said.
At the other end of the
spectrum were those par-
ents and students who felt
they weren't getting enough
Jewish education, and left
the afternoon school for the
Hebrew day schools. Dr.
Stern admits the day school
is a more effective method
of education. "With our
new program, at least we
can parallel the day
school," he said.
The experimental class
began with a voluntary en-
rollment of 15, but some stu-
dents could not take the
extra time, and the class is
now composed of 10 pupils.
Students were accepted
on the basis of their Hebr-
ew language abilities, and
their willingness to sacri-
fice an extra afternoon per
week. "We hoped to at-
tract skilled kids who could
feel every minute they're
learning," Dr. Stern explain-
ed.
The all Hebrew class is
taught by Mrs. Shoshana
Goldschlag, who though
Americin-born, appears as
comfortable with Hebrew
as with English. Efferves-
cent and encouraging, Mrs.
Goldschlag enthusiastically
lead her class through the
weekly Torah portion, ex-
planing not only the story in-
volved, but the linguistic
principles of the original
Hebrew.
Speaking no English in
the classroom, Mrs. Gold-
schlag was able to draw out
the correct Hebrew respon-
ses from her students. The
children were taught not
only to respond to questions
in Hebrew, but also to ex-
plain the meaning of words,
in Hebrew, a method used
successfully in ulpanim in
Israel.
Aside from the Torah por-
tion, the children also
learned sayings from Pirke
Avot, exercised their lan-
guage skills in a workbook,
and learned folk tales and
history. -
Asked if the children
were advancing Mrs. Gold-
schlag said they were mak-
ing _"beautiful progress."
She added, "For the first
time in their lives they're
really using Hebrew."
An innovation added by
Mrs. Goldschlag is the par-
ticipation by the class in
daily afternoon and evening
services with the Beth
Achim members.
The experiment appears
to have succeeded, as there
is an advanced registration
of 29 for the continuation of
the group next year.
"There are many who
are critical of Jewish educa-
tion, in particular of the af-
ternoon School," Dr. Stern
observed. "I think we have
here the seeds of something
very important."
Council Plans Yiddish Programs
NEW YORK—Prepara-
tions are now under way
for a varied program of
Yiddish cultural enrichment
in the 1977-78 season, ac-
cording to the National
Council for Yiddish and
Yiddish Culture.
To gather data con-
ctrning up-to-date current
Yiddish cultural programs
of all varieties, the Nation-
al Council has initiated a
survey, working in coopera-
tion with the National Jew-
ish Welfare Board (YM-
YWHAs and Jewish Commu-
nity Centers), the American
Association for Jewish Edu-
cation (Bureaus of Jewish
Education), synagogues,
temples, Bnai Brith Hillel
Foundations, schools of Jew-
ish studies, The American
Jewish Congress, and uni-
versity departments of Jew-
ish studies (through the
American Association of
Professors of Yiddish and
the YIVO resources).
Similarly, an effort has
been under way to gather
• data concerning Yiddish cul-
tural clubs, informal Yidd-
ish discussion groups in sub-
urban areas, and other pro-
grams conducted in local
communities.
The National Council Ex-
ecutive Committee has
been working in close col-
laboration with the World
Bureau for Yiddish and
Yiddish Culture established
immediately after the
world conference in Israel
to implement the resolu-
tions for community action
strongly approved last sum-
mer in Jerusalem. ,
The national council also
has been in contact with
Yiddish cultural com-
mittees in a number of the
larger cities including De-
troit, Chicago, Milwaukee,
Cleveland, Los Angeles, Bos-
ton, Miami, Providence,
Rochester, New Orleans,
Washington D.C., Pitts-
burgh, Philadelphia, Balti-
more, and others have been
kept informed about cur-
rent planning.
In cooperation with
Jewish Labor Commit
arrangements have
made to ship Yiddish books
to 11 selected libraries in Is-
rael, now building up Yidd-
ish sections for their read-
ers.
UN Will Assist
Israeli Vietnamese
GENEVA (JTA) — A
spokesman for the Inter-
national Committee for Eu-
ropean Migration attached
to the UN here said that the
ICEM and the High Corn-
missioner for Refugees
would finance the 66 Viet-
namese refugees' resettled
in Israel.