THE JEN\ ISh NEA S
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Sabbath Scriptural Selections
This Sabbath,---the 28th day of Tevet, 5738, the following scriptural selections will be read in our syna-
gogues:- Pentateuchal portion, Exodus 6:2 - 9:35. Prophetical portion, Ezekiel 28:25 - 29:21.
Monday, Rosh Hodesh Sheyat, Numbers 28:1-15
Candle lighting, Friday, Jan. 6, 4:58 p.m.
VOL. LXXII, No. 18
Page Four
Friday, January 6, 1978
Begin's 26 Meritorious Points
Public opinion, the media and the diplomatic
those who seek destruction for Israel could not
corps with an interest in the Middle East were *be expected to be logical and rational. Was it
put to the test by the 26-point program for peace
too much to expect that the media and the
which was initiated by Israel's Prime Minister
diplomats who are either affected by conditions
Menahem Begin and his government.
in the Middle East or who have an interest in it
Molded in human form, the proposals for
on an international basis should have embraced
peace provide for so much that collectively
the Begin plan as an approach to peace?
spells freedom that only the venom of those who
Not unexpectedly, President Sadat took ex-
aim for Israel's destruction could possibly ne-
ception to the.Begin program and King Hussein
gate the plan for an honorable solution of the
demurred. President Carter seemed to concur
most painful of international problems.
that the time was not propitious for Hussein's
The comprehensive Begin plan spells inde-
participation in the Cairo-Jerusalem talks.
pendence for the areas administered by Israel,
Therefore, it is a matter of time, and since
with the provision that Israel retain the right of
there was an Egyptian-Israeli agreement to
self-protection by a military force on her bor-
form two functioning committees to plan an
ders. The experiences of a century in Jewish
accord all the negative talks may be temporary
settlements, the dangers entailed, the threats
in their obstructioniSm.
still uttered by enemies, all compel caution and
There is no doubt that Israel again will be
anxiety. Except for that provision, the Begin
accused of being intransigent, while Arab in-
plan calls for autonomy for the residents in the
transigence will be ignored. A new spirit was
Judean and Samarian areas, self-rule and dem-
inveighed in the planning stages for amity with
ocratic elections, freedom of movement within
President Carter's assertion that he saw reason-
Israel and in selecting citizenship in Arab lands
able approaches in Prime Minister Begin's 26-
if desired.
point plan for peace. While Hussein has empha-
Under the newly proposed plan there would be
sized the need for the Palestinians to express
an elevation of the standards of living, an
their preferences it was the Begin statement
assurance of good schooling and health pro-
that made a plebiscite part of an accord.
tection and acquisition of liberties hitherto
Therefore, the Begin proposals retain their
unknown to the residents of the areas affected
significance under all circumstances.
by the outlined political policies. -
Since the right of settlement of Jews in the
Israelis also have grievances, and there are
Sinai, Judea and Samaria districts would be
elements there who believe that the Begin
matched by similar rights accorded to Arabs to government and the Knesset are backing a
. settle in Israel, the anger shown over such
program of yielding that is too extreme and
provisions is puzzling. It is only under amity
offers too little for the benefits to be enjoyed in
that suggestions for good neighborliness could
return. But the overwhelming sentiments in
be conceivable, and it is the abandonment of
Israel endorse the newly promulgated program.
animosities that is so strongly encouraged by
It is a plan that gives emphasis to the highest
the latest Israeli proposals for peace.
libertarian elements and it is urgently to be
Since everything is negotiable, as Begin has hoped that it ,will be put into action. It is
emphasized, whatever differences may arise
trekking toward peace and should be welcomed
should have been viewed as adjustable. But • by liberty-loving people everywhere.
Echoes of Saber-Rattling
Average Citizen must wonder whether the
serious approaches to peace will lead to drastic
reductions in armaments, at least for the
Middle East. If the murder of an Arab member
of the Israel department of education in the
Judea-Samaria areas and an occasional bomb-
ing in thickly-populated portions of Israel are to
serve as examples and warnings, then it must
be assumed that Israel will be compelled to
resort to self-protection for a long time to come.
As long as the PLO claims glory for such
incidents and constantly threatens Israel's de-
struction, no argument to the contrary will
suffice in demands that Israeli troops be remov-
ed from the borders with Arab states or
anywhere in the area that is subject to attacks
by the PLO-instigated terrorists.
These facts must be given serious consid-
eration in view of the adamant stand taken by
Syria in opposition to the Sadat-Begin negotia-
tions. The Syrian attitude undoubtedly in-
fluences the other antagonists who are soon to
meet again in Baghdad.
The reconvening of another anti-Sadat meet-
ing is being glorified as a gain in anti-Israel
sentiments because Iraq, which had balked at
the earlier, similar meeting in Tripoli, will
rejoin the PLO, Libya, Syria, Algeria and
Southern Yemen in the plans to foster the
movement against the proposed Middle East
peace plans. It is clear that while the urgency of
peace is being applauded in democratic ranks,
war-mongering and saber-rattling remains the
rule among those whose chief objective is the
dstruction of Israel. There is no bargaining with
these elements and the Israeli position against
recognition of any of these antagonists emerges
as fully justified.
Fortunately, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Leba-
non continue in the ranks of the conciliatory
Arab elements. Encouragement to these three
nations to join the Sadat ranks may prove to be
the most serious obligation facing President
Jimmy Carter and the U.S. State-Department.
Saber-rattling proves sensational in the press
and on the media airways but it is not the end-
all and be-all in the current, interesting Middle
East developments. The humanists in mankind,
with their cohorts in the Arab ranks, can not but
join Egypt and Israel in aims for peace.
'Honor the Pledge'
Drinan's Plea Emphasizes
Non-Jew's Duties to Israel
Refusal to be silent in the face of mounting pressures upon Israel is
a duty for Jews. When Christians similarly assert their protests
against injustice it becomes a mark of honor and an emphasis on
human rights and justice for all who defend dignity and a nation's
right to safety and self-protection.
Congressman Robert F. brinan of Massachusetts belongs to the
ranks of courageous Christians who will not be silent in the face of
danger for Israel. The first Catholic priest to be elected to the U.S.
House of Representatives, Congressman Drinan has spoken fearlessly
in challenge to those who would endanger Israel's and Jewry's status
among the nations. In "Honor the Pledge” (Doubleday), he attacks
the unjust approaches to the Middle East issues and utters one of the
most effective appeals in Israel's defense. He speaks out against
Christian indignities and all- vestiges of continuing bias among Chris-
tians and he writes with a sense of great concern about the urgency of
obviating inherited bigotries and of paving a new road towards Chris-
tian-Jewish cooperation and of fully protecting Israel's role as a sov-
ereign state.
Rep. Drinan's views are accompanied by references to the past, to
the experiences that had led to the current crises and to the need for a
firm stand and for action to prevent new calamities for Israel and
Jewry. He takes into account the horrors that were visited on Jewry
by the Holocaust and his is an extreme approach of never again per-
mitting the recurrence of the bestialities and the threats to Jewry
and now to Israel.
The Catholic dignitary, who now occupies the important post as
Congressman, speaks as a Christian who concedes that many of the
indignities imposed upon Jews were the result of the guilt of his
Church. His appeal for justice is to Christians not to permit repetitive
injustices and to strive for fairness in the present serious situation
affecting Israel. He declares:
"Christians will recognize Israel when Christians fully understand
that it was through the People of the Covenant that the faith in one God
has been inscribed in the history of numanity. According to biblical
revelation, it was God himself who constituted the Jewish people,
brought them up and sealed them with an eternal alliance, as is stated
in Genesis 17:7. St. Paul describes that alliance as 'irrevocable'
(Romans 11:29)...For his own sake, therefore—if for no other, better
reason—the Christian needs to understand Judaism because thereby
he comes to know himself more intimately."
Drinan's book is a strong indictment of the prejudice that subjected
Jews to endless persecutions. His '_'Honor the Pledge - is all that the
book's title implies with regard to the state of Israel. Therefore, Elie
Wiesel stated under the heading "A Word of Gratitude" as an
introduction to Drinan's book:
"Robert F. Drinan, friend and defender of Israel—and this in the
noblest and fullest sense—will occupy a special place in Jewish his-
tory. Because we find him present wherever Jews are most alone,
because his name is signed to every petition in behalf of the per-
secuted, because we can always count on him to raise his voice for the
victims who are forgotten, cheated, or betrayed, we read his testi-
mony with admiration—and gratitude."