52 Friday, October 6, 1918
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Dwindling Irish Jewish Community Strong
By MAURICE
SAMUELSON
DUBLIN, (JTA) — There
are fewer than 3,000 Jews
in the Irish Republic, equal-
ling less than one percent of
the community in neighbor-
ing Great Britain. But they
DONATE
BLOOD TO
THE BLOOD
BANK
A happy and healthy New
Year to all our relatives
and friends
Burt & Rose Selik
have never felt so indepen-
dent, secure and proud as
they do today.
That is the impression
gained from a visit here and
from lengthy talks with Dr.
Isaac Cohen, who, when he
reaches the retirement age
of 65 next year, will have
spent 20 years as Chief
Rabbi. For Irish Jewry, it
has been a period of
gradual, but nonetheless
significant change, much of
it in response to a changing
environment.
To our relatives and
friends we wish you a -
very happy, healthy
New Year
Mrs. Dora ,Snow
Mr. Shaya Snow
The Newmans
Clara, Lou and Stewart
wish their family and friends a year of good
health and peace
Magene and Sam Richman
wish all their relatives and friends
a healthy and happy New Year
We wish all our dear friends and
realtives a happy and healthy New Year
Manny and Louise Rotenberg
A happy and healthy New Year
to all our friends and family
Kathy and Jeff Schultz
Madelon, Louis, Melissa
and Adrianne Seligman
wish a happy and healthy New Year
to all our friends and family
A healthy and happy New Year to
all our friends and family
Maureen and Bob Shapiro
Sandi and Michelle
The Tinks'
Harold, Sylvia and Cheryl
wish all
Shalom — Health — Prosperity
May the year ahead bring happiness
peace, good health and
gotd fortune to all
Larry, Myra and Ian Wasser
To all our relatives and friends
we wish a very happy and healthy
New Year
Chuck and Judy Wolin
Mark, Susan and Ken
May the coming year be one filled
with healthy and happinees for all
our family and friends
Florence Go Idfarb and Rae Zamler
•
A major change has been
in the relationship with the
Jewish community of the
United Kingdom. One of the
strongest links used to be
the close contacts between
Dublin, capital of the Re-
public, and Belfast, the
industrial hub of British-
ruled northern Ireland. Be-
cause of the terrorism of the
past nine years, many of
Belfast's Jews, formerly
almost as numerous as
those of Dublin, have fled to
England, leaving the Jews
in southern Ireland more
isolated than before.
At the same time, Irish
Jews, like their non-
Jewish compatriots,
have become more aware
of their links with
Europe, where Ireland is
a full-fledged member of
the European Economic
Community. In matters of
shekhita, Irish Jewry
seems more aware than
Anglo-Jewry of the rele-
vance of EEC regulations
governing conditions of
animal slaughter.
In the Conference of
European Rabbis, Cohen is
the equal of his British
counterpart, Dr. Imma‘uel
Jakobovits, Chief Rabbi of
Britain, who was Ireland's
second Chief Rabbi from
1949 to 1958.
Before Ireland gained its
independence half-a-
century ago, Irish congrega-
tions were represented on
the Board of Deputies of
British Jews. But there is
now only one vestige of this
old link — Irish synagogues
which may register mar-
riages are those whose mar-
riage secretaries are recog-
nized by the Board of De-
puties in London. The
Jewish Representative
Council of Ireland has con-
sidered scrapping thie link,
but decided it was not
necessary.
The Irish Chief Rabbi-
nate is otherwise indepen-
dent, except in matters of
would-be-converts to
Judaism, who are referred
to the London Beth Din.
There are still secular
links with political and
fund-raising bodies in
London. But even in this
Zionist sphere, the rela-
tionship has changed.
Two years ago, the Israeli
Ambassador to Britain
was also accredited to
Ireland. Israeli envoys
have been showered with
hospitality by Dublin
Jewry, brining a new in-
timacy into its contacts
with Israel.
Meanwhile, the Yom
Kippur War, the rise of in-
ternational terrorism, and
the sending of Irish United
Nations troops to Lebanon
have made Irish public
opinion as a whole more
aware of Israel and the
Middle East — and indic-
rectly of Irish Jewry in its
midst.
Domestically, the corn-
munity has moved steadily
up the economic and social
ladder in the past two de-
cades with more people
entering the professions
and arts and even local poli-
tics.
It has moved geograph-
ically, too, out of the immig-
rant districts of the South
Circular Road, with its two
fine old synagogues,
through the modern dis-
trict of Terenure, south-
wards into the mountains
and down the coast.
Meanwhile, the Repub-
lic's other main community
in Cork has dwindled to
only 20 families, and only
individual families remain
in cities like Limerick and
Galway.
The community's de=
cline is partly due to
emigration to England,
the U.S. and Israel. But
families, too, are smaller
than in the days when
birth- control, tabu in
Catholic Ireland was re-
garded almost as a crimi-
nal offense.
Despite the shrinkage,
though, the community's
heart seems as sound as
ever. Even the emergence
of a small Reform congrega-
tion has caused no major
schism in the community
which remains markedly
traditional in its religious
outlook.
According to Cohen, vir-
tually all the Jewish chil-
dren here have some Jewish
education. Half attend the
two Jewish day schools —
Zirc Primary School and
Stratford College, the sec-
ondary school — which pro-
vide daily Hebrew and
Judaism lesson.
Of the other 50 percent,
two-thirds attend afternoon
Hebrew classes, while the
remainder have private
tutors. There are also active
youth movements, the most
popular being the
religiously-inclined Bnei
Akiva, with 100 members
aged 10 to 17.
Cohen told me that he,
like most of his community,
totally disagree with the re-
cent criticism of Israeli pol-
icy by Jakobovits and
Michael Sacher, president
of the Joint Israel Appeal in
Britain and a leading
member of the Jewish
Agency and World Zionist
Organization Executives.
Happy New Year
DAY'S FASHION SHOP
I. \
For a
1
kii
Mr. and Mrs. Louis Gould
wish all their family and friends
a happy and healthy New Year
Best wishes to all our friends
and family for a happy, healthy New Year
Mr. and Mrs. Hal Green
We wish all our relatives and friends
a healthy and happy New Year with love
The Hechlers'
Mark, Rose and Ellen
To all our dear friends and valued
customers we wish you a happy,
healthy and prosperous New Year
Al Kay Jewelers
Best wishes for a happy and healthy
•New Year
Marilyn, Michael,
Matthew and Melissa Kent
Fay and Ted Lan
wish their family and friends a
happy, healthy New Year
A happy, healthy New Year to all
our friends and realtives
George, Frances and
Sandra Lipshaw
A healthy and happy New Year to
all our family and our friends
Sarah and Hy Mervis _
and Children
A happy and healthy New Year to
our friends and realtives
Mr. and Mrs. Albert Porvin
and Grandchildren
Miriam, Mark & Howard Rosenberg
May the coming year be filled with
health and happiness
and peace for all
S. R. REZNIK
!app.
r. and Mr.. Das
9450 Jos. Campou
Hamtramck, Mich.
Mr. and Mrs.
Milton Tilson
and Family
wish all their family and friends
a happy, healthy and
prosperous New Year
We wish to extend to all our
family and friends a happy and
healthy New Year
Sanford, Harriet,
Mark, Robert and
Lori Wolok
Al & Bernice
Yendick
Shelly & Michael
wish all their relatives
and friends a healthy and
happy New Year
JULIUS and CELIA HACKMAN
wish all their friends and relatives a happy_and
healthy New Year and also would like to thar,
them for their many contributions, cards,
good wishes and personal kindnesses during
these past few months of illness
CELE LANDAY
ARTHUR SCHWARTZ
ARTHUR'S STUDIO
of -
INTERIORS
& Staff
Wish our clients a
Healthy and Happy New Year