THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

Boris Smolar's

`Between You
. . . and Me'

1

Editor-in-Chief
Emeritus, JTA
, (Copyright 1979, JTA, Inc.)

THE FAMILY CRISIS: The ever-increasing disinte-
gration of Jewish family life in this country is provoking
grave concern among Jewish leaders. Some of them are now
dined to consider the growing erosion of family life as
/en a greater danger to Jewish continuity than mixed
marriages. Six major national Jewish organizations have
held conferences or symposia on this subject. The American
Jewish Committee has placed the problem on its list of
major priorities.
The American Jewish Committee is preparing the is-
suance of a call to other Jewish organizations — both reli-
gious and secular — to consider the strengthening of the
Jewish family a major communal priority. The call will
urge organizations to evaluate the impact of all their
policies, programs and practices on Jewish family life.
Communities will be asked to support quality child-care
programs and local agencies, organizations and
synagogues whose programs have an impact on family life
will be urged to coordinate their activities through intera-
gency consortia on Jewish family concerns.
A policy statement emphasizing that helping Ameri-
can Jews to retain and strengthen their religious and cul-
tural identity has always been a major objective of the
American Jewish Committee will be adopted at the AJ-
Committee's four-day National Executive Council meeting
which is being held next week in San Francisco.
THE GREAT CHALLENGE: The Jewish family is in
trouble. Its problems are usually thought to reflect those
the American middle class family in general — skyrocket-
ing of divorces, dramatic growth of the number of "single
parents," low birthrate, preference to have no children at
all, living together without being married, geographic mo-
bility which negatively affects family ties, the two-career
family which deprives children of all ages of adequate pa-
rental care and of normal contact with parents, the ten-
dency by some feminists to consider their careers as being
more important than home-making and raising children.
AJC ACTION: Anticipating the danger which the
erosion of Jewish family life holds for Jewish continuity,
the American Jewish Committee has now created a Na-
tional Jewish Family Center to serve as a clearing house for
information and research on the Jewish family.
The center will develop policies and programs in this
area, and offer training seminars for lay and professional
leaders. It will also initiate and sponsor needed research. It
hopes to facilitiate coordinated approaches to meet the
needs of the American Jewish family.

Strauss Tells U.S. to Keep
Out of M.E. Autonomy Talks

WASHINGTON (JTA) —
President Carter's special
ambassador to the Middle
East, Robert Strauss, de-
clared to Congress that the
U.S. should not attempt to
impose itself in the Israeli-
Egyptian talks to speed au-
tonomy plans for the West
Bank and Gaza Strip, even
though not a single decision
has been achieved in four
months of discussions.
lep. Paul Findley (R-I11.),
a leading proponent of U.S.
recognition of the Palestine
Liberation Organization
without preconditions, op-
posed "letting the dust set-
tle over the Dayan resigna-
tion" and waiting for
months because the U.S.
Presidential primaries are
_ advancing. "You are advis-
ing caution," he told
Strauss, when the Israeli
situation calls for "daring
and imagination."
Strauss replied, "I'm
cautious about too much
daring. I don't want to
jump out of windows. It
would be great domestic
politics for President
Carter to kick the hell out
of somebody, but in the
end he won't he very

further ahead in the
peace process."
With May 1980 the target
date for the establishment
of the autonomy machinery
on the West Bank and Gaza
Strip under the Israeli-
Egyptian treaty, Strauss
testified that if "only half"
of the necessary ar-
rangements are completed
by that time, the talks can
be considered successful be-
cause of the complexity of
the issues and the "vast,
vast differences" between
Egypt and Israel.

Tel Aviv Grants
Land for Temple

NEW YORK — The Tel
Aviv Municipal Council has
granted a plot of land to a
Reform congregation for the
purpose of erecting the first
structure in Israeli history
which will be built specifi-
cally as a Reform
synagogue. The 19-5 council
vote climaxed a 12-year
battle waged by Kedem
Congregation and its rabbi,
Moshe Zemer, to find
adequate quarters.
Kedem is one of 13 Re-
form congregations in Is-
rael.

Friday, October 26, 1919 11

BETH YEHUDAH SCHOOLS

65TH
ANNIVERSARY DINNER

MEMORIAL TRIBUTE TO

DANIEL A. LAVEN

To be -held at
THE FAIRLANE MANOR

19000 Hubbard Drive, Dearborn (across from the Fairlane Town Cen ( er)

SUNDAY EVENING, NOVEMBER 18, 1979

CO-CHAIRMEN

Guest Speaker

David B. Holtzman

I. William Sherr

Cocktails at 6:00 p.m.
Dinner at 7:00 p.m.

The Honorable Chaim Herzog
(Former Ambassador of Israel to
the United Nations)

For Reservations, Please Call: 551-6150

FOUNDERS

Samuel Hechtman
George Hill
David B. Holtzman
Arnold Joseff
Mrs. Morris Karbal
The Laven Family
Lopatin, Miller & Bindes
(in memory of
Esther Hecker)
Abe Malzberg
Sol & Anna Nusbaum
Family Foundation
Irving I. Palman
Jack Peitz
Alvin Reifman

Marvin Berlin
Harold Beznos
Max Biber
A. Howard Bloch
- Ivan Bloch
Stuart Bloch
Borman's, Inc.
Jack J. Carmen
Ernest L. Citron
Irwin I. Cohn
Dr. Arnold Eisenman
Dr. Elmer Ellias
Louis H. Golden
Nathan I. Goldin
Dr. Joseph Goodstein

Martin L. Abel
Norman Adelsberg
Norman Cottler
Henry Dorfman
Reubin Dubrinsky
Alan Feldman
Kenneth Fischer
Sidney Fischer
Dr. Phillip Friedman
Martin Goldman
William Goodman
Louis Haas
Peter Heiman
David Hermelin

SPONSOR _ S

Honigman Foundation
(in memory of
Sarah Honigman)
Dr. Joseph M. Jacobson
Alex Joseph
Frank W. Kerr Company
Eugene Kraus
•
Sol Lessman
Mrs. Marlene Mandell
Midwest Clayman Co., Inc.
Paul Newman
Dr. Lloyd J. Paul
David Pollack
Julius Roteoberg

Mrs. Gertrude Reifman
Alex Saltsman
Mrs. Emma Schaver
Robert A. Schwartz
I. William Sherr
The Stewart Family
(in memory of
Dorothy Stewart)
Max Stoliman
Philip Stoliman
Mr. & Mrs. Marvin M. Tamaroff
Mrs. Morris Yassky
Samuel Zack
Dr. Arnold Zuroff

Joseph Roth
(in memory or
William Roth)
Solomon Rothenberg
Jack Shenkman
Alvin Spector
Joseph Stewart
Lawrence J. Traison
Mel Wallace
Harold Warren
Irving Weiss
Paul Zuckerman

Guardians . . . Mr. and Mrs. Norman Allan