THE JEWISH NEWS

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Incorporating The Detroit Jewish Chronicle commencing with the issue of July 20, 1951

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PHILIP SLOMOVITZ
Editor and Publisher

ALAN HITSKY
News Editor

CARMI M. SLOMOVITZ
Business Manager

HEIDI PRESS
Associate News Editor

DREW LIEBERWITZ
Advertising Manager

Sabbath Scriptural Selections .

This Sabbath, the 10th day of Iyar, 5743, the following scriptural selections will be read in our synagogues:

Pentateuchal portion, Leviticus 16:1-20:27.
Prophetical portion, Amos 9:7-15.

Candlelighting, Friday, April 22, 7:04 p.m.

VOL. LXXXIII, No. 8

Page Four

Friday, April 22, 1983

MUDDY DIPLOMATIC WATERS

Stalemating is perhaps the most realistic
judgment of the latest occurrences in the
American efforts to enlist the recalcitrant Arab
potentates in Middle East peace negotiations.
Nevertheless, the U.S. position is greatly
harmed by the failure of a chief element in aims
for amity, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, to
respond to the American invitations for ac-
tivism in peace approaches on a par with Egypt.
The reason for such refusals to be partici-
pants in peace negotiations is understandable.
The frequent assassinations of Arab leaders by
Arabs, including the most recent one of a lead-
ing PLO spokesman who had indicated a desire
to moderate approaches to the Israel role in the
Middle East, show the obstacles that have been
constructed on the difficult road to peace.
It is everybody's concern that the U.S.
should not be snubbed, even when there are
serious differences in the views expressed by the
heads of our government. Nevertheless, there
is justification in the query to be addressed to
the White House and the State Department
whether limitations in demands upon Arabs to
share in peace tasks should be the appeals
for action to King Hussein of Jordan, and whe-
ther equally adamant efforts should be made in
dealings with Saudi Arabia. Jordan and the
PLO have both been dependent upon Saudi
Arabian financial support, and the Saudis must
therefore be held equally responsible for the
continuing stalemates. Perhaps the Saudi rul-
ers could break that impasse by joining the

peace moves.
Here, too, a major obstacle, in addition to
Arab rulers' fears of assassination, must be con-
sidered. It is the Jerusalem aspect of the dis-
pute. This is an irreconcilable matter.
Jerusalem will not be abandoned by Israel as
her historic capital. If this remains the chief
issue, the road to peace cannot be cleared of the
difficulties obstructing it.
That's how the situation worsens. Hussein
is a major colliding factor. The Saudis share it
with him, Jerusalem is their tool for a continu-
ing diplomatic war which often threatens a
military one.
It is no wonder that in such a combination
in the U.S. diplomatic agonies remain as a chal-
lenge to this nation's statesmen. What has oc-
curred in the latest rifts, in the expose of the
PLO menace, in the terrorist threats, are not
new. In the totality of the most recent experi-
ences it is a continuity of diplomatic horrors.
Israel suffers from them. So, tragically, the U.S.
is also a sufferer. The first move towards a cure
must be U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Is-
rael's capital._ From that point on there should
be a clearing of the road for honorable negotia-
tions. Then the chief involvements should in-
clude the Saudis as well as Jordan.
It is not easy. Perhaps the approaches to
international sanity involving the Middle East
are becoming more difficult. Abandoning them,
however, would mean submission to endless
warfare, and that must be avoided.

LESSONS OF THE PAST

An ingathering, in this nation's capital, of
many thousands of survivors from the most
tragic experience in mankind's history, revives
the most serious lessons for generations to
come.
A library not of hundreds but perhaps
thousands of columns and brochures, relating to
the hair raising experiences of sufferers from
Nazism, surely represents an unforgettable re-
cord.
At every occasion, when the separated were
reunited after sufferings in various concentra-
tion and death camps, when those who recall the
horrors had an opportunity to speak out, there
were reminiscences and reminders.
Yet, at the deeply-moving assemblies in
Washington, retold tales sounded as if they had
never been heard before. They were warnings
that people, responsible nations, individuals
and groups, were emerging as surprises on an
unknowing world.
Because of it all, there are often the ex-
cuses, the suggestions for forgiving and forget-
ting, and that would add to an abandonment of
truth and an erasing of duty to strive for the
"never again" in the interest of a secure future
for all peoples.
There is a lesson in this for Jews in the
historic sense of preserving historic facts.
The lesson is much more deeprooted than
the chapter that was recorded anew in this na-
tion's capital. It is the question of knowing and

-

retaining the knowledge of historic identifica-
tion.
If the lesson taught by the Holocaust has
any merit at all, it relates to the general field of
Jewish knowledge. There have been tests in the
higher ranks, in the universities, among Jewish
students who displayed a lack of knowledge
about their own past, about their sacred
legacies, the Bible and the Prophets, and about
the generations and their lives amidst the
peoples of the world. Without that knowledge
they could be subjected to the oft-repeated
charge of ignorance in Jewish ranks.
There is a serious lesson from the ingather-
ing in Washington. It is a demand upon
academia and Jewish leadership to renew and
to strengthen the obligation to teach the youth,
and in the process also their elders, that there is
an unforgettable chronicle of Jewish events and
that it must not be erased. Knowledge must be
increased. If youth is to have an identification it
must be a well-informed peoplehood.
This is a lesson told very simply, and it is
not a new one. But it must be preserved. Only a
knowledgeable Jewry will be a strong and
well-preserved peoplehood.
Teaching, and learning, must commence from
the cradle, if such an extreme beneficiary is
possible. Therefore, the constant emphasis on
the home as a major factor in assuming identifi-
cation on a high level. It all relates to being
knowledgeable.

Fascination With Calendar
in Day by Day in History'

Hebrew dates with their corresponding civic listings predomi-
nate in a volume that is a combination of history and traditions, and
primarily filled with events and a record of the most important per-
sonalities in Jewish history, all appear under the title, "Day by Day in
Jewish History" (Ktav).
Rabbi Abraham P. Block, the compiler of this volume, provides a
chronology and a who's who containing thousands of listings, incorpo-
rated Jewish calendar-wise commencing with the month of Heshvan.
It is an amazingly unusual book, and the contents provide an
encyclopedic amount of information starting, as the author states,
with Adam and Eve and continuing to this time.
The author, who has been in the rabbinate since 1937, concedes
that it is not complete, yet it becomes evident to the reader and those
searching for dates in this volume that the areas covered in this
accumulation are immense. If it isn't complete — and it isn't — it
certainly approaches it.
Rabbi Block states in a brief preface that actual dates are often
difficult to ascertain, but he declares:
"All the entries based upon biblical sources, as well as those
dealing with events in the periods after the era treated by the Bible,
should be regarded as factual. The entries culled from Jewish folklore,
on the other hand, may be deemed legendary.
"The anniversary of an historical event should be commemorated
on the appropriate day whenever the correct date is known, but it is
permissible to fix an approximate date when the correct date cannot
be determined. Jewish tradition, in fact, sanctions this practice, and
as a result I have occasionally included dates in this book that are
open to question.

"A cross-reference to civil dates is provided for those who prefer to
observe anniversaries according to the civil calendar. A table of years
has also been included for those who wish to mark round-figure
anniversaries."

While the author, who chides Jews who lack knowledge of their
history, claims to have included the most important Jewish per-
sonalities in his interestingly-chronicled historical experiences, there
are numerous shortcomings. If Abba Hillel Silver rated a listing, why -
not Stephen S. Wise?
With reference to Yiddish writers: if Chaim Zhitlowsky rates
mention, why not Isaac Bashevis Singer and Sh. Niger and Chaim
Grade? The omission of so world-famous a name as Salo Baron is also
regrettable.

With all its omissions, and they certainly must have their limita-
tions, the Block compilation has several commendable factors not to
be ignored.
Exemplary is the fact that the reader is able to link the Hebraic
calendar with the civic. This serves as an encouragement to celeb-
rants of personal and family affairs as well as those that relate to the
Jewish festivals.

In general, the extent of the contents is so vast, and it embraces
such a totality of Jewish experiences, that the "Day by Day" concept
assumes a most unusual and impressive appeal.
Not only personalities, but also events and movements are ac-
counted for in this volume. The well-annotated listings of the Hebrew
months and the extensive index serve the reader well.
An admirable amount of research, gathering of facts and names
and double-checking on Hebrew dates with the corresponding civic
dates went into the production of this volume. It merits commenda-
tion to the author from an assured, appreciative readership.

