Friday, October 1, •1983
•
(
THE 'DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
AAEJ to Hear Rep. Lantos
LAND PARK, Ill.
—
American Associa-
tion of Ethiopian Jews
(AAEJ) will hold its first
national conference Oct. 30
in Crystal City, Va.
Rep. Tom Lantos (D-
Calif.), who took part in the
recent Congressional trip to
Ethiopia, will address the
gathering on the plight of
the Falashas.
Grade's 'Rabbis and Wives' Now Released in Paperback'
Chaim Grade left an inde-
lible mark on world litera-
ture. Acquiring the status of
leadership in the ranks of
Yiddish writers, his works
•
The "three intense mov-
ing novellas, The Rebetzin,'
`Laybr-Layzar's Courtyard'
and 'The Oath,' are a
people's mirror reflecting
its social, economic and
spiritual life, and depicting
its rabbinical education in-
stitutions, especially the
yeshivas and their method
of teaching," was Warsen's
summation of the notewor-
thy work.
Warsen paid this tribute
to this impressive Grade
o
s
10
Buick Honda
28585 Telegraph Rd. Across From Tel-Twelve Mall
Southfield, Mich.
(313)353-1300
We are all sculptors and
painters, and our matenal
is our own flesh and blood
and bones. Any nobleness
begins, at once, to refine a
man's features; any mean-
ness or sensuality to im-
brute them.
— Thoreau
Stanley H. Kaplan \
CHAIM GRADE,
gained recognition among
publishers and had begun to
appear in English transla-
tions for a number of years
before his death in 1982.
Alfred A. Knopf pub-
lished his "Rabbis and
Wives" posthumously and it
rose to best-seller listing. It
has just been released as a
paperback by Vintage
Books, a Random House di-
vision.
Inna Grade, Chaim
Grade's widow, and Harold
Rabinowitz translated
"Rabbis and Wives." Mrs.
Grade continues to super-
vise publication of her hus-
band's works, and as a lin-
guist also qualifies as a
translator.
When "Rabbis and
Wives" first appeared, it
was reviewed in The
Jewish News, Dec. 3,
1982, by Allen Warsen.
collection of novellas:
"Grade's works serve as a
memorial to Jewish Vilna
and its culture 'that once
blossomed and is no more."
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The Colossus Still Stands
By MAURICE CROLL, M.D.
Still Stands this revered
Colossus
At the doorway to our land,
Our beloved lady with the
Burning torch;
Lighting the sacred pathway
To our land of freedom,
Symbol of a new life,
Of hope and liberty
"For the tired, the poor,
The huddled masses yearning
To breathe free"
That still come daily to
Our shores,
Seeking in desperation
A new way of life
Where hope and opportunity
Lives and flourishes
With understanding and the
God-given right to pray
In their own way
Without fear of persecution
Where freedom for everyone
Is their inherent right.
For ninety-seven years
Our lady of love
Valiantly has stood her ground,
Wavering not one inch:
Stately,
Dignified.
But weary she is — tired,
Weather-beaten
On the outside.
But her faithful, unflinching heart
Beats steadfastly,
Booming out across land and sea
The full depth of her
Freedom, unsurpassed.
Here is a different land;
A land built with
Sweat and blood,
Founded on a solid rock,
Our Constitution.
By the help of the tired;
The poor,
And even by the huddled masses."
Read well your Book of Life.
Welcome it! Nourish it! Gentle it!
Pray each year to inscribe
Your name in it.
Grow with it. Let it come
Into your heart,
For it is life itself,
A guideline to a happier,
Fuller life,
Our Constitution
Let it become a part
Of your life
In this exalted Book of Life
Each word has a meaning.
Here we live in a democracy.
A government by the people,
With ever-present growing pains —
But still growing.
Here all men are equal
In their pursuit of happiness.
We care not what may be
The color of your skin.
We care only for the man
Who dwells within.
You may speak your mind freely
Without fear of retribution.
In time your vote (Citize .n)
Is equal to any man
In this land.
No man can cross your threshold
Without your permission.
In matters of disputed areas
You will be judged by a
Jury of your peers.
Here the laborer with his
Two gnarled hands
Can sit in Congress with
The mighty industrialist
And reason together.
And then it grows by input
From all diversified groups
Acting together.
Here brother fought against
Brother,
In a most vicious brutal blood-bath
So that the cancer of slavery
Could be eradicated.
Our lady of love
Still stands in all her glory
At the entrance to our land,
Lighting the pathway to our troubled
Shores.
ADDENDUM: Our lady needs a new injection of love a*d renewed freedom. Let us rebuild her weather-beaten, crumbling exterior
and protect her merciful compassionate heart, so full of love.
CREDITS: Emma Lazarus, one of the geniuses of American-Jewish poetry, wrote the poem, "The New Colossus." This immortal
poem was engraved on the Statue of Liberty.
"Give Me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses, yearning
To breathe free
Every school child should be required to learn this poem, and to visit the Statue of Liberty (my children did).
Emma Lazarus died at the age of thirty-eight. What a fathomless loss of such a genius. When you read her poetry, her portrayal of
the word-pictures she conjures up in the mind of the reader is soul-shaking — a lonesome outcry for the ravishing pain of the Jewish
peoples.
She was truly a daughter of Israel. She brings pride into my heart everytime I read her poetry. It also brings sadness.
Credit: The Jewish News, July 1, 1983, Purely Commentary, Editor - Philip Slomovitz.