EalORIAL
Compelling Holidays
On Wednesday evening, the High Holidays began, the most
solemn and compelling of the Jewish holidays. They will continue
through next Saturday when, upon dusk, Yom Kippur ends. For vir-
tually every Jew, these holidays represent their deepest annual call-
ing to Judaism. Even for the most lackadaisical Jew, for the least
observant, for the most marginal, the High Holiday season is a time
when the Judaic umbilical cord is strongest.
On Rosh Hashanah, a prayer cites God's power — and ours —
in molding the present, past and future:
The power God gives us to make fresh every living present moment;
The power God gives us to remember, sorrow over, and forgive
ourselves and others the mistakes we have made in the past;
And the power God gives us to imagine and transform the future.
Thus, God has given us the responsibility to determine our own
lives. Our fate lies not only with Him, but with ourselves; our destiny
lies not only with divine authority, but with personal autonomy.
As we hear each eerie, almost primitive blast of the shofar, let
us remember what our ancestors said at Mount Sinai as Moses
returned with the Torah: "We will act and we will hearken." What
we will act upon is the sense of awe that we have a final authorship
over our lives — and the sense of joy that we have a chance to redeem
ourselves through penitence this season.
L'shanah Tovah!
Jewish community is yet another example of the fact that our repor-
ting continues to strive for the highest standards.
Another significant milestone achieved was how we present the
news to you. Your Jewish News is now printed on high-quality heat
set presses, providing crisp, clean reprodution. The newspaper is
stapled, with trimmed edges, to make it easier for you to read. And
a redesign of the newspaper, with an enhanced Table of Contents,
attractive graphics and liberal use of full-color makes it easier to
find the information you are seeking and a more enjoyable read.
The new year 5748 promises to be just as eventful as we continue
to meet the expanding, changing needs of our vibrant community.
We will be adding to our local newsgathering staff, introducing new
features and special sections. We will also be expanding our current
offices by an additional 50 percent to accommodate the growth of
our news, sales and office staff.
In all, we are committed to publishing a newspaper of quality,
and integrity for you. With your much-appreciated readership and
support, we are confident that when we look back at the year 5748,
we will be able to report new milestones for The Jewish News and
its readers.
May we continue to grow together from strength to strength.
L'shana Tovah,
Charles A. Buerger, Publisher
Arthur M. Horwitz, Associate Publisher
Gary Rosenblatt, Editor
.
To Our Readers
WHEN MAP MY Fikrelig
As we stand at the threshold of the New Year 5748, the blasts
from the shofar reverberate, beckoning us each to purify our thoughts
and commit ourselves to good deeds and self-improvement.
Improvement is our constant goal at The Jewish News, and on
the eve of Rosh Hashanah we want to reflect on efforts taken this
past year, and planned for the coming year, to bring you, our valued
readers, the finest Jewish publication in the country.
The just-concluded year was one of many milestones for us, from
the introduction of Single Life, a weekly section dedicated to the in-
terests and needs of Jewish singles, to the creation of L'Chayim, the
innovative monthly section devoted to promoting Jewish culture and
identity for the family.
Our local, national and international news coverage expanded
and we published major, exclusive reports on issues and events from
the Mideast to the Midwest, from Ethiopian absorption in Israel and
Detroit's Project Renewal sister city to interviews with the family
of convicted spy Jonathan Pollard and reports on the local kosher
meat industry.
Today's Close-Up by staff writer David Holzel on Detroit's Soviet
you WILL ANNICOACE
Mt AMA ¶W WE 1441)
A WOURFUL Mal%
LETTERS
Voices of Sanity
Speak Out
When the Ecumenical In-
stitute was being formed five
years ago no one, including
me, dreamed that within such
a short period of time racial
and religious bigotry would
return to the headlines and
hate groups seeking to
destroy would also seek to
separate us one from the
other.
In the last five years the
work of the Ecumenical In-
stitute has been important,
but in a real sense it has been
preparation for the battles
ahead. The Continued support
6
FRIDAY, SEPT. 25, 1987
of The Jewish News makes it
possible for voices of sanity to
speak out, for bridges bet-
ween people to be built, and
for community solidarity to
be established.
Rev. James R. Lyons
Director,
Ecumenical Institute
Role Model Is
Ceremony's Key
I am writing in response to
"Daughters of The Com-
mandments," (Aug. 28). Your
readers might be interested to
know that the Birmingham
Temple, a congregation of
Humanistic Judaism, offers a
fourth alternative to the
three approaches to bat mitz-
vah-described in your article.
At the Birmingham Temple,
the bat mitzvah ceremony
signifies the celebration of
the 13th birthday, an ac-
cumulation of Jewish
knowledge and a recognition
of the passage into
adolescence .. .
A major portion of the bar
and bat mitzvah preparation
consists of each student in-
dividually working with a
tutor to study the life and ac-
complishments of a person
who can become a role model
During the ceremony, the,
child presents his speech to
the congregation, family and
friends. Woven into each
speech is a Hebrew reading
. . . We have found that our
ceremony provides an impor-
tant, creative and maturing
experience for both our young
men and women.
Helen Forman
Executive Director,
Birmingham Temple
John XXIII's
Words Recalled
Through the centuries,
Church teachings of contempt
and hate for Jews led to the
inquisitions, pogroms, ghettos
and massacres. It was Church
teachings that made possible
a Hitler that could call for the
extermination of all Jews.
There are questions regar-
ding the part the Vatican
played in the preparation of
Hitler's plans and the
Church's failure during the
Holocaust to protect Jews.
There is a question of the
Church's role in helping
organize the escape of Nazi
war criminals from justice by
helping them reach safe
havens in Latin America,
Canada and the U.S.
Is Pope John Paul II con-
cerned about the history of
Continued on Page 10