PURELY COMMENTARY
Coughlin
Continued from Page 2
Flower, in shirtsleeves and
without collar. As in his inter-
view with this writer nearly four
years ago which was published
in The Detroit Jewish Chronicle
and the Jewish press
throughout the country on Noy.
16, 1934, Father Coughlin
reiterated that he is not an anti-
Semite, that he abhors anti-
Semitism, and is kindly dispos-
ed toward the Jews. But he
resented the attacks made upon
him in the Jewish press and
declared there was no justifica-
tion for calling him an anti-
Semite every time he selected a
Jewish name for criticism.
"Simply because I critized Al
Smith and Cardinal O'Connell
would not make me an anti-
Catholic," he declared
emphatically.
He then offered the following
explanation for publishing the
"Protocols": "Their authentici-
ty," he stated, "has not been pro-
ven, which means they are not
authentic. I am not publishing
them as Jewish creations and
am emphasizing the fact that the
vast Jewish masses know
nothing about them. I am not
charging Jews with authorship
of them. I am merely using them
for their content, to prove that
there is a plot to engulf the
world in a scheme of things
predicted in the "Protocols" and
now coming true in Russia and
in this country under the New
Deal. I repeat that I do not care
anything at all about authentici-
ty of the "Protocols" but am
concerned only with the
contents.
His interviewers then
pointed out to him that the "Pro-
tocols" had been proven
forgeries; that Henry Ford
apologized for publishing them
in his famous statement on June
30, 1927; that their authorship
has been traced to a Fren-
chman, Joly, who wrote them in
1864 to disparage Napoleon III,
and that the Russian Sergei
Nilus, at the instigation of the
Russian Secret Police, plagariz-
ed them to suit later purposes
against the Jews in 1897. He was
told further, that the coupling of
the Jewish name with the "Pro-
tocols" has brought im-
measurable harm to the Jewish
people. This writer pointed out
that no matter what qualifying
statements are appended to the
"Protocols," their mere ap-
pearance in print is interpreted
by the average person as addi-
tional proof that Jews are
engaged in a plot; that mere
mention of the "Protocols"
always proves hurtful to the
Jewish people.
It was at this point that
Father Coughlin invited the
writer to prepare a reply to the
articles on the "Protocols" for
publication in a frothcoming
issue of Social Justice.
In the course of the discus-
sion, numerous angles affecting
the problem of Christian-Jewish
relations had been touched and
frankness, marked by friendly
spirit, motivated the discussion
of the threat of anti-Semitism,
the issue of Communism and
Nazism and the question of in-
ternational finance.
Mr. Ellmann pointed out
why Jews are naturally sen-
sitive over matters affecting
their status, and Father
Coughlin thereupon pooh-
poohed the idea of an anti-
Semitic danger in this country.
He expressed the view that "it
can never happen here," advis-
ed ridicule as an antidote for
hatred, said Jews ought to be
less fearful and less sensitive.
I am not charging Jews
with authorship of them.
I am merely using them
for their content, to
prove that there is a plot
to engulf the world in a
scheme of things
predicted in the
"Protocols" and now
coming true in Russia
and in this country under
the New Deal.
Father Coughlin insisted
that Jews continue to play a
dominant role in international
finance, and when his statement
was questioned he maintained
that he could prove it — later
amending it by saying that Jews
play a role in excess of their
numbers. The question of
Jewish domination in certain
professions was then raised by
Mr. Ellmann to prove that
Jewish successes in certain call-
ings are occasioned by pressure
from without, not from within,
and Father Coughlin com-
mented: "Jews are not the
dumbest people in the world;'
and "there is nothing wrong
with domination in certain
fields of endeavor?'
But the question of Com-
munism was a major bone of
contention in the interesting
discussion at the Shrine of the
Little Flower. Father Coughlin
insists that Jews must unite
with him and with the Catholic
Church in fighting Communism
as vigorously as they oppose
Nazism and Fascism. This
presented his major challenge
to Jewry. Mr. Ellmann was
equally as emphatic in pointing
out that in Russia, at least, anti-
Semitism is a crime. To offset the
charge that Jews do not battle
Communism, Mr. Ellmann
pointed out that the Jewish
Community Council of Detroit
admits all Jewish groups with
the exception of the Communist.
Father Coughlin was
presented by his interviewers
with copies of statements issued
by the American Jewish Com-
mittee on the question of Jews
and Communism, and with a
copy of the brochure, "Why Are
Jews Persecuted?" written by
Joseph N. Moody, Ph.D., and
published under the im-
primatur of Archbishop Gren-
non of St. Louis, all of which pre-
sent factual material refuting
serious charges against the
Jews. Father Coughlin stated he
was pleased to receive material
for further study of the entire
question.
By mutual agreement it was
decided to continue the discus-
sion at another meeting, to be
held in two weeks, as a means of
clarifying the issues which have
hitherto aroused much bad feel-
ings, and to strive to do away
with unnecessary
misunderstanding and strife.
Turning back the pages of that
dreadful American Experience, recall-
ing how the Communist label was pinn-
ed on Jews in the Coughlin diatribes,
there is a measurable sense of guilt that
there was not a sufficient condemnation
of the "Radio Priest!'
The proposed two-weeks-hense
meeting with Coughlin referred to
above did not materialize for an obvious
reason. Only in a matter of days after
the above reported meeting, Coughlin
began to go to extremes in the vilest
anti-Semitic utterances. That's when
the newspapers began to take notice of
what was transpiring. The now defunct
Detroit Times interviewed me and Dr.
Leo M. Franklin. The latter expressed
shock that a Catholic priest should have
been so hateful of Jews at a time when
the Nazis were in progress of planning
the destruction of Jewry. I defined the
Coughlin actions as "sadism!' He never
forgave me for it.
Now that the Coughlin story has
been retold, it is necessary to indicate
that inquiries about the impressions
left by the documentary about' the
"Radio Priest," revealed a general lack
of knowledge about, those years of
social-religious-political horror in this
country. The recollection of the story
merits commendation. The need for
more extensive documentations is vital.
The Radio Priest's venom must always
be reconstructed as a warning for such
occurrences never to be repeated.
Perhaps Iry Drasnin will plan a sup-
plementary story, always putting to
shame any and all who dare resort to
Coughlin-type anti-Semitism.
Warning
Continued from Page 2
speak in clear, declarative
sentences hasn't normally been
among them. Perhaps in his
Geneva press conference Mr.
Arafat spoke a string of words
that the State Department can
diagram as affirming Israel's
right to exist. We'll await an echo
of Mr. Arafat's commitment to
Israeli soveriegnty from such
partners in the Palestinian
enterprise as Saddam Hussein,
Hafez Assad, King Fand, King
Hussein and Muammar Quad-
dafi. Absent declarations of sup-
port from these guarantors of
Middle Eastern co-existence, the
statements to examine are those
in the so-called Palestine Na-
tional Convenant — a document
that the PLO and Mr. Arafat,
whatever was said Wednesday,
does not have the power to
override.
This document speaks of
Palestine as "an indivisible part
of the Arab homeland" with the
boundaries it had during the
British mandate. It excludes the
millions of Jews who took
refuge in Israel during this cen-
tury. It implicitly rejects the sort
of dialogue Mr. Shutlz has just
agreed to, calling "armed strug-
gle" the "only way to liberate
Palestine." It calls "commando
action" the "nucleus of the
Palestinian popular liberation
war." It calls the United Nation's
partition of Palestine in 1947
and the establishment of the
state of Israel "entirely illegal,
regardless of the passage of time
. . ." It deems "null and void" the
Balfour Declaration, the Man-
date for Palestine and
"everything that has been based
upon them;' and rejects "claims
of historical or religious ties of
Jews with Palestine." The U.S.
and Mr. Arafat will have a lot to
talk about.
The record is kept intact with this
backgrounded data about the Jewish
experiences in Zionist history. The
Jewish Prophetical aim for the redemp-
tion of Eretz Israel had enemies in Arab
ranks from earliest times. Even the
Balfour Declaration was rejected by
them, in spite of the concessions always
provided in the Jewish devotions to the
fulfillment of aims for the upbuilding
of the Homeland. It is therefore im-
perative that the entire history be
known as means of aiming at a genuine
and peaceful conciliation with the Arab
peoples in a Jewish community
wholesome for them as well.
The guideline in this editorial of
Dec. 16, called attention to other
dangers in the new Middle East
developments. Headlined "The
Palestine Trap," the Wall Street Journal
pointed to the threat of Soviet aims at
dominating the Middle East. There had
already been a hint from the USSR that
Russia would renew diplomatic rela-
tions with Israel when "The Palestine
State" is established. It is doubtful
whether any government in Israel
would submit to such blackmail.
Meanwhile, there are threats of
many other "traps." The warning
against a Russian trap should be
treated with seriousness, especially by
our government.
Meanwhile, there are many other
traps to be avoided, and that calls for
both caution and vigilance. Israel will
surely be very cautious and vigilant in
its treatment of the Arafat-led schemes
that carry with them so much danger
to Israel, world Jewry and the peace of
the world.
.
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
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