religions that focus on death and the next world. Our task, in the often quoted words of the paragraph after the prayer Aleynu, is "lb repair the world under the rule of God." This world. One of the reasons that Judaism pro- hibits a Kohen, a priest, from coming into contact with the dead — a prohibition that is, to the best of my knowledge, unique among the world's religions — is that this world and life, not the next world and death, must be the priest's sanctifying preoccupation. But the Jewish affiramtion of this world in no way im- plies that this is all there is. Jews who deny the existence of any reality beyond this life are not only denying a basic teaching of Judaism. They are also denying what is logically axiomatic to God's existence. Since Judaism, and all monotheistic religion, is predicated upon the existence of a God who is non-physical and beyond nature, and who is just and loving, this physical existence of ours, by sheer logic, cannot be the on- ly reality. It defies logic to hold that the non-physical God would create a world whose only reality is physical. It is equally illogical that a just and loving God would create a world wherein the sum total of the existence of any of his creations would be cruel suffering. To state this , case as starkly as possible, if there is nothing after this life, then the Nazis and the Jew- ish children they threw alive into Auschwitz furnaces have identical fates. If I believed such a thing, I would either becomed an atheist or hate this God who had created such a cruelly absurd uni- verse. In either case, I certain- ly would cease leading a Jewish life. There are yet other pro- blems with believed that this life is the only reality. Those who hold this position are likely to be led to one of three negative conclusions about life. One is hedonism. If this physical life is all I have, then it is very logical to live a life pursuing pleasure. If the physical is the one reality, let me experience as much phy- sical joy as I can. As John Silber, president of Boston University, recently said, the message today is, "You can go around once in life, so get all the gusto you can." Another conclusion is radicalism. Many secular Jews for example, heirs to thousands of years of, May the coming May the coming year be filled year be filled with health and with health and happiness for happiness for all our family all our family and friends. and friends. SHEILA & JAMES PRENZLAUER SHAWN, BA & CHAD WEINBAUM ROBERT, KATHERINE & AUDREY RICHMAN GREGORY, JUDY & ALANA EPSTEIN May the coming May the coming year be filled year be filled with health and with health and happiness for happiness for all our family all our family and friends. and friends. FRANK & JUDY ROSNER ARIELLE & JEREMY MARILYN & MEL ROTHENBERG 1711. 3T1 nayz A Very Happy and Healthy New Year to All Our Friends and Family. THE SHUSTERS JEFFREY, RHONDA, DANNY & AMANDA A Very Happy and Healthy New Year to All Our Friends and Family. A Very Happy and Healthy New Year to All Our Friends and Family. DR. & MRS. MORRIS STARKMAN & FAMILY varon 111115 i1lt13`2 to all our friends and relatives. to all our friends and relatives. MR. & MRS. LEO WEBER MR. & MRS. HARRY WEISS & LOVED ONES A Very Happy and Healthy New Year to All Our Friends and Family. MORIS AND ELKA TAMA Best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year. Best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year. We wish our family and friends a very healthy, happy and prosperous New Year JERRY SHARE—KANSAS CITY FRAN, LORA & BRIAN STERN LILLIAN & HARRY PAULL Best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year. Best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year. We wish our family and friends a very healthy, happy and prosperous New Year REUBEN & DOROTHY SHERMAN LESLIE & TERRI SWARTZ ERIC & MICHAEL HARRY, ANDREA, JASON & STEPHANIE POTACH Best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year. Best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year. MERLE & SELMA SILVERMAN & FAMILY We wish our family and friends a very healthy, happy and prosperous New Year CHARLES & BARBARA TOBIAS FRANK & FAY RADZINSKI Best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year. Best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year. We wish our family and friends a very healthy, happy and prosperous New Year GERRIE & MIKE SPALTER TRACEY, ALAN & ALYSSA TROTSKY WILLIAM & GAIL ROSSEN Best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year. Best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year. GLORIA & SANFORD STACEY, FRAN & MARK IRVING & PEARL WEINGARDEN We wish our family and friends a very healthy, happy and prosperous New Year , AGI & ZOLI RUBIN & FAMILY THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS 93