men in the cities. Had there
been even a handful of con-
cerned, decent or righteous
men, Sodom's fate fight have
been averted.
4. But then, there would have
been no story. Sodom and
Gomorrah perished because
of their sins They were the in-
carnation of wickedness, evil
minded and hard hearted.
The Bible took an old tradi-
tion of the physical destruc-
tion of these cities and turn-
ed it into a moral story. Social
evil, lack of concern for
others, was self-destructive.
Inhospitality was unaccep-
table. The treatment accord-
ed strangers was a reflection
of the cities' moral character.
The nameless strangers in
the story are sometimes
thought . as of angels,
representatives of God and in-
structed to bring certain
messages. At first, three
angels appeared before
Abraham. When they went to
Sodom, there were only two.
Abraham perceived the three
men to be human, as did the
people of Sodom.
The destruction of Sodom
and Gomorrah recall the
story of the flood's destruction
of mankind. In neither story
is any time of repentance ex-
hibited. Noah did not call
upon the people to repent, nor
were the people of Sodom and
Gomorrah asked to do so. The
spiritual concept of atone-
ment had not yet been born.
It wasn't until the prophets,
especially Jonah, that the
doctrine of repentance sym-
bolized by Yom Kippur
became part of Judaism.
Incidentally, a key figure in
the Sodom and Gomorrah
story is Lot, Abraham's
nephew, who chose affluent
Sodom as his home. Scripture
tells how he welcomed the
strangers to Sodom, promis-
ing the customary stranger's
right of asylum. But no
sooner had the strangers
entered Lot's home than the
townspeople gathered, en
masse and demanded their•
surrender to make sport of
them. Lot risked his own safe-
ty to protect the strangers
under his roof. They warned
him to flee the city and to
take his wife and family. Yet
Lot's wife lingered in flight
and turned around to see the
"sulphurous fire" that
covered the city.
Today, no trace of the ruin-
ed cities exists. But one can
see a salt rock formation in
the vicinity of the Dead Sea,
where the cities once stood,
and the faint outline of Lot's
wife engulfed in a pillar of
salt. And the names of Sodom
and Gomorrah remain as
synonymous with human
wickedness and divine
retribution.
JULES R. SCHUBOT
❑
jewellers
is pleased to announce
the opening of its
Corpomte Gift Division
Chabad Weekend
Planned Dec. 22
Michigan Chabad will host
a Winter Wonderland Shab-
baton at Camp Maas Dec.
22-Dec. 24. The theme of the
weekend will be "Chanukah
— The Misunderstood Holi-
day."
The scholar in residence
will be Rabbi David Vichnin.
,
Since 1917 the Schubot name has been
synonymous with the highest standards
of quality and service.
We specialize in:
Service recognition and sales incentive
programs to acknoMedge and reward
employees
■
Custom designed jewellery, gift or
presentation items for special occasions
and events
■
Corporate accessories for board-rooms, world
headquarters and executive dining rooms
■
Personalized attention to corporate
gift solutions
Our Corporate Division is looking forward to
extending our reputation for service and
quality to the corporate customer.
Rabbi David Vichnin
A resident of Monsey, N.Y.,
Rabbi Vichnin has been in-
volved in Jewish outreach
work in Boston and the New
York City area since 1962.
Presently, he is dean of New
Direction Program at the
Rabbinical College of
America in Morristown, N.J.
Rabbi Vichnin will be
assisted by Rabbis Chaim
Bergstein, Elimelech
Silberberg, Yitzchok Kagan
and Chaya Sorah Silberberg
as well as Martin Goodman,
president of Bais Chabad
Torah Center, who will per-
form at the Saturday night
Melavah Malkah. All meals
will be catered.
The weekend will feature
lectures, discussions, songs
and dancing and will focus on
the relevance of Chanukah
within contemporary
American society. An op-
tional program of .winter
sports will, be offered on
Sunday. -
There is a charge. For infor-
mation, call Rabbi Bergstein,
626-3194; or Rabbi
Silberberg, 626-1807.
Please call us for all of your gift and incentive needs.
WBig Beaver Road • Troy, MI 48084
(313) 649-1135
•Thnique Gifts For All Age— s1;
co
w
C
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• PERSONALIZED
TOUCH
3
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Customized Imprinting
Always 20% OFF!
go
U)
Napkins, Guest Towels, Place Cards
Cake Boxes and Matches.
= Bev and Sue 661-0177
co
invitations For All Occasions
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