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JEWISH NEWS 'T-SHIRT 27676 Franklin Road Southfield, Mich. 48034 NAME This offer is for new subscriptions only. Current subscribers may order the T-shirt for $4.75. Allow four weeks for delivery. (Circle One) (Circle One) 12 ADDRESS CITY STATE ZIP 1 year: '29 2 years: S52 Out of State: '37 enclosed $ ADULT EX. LG. ADULT LARGE, ADULT MED. CHILD LARGE CHILD MED. CHILD SMALL FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 1991 Continued from Page 6 before the enlightenment of Christianity. True, the words "turn the other cheek" come directly from the New Testament. But our religion also teaches peace: Our religious heritage includes the Golden Rule ("Do unto others as you would have done unto you"). It is our religion that teaches beating swords into plowshares, spears into pruning-hooks .. . "nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore" (Isaiah, 2:2-4). These are ideals that do not belong only to the Christian world. I resent my people be- ing represented as vengeful war-mongers. I believe that Mr. Rosen- blatt misinterpreted the in- tent of the Av Harachamim prayer. Nowhere in the 'Ibrah are we commanded to take revenge on our enemies. It is God who will avenge us. Seek- ing revenge against Iraq is very different than Israel defending itself. As Jews, we are taught to feel compassion for our enemies when their blood is shed. Our prayer books are full of passages for and about peace .. . I, for one, prefer to see us as the original champions of peace, leading the world, as the "chosen"people, in the moral struggle toward the vi- sion of a new world. Maida Waldner Royal Oak Material World Undergoing Change Valentine's Day has passed and have you noticed that the usual outrageous material gifts were replaced by tradi- tional item such as: flowers, roses, candy and a simple card? Guess why? Welcome to the '90s! We are not quite as flush as we used to be. Have you also noticed that the days of BMW, Jaguar, Porsche and Mercedes Benz with lease payments between $800-$1,200/month are star- ting to churn our stomachs? "Forget status, give me positive cash flow." More appropriate might be Continental, Park Avenue, Lexus, Infiniti, Cadillac; all luxury, but at manageable amounts one-half of the so- called "status" cars. Let's get practical, drive a van or wagon until the kids grow up. Who really cares what anyone thinks! The days of huge profits are gone. Get the kids' education out of the way and save for your "golden years!" Let's all retire comfortably and not worry about what we gave away. In addition, why are we creating a spoiled generation for our kids? Let's pay for their educations and give them something with which to get started. The kids need to understand true econom- ics: jobs, money, cost of goods — why should anyone get a free ride? Let's help them with their cars at 16, and why shouldn't they have a payment and why not a Chevy Cavalier instead of a BMW 325i convertible, Vette or comparable? If they can work, pay insurance and car payments, more power to them. Is it really important what we received for Valentine's Day? Let's get back to basics. Let's value our family and friends, and let's appreciate how fortunate we really are. This is what wealth is really about .. . Neal A. Berkowitz West Bloomfield Let's Extend The Pacifist View I enjoyed the Feb. 8 article by Rabbi Marty Pasternak ex- plaining how proud he is to be a rabbi, rather than a military man. He seems to be such a nice person, and his outlook so kindly. I appreciate his humani- tarian, pacifist outlook even though I believe that it is an incomplete way of looking at conflict. The Jewish tradition was never so unbalanced. I used to agree with the positions which Rabbi Paster- nak now takes. I used to be thrilled by the parts of the Jewish tradition that seem pacifist (like Isaiah 2:4), and embarrassed by those parts which seem to accept war as part of the human condition (like Deuteronomy 20 and Maimonides Laws of Kings Chapters 6-8). I, too, took some smug satisfaction in not knowing how to operate instruments of violence. Then, one day, I realized that I was free to live a nice peaceful. life because other people carried the rifle. If those other people put down their rifles, then I might not feel so superior. Imagine what would be the fate of Israel, if her military would be convinced to agree with Rabbi Pasternak. Remember that 50 years ago, when Hitler's army was ready to conquer Europe, there were many people who argued that the United States should stay out of the war, that war was unnecessary