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Yiddish Is Renewed:
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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 1992

y

iddish has been ac-
corded renewed ap-
plause. Acclaim goes
to the credit from the Euro-
pean Community.
Enthusiasm for the recog-
nition of the Yiddish tongue
and its literary treasures is
announced in an interesting
news story released by the
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
from London. The London
Jewish Chronicle is the
source of the following that
adds to the growing efforts to
give new power to Yiddish:

Yiddish may no longer
be the spoken tongue of
the Jewish masses, and its
once flourishing theater
and press have receded
into history. But the
"jargon" often scorned by
educated Jews has just
been recognized as an
international language by
the European Commun-
ity.
The European Commis-
sion, the E.C.'s executive
arm, has given an 8,000
pound grant (about
$14,400) to University Col-
lege London's department
of Hebrew and Yiddish
studies to underwrite
Yiddish courses.
In the enthusiasm that
leads us to language and our
relation with it, it is natural
to start with Scriptures. We
are taught in Genesis 11:1,
"The whole earth was of one
language and of one speech."
To add to this and to link it
with Yiddish, we read a
definition by Michael Joseph
Berdichevsky (1865-1921—,
Podolia-Germany author
who wrote: "Hebrew is the
father, Yiddish the mother,
of the Jewish soul."
The report from London
about the recognition of
Yiddish referred to it as
"jargon"which is "scorned."
This is something to be re-
jected in our respect and
admiration for Yiddish.
Even in the writings of the
famous Mendele Mokher
Sforim — Sholom Jacob
Abramovitz (1837-1917) we
read: "Come what may, I
will fight above all for this
jargon and serve my people!"
We who continue to ven-
erate the Yiddish language
find a thrill in a quote from
Israel Zangwill, who wrote
in 1906:
Six million speakers are
sufficient to give

historical dignity to any
language! One great
writer alone is enough to
make it holy and immortal
... The main point is that
Yiddish incorporates the
essence of a life which is
distinctive and unlike any
other.
Some 10 years later and
continuing on the same
thesis, Israel Zangwill
wrote:
Yiddish far more than
Hebrew or non-Hebrrew
was the living Jewish
tongue. It was the lang-
uage of the Jewish
masses; it vibrates with
their history, follows the
mould of their life and
thought, and colors itself
with their moods. It is to
Yiddish that we must look
for the truest repository
of specifically Jewish
sociology. From Yiddish
we can build up a picture
of the life of the
Judengasse.
It is as a continuation of
our veneration for Yiddish,
jargon with unmatched lit-
erary treasures, that we
share in its many glories
with an expression of heart-
felt thanks for the cultural
treasures proclaimed by the
European Community.

Robert St. John
Robert St. John's name is
memorable in our jour-
nalistic and global history.
He was an activist for at
least half a century in the
advancement of Zionism and
support for Israel, and it is
most appropriate that the
representatives of the Jew-
ish state in this country
should be the ones to lead
the honors to Mr. St. John on
his 90th birthday. It is,
therefore, heartening to
have received an invitation
to the celebration, which
will take place March 8 in
Washington. Is is sorrowful
that neither Anna nor I can
join physically.
Robert St. John continues
to invite respect as one of the
most eminent personalities
of the century. Mrs. St. John
is to him like the revered
Ruth of the Bible. The mili-
tant activism of both in the
leadership of "Justice to the
Jews" and in support of
Zionism and Israel repre-
sents the unmatched gifts of
world Jewry to our dear
friends.
In journalism, the St. John
name is dominant. It in-

cludes global journalism.
Robert and I first met in San
Francisco in May 1945 at a
historic press conference at a
session of the United
Nations Organization.
It was from then on that
the resounding voice of
Robert St. John began to be
heard in demands for the
advancement of the Zionist
cause and the obliteration of
anti-Jewish prejudices.
Robert St. John has
recorded an indelible tribute
to himself in Jewish

Robert St. John
continues to invite
respect as one of
the most eminent
personalities of
the century.

biographical literature. In-
terestingly, he began with
his story of the emergence of
Hebrew as one of the leading
diplomatic languages in his
life story of Eliezer Ben
Yehuda. Then came the
biographies of David Ben-
Gurion and Abba Eban.
In acknowledgment of the
Shoval invitation to the
March 8 reception, may I not
only say " Happy Birthday,"
but add our joy at being
blessed with the friendship
of Robert and Ruth St.
John.

❑

Edyth Sauls:
A Name In Music
A revered name often
guarantees interest in an
important cause. This is the
instance with Edyth Sauls,
who died in San Diego Feb. 5
at age 98.
Some 60 years ago, Edyth
Sauls was one of 18 women
who founded the Music
Study Club. She was a
leader in advancing its
scholarship program which
was a great help to many
prominent musicians, in-
cluding Itzhak Pearlman.
She was a member of the
prominent Rosenstein fami-
ly. A brother, Sam Rhodes,
was a national leader in the
Jewish War Veterans of
America and B'nai B'rith.
Another brother, Irving
Rhodes, was publisher of the
Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle
and a pioneer in advancing
the standards of Jewish
journalism in America. ❑