Tragedy Should Be Taken
Personally, Not At A Distance

A bomb blows up a building housing two promi-
nent Jewish agencies in Buenos Aires, Argenti-
na.
Fighting erupts between Palestinian police
and Israeli soldiers in Gaza.
Jordan and Israel straddle their border and
their mutual problems in a visible attempt at
peace.
Each day, the photographs grow more and more
graphic from Rwanda. Small children trampled
to death by stampeding refugees. A baby is
plucked from the arms of her dead mother.
We wait each day in an almost comical sense
of apprehension for an American invasion of
Haiti, and we watch children play in mud and
sewage while a rich minority lives in an almost
separate country above them.
Through all of this suffering, we pay more at-
tention at times to a comet slamming into
Jupiter, or whether a lizard lives or dies on the
space shuttle.
We sometimes seem more capable of rushing
to the dark side of Jupiter and studying its at-
mospheric problems than facing up to bigger,
uglier issues here on our own globe. Jupiter has
its spot, but unfortunately Earth has plenty of
its own.

The issues we see are overwhelming, and the
danger is that we become numb to the death and
the destruction.
For too many of us, last Sunday's observance
of Tisha B'Av came and went like any other day.
Yet, it's a day that's been called for through the
ages, a day when we can evaluate ourselves, a
day when we can plan to be better Jews.
How do we deal with the sadness we see in
the eyes of African children? We can work on im-
proving ourselves as parents, and by teaching
our children not to stand for the injustice the
world is accepting.
What do we do about a bombing of Jews that
took place in South America? Again, we search
within, and we make sure that we strive to grow,
becoming perhaps more Jewish than ever.
A Jewish death in Gaza, a tragedy in Africa,
possible peace in Jordan. Insuring that the world
will remain civil for our children and grand-
children means that each worldly issue is some-
thing we must take personally — be it writing
a check to a relief agency, volunteering time or
sitting with a child and talking about right ver-
sus wrong.
It's more important right now than even
Jupiter.

Letters

Letter Based
On Assumption

Only a misinformed reader
makes erroneous and outrageous
statements as did Bracha Stein,
July 17, in response to "Assess-
ing the Issues of Intermarriage."
It demonstrates that one must
always obtain the necessary in-
formation before jumping to con-
clusions. Merely because a person
has gentile parents or is involved
with interfaith issues doesn't
mean that she and her children
are not Jewish. That leap of log-
ic only tends to demonstrate the
old adage about people who as-
sume.
The Jewish Federation has
taken a timely and responsible
step by addressing an issue that
significantly impacts our com-
munity in numbers far exceeding
200. To totally ignore or abandon
Jews who are in interfaith fam-
ilies is wrong and only serves to
divide our community further.
On one thing we can agree. Ad-
ditional funds must be raised in
order to meet the total needs of
our Jewish community and
everyone must participate in this
endeavor.
Because I have volunteered in

Allied Jewish Campaign, my chil-
dren already understand their
obligations as Jews. At the ages
of 7 and 9, they have made their
first gift to Campaign and Op-
eration Exodus. How many Jews
who are able, choose to ignore
that obligation? Why do volun-
teers continually have to beg for
tzedekah? As was earlier said,
"you can't have it both ways."
Being Jewish means fulfilling
your obligation for fellow Jews,
as well as maintaining the in-
tegrity ofJewish values. All this
must be done within a real-world
context which includes gentiles.
The sheltered and narrow-
minded comments don't surprise
or offend me. It's healthy to ar-
ticulate differences. However,
coming from a fellow Jew,they
are disappointing.

Kathleen Wilson-Fmk

Bloomfield Hills

Intermarriage:
Wrong Target

I was disturbed to read about Fed-
eration's task force on intermar-
riage and its avowed purpose: "not
to judge if inter- marriage is good
or bad ... but to address the needs
of the intermarried."

It is not the responsibility of
the Jewish community, nor
should it be our goal, to comfort
those who elect intermarriage.
Those who intermarry make a
calculated decision. Among the
factors they must consider is the
effect their marriage will have on
their Jewishness and on their so-
cial and religious associations. If
an individual weighs the posi-
tives and negatives and still de-
cides to intermarry then they
must accept the inevitable pains.
I do not condemn those who
choose intermarriage, but their
assimilation should not breed an
overall dilution ofJewish values
within the Jewish community.
Assessing the needs of inter-
marriage means that the com-
munity has compromised. It
means that we accept that inter-
marriage is a necessary reality
and that we will adjust our agen-
das to accommodate it. That is
a weak and short-sighted ap-
proach to the greatest threat fac-
ing the Jewish people.
Instead of bowing down we
should stand tall. Only when those
who might consider intermarriage
realize that they have something
to lose will they reject it.
Furthermore, directing much
needed resources on attracting

Letters

those who have left the fold is ish Family Service, which shares
counterproductive, especially a number of staff positions and
when it means that resources operating expenses with the Re-
will not be available for institu- settlement Service will also need
tions like Darchei Torah. We to fully absorb certain expenses
should focus on the youth who which were formerly shared by
are formulating their values and both agencies, leading to a fur-
ideals. What they learn now will ther erosion of available funds.
The major issue here should
dictate the choices they make
tomorrow. Ultimately, if we ef- not really be how much each
fectively concentrate on the youth agency was cut, but how we as a
there will be no need for task community can raise more funds.
forces on intermarriage in the fu- If we had reached our Campaign
goal, the question may well have
ture.
Joshua Opperer been why one agency received
Birmingham more of an increase than anoth-
er.
As much as we are upset by
these reductions, we all need to
Budget Cut
understand that a shrinking
campaign translates into shrink-
In More Detail
ing agency budget allocations. In
I read with interest your lead ar- this scenario, we are all vulner-
ticle (July 8) on the Campaign al- able and all agencies and the peo-
locations to the agencies and the ple we serve get hurt.
table which was attached show-
Alan D. Goodman
ing increases and decreases from
Executive Director
the current budget.
Jewish Family Service,
I appreciate the fact that The
Resettlement Service
Jewish News has brought these
issues to the community's atten-
tion. However, this is a complex
issue and neither the article nor Fisher Foundation
the table show the whole picture.
While each has its own board Grants Explained
of directors, the Jewish Family
Service and the Resettlement Thank you for the July 15 article
Service share the same facilities about the grant that will enable
and key staff, including the ex- the Jewish Community Center
ecutive director, senior manage- and other Jewish communal
ment, financial service and agencies to introduce and expand
intergenerational programming.
resource personnel.
One important point needs to
The Resettlement Service re-
ceived a budget decrease of be made: The $25,000 grant was
$400,000 from our current year's by the Jewish Federation's Max
actual expenses and not $8,000 M. Fisher Jewish Community
as indicated. This latter figure Foundation.
The Jewish Federation and its
represents the decreased alloca-
partner,
the United Jewish Foun-
tion from Campaign dollars only.
The major decrease which we re- dation, are very proud to have
ceived was primarily the result made possible the hundreds of
of a reduced United Jewish Foun- programs funded over the years
dation allocation and the deple- by the Max. M. Fisher Jewish
tion of the Exodus funds Community Foundation. After
generated to support the major the grant period of up to three
influx of Jews from the former years, many of these programs
have been incorporated into the
Soviet Union in 1989.
This decrease in funding will budgets of our community agen-
lead to significant changes in the cies.
This is yet another way that
Resettlement program. Some of
we
can strengthen the fabric of
these changes will be positive,
but some could have a negative our community and create the
kind of Jewish future we want
impact on the former refugees.
The net effect of essentially a for our children.
Dr. Dan G. Guyer
flat budget allocation for the bal-
Chairman, Max M. Fisher
ance of agency operations repre-
Jewish Community Foundation
sents a funding reduction of
approximately $50,000. The Jew- LETTERS page 8

