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46

Unibed Way

When The Pope Intervened
On Behalf Of An Israeli Spy

ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Q: Is it true that Pope Paul VI was
active in efforts to save the life of an
Israeli spy?
A: Yes.

Pope Paul VI was one of a
number of leaders who made a
plea for the life of Eli Co-
hen, an Israeli intelli-
gence officer executed in
1965 by the Syrian gov-
ernment.
in
Born
Alexandria,
Egypt, Cohen
at an early age
was active in a
number of
Jewish and Zionist
groups. In January 1957
he was expelled from
Egypt because of his
Zionist activities, and he
made aliyah one month
later.
In Israel, Cohen began
working with the Israeli
intelligence service. He
was assigned to Syria, where he
became a close associate with
some of the leading government
officials.
In 1965, the Syrians arrested
Cohen as a spy. His trial — at
which he was not allowed
any legal counsel — at-
tracted worldwide atten-
tion. The pope, as well as
heads of state in France,
Belgium and Canada, in-
tervened on his behalf, with
no success.
Cohen was convicted of
espionage, sentenced to
death and publicly hanged
in the Damascus city
square.
Two books, The Spy from
Israel and Our Man in
Damascus focused on Co-
hen's life.

were the stories of the Ten Lost
Tribes of Israel, leading to the
fantasy that the tribes had mi-
grated to Africa.
The fascination with the Is-
rael-Africa link reached a peak
in the 1920s as an Ethiopi-
an nobleman, Ras Tafari
Makonnen, became active
in world affairs. (In Ja-
maica, black ad-
mirers of Ras
Tafari founded
the Rastafarians,
known for wear-
ing dreadlocks,
playing reggae
music and smoking mari-
juana.) In 1930, he mount-
ed the throne of Ethiopia
(then Abyssinia) as Emper-
or Haile Selassie I. He
claimed to be a descendant
of the child born from the
putative relationship be-
tween King Solomon and
the Queen of Sheba, styling
himself `The Lion of Judah."
A number of "Black Hebrew"
sects sprang up across America.
More often than not, they com-
bined aspects of Christianity with
standard JudRism. They are still

Some say that the original Black
Hebrews, driven from their
homeland of Israel by the Ro-
mans, spread across Europe, con-
verting gentiles to their faith. The
white Jews are the products of
this process. Some also make a
distinction between "Hebrews,"
who are black, and "Jews," who
are white.
"Black Hebrews" should not be
confused with African-Americans
who legitimately convert to Ju-
daism. Inasmuch as the concept
of race does not exist in Ha-
lachah, Jewish law, all Jews are
considered as one people, re-
gardless of their physical ap-
pearance.

Q: A bumper sticker reading "My
boss is a Jewish carpenter" is be-
coming a common sight. What does
it mean?
A: The phrase refers to Jesus,

who, according to the New Tes-
tament, was Jewish and a car-
penter.

Q: Do any famous Jews wear
toupees?
A: Boy, you've asked a hairy

question. But, of course, Tell Me
Why has the answer.
Among the Jewish stars whose

Q: Who are the Black He-
brews?
A: "Black Hebrew" is a

general term for diverse
groups of African-Ameri-
cans who believe that they,
and not the Jews, are the
true descendants of the an-
cient Israelites, whom they
assert were black.
During slavery, Ameri-
can blacks first became fa-
miliar with the Bible as Paul Reiser tops it off.
they were forced to accept
their masters' Christian faith. in existence. In fact, some have heads bear some extra bonus are
Many slaves came to identify even immigrated to Israel, but George Burns, Carl Reiner, Rob
with the story of the Israelites are not recognized as Jewish ei- Reiner, Paul Reiser and Paul Si-
held in Egyptian bondage. Based ther by the Israeli government or mon. [11
on a few sentences in the Torah, the rabbinate.
Hard-pressed to explain the Send questions to "Tell Me Why"
some slaves became convinced
that Moses was black and thus, existence of white Jews, the c I o The Jewish News, 27676
by extension, so were the ancient "Black Hebrew" leaders have Franklin Rd., Southfield, MI
Jews. Compounding this belief come up with ingenious answers. 48034 or send fax to 354-6069.

