Community Views

Editor's Notebook

Peace, Prosperity
And American Jewry

The Covers
Of A Newspaper

MARK E. SCHLUSSEL SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

PHIL JACOBS EDITOR

From the inception
of the State of Is-
rael, we American
Jews have felt a
special connection
and commitment
to its survival and
development. Gen-
erations before us
did what was nec-
essary after Israel's statehood
was declared in 1948 to get arms,
supplies and money to the fledg-
ling state when it was attacked
by its Arab neighbors.
From that day to this, we lived
Israel's accomplishments, shared
Israel's joys and grieved when life
was lost in defense of our collec-
tive homeland. Israel was the fo-

money to Israel and its institu-
tions to the level of our ability. We
bought bonds and invested in Is-
rael's future. We had a partner-
ship — Israel and the American
Jewish community.
The Jewish Agency worked
with diligence to rebuild the land
and absorb all of Jewry who came
to Israel's shores. We felt like the
senior partner in a successful en-
terprise. We felt connected and
paternalistic. We acquired a sense
of our self-worth from Israel's
successes and growth.
Yet, as Israel has become
stronger and more economically
successful, there seems to be a
sense of ambivalence developing
within American Jewry. Our

ground up. American Jewry
should begin with the process of
this reevaluation within an apo-
litical framework.
In education, the quality of af-
ternoon and Sunday school edu-
cation has suffered greatly, except
within the day-school movement.
With new technologies, we can
take advantage of advanced edu-
cational programming in Israel
which could be transmitted by
satellite to every synagogue and
temple in the United States.
Such technologies can make
the history of our heritage a vir-
tual reality, linking the richness
of our past to American young-
sters seeking to understand its
relevancy.

cal point of American Jewry's
sense of self. We felt great pride
in Israel's military prowess.
We, the Jews of the Holocaust
generation, stood with wonder-
ment when the remnant of our
people from Europe joined the
masses of people evicted from the
Arab lands, resulting in the best
army, pound for pound, in the
world. We marveled at the tenac-
ity of the Israelis in turning the
desert into a flowering garden.
We watched as heavy industry
and high technology were devel-
oped to world-class levels.
Throughout these past 47
years, we considered Israel the
centerpiece of our spiritual and
philanthropic universe. We gave
Mark E. Schlussel is the
chairman of the board of the
executive council of the Jewish.
Federation of Metropolitan
Detroit and a past president of
the Jewish Education Service
of North America.

partner has developed to the
point of not.needing us as it used
to. We feel alienated; no longer
does Israel need to rely on us as
it did in the past. With peace in
the offing, Israel appears poised
for a unique period in its history.
The question we American Jews
have to ask is whether we need
to change our paradigm as it re-
lates to Israel.
This writer believes the answer
is a resounding yes. Israel is our
equal partner, and we need to ac-
cept as much as we have given.
Israel stands poised today to be
the educational and cultural cen-
ter of world Jewry. We in the Unit-
ed States have much to gain in this
relationship. We need to reach out
to Israel and to utilize its resources
to revitalize our institutions. We
need to reconnect with Israel with-
in this new partnership.
It is my belief that we need to
restructure our relationship with
the State of Israel from the

Jewish culture is another cor-
nerstone on which to build conti-
nuity. We in America need to
make ourselves part of the cul-
tural melting pot in Israel by in-
creasing the number of Israeli
authors, poets, singers and actors
who come to the United States to
display our cultural heritage. We
could bring some of the great
minds of Israeli society here
through interactive video.
The opportunity for co-part-
nership between Israel and
America is significant, provided
that we recognize that the rela-
tionship between us has funda-
mentally changed over the last
decade. We, therefore, must adapt
to changes, look to the opportu-
nities provided and utilize the
benefits which can be gained.
If we are will i ng to accept what
Israeli Jewry can provide, we can
see the enhancement of our part-
nership and renewal of both of
our communities. 111

Scientology sure
raised the anger
level of many of
our readers. Some
turned in intelli-
gent, well-thought
out letters to the
editor. Others
chose to call us,
- call me and dis-
cuss the issue.
It is fine to have an opinion, and
sometimes, in our generally apa-
thetic times, I'm glad to see people
get upset or happy over something.
If we can learn anything from
the Scientology story of Dec. 8,
maybe it's that we as a Jewish
community have a great deal of
work to do. I don't think ifs enough
anymore to say that those joining
missionary groups, "churches," so-
called Messianic Jewish groups,
cults, or any other organizations
that fit the description, are part of
the so-called fringe.
Indeed, in a story I did years ago
on Jews for Jesus, I learned that
Jews at all levels of educational
background and economic success
are joining groups outside the Jew-
ish mainstream. Why?
Well, there are lots of whys.
Every individual leaving Judaism
has a unique reason. But when a
person has to look beyond his faith,
it must mean that something isn't
clicking in the home. It's not about
taking a disillusioned child to the
rabbi, who many times won't have
the answer. In doing stories about
Messianic Jewish groups, I found
they knew more about the Bible
than many rabbis. Or at least they
knew how to verbalize their cause
in a way more convincing than a
rabbi could.
Deception is the way of most
cults. They are slick; they know
how to "biblically undress" you.
They can make you feel stupid.
Let's be real, though. When a
child doesn't see his parent light
Shabbat candles, or when Ju-
daism's sum total is a bar mitzvah
party, followed by the faith being
dumped until the wedding, there
is every reason for an inquiring
mind to look elsewhere.
It's important that we focus on
building a personal foundation of
Jewishness in our homes.
I have a friend who once at-
tended a Friday night service at a
"Messianic Jewish" service. He
had read about this group in a na-
tional publication and wanted to
see for himself. The entire time he
was there he kept thinking about
what his parents would say, and
about his religious school experi-
ences. The service didn't seem
right. My friend moved on to be-
came a religious Jew.
But there's a flip side to this sto-
ry. After I wrote in the paper about
this man, his mother called to tell
me she felt her son was lost to her.
He had been approached at the
Western Wall in Israel and now

was learning in a "right-wing"
yeshiva. His mother asked how I
could write a story about her son
— wouldn't that lead other young
people to leave their parents, go to
Israel and learn in the yeshiva?
Three years ago after I wrote
a cover story, "Spirit of Reform,"
an article addressing the more tra-
ditional direction of the Reform
movement, a man wrote a letter
condemning me. He said the arti-
cle was encouraging people to
leave their Conservative and Or-
thodox homes to seek, as he put it,
"a quick fix" in the Reform move-
ment.
How about another flip side?
When I did a story on Cardinal
Maida of Detroit, two callers on
my voice mail attacked me for be-
ing "sympathetic to the goyim."
Flip it again. Mayor Dennis
Archer, who arguably did the
wrong thing by appearing at the
Million Man March in Wash-
ington with Nation of Islam
leader Louis Farrakhan, was on
the cover of our paper. We re-
ceived some good letters dis-
agreeing with our use of him on
the cover, and taking on the
mayor for appearing with Mr.
Farrakhan. But, we also were
taken apart for putting a black
person on the cover — not just
by a few, but my many.
Flip once more. When Ben-
jamin Netanyahu, the opposition
leader in Israel, spoke to a private
parlor meeting here, I covered it.
My story was criticized by several
callers and people I know person-
ally. It made it sound, they said,
that this "right-winger" was a
"good guy."
The issues tumble into one an-
other, and there isn't always a
right or a wrong answer for every-
thing.
We're not offended by the let-
ters of dispute we get. But what
worries us is the community look-
ing out, not within. We're con-
cerned that the popular topic of
anger in community conversation
after the Rabin killing hasn't been
revisited.
It's OK to say that a story is
alarming or unbalanced. We can
change or work harder on that.
And when you look beyond the
cover in all our newspapers, you'll
find the stories addressing issues
of Jewish continuity, Israel, busi-
ness and news of your neighbors.
Go back into your home, hug
your children, and try to find out
what you can do ta.help them be
ready as adult Jews. Help them
understand Jews of all walks of
life are out there.
Push them away, teach hate
and stereotyping, and you'll be
thanked by the many cults and
missionary groups who would love
nothing more than for their Jew-
ish members' photos to appear on
the cover of any Jewish publica-
tion. ❑

