Conference COMPENSATION FOR HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS Sunday, May 18, 1997 • 1:00-3:30 pm Congregation Shaarey Zedek 27375 Bell Road • Southfield, MI •Featuring a presentation by Holocaust Survivor compensation expert, attorney William R. Marks This conference is free of charge and open to the community. Free Transportation is available from both campuses of The Jewish Community Center. Buses will depart for Congregation Shaarey Zedek promptly at 12:30 pm. For information, please contact (810) 661-3008. Sponsored by Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit CHAIM (Children of Holocaust-Survivors Association In Michigan) Holocaust Education Coalition • Hidden Children of Michigan Holocaust Memorial Center • Shaarit Haplaytah • Albert Einstein Lodge of B'nai B'rith Jewish Family Service • Congregation Shaarey Zedek • Temple Israel Ruth & Irwin Kahn and The Jewish News special moment Disunity Wars, Part VII 1 Legislating morality in Israel is creating even more inner strife. NEIL RUBIN CONTRIBUTING EDITOR ack in my carefree college eluding mainstream Orthodox days, we'd sit around the groups who quickly distanced University of Maryland themselves. Hillel and discuss the Jew- That followed Israel's parlia- ish world's pressing matters. ment passing the first reading of "Thank God for the Two Orthodox a law to formally recognize only Orthodox conversions Arabs," we'd say.•"Without men walk them, the Jews would eat through the performed in Israel (codi- fying existing practice). one another alive." streets of Recently, Rabbi Ismar In our naivete, we didn't Jerusalem. Schorsch, chancellor of the realize that we need not wait for Israel's foes to falter be- Conservative movement's Jew- fore picking at one another as my ish Theological Seminary, called great-grandmother could pluck for an end to hegemony of Israel's feathers off a no-longer smiling Orthodox rabbinate over religious affairs. He also urged congre- chicken. And thus, with our nation- gants to not send donations to Or- forming holiday of freedom just thodox organizations — some of recently winding down, we find which do remarkable work in ourselves riding the crest of an physically and spiritually feed- unprecedented wave in the Jew- ing people. The head of the Reform move- ish disunity wars. While not as violent, this wave ment's seminaries agreed. In a is larger than the one that led to letter to Israel's government and Yitzhak Rabin's assassination. Knesset members, Rabbi Shel- That round was primarily politi- don Zimmerman wrote, "Do not cal. This one slices deeply into presume that you will ever be what we cell the Jewish people. It's welcomed again in North Amer- ica, in our college, congregations core question is "Who is a Jew?" The one with the answer, of or movement." Folks, everyone's blowing it. course, is God. But the Supreme One apparently hasn't spoken up Consider this: • Israel's Orthodox parties directly for about 2,000 years, so we're on our own. We're doing a should understand the damage created by legislating morality. lousy job. The newest flare up includes It has consistently backfired and the declaration of a primarily ir- will again. In America, all Jews relevant group of far right-wing have traditionally fought such ac- Orthodox rabbis. They claim that tions; we should do the same in Reform and Conservative Ju- Israel — and the American non- daism is not Judaism. Sadly, Orthodox must continually seek such drivel received widespread to explain this to their Orthodox media dissemination, command- colleagues. • Reform and Conservative ing a response from all . — in- B A sparkling diamond engagement ring from Tap_per's exquisitely set in platinum is the perfect way to say "I love you". *err Diamonds /6 /Fine Jewelry Orchard Mall . Orchard Lake Road at Maple Road West Bloomfield, Ml 48322 810-932-7700 . 1-800-337-GIFT Get Results... Advertise in our new Entertainment Section! 414.211.' Cali The Sales Department (810) 354-7123 Ext. 209 THE lEig"ff\IEWS N N