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"Jewish Life in
Athens, Georgia
RABBI ABRAHAM SHUSTERMAN
U PON the shoulders of the members of the
Athens synagogue rests the responsibility
of keeping alive the religious spirit and
Jewish enthusiasm of young men and women from
the four corners of Georgia and from many other
states of the Union. The service rendered by
a handful of loyal Jews of the Classic City de
serves recognition and praise. As the rabbi of
the Athens Congregation and as one who has
had many opportunities to learn how truly gen
erous and self-sacrificing the Jews of Athens are,
1 feel that it is only fair to insist at the outset
that as long as the people of Athens are com
pelled to bear the responsibility without outside
assistance, the Jewish people of other parts of the
state should be considered derelict in their duty
to their children whom they send to the State Uni
versity. It is unfair to expect a few Jews to
keep a congregation alive, while the parents of the
young men and women who are the beneficiaries
continue to receive but are loath to give. As soon
as Georgia Jewry awakens to its duty, Congrega
tion Children of Israel of Athens will be sup
ported by the Jews of Georgia and not only by
the Jews of Athens.
Jewish life in Athens during the year 5692
was marked by a number of unusual events, as
well as by a steady reorganization of the activities
of the synagogue. It is practically impossible to
distinguish between purely congregational activi
ties and student affairs, for the young men and
women of the University of Georgia were in
cluded in every congregational function. For the
sake of convenience, however, the undertakings
of the year 5692 may be divided into three groups;
congregational affairs, student activities, and stu
dent-congregational undertakings. The fall sea
son was opened with the dedication of the Myer
and Rachel Stern Community Center. This at
tractive building, the gift of Mrs. Stern in memory
of her husband, is a most valuable addition to the
equipment of the Congregation. It served as a
religious school building; as the community cen
ter in which all social and cultural functions were
held and as the meeting place for the Jewish stu
dents of the University. It has a large audito
rium, w'ell-suited for dramatic presentations and
community dances. Early in September, Rabbi
Abraham Shusterman was inducted into office at
a service attended by an unusually large number
of Jew's and Christians from all parts of the state.
Dr. David Marx, Mr. Max Michael, president
of the congregation; Dr. E. L. Hill, of the Pres
byterian Church, and Dr. J. C. Wilkinson, of
the Baptist Church, participated in the service.
In October the ladies of the Sisterhood spon
sored a congregational banquet which was followed
by the annual meeting of the membership of the
Temple. At that meeting, a letter from the Phi
[8]
5692
II
By Rabbi Abraham Shusterman
Epsilon Pi Fraternity was read, requesting that
their chapter be elected to Temple membership
and be permitted to contribute financially and
spiritually to the work of the synagogue. Grat
ified by their interest in Jewish affairs, the mem
bers enthusiastically welcomed these young men
into membership in the congregation. This meet
ing w r as marked by a vote of confidence in and
the reelection of all the officers of the synagogue.
The following were reelected: President, Max
Michael; Vice-President, Milton Lesser; Secre
tary-Treasurer, Ernest Michael; Trustees: Sidney
Holey, Sol. J. Boley, A. Brooks, Charles Joel,
MR. MAX MICHAEL
Jake B. Joel, M. G. Michael, Mrs. S. Michael,
Lee Morris, and Mrs. M. Stern. At his request,
Col. M. G. Michael w*as relieved of his duties as
.i member of the board and his son, Leroy Michael,
was elected as his successor. Later in the year’,
Mrs. Simon Michael was reelected president of
the 1 emple Sisterhood and the Hebrew Ladies’
Benevolent Society. Mrs. Michael has been an
outstanding worker of the Congregation and, at
the annual meeting of the Temple, was spoken
of *®. . Th f An S el of Athens.” Early in 1932,
a divisional meeting was held under the auspices
of the Southeastern Conference of the Union of
American Hebrew' Congregations. This meeting
was attended by all the Jewish families living
within a radius of 60 miles of Athens. An in
spiring address on “Judaism and Jewish Educa-
uon was delivered by Dr. David Marx, of At
lanta, followed by a brief address by Rabbi Abra-
MRS. SIMON MICHAEL
ham Shusterman on the subject, “How Can 1
Give My Child a Jewish Education.” After a
heated discussion participated in by the audience,
the assembly voted in favor of having future
meetings of a similar nature and elected Mr.
Max Michael permanent chairman of the Athens
district. It is interesting to recall that many Jew
ish students attended the divisional meeting and
manifested great interest in the discussion.
For the first time in the history of Athens'
Jewry a Community Seder w r as held. This Seder,
under Sisterhood auspices, was held at the Stern
Community Center. Approximately 100 men,
women and children were present at this lovely
affair. The order of the service was so arranged
that the out-of-town Jew'ish students of the l ni-
versity took part in the reading of the prayers and
the singing of the Passover songs. Interesting,
indeed, was the reaction on the part of many of
the students. A number of young men some ot
whom were reared in larger cities—confessed that
they had never attended a Seder, at home or ,t r
the synagogue, before this year. Some of the
students from orthodox homes said that tor the
first time a Seder had been made intelligible to
them. They had never before been made to see
the significance of the various symbols and s\m
bolic customs. On three occasions during t t
year the children of the Sunday School entertains
the students and the members of the congregatioi
Under the able leadership of Mr. Richard Jot
a member of the religious school faculty, ne ul ,
dren presented plays wffiich revealed an linu K _
amount of acting ability on the put o ne ..
and girls and directing ability on the put o *
Joel. Dancing and refreshments followed
presentation. . i n .
While it is obvious that all congregational
dertakings concerned the students ot ’ it crf
of Georgia, there were other activities " men
more specifically for the benefit ot t h ! G arte d
and women. With the sanction an " > ^
approval of the trustees, the rabbi m r ^
reading of the Torah at the Fnday e\
ice, so that the Jewish students imgi - e nv o
more fully in the service. At ^ re .
students were asked to assist the r.i i' „ ^ j n
moving, reading and replacing o >' ., stu -
the course of the year, almost eu.0 Thr fe
dent took an active part in tin v ‘ rc g U larl>
student groups were organized ai 1 porkers-
with the rabbi and other com. j 1 history-
One group was organized to stu V men joined
A small number of young men m period
this class and requested that t * interest ' va:
Jewish history be discussed. 7 i t he entir*
manifested in this course w hich i 1 t jj e acti'i
biblical period from Nomadic • ( [4
ties of Ezra and Nehe- (Please
THE SOUT1
ISRAEUT 1