Newspaper Page Text
Friday, September 26, 1952
Page 9
THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE
New Year Message
bv RABBI CHARLES M. RUBEL
Congregation Shearith Israel, Macon, Ga.
Some time ago, a very in
teresting article appeared in
an issue of Jewish Forum,
written by a Gentile, a devout
Gentile, a Catholic priest.
Father J. Elliott Ross, who re
ceived the Richard Gottheil
Medal for service to the cause
of Jewry, professor of Moral
Theology at the Catholic Uni
versity of America. In this ar
ticle Father Ross treats the
question “What’s Wrong with
the Jews?” He repudiates the
thesis of some writers that
the courage, thrift, and indus
try of the Jews, in surmount
ing difficult times and finan
cial disaster, all these quali
ties, arouse the jealousy of
the Gentile neighbors, and
cause Anti-Semitism. It may
be, says Father Ross, at the
basis of some anti-Jewish feel
ing. but Father Ross suggests,
there is another and an even
more important cause. He
says that there is one big
thing wrong with Jews in
America, and that is — they
are not Jewish enough—in a
religious sense. There are
thousands of Jews in this
country who are not even affil
iated with a synagogue. There
are thousands of Jews who
have never contributed one
cent to the United Jewish Ap
peal and who are Jews only by
name.
To be truthful with our
selves. and this we must do at
this period of the Yomim No-
roim—we must admit that
there is very much truth in
the words of Father Ross, who
RABBI CHARLES M. RUBEL
as a religious person, feels
that the happiness of every
individual depends upon his
living a truly religious life.
We Jews must admit that a
real good, religious Jew,
causes the respect of his Gen
tile neighbors to rise in his
eyes. We are told of an upper
Manhattan so-called American
Jewish family, who called
upon the police of the district
because their Chasidio neigh
bors were causing very much
commotion during a Simchas
Torah celebration by dancing
and singing in the streets of
mid-Manhattan. A good Irish
Catholic policeman came to
the scene, and realizing the
type of noise this was, made
sure to seek out the complain
ant, and said to him.—This is
the kind of Jews I like—they
are the real anti-Uommunists.
This is only one mild exam
ple of what happens in the
mind of a good Christian. A
Jew who has his self respect,
and lives by his Torah, his
tradition, and is active in a
synagogue, will do more to
eliminate anti-Semitism, than
a thousand attempts at cover
ing up Jewishness by assimila
tion, self eflfacement, self-de
nial and self-hatred. Contrary
to popular belief, there is
much more denial of Jewish
ness in the larger metropoli
tan areas, than in the so-called
provinces. A person can live
many years in New York and
never walk into a synagogue
or participate in any activity
identified as Jewish. Many
Jews in metropolitan New
York have never contributed
to the N. Y. Federation or the
United Jewish Appeal. The
impossibility of covering all
the areas of a large city are
naturally responsible for this
condition, but this is all the
more severe an accusation
against those Jews themselves
who are willing to lead such a
life of self-denial, selfishness,
and callous disregard of the
needs of Jews in Israel, or
other countries. Does the Gen
tile neighbor have more re
spect or less respect for Jews
of this type? We know that
the average Gentile is a
church member or worshipper
and looks askance upon the
non-religious Jew.
Friends, Rosh Hashona is
the time for Teshuva, a re
turn, a genuine return to your
people, to your God, and to the
Torah that has been our foun
tain of life for so many thou
sands of years. With the State
of Israel a genuine example of
a true democracy, we Jews to
day can hold our heads even
higher than ever before. Let
us prove to mankind that we
are really the Am hasefer,
The people of the Book. Let
us not have our neighbors
point out that our Jewish chil
dren know nothing of our Bi
ble and history, whereas our
non-Jewish children are well
acquainted with not only their
New Testament but our own
Old Testament. Am I exagger
ating the situation? Look at
the statistics of the Jewish
Education Committee and you
will see how we have failed to
do our. duty by our children.
The average attendance of a
New York child at Hebrew
School is two years before his
Bar Mitzvah. Then he is thru
with his Jewish education un
til—God forbid—his parent
passes, and then he has to
start all over again to learn
the Kaddush and then he is
compelled to read it from the
transcription in the Prayer
Book. Is this the Judaism of
our fathers and mothers who
passed on to us the living wa
ters of a living Judaism, not a
Kaddsih Yidishkeit?
Let us resolve on this Rosh
Hashona to make good our
failings. Let not the Father
Rosses point to the Jew and
say what is wrong with the
Jew is that he is not Jewish
enough. Let us remove this
stigma once and for all.
CUNNINGHAM
Mu 11 igrap h irig Co.
217 Mortgage Guarantee Building
Phone \VA. 5231
P<ud Saran AL. 9777
ALL-ART RESTORATIONS
169 Courtland Street, N. E.
Atlanta, Georgia
Oil Paintings - Lamps - China - Porcelain
Silver A: Metal Wares - Antique Frames - Wall Sconce
Chandeliers Wired A: Hung - Pictures A; Mirrors Hung
Gilding & Leafing
Best Wishes for the New Year
Peachtree Road Paint & Supply
3178-A Peachtree Road, N .E.
CHerokee 8836
F. H. (Buck) Whitten W. Stacy Davis
Holiday Greetings
SANDS & COMPANY, Inc.
1409 First National Bank Building
WAlnut 0840
New Year Qreetings
and May It Bring
Peace and Happiness
To All Matikind
DORTCH BAKING COMPANY
505 Whitehall Street, S. W.
Duke’s Poultry Market
92 BROAI) STREET, S. W.
WALNUT 8721
Holiday Greetings
from
MIKE BENTON
President, Southeastern Fair Association
1952 Fair A Ganza
October 2 - October 11
Season’s Greetings
from the
Studios of Van Bur an Colley
30 Tenth St., N.W.
AT. 6321
May the coming year and the years to come bring to
you and yours a full measure of health and happiness.
We take this opportunity
to extend
New Year Greetings
to our
Jewish friends
and customers
0
Atlanta Dairies Cooperative
777 MEMORIAL DRIVE, N. E.