Newspaper Page Text
The Southern Israelite
A Weekly Newspa per for Southern Jewry — Established 1925
ORGIA
LIBiV.
XXXII
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 20, 1957
NO. 50
US Govt. Opposed To NATO
Deciding Mid East Topics
WASHINGTON, (JTA) — The
United States is opposed to the
NATO summit conference at
tempting any action on Israel’s
boundaries, a State Department
source said today.
According to the source, the
United States is again seeking a
NATO decision on Middle Eastern
matters because Middle East states
are not represented at the parley.
It is believed here that the
Arab states have exaggerated the
purported Soviet promises to back
the Arabs completely in a drive
to force Israel to return to the
1947 partition' boundaries. The
United States has no firsthand
knowledge of such pledges orig
inating from the Russians them
selves, only secondhand versions
related by the Arabs.
Turkey was reported acting for
the Moslem members of the Bagh
dad Pact at Paris because she is a
NATO member. Reportedly. Tur
key is seeking NATO support of a
Middle Eastern settlement based
on revision of Israel’s boundaries
based on the 1947 United Nations
partition formula.
The United States has a basic
policy of refusing to discuss the
fate of nations and international
parleys unless those nations arc
represented. The U.S. source said
that this position has been com
municated by the American am
bassadors to Israel and the va-
rous Moslem nations involved.
Secretary of State Dulles and
other officials have expressed
similar views through diplomatic
channels.
It was pointed out today that
the United States rejected three
Soviet notes on the Middle East
on the ground that the proposed
Big Power meetings could not
properly discuss the fate of nations
not represented at such meetings.
UNITED NATIONS, N. Y„
(JTA — All Arab states, as
well as Israel, have been given
assurances in President Eisen
hower’s name that the NATO
conference now taking place in
Paris will adopt no decisions af
fecting the Arab-Israel problem
without prior consultation with
the Middle East governments con
cerned, it was learned here this
week.
UNITED NATIONS, N. Y„
(JTA) — United Nations Secre
tary General Dag Hammarskjold
Monday announced formally that
he has appointed Dr. Francisco
Urrutia of Columbia as his per
sonal representative to deal with
the Israel-Jordan dispute regard
ing Mt .Scopus.
“I attach very great significance
to this mission,” he said. “If it
succeeds, it will stabilize this situ
ation which if allowed to drift and
not resolved could give a great
deal of trouble.”
Synagogue Design
Progress Lauded by
A merican A rchitects
NEW YORK, (JTA) — “Pro
gress in synagogue design in the
latest decade will make a most
interesting section in the history
of American architecture for its
intensity of change, its evolution
ary richness and its variety of
solution and expression.”
This evaluation was made at
the national conference on syna
gogue architecture and art re
cently held at the Barbizon-
Plaza Hotel under the auspices
of the Union of American He
brew Congregations, Richard M.
Bennett, a fellow of the Ameri
can Institute of Architects, ad
dressing the conference, added
that “not all the work being done
is good,” but pointed out that
many of the synagogue build
ings erected recently transcend
architecture and are “a cultural,
spiritual whole.”
Other architects who addressed
the conference stressed that re
ligious groups have always been
patrons of the arts. They empha
sized that Judaism has no co
herent tradition of design, such
as the Gothic, and is therefore
making greater use of contemp
orary design in an effort to ex
press itself in American terms.
Poland Strengthens
Ties With Israel
TEL AVIV, (AJP) — Relations
between Poland and the State of
Israel have taken a turn for the
better during the past several
months, it was noted here in of
ficial circles. Following an inter
ruption of three years, Warsaw
has accredited a new Minister to
Israel in the person of Antoni
Bida. When Mr. Bida presented
his credentials, he declared that
his first duty was to strengthen
relations between the two coun
tries. He also told newsmen that
his Government has opened the
door for free emigration of Jews
to Israel.
Census Bureau Drops Plan
On Question About Religion
By MILTON FRIEDMAN
(JTA Staff Correspondent)
WASHINGTON, (JTA) — The
decision of the Bureau of the Cen
sus not to include an inquiry on
religion in the 1960 population
census was greeted throughout
the country this week by Jewish
and other groups concerned with
basis liberties which had oppos
ed the plan as an invasion of in
dividual Constitutional Rights.
Foes of the religious inquiry
had charged that inclusion of a
question that would legally re
quire persons to state their re
ligion would be a violation of
the First Amendment to the Con
stitution guaranteeing freedom of
religion.
The decision not to include the
religious question in the 1960
census was announced by Direct
or Robert W. Burgess of the Bu
reau of the Census of the De
partment of Commerce. The pri
mary reason for this decision, he
said, was recognition that at this
time a considerable number of
citizens would be reluctant to
answer such a question in the
census where a reply is manda
tory.
Under the circumstances it was
not believed that the value of
the statistics based on this ques
tion would be great enough to
justify overriding such an atti
tude arising from individual lib
erty concepts. Cost factors also
were a consideration.
Dr. Burgess called attention to
the fact that the decision does
not deal with the question of in
clusion of an inquiry on religion,
or perhaps a modified basis, in la
ter censuses. Nor does the de
cision pertain to the publication
of information based on an in
quiry on religion asked of a na
tional sample of individuals on
a voluntary basis.
As a matter of fact, said the
census bureau, a survey of this
type was carried out in March,
1957, covering a nation-wide
sample of about 25,000 house
holds. The results of this survey
are now being prepared for pub
lication.
The question had been under
study for more than a year, a
bureau spokesman said. An issue
was raised involving freedom of
HOW MANY HAVE YOU READ?
7 “Must” Books
Dr. Marcus Recommends
for Understanding Jewish Life, Aspirations
CINCINNATI — Warning that
“unless professional Jewish lead
ers in America acquire a more
adequate understanding of Jew
ish life and its aspirations! Ameri
can Jewry has no significant fu
ture,” Dr. Jacob R. Marcus, noted
historian and professor of history
at Hebrew Union College-Jewish
Institute of Religion here, has re
leased a “must” list of basic books
for every communal leader to read
End know.
Dr. Marcus, director of Ameri
can Jewish Archives, a research
center on the College-Institute
campus here, put the Bible first
on his seven-volume “required”
list and recommended as a pre
ferred edition “The Holy Scrip
tures” (Jewish Publication So
ciety translation; 1955 reprint.)
Other books on his “shelf for
leaders” are:
For a knowledge of the history
of the Jew for the past 3,500
years: “History of the Jewish
People” (latest edition) by Abra
ham Leon Sachar.
For an introduction to the Tal
mud, basic literary and spiritual
work of the Middle Ages, when
present-day traditional Judaism
was shaped: “Everyman’s Tal
mud" (American edition) by A.
Cohen.
For a knowledge of the social,
cultural, economic and religious
life of medieval Jewry, which
profoundly influenced European,
Israeli and American Jewish life:
“The Jew in the Medieval World,”
a volume published under Dr.
Marcus’s editorship.
For an understanding of Jewish
life in the United States, center
of half the world’s Jewish pop
ulation. “History of the Jews in
the United States” (1949) by Lee
J. Levinger.
religion as guaranteed under the
First Amendment to the Consti
tution.
Many religious groups as well
as social workers and educators
had asked that the question be
included. But, said the spokes
man exception was taken by the
American Jewish Congress and
the Church of Christ Scientist
(Christian Scientist), both of
which came out vigor ously
against the proposal.
"If we were to include the
question in the next census,” the
spokesman said, “there might be
bitterness on the part of those
who did not want to answer. This
could affect the entire census, and
ruin the job we’re trying to do.”
Dr. Israel Goldstein, president
of the American Jewish Cong
ress, greeted the decision as “a
far-reaching victory for tradition
al American freedoms.” He said
the decision conformed to the
view that the proposal was “un
constitutional and unwarranted
invasion of the privacy of Ameri
cans.”
“The religious affiliations or be
liefs of the people are not a le
gitimate concern of a democratic
government committed to the
principal of the separation of
the Church and State,” he assert
ed.
Commenting on the announce
ment by Dr. Burgess, Dr .Gold
stein declared that “it would be
unwise for the Bureau to publish
information based on an inquiry
on religion conducted early this
year, according to the bureau, on
a voluntary basis.”
Huleh Project Creator Sees
Israel’s Future in Chemicals
NEW YORK, (AJP) — “Israel’s
future — insofar as basic industry
is concerned — lies in the field
of chemical production. Chemical
products should become the basic
and largest industrial production
of Israel and the largest source
of hard currency."
This statement was made last
week at the Palestine Economic
Corporation dinner at the Hotel
Pierre here in New York by one
of the world’s most outstanding
engineers, Jacob R. Sensibar,
President of Construction Aggre
gates Corporation and mastermind
behind the Huleh Project which
was completed well ahead of
schedule.
Speaking before 400 disting
uished dinner guests, the man
who has accomplished a score of
engineering projects here and
abroad which experts contended
were impossible of accomplish
ment, announced a new “impos
sible” plan to build a pipeline
from the Dead Sea to the Medi
terranean Sea to transport up to
1,000,000 tons annually of potash
and chemically pure salt from
the deepest and richest scar on
the face of the earth. Engineer
Sensibar revealed that the imple
mentation of this “operation will
result in the largest source of
hard currency for Israel, next to
that country’s citrus products.”
He said that “preliminary plans
already indicate that the Dead
Sea’s productive capacity could
easily produce the $200,000,000 of
additional revenue needed to close
the gap in the economy of Israel
and make the country economic
ally self-sufficient.”
Joseph Myerhoff, noted Balti
more builder and president of the
Palestine Economic Corporation,
told the dinner guests that the
PEC has “played a singularly vi
tal role in the economic develop
ment of Israel.” He said PEC in
vestments total some 50 million
dollars and includes more than 9,
000 stockholders in this country.
Robert Szold, Chairman of the
Board of PEC, welcomed the
guests.
For a survey of what the Jew
has achieved for the culture of
the society in which he has liv
ed during the past 3,000 years:
“Jewish Contributions to Civili
zation” by Cecil Roth.
For a study of Judaism as the
religious growth and spiritual ex
perience of the Jewish people,
“The Jewish Religion” by M.
Friedlaender.
Making his list public, Dr.
Marcus, who is president of
the American Jewish Historical
Society and a former president
of the Central Conference of
American Rabbis, commented:
“Any Jew who has read these
books and understood them will
have an adequate concept of the
place of the American Jew in
world Jewish life and of the
goals and aspirations of world
Jewry.”
HAPPY HANUKAH