Newspaper Page Text
Friday, October 14, IBM
THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE
PLAIN TALK—By Alfred Sejral
At A Funeral
There was a large congrega
tion assembled in B’nai Israel
Temple that Thursday after
noon . . . a congregation of Jews
and Gentiles. They were there
to the memory of a Jew who had
lived his life well. He lay at
the foot of the altar under a
U.S. flag. We all knew him as
•Bob.”
Before the service started, we
Jews and Christians were whis
pering to each other about the
dead man The Christian who
sat beside me was saying “I am
a Catholic but I feel at home
here in this Jewish temple hon
oring a good life of the human
race. There seems not^ one dif
ference of religion here today.”
I replied: "Really, if we all
behave right, we all practice the
same religion and here are you
and I both deeply reverential at
the Jewish altar before which
our friend is sleeping.”
The Catholic mourner in the
temple said, “After all, what
are the religious quarreling
about and even hating each
other? We all have the same
ideal to live up to the good
ness that God expects of us. Bob
lived that way and I feel kin to
him in this temple.”
And I replied: “Well, and I as a
Jew guess that God, as He looks
into this temple at this moment
doesn’t distinguish between the
Jews who sit here and their
Christian neighbors in these
pews.”
The Catholic said: “Yes, Segal,
we’re at one altar and I feel sure
that God sees not the least dif
ference between us two.” And
he whispered: “But, mind you,
I’m not saying this out loud. I
don’t want to get into any argu
ment with our clergy.”
So we all sat there together
. . . Jews and Christians . . . giv
ing tribute out of our hearts to
the good man asleep there at
the altar. The Christians felt no
difference of religion at all
ing up to those words every
where.”
Well, anyway, on this Thurs
day afternoon, Jews and Chris
tians sat reverently together in
this synagogue to speak thank
fully together to God for this
good life of Bob’s.
Time came for the funeral
service The rabbi, Victor Reich
ert, was speaking . the 23rd
Psalm and all that, and finally
his words were about the dead
man at the altar in front of him.
Yes, he said, Bob had been a
member of the congregation
through all his years, even
though he was not often seen at
services in the temple.
But, the rabbi went on, he had
in all his days lived up to the
good teaching, even though he
didn’t show up for services. Yes,
I myself could applaud this:
Bob hadn’t been seen often in
the temple, but anyway, he had
lived by the good teaching of
his religion, and wasn’t that
enough?
I whispered this question to
South African Jews
Ignore Appeal for
Block Vote
JOHANNESBURG, (J T A) —
The Board of Deputies of South
African Jews appealed to South
African Jewry this week to ig
nore new appeals to them to vote
as a community in the forth
coming referendum on establish
ment of a Republic of South
Africa.
573 Peachtree St., N. E.
TR 6-3677
Itai tvtrylliny for fit
fin til formal wtdJinj
A complete rental service
from dress shirts to
dinner jackets . . . and
we’d like to serve yon . .
Coleman Medintz
there . . all together with the
Jews in thankfulness for the
good man asleep at the altar.
It seemed fulfillment of the
words which through the many
years had stood carved over the
temple’s doors: “My house shall
be called a house of prayers for
all peoples.”
Through the many years I had
been reading this Biblical dec
laration each time I passed the
temple, and I had whispered to
myself, "I wish people were liv-
The latest such bid was made
in a statement issued on Rosh
Hashonah by a group calling it
self the “Jewish Democratic
Association,” a tiny extreme
leftist group which has defended
Stalin and the Soviet Union and
which has attacked members of
the board and of the South
African Zionist Federation. The
statement of this group, which
was unsigned, appealed to Jews
to vote against the Government
in the October 5 referendum,
calling the Government Nazi
and anti-Semitic.
The appeal was denounced by
Mendal Levin, a prominent Jew
ish member of the National
party. Mr. Levin, in an inter
view with the Transvaler, de
clared that the group “represents
no one oustide a possible dozen
members.” He reaffirmed the
Government’s friendship to the
Jewish community and offered
the opinion that most South
African Jews would vote for a
Republic, although some mem
bers of the Opposition believe
most Jews will vote against the
Government’s proposals.
The Board in a statement said
in part: “Jews—no less than
other citizens—participate in the
political life of the country in
the exercise of their rights and
duties of citizenship in accord
ance with their personal convic
tions and beliefs.” The statement
was issued to halt “sectional”
appeals and to remove the “mis-^
leading impression” that there
was a Jewish vote.
the only daily nonstop flights
FMtSS Sonaftor UnriM
ft ftot Oatt it M utra c*U
by BOEING 707
Jer
INTtRCONTtNf NTRl 9
■ Complimentary meals-service from bar'in Economy Class
■ Immediate connections for passengers and cargo at
Frankfurt to all principal European cities and the East
■ $136 a ticket saving ,on 17-Day Excursion Fares and
even greater savings on Family Fares-after October 1st
•oe your travel agent or * mod «‘ p'“»«
LUFTHANSA
ORRMAN AIRLINES
Red Rock Bldg , Room 311, 187 Spring St., Atlanta, Ga , JA 5-6454
the Catholic who was sitting be
side me, and he whispered beak,
“You’re right, Segal I guess
that’s being religious enough
whether in a Jew, a Catholic
or a Protestant And isn’t the
way a man lives his life the main
part of being religious?”
So I, the Jew and my neighbor
the Catholic were reverentially
together for a whole half hour
in this synagogue, feeling not the
least difference of religion be
tween us We stood together for
the Kaddish
The dead man in whose mem
ory Jews and Christians were
together that afternoon in B’nai
Israel Temple was Robert S.
Marx, a distinguished lawyer of
our town, a former judge. He
had died at 72
He had concerned himself with
many causes of the social good;
in those ways he had lived up
to his Jewish religion. I myself
knew his merits from the time
of World War I when, as re
porter. I was at his bedside in
the American Hospital in Paris.
He had been badly wounded in
head and hack in one of the
final battles of that war. His
valor earned him the Disting
uished Service Cross.
He was founder and first com
mander of the Disabled Veterans
of America but through the 42
years since World War I he
never was after soldierly glory;
that was a matter of his history.
He was elected judge, went on
to be a notable lawyer in pri
vate practice. He directed his
doings toward social causes
(Though he was not often seen
in the temple.)
Well, we all Jews and
Christians . followed Bob out
to the Jewish cemetery. Close
by Bob at the grave stood Rabbi
Michael Aaronsohn who was
blinded in the Argonne battle of
World War I; Rabbi Aaronsohn
had spoken a prayer from the
pulpit in the temple. A sweden-
borgian clergyman who is chap
lain for Disabled Veterans spoke
the final prayer at the grave.
“That makes a happy religi
ous ending,” said the Catholic
who had sat with me in B’nai
Israel Temple. “This Christian
minister praying at the Jewish
grave speaks for the One God
of all of us. Yes, He’s the One,
though we worship him at a lot
of different altars.”
SURETY BONDED
TERMITE
^CONTROL^
CONSULT THI TELEPHONE
DIRECTORY EOR THI ORKIN
OEFICI NEAREST YOU
WORLD'S LARGEST
Crews Drug Company, Inc.
Prescriptions, sick room supplies
To serve you better we offer
• FREE CITY WIDE DELIVERY SERVICE
(Have your Physician phone your Prescription
to us and we will deliver to you at No extra cost
or we will be happy to pick up your Prescription
and Deliver To You.
• YOUR CHARGE ACCOUNT INVITED:
(This is a good way to keep records on money
spent for Medicine for Tax Purposes.
• THIRTY YEARS SERVING THE PRESCRIPTION
NEEDS OF THE PEOPLE OF ATLANTA.
• TWO LOCATIONS TO SERVE YOU FROM
Crews
Crews
Apothecary 1
88 Currier St,
N.E., between
Peachtree and
Courtland St.,
TRlnity 2-2204
’•.' ''
Apothecary 2
1293 P’tree SL,
N.E., Strickier
Doctor Bldg.
(In Lobby)
TRlnity 5-4756
“House of Service”
A
e
PJ
YtXJTOO CAN B9 IN WOTtWW&l
NSTAU A JACKSON OAS WATER HEATER
PUnty of hot wafer for bathing, washing
dishoi or any othor purposo — whon yoa
isood itl For now homos or romodollng,
ihooso a Jackson gas wafer hoofer!
Tuxedo Plumbing & Heating Co.
3143 Roswell Rd., N.E., Atlanta 5, Ga.
CE. 7-5556 CE. 7-5557