Newspaper Page Text
Page Four
THE SOUTHERN I8KAEI ITK
Friday, July 16, 1965
THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE
Published weekly by Southern Newspaper Enterprises, 390 Courtland
Ht.. N.E., Atlanta Georgia, 30303, TK. 8-8349, TR. 841240. Second class
postage paid at Atlanta, Ga. Yearly subscription five dollars. The Southern
Israelite Invites literary contributions and correspondence but Is not to be
considered as sharing the views expressed by writers. DEADLINE is
8 P.M., FRIDAY, but material received earlier will have a much better
chance of publication.
Jewish
Telegraphic
Agency
World Press
7 Arts Features
Georgia Press Association
NATIONAL EDITORIAL
Adolph Rosenberg, Editor and Publisher
Kathleen Nease, Jeanne Loeb. Joseph Redlieh
Vida Goldgar, Harry Rose, Betty Meyer, Kathy Wood
A UNIVERSAL MAN
Moshe Sharett died last week in Israel at the age of
seventy. It is a fitting measure of the living man that he
asked no eulogies; it does not add to his image because his
personal hallmark throughout the years was modesty. It is
also typical that this man of the Bible chose the proverbial
three score and ten to climax a life of good.
When we speak of Moshe Sharett, or write of him, the
collective adjective is good, faint praise for a man who lived
through and participated in an arena of struggle, war, conflict
and political frustration.
But what of the subterranean side of the man? What were
his feelings and thoughts as he experienced all the torments
indigenous to a life devoted to a people and a cause, at best a
thankless task, and one which merits gratitude only in the
pages of history.
Sharett was a docile but not an uncomplicated man. In
a,n age of specialization he was one of the rapidly vanishing
Hand of universal men, and in an era of cynicism he did not
for a moment abandon faith in high purpose.
He was also a dedicated man. Though ravaged by a fatal
illness for a long time, he would not permit it to deter him
from labor. He was part of Israel, the country he helped
create, and he held on to its threads to the very end.
Sharett was beloved by many, yet the mood of the new
country was impatient with his goodness; it cried out for a
tempo of progress outside of his time. He will have a big
page in history, a compensation that comes to few men.
A. T. WALDEN, 1885-1965
The Passing of a True American
On Wednesday, July 7, at the Wheat Street Baptist
Church, people from all walks of life, a cross-section of the
leadership of the negro and white citizens of Atlanta, as
sembled to pay their last respect for A. T. Walden.
He reached the Biblical four score years. Active as a civic
counsel up to the last days of his life, he earned the regard
and esteem of his fellow citizens.
His was a full life. Born of slave parents, he had to face
a continuous struggle to rise above his circumstances and the
limitations imposed upon him by his environment. His was an
uphill fight to acquire an education and professional training
as a lawyer.
For almost half a century he carried on a one-man civil
rights movement on behalf of the negroes of Atlanta. He
rendered great service and leadership on behalf of those who
sought his counsel and action in efforts to improve the lot and
life of his fellow citizens.
The dreams of his early years became the realities of
his later life. It may not be known to many of our readers,
but “Colonel” Walden was a real friend of The Southern
Israelite. He would always extend his greetings to the Jewish
community in the holiday issues of the paper. It was his way
of acknowledging the need and role of a publication which
served a religious community.
We believe he exemplified the true American spirit in
his life and good works in the community.
His passing marks the end of an era of struggle for negro
rights.—K
Mr. J. W. V. - Joe Barr
There passed away recently in Washington, D. C., at the
age of 65, Joe Barr, past national commander and more re
cently national executive director of the Jewish War Veterans
of the United States.
Joe Barr was an agressive fighter for his beliefs and his
convictions. His voice was loud and clear against bigots, hate-
mongers, and defamers of American freedom.
He was devoted to the service of the Jewish community.
He was an ardent worker and supporter of Israel.
On the national scene, he succeeded in broadening the
scope and horizon of the activities of the Jewish War Veterans
and influenced local posts to become active participants in
Jewish communal life.
His greatest contribution was in the field of Jewish com
munity relations. He made the voice of the Jewish War
Veterans heard and an important factor in the development
of national policies. For more than a decade he helped shape
the program of the National Community Relations Advisory
Council. In a time of crisis he authored the Barr Resolution
which set the frame of reference for the continued life of the
NCRAC as a vigorous and viable organization in American
Jewish life.
Among friends and foes alike, Joe Barr was known as Mr.
JWV. All honor to his memoryl—K
Talmudic Treasures
Collected and Translated By Jacob L. Friend
“PIRKE AVOTH”
Of the*kixty three Tractates of
the Talmud, the “Pirke Avoth”
(Sayings of the Fathers, or Wis
dom of the Fathers) is the most
known and popular part of the
Mishnah. It is entirely concerned
with moral conduct, consisting
of favorite maximis, epitomes and
aphorisms of great wisdom and
ethical standards based on age
long experience. The appeal of
“Pirke Avoth” is greatly human
and fundamentally close to the
Jewish philosophy of life. The
high level of these sayings,
especially applicable to scholars
and students alike, reflects the
ethics of the fathers of Jewish
tradition.
The entire treatise consisting
of five chapters, plus the sixth
special chapter “on the acquisi
tion of the Torah” (“Kinyan
Torah”) has been embodied in
the Daily prayer book, a distinc
tion no other work, Biblical or
Talmudic, has attained The Gaon
Rab Amram, in the eighth cen
tury, mentions the custom of
reading the Pirke Avoth, or as
popularily known in its short
name "Perek”, every Saturday
afternoon during the summer
months by the Ashkenazim,
while the Sephardim read it only
during the six Sabbaths between
Passover and Shavuoth. It is
considered a classic par excel
lence in Jewish literature. It
speaks to the heart of the Jew in
a manner a non-Jew cannot un
derstand or comprehend. Sabbath
by Sabbath, during the entire
summer, parents studied these
outstanding pearls of wisdom
with their children, stressing
their deep moral meaning and
application, and the words be
came parts of both Jewish speech
and life itself. Our mothers,
after a week of hard life and
bitter struggle for making ends
meet, enjoyed their greatest
bliss and a truly “O n e g
Shabboth” in reading Perek in
its original aramaic text with an
explicit Yiddish translation spiced
with many Talmudic stories and
interpretations. The humblest
Jewish workman, who had no op
portunity for any deep Talmudic
study during the week, because
of life’s hard lot and extraordin
arily difficult economic condi
tions that prevailed in the old
country, was delighted to listen
and “swallow” the sweet oration
of the Maggid (preacher) oi the
volunteer teachers of the many
societies who were exploring and
studying either the weekly Sedra
of the Bible, Talmud, "Ein
Jacob” or the like that was free
for everyone who wished to
learn. These Societies or "Chev-
roth” as they were known, were
of great benefit and an influence
in spreading Jewish learning ami
knowledge, being instrumental
in moulding the fine character of
the Jew as we know it in the
past.
We intend to devote a number
of our next columns to that
wonderful part of our Talmud
and those aphorisms that are
universal in application and
have not lost their power and
significance with the passage of
time. I am confident our readers
will find in them light and de
light and sometime, perhaps,
answers to many problems of
our life. . .
What The Press Is Saying
A Note of Caution
President Nasser, despite his occasional
outburst of brutal affrontery and impudence,
is not a man from whom to expect forthright
and honest talk. He has demonstrated time
and again that his words cannot be trusted—
not even by the other Arab leaders whom he
flatters one day and reviles the next. All the
more reason for Israel to avoid optimism in
assessing Nasser’s speech of recent days to
the effect that the Arabs should not make
war against Israel because they are disunited.
We find it reassuring that Premier Eshkol
told the Knesset that the “so-called moderate
Arabs” might be planning new moves against
Israel. The real reason for Nasser’s new
“restraint” may be that a major section of his
armed forces is tied up in Yemen at present.
The Egyptian troops in Yemen are getting
invaluable training in actual warfare and
when they are called back home, Nasser may
sing a different tune. Israel will be wise to
keep its powder dry.
Leo Glassman, American Examiner, New York
B. G. Versus Eshkol
Ben-Gurion’s breakaway from the Mapai
Party, which he founded thirty-five years ago,
is dismaying. His decision to field an inde
pendent list of candidates in the general elec
tions in Israel late this fall appears to be the
action of an obsessed man. It is no easy thing
io write thus of a man who has been so much
and achieved so much in the epochal Jewish
life of our day. One must put the query ‘Just
what does he want, what is his motivation?
It cannot be mere capriciousness—nor self-
seeking. We do not agree with those who cry
that he is a Samson, prepared to pull every
thing down and crush enemies, friends and
self. He is, rather, as his statements make
plain, determined to bring some order out of
(he nation’s political “tummeling” which re
sults from the present multiplicity of parties;
his aim is drastic political reform, making the
candidates directly accountable to the voters
rather than the.party leaders. (This has rele-
JEWISH
CALENDAR
* First Day of Rosh Hoshonah
-Monday, September 27
* Yom Kippur—Oct. 6
* First Day of Succoth, October
11
* Shimini Atzereth, October 18
* Simchas Torah, October 19
* Hanukah, December 19
* Holiday Regina Sundown
Previous Day
gated even the Lavon affair to background
status). But the reins are in Eshkol’s hands—
and he has been strong, effective and success
ful. It is his belief that this is not the right
moment for the alterations and other pursuits
of the former Prime Minister. We voice our
confidence in Eshkol, and hope he will con
tinue to enjoy popular support. It is generally
held by many observers of the Israeli political
scene that the split in Mapai due to B.G.’s
rebellion may well create a situation opening
the door for the Opposition, for the first time
in Israel’s 17-year history, to gain control of
the Government. The Herut-Liberal bloc
may well win the elections. Much depends on
what the two Mizrahi parties and the close to
40 per cent of independents will do at election
lime.—WUP editor. . .
Arthur Weyne. The Cleveland Jewish News
ISRAEL’S RESERVOIR
OF FRIENDSHIP
You might yawn and say, “Of course," if
I reported that the United States is providing
aid to 67 developing countries in three con
tinents. But the U. S. is not the only dispenser
of foreign assistance. Nor is the Soviet Union
There is also Israel. One of the most exciting
facts about this youthful, maturing 17-year-
old nation of two and a half million is the
extent to which it is providing training and
skill to help African, Latin American and
Asian nations do what Israel has already
proved can be done. It is Israel which is now
assisting 67 other underdeveloped countries
to begin to match what it has done so well
At last count it had sent some 1,300 of its own
experts abroad to demonstrate the practical
Israeli way of pulling itself up by its boot
straps and has brought to Israel more than
8,000 trainees to study at first hand in Israel’s
laboratory of practical achievement. There is
no nation of comparable resources which is
rendering such a service to the developing
world. And Israel is acquiring a precious
reservoir of friendship and good will. This
burgeoning Israeli aid program was really
brought into being by its enemies. Right after
t h e Bandung Conference of Afro-Asian
neutrals 10 years ago, the leaders from the
African countries, then seeking their inde
pendence, cabled Jerusalem to ask if they
could pay a two-day visit on the. way home.
They were welcome, of course. When they
arrived, the Israelis asked them why they had
come. Their answer: “We had heard so many
nasty things said about you by the Arabs that
we wanted to find out for ourselves.” They
liked what they heard and they were thrilled
by what they saw, for even then Israel was
lifting itself out of poverty and despair to
progress and hope. . . Out of this unplanned
meeting the Israeli aid program took shape
and spread to country after country. . .
Roscoe Drummond, St. Paul Dispatch,
from Jerusalem