Newspaper Page Text
The Southern Israelite
A Weekly
Newspaper for Southern Jewry — Establi*
n c.:_l i oo min ^' >n g^
Vol. XLIII
Atlanta, Georgia, Friday, June 28, 1968
CCAR OKs “Conscientious” Grounds
Rabbis Give Students Right
To “Defer” from Chaplaincies After 3 Years
Goldberg Bids
U N Farewell
No. 26
Leaders
Of Moscow
iieckling
Rabbi
BOSTON (JTA)—The Central
Conference of American Rabbis,
in convention here, approved the
granting to Reform rabbinic stu
dents the right to seek deferments
from military chaplaincy service
on grounds of conscientious ob
jection to a particular war like
the Vietnam conflict.
The Reform rabbinical dele
gates also approved by a heavy
margin a report of the CCAR
ohaplaincy committee, which rec
ommended maintenance of the
mandatory military chaplaincy
draft program.
The committee, headed by Rab
bi Bertram W. Korn, surprised
many of the delegates by endors
ing selective conscientious objec
tion as a reason for exemption
from the chaplaincy draft. Rabbi
Korn is chairman of the Associ
ation or Jewish Chaplains, which
has been sharply critical of the
virtual ending of the mandatory
draft program.
Yeshiva University last Jan
uary approved a one-year suspen
sion of the mandatory draft for
rabbinic students at its Rabbi
Isaac Elchanon Theological Sem
inary, allowing them to volun
teer.
The Conservative Theological
Seminary of America also ended
this spring participation in the
mandatory draft for its rabbinic
Accused's Father
Coming To U S.
To Help His Son
JERUSALEM (JTA)— Bishara
Salameh Sirhan, whose son is
accused of the assassination of
Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, has an
nounced he was going to the
United States soon to help the
son whom, he had said earlier,
deserved to be hanged. He also
was quoted later as blaming the
martyred Senator for his own
death because of his “anti-Arab
statements.*’
The former Jerusalem civil
servant did not explain why he
had abruptly changed his mind
regarding his son and the late
Senator he had formerly extoll
ed, nor did he say who was pro
viding the funds for the journey
from his West Bank village to
Los Angeles. He charged that
Mr. Kennedy had “Insulted the
Arabs enough.”
(In New York, the Wall Street
Journal editorially rejected con
tentions that the assassination
was a further indication of moral
collapse in this nation and term
ed the contention “nonsense.”
The paper said “it is particular
ly strange since, as it happens,
Robert Kennedy was killed by an
alien, an Arab fanatic living
here. The assassination was a
gruesome, act of violence bred of
violence—but it was a violence
primarily of the Middle East, not
the United States.)
Hunt Arab Gunman
In Remote Brazil
RIO DE JANEIRO (JTA)— A
manhunt was under way last
week in Brazil’s remote Parana
state for a young Arab who shot
and seriously wounded a Jew in
Curitiba, the provincial capital.
The victim was Moshe Getsteln,
a ritual slaughterer for the Jew
ish community, which numbers
3,000.
The alleged gunman is Saaid
Kazahala who is said to have
fired three revolver bullets Into
Mr. Getsteln’s head. There are
6,000 Arab* in Curitiba.
candidates, creating instead a
special seminary program limited
to students prepared to enter the
military chaplaincy on graduation
and requiring all other rabbinic
candidates to serve two-year per
iods as civilian chaplains on grad
uation.
The Reform rabhis also ap
proved an amendment, after
heated debate, which provides
that a special committee, to be
drawn from a broadly represen
tative group of views on the is
sue, to study for a year proposals
for an alternate service plan in
lieu of the military chaplaincy,
such as civilian chaplaincy as
signments for graduating Reform
rabbinic students.
The committee also will study
the issue of church-state involve
ment in acceptance of funds from
the military for the military
chaplaincy program. The commit
tee was instructed to report to
the 80th CCAR convention in
1969 in Houston.
Rabbi Edward Sandrow, a lead
ing Conservative rabbi, warned
the Reform rabbis that there was
an urgent need for an accelerated
program of dialogues, community
exchanges between synagogues of
all three branches and adult study
programs in congregations for
greater understanding among
Orthodox, Conservatives and Re
form Jews.
The CCAR agreed, in another
resolution, to set up counseling
services in the 675 Reform con
gregations for young men of draft
age seeking exemption from mil
itary service as conscientious ob
jectors The rabbis also endorsed
the positions taken by Dr. Ben
jamin Spock, the Rev. William
Sloane Coffin Jr. and their co
defendants in the trial here in
which they were convicted of
conspiring to abet draft evasion.
The rabhis expressed the hope
that higher courts would reverse
the convictions.
Says Parents' Yen
For Status Sends
Many to College
NEW YORK (JTA) — Thous
ands of Jewish young people, who
have neither the desire nor ap
titude for advanced study are at
tending oollege because of “irra
tional fears” of “status-conscious”
parents and that the lack of col
lege education will create social
and professional stigmas in the
children’s adult lives, a Jewish
vocational expert has charged
here.
Dr. S. Norman Feingold, di
rector of the B’nai B’rith Voca
tional Service, said also that such
Jewish parents must be educated
not to push such children toward
careers requiring oollege degrees.
Speaking at the annual meeting
of the Vocational Service’s pro
fessional staff, Dr. Feingold said
that one result was that the Jew
ish community “may have many
unhappy third-rate carpenters or
salesmen.”
Dr. Feingold said that the tra
ditional Jewish reverence for
scholarship was one motivating
factor among parents but added
that “there are too many In
stances where a Jewish youngster,
showing no desire or aptitude for
advanced study, is made to at
tend college —any college— be
cause his parents believe he will
not be fully accepted by bis Jew
ish peers without a college di
ploma.”
UNITED NATIONS (WUP)
After three years of devoted serv
ice to the world organization,
U. S. Ambassador Arthur Gold
berg paid a farewell visit to Sec
retary-General U Thant to whom
he presented a hand-engrossed
copy of the Declaration of Inde
pendence as a parting gesture.
Later in the afternoon of Fri
day, June 21, he delivered a fare
well speech to the U. S. members
of the Secretariat staff who, to
gether with a number of non-
Americans, greeted him in one of
the conference rooms.
Ambassador Goldberg’s succes
sor is George W. Ball, who was
sworn in to his post on Monday
in a special ceremony in Wash
ington.
Israeli circles here hold the
view that Mr. Ball, a non-Jew,
will be in a better and stronger
position to defend the cause of
Israel than Mr. Goldberg who,
as a pro-Zionist, was constantly
attacked by the Arabs as being
one-sided—a charge which was
never borne out by the debates
on the Mideast. The former Su
preme Court Justice, in all his
speeches, never deviated from the
traditional U. S. policy which has
always supported the sovereign
rights of all the States, Arab and
Israeli, in the Middle East.
When an Arab onoe accused
him of being a Zionist—during a
Security Council debate — Gold
berg did not hesitate to state that
he supported Israel in no less
degree than the Jewish State was
supported by his predecessor
Adlai Stevenson and by President
Johnson. That silenced this Arab
and the others once and for all.
Rabbi, Banker,
Envoy Honored
By Mexicans
MEXICO CITY (JTA)— Mexi
can honors were conferred on
three Jews — a local rabbi, a
banker and an outgoing Ambas
sador of Israel, The Mexican
Government bestowed its highest
decoration, the “Aguila Azteca”
(Aztec Eagle) on Elias Sourasky
in recognition of his contribution
to Mexican schools and scientific
institutions. Mr. Sourasky is a
banker, a Zionist and a leader of
the Jewish community here.
Ambassador Shimshon Arab, of
Israel, who will leave his post
shortly, was admitted to mem
bership in the Academia Mexi
cans de Derecho Intemacional
(Mexican Academy of Interna
tional Law).
The Academy also awarded its
“Order for Mexico for Right and
Peace” to Dr. Abraham M
Hershberg, rabbi of Congrega-,
tion Beit Itzhak here. Rabbi
Hershberg served pulipts in
Montreal and Chicago before
conning to Mexico.
Book on Partisans
LONDON (JTA)— An account
of Jewish partisan fighters in the
Soviet Union during World War
II has just been published here
in Hebrew by Arohion Haavodah
with ( the cooperation of the Yad
Vashem, the martyr’s memorial
and archives in Jerusalem. The
volume, edited by Benjamin West,
a Hebrew writer and authority on
Soviet Jewry, Is entitled “They
Were Many” and was developed
from Russian and Yiddish
sources.
TEL AVIV (JTA)—Dr. Nahum
Goldmann said in an interview
here that he strongly condemned
and deplored catcalls and jeers
directed at Rabbi Yehuda Levin
of Moscow by some members of
the audience at nhe rabbi’s first
public appearance in New York.
Dr. Goldmann, president of the
World Jewish Congress and form
er president of the World Zion
ist Organization, said such action
was a violation of human decen
cy and Jewish tradition which
enjoins Jews not to judge a fel
low man before putting himself
in that person’s position.
Rabbi Levin, whose trip to the
United States is sponsored by the
Rabbinic Council
Elects Feldman
Vice President
Rabbi Emanuel Feldman, spir
itual leader of Beth Jacob Syn
agogue in Atlanta, has been elect
ed one of the three vice presi
dents of the
Rabbinic Coun
cil of America.
Rabbi Feld-
|man, long a dy-
jnamic leader in
Orthodox Jewry,
and his wife
were in Israel
with their chil
dren on a one-
year Sabbatical
when the Six
Rabbi Feldman War oocurr e d .
He is widely
known as the author of articles
in several national monthly jour
nals.
The RCA convention was held
in South Fallsburg, N. Y.
Stamp Honors Synagogue
COCHIN, South India (JTA)—
The Indian Government has is
sued a postage stamp and first
day cover marking the 400th an
niversary of the founding of the
Cochin synagogue in the Indian
state of Kerala. The Jewish com
munity of Cochin, which dates its
origin 2,000 years ago, has large
ly emigrated to Israel. Only sev
eral hundred Jews remain.
Jewish-Arab Group
Holds First Meeting
PARIS (JTA)—A newly form
ed association for Jewish-Arab
friendship held its first meeting
here. Its founder is Mrs. Clara
Malraux, a writer and former
wife of Andre Malraux, the
French Minister of Culture. Its
purpose is to effect a reconcili
ation between Arabs and Jews
born in Arab countries.
More Oldsters Now
LONDON (JTA)—Fifteen per
cent of the Jewish community of
Great Britain is over 65 years of
age as compared with 11 percent
in 1961 and seven percent in
1931, according to the Jewish
Welfare Board, which surveyed
the community.
Czech Students in Plea
NEW YORK (WUP)— Reuters
has reported from Prague that,
according to the official Czech
Press Agency, 13,000 students of
Charles University have petition
ed the Foreign Ministry urginv
immediate restoration of diploma
tic relations with Israel which
were severed during the Six-Day
War.
anti-Zionist American Council for
Judaism, was heckled at Hunter
College when he denied the exis
tence of anti-Semitism in the So
viet Union.
“That demonstration showed a
lack of understanding for the del
icate position of Soviet Jewry and
especially for the position of Rab
bi Levin who is trying under dif
ficult circumstances to maintain
Jewish religious life in Russia,”
Dr. Goldmann said. “It did great
harm to the strenuous efforts that
have been going on for years to
establish contact between Soviet
Jewry and Jewish communities
outside of the Soviet Union.”
Dr. Goldmann added that while
he wished that the rabbi’s Amer
ican visit was not sponsored by a
small anti-Israel group in the
U. S., it was nevertheless an im
portant precedent "which I hope
and pray will be followed up by
other contacts with more rep
resentative groups of world Jew
ry.”
The Laborite daily newspaper,
Lamerhav, also deplored the de
monstration against Rabbi Levin
but noted that because he cannot
say what he wishes to say, he
cannot be regarded as represent
ing Russian Jewry but is “a tra
gic tool in the hands of anti-
Zionists, both in Russia and in
the U. S.”
In Britain, Sr. Barnett Jannex,
chairman of the foreign affairs
committee of the Board of Dep
uties of British Jews, told the
board that the picture of condi
tions of Soviet Jewry being out
lined by Rabbi Levin was no
more accurate than similar re
ports presented by Soviet officials
to the Board of Deputies.
The American Jewish Congress
in a statement released in New
York, denounced the “disorderly
and discourteous treatment” of
Rabbi Levin at Hunter College.
The statement said that Rabbi
Levin, as a guest, was “entitled
to have his say no matter how
profoundly we disagree with
him.” It added: “The facts of of
ficial Soviet discrimination against
Jewish culture and religious life
in the USSR are well establish
ed. We recognize that the con
ditions of Rabbi Levin’s visit
make it impossible for him to be
forthright and candid in his des
cription of the plight of Soviet
Jewry.”
The Washington Post, in an ed
itorial, denounced New York
Jews for having “behaved scan
dalously” at Rabbi Levin’s public
appearance. The paper said the
hecklers used a tactic that “has
no proper place in this country.”
Paul O'Dwyer.
Friend of Irgun,
New York Victor
NEW YORK (WUP) — Paul
O’Dwyer, who stunned politicians
by winning the Democratic pri
maries for the U. S. Senate
against overwhelming odds last
week, was one of the staunchest
supporters of MenacherVi Begin’s
Irgun Zvai Leumi underground
in its struggle again* the British
during ,the hectic days prior to
Israel’s Independence In 1948.
Paul and his late brother, the
former Mayor William O’Dwyer,
both participated in fund raising
for arms supplies to the Irgun, |
addressing numerous rallies^and
meetings on behalf of the otti*.
numbered and beleaguered Jews
In the old Palestine.
Paul himself has continued to
support Israeli causes all through
the twenty years of Israel’s exts-
fmm.