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THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE
Friday, S«pt. 5, 1969
Rosh Hashana Reflections On
Education and the Generation Gap
By DR. BERNARD
MANDELBAUM
President Jewish Theological
Seminary
“Happy is the veneration in
which the elders listen to the
younv: the result will be that the
young will listen to the elders."
It is particularly significant
that this insight is found in the
tractate of the Talmud which
bears the name “Kosh Hashana”
(Page 25B), containing the laws,
customs and teachings about these
holy days of the New Year. It
focuses on the crucial issue of
our times, apparently, as of all
times—how can the right values
be communicated effectively 'and
meaningfully between old and
young, parents and children,
teachers and students. What a
boon to contemporary life, if we
could begin to handle this chal
lenge with wisdom!
A key phrase in creating a
meaningful relation between gen
erations is found in the first para
graph of the “shema” (Deuteron
omy d:4). It is usually translated
as: “teach it (Torah, values,
truth) diligently to your chil
dren.” A better translation of
“v’shee-nantem l’vah-ney-chaw”
would be “spell it out (or shar
pen the point) for your children.”
The implications are clear: The
reasoning behind a value (or a
course of action), patient concern
with a willingness to listen, gen
uine involvement, are all neces
sary if the old is to influence the
young.
This attitude that should gov
ern the relationship between par
ents and children relates directly
to teacher-student relati o n s ,
which is central to all education.
In the Ethics of the Fathers (1:1)
“raise many disciples” is related
to the responsibility of a teacher
to spell out his reasoning and the
need to influence a student by
the personal example of the
teacher, as well as what he says.
The entire system of American
education—on the high school
and especially the college level—
suffers from the failure to grasp
this basic Jewish view of educa
tion. A wall exists between
teacher and potential disciple;
“raise your salary” (with govern
ment or private foundation jobs)
is too often the faculty goal, ra
ther than “raise disciples.” The
-OBITUARIES-
Mr. Aaron Greinoman
Mr. Aaron M. (Jack Harris)
Greinoman, 71, of Columbus,
Ga., died Tuesday, Sept. 2.
Funeral services were held
September 3 in Columbus with
Rabbi Arthur D. Rulnick offici
ating. Interment was in Green
wood Cemetery. Atlanta, with
Kabbi Harry Epstein officiating.
Mr. Greinoman was born in
Latvia, the son of the late Nathan
I. and Minna Michaelovsky Grei
noman. He had lived in Colum
bus since 1942. and owned and
operated the G.T. Pawn Shop. He
was a member of Shearith Israel
Temple.
Survivors include two brothers,
Emanuel and Schaul Greinoman,
fcoth of Atlanta; sister, Mrs. Lena
Kessler, Atlanta.
Harry L. Goldberg;
Harry L. Goldberg, 57, of Key
West, Fla, formerly of Atlanta,
died Saturday, Aug. 30.
Funeral services were held in
Atlanta September 1 with Rabbi
Harry Epstein and Cantor Isaac
Goodfriend officiating. Interment
was in Greenwood Cemetery.
Mr. Goldberg, who was the
founder and president of the
Champion Seafood Co. in Key
West, moved from Atlanta about
20 years ago.
Survivors include his wife,
Bertha Phavin; daughter Debra
Jane Goldberg of Kev West- mo
ther, Mrs. Sarah Levitt Goldberg;
sisters, Mrs. Julia Butler, Mrs.
Bertha Cohen, Mrs Eva Martin;
brothers, A. Ervin and Elliott
Goldberg, all of Atlanta.
glory of “publish or perish” takes
the place of “teach (well) or per
ish.” The result is a factory for
degrees that leads to higher stan
dard of living, instead of school
of learning for training in charac
ter to make a better life. A col
lege student once told me that
the only time he received a call
from the office of the Dean of
Students in his four years of col
lege was to inform him to stop
folding his IBM identification
card!
Decentralization of the burg
eoning campus into a multi-uni
versity: teacher rewards (even
material ones) and recognition
for raising disciples; new (or
really old) methods of creating
an atmosphere of genuine in
volvement between teacher-stu
dent-society are urgently needed.
This must happen if American
education is to “stop the carni
val” (Sloan Wilson’s description
of it a decade ago) and we are
to achieve the real goal of learn
ing as defined by Mr. George B.
Leonard, Senior Editor of Look
Magazine as “individual human
change.”
On Rosh Hashana it is vital
to stress this central role of edu
cation and the challenge to raise
a generation with character and
understanding. As it has been
said: it takes more wisdom to
fashion a child into a good adult
than to develop or improve the
atom bomb.
It is in such wisdom that Ju
daism is rooted. On the holy day
of Rosh Hashana, which com
memorates the birthday of Adam,
the father of all mankind, we
pray for such wisdom to guide
the family of man in our own
nation and throughout the world.
(A Seven Arts Feature)
Joyous New Year Greetings
Plunkett & Co. 9 Inc.
L. CARL PLUNKETT
201 Spring 8t„ N.W.
Atlanta, Georgia
JA. 1-24X8
l jew Ijetir (jreetirujA
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