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Huge 4 1HF. SOl'THERN ISRAELITE December 21, 1979
The Southern Israelite
The Weekly Newspaper for Southern Jewry
Our S5th Year
v V
Vida Goldgar
[ dil < it and PubhbheT
That is the question
To join or not to join
Faith Powrll
Assistant tdrtor
Linda IJncoln
Advertising Drecltw
Mark Nicholas
Production Manager
Published every Friday by The Southern Israelite, Inc
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Mailing Address P.O. Box 77388, Atlanta, Georgia 30357
Location 188 15th St., N.W Phone (404) 870-8248
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Subscriptions: $15.00 - I year; $25.00 - 2 years
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America' Jewish Press Assn George Press Assn . National News[kiper Assn
Resolution time
While we are thinking of New Year's Resolutions, here is one
that shouldn't wait until Jan I.
The Atlanta Jewish Federation has issued a call for the
immediate payment of the 1979 Campaign pledges. Cash is
needed NOW to fulfill our commitments.
A pledge is a promise payment should be a priority.
Repeat after me: 1 resolve to pay my 1979 pledge today!
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MATE ISRAEL,
AhlP CANCfcJ- eE N
by Rabbi Marc II. Wilson
( onprcpation Shcarith Israel
Why do so many Jews not
affiliate with synagogues? The
question is of great contemporary
concern among rabbis and
involved laypeople. Countless
thousands of words have been
written on the subject
Listening to the non-affiliated
themselves, one hears a myriad of
answers, many of which have great
validity, many of which are little
more than feeble, self-perpetuating
excuses.
As a "synagogue person,” one of
the most engaging reasons I hear
for not affiliating is that our
synagogues are “too structured" or
“too institutionalized.” Il is an
indictment worth examining
I.el the record show at the outset
that I, personally, have never been
one to blindly defend the state of
the American synagogue, right-or-
wrong, uber alley To the contrary,
it leaves much to be desired.
The more I talk with my
colleagues, read synagogue
bulletins, and observe the
workings of my own congregation
and others, however, the more
convinced I am that the charge that
our synagogues are a “turn off”
because they are too structured
and institutionalized is largely a
myth, an unjustified slur
If anything, I have femnd our
synagogues to be overly sensitive
to depersonalization and the
unchecked growth of red-tape and
bureaucracy. Synagogue decision
making has become increasingly
democratic. Boards and
committees are more and more
representative of congregational
cross-sections and are oriented to
the fulfillment of necessary tasks,
not self-proliferation. Major
matters of concern are invariably
brought before meetings of an
entire congregation, at which
point, frankly, our primary
concern is not over-institutionali
zation, but the threat of mob rule
Even in the better established
congregations, money and “the old
guard” do not speak with the
arbitrary, autocratic voice that
many detractors would like us to
believe And, anyone who thinks
that rabbis simply railroad their
agendas through needs only to
eavesdrop on our rabbinical
“shoptalk" to hear us bemoaning
(he roadblocks our balabatim so
often throw up in the way of our
plans.
Classes, service groups and
worship have become increasingly
participatory. From what I
observe, creating a milieu of
interpersonal warmth and
fellowship is a top-priority matter
for our congregations.
Contrary to the well-worn
canard, no congregation I know of
will disenfranchise or refuse
membership to a family in
financial straits, nor will they
publicly parade them around like
circus freaks. If anything,
synagogues are more adept at “let's
make a deal” than Monty Hall
Synagogue insiders know how
frequently we "get taken” by a less-
than-honest congregant in
comparison to the rare occasion
when someone is unwittingly given
a financial hassle.
A final thought about money:
So often we speak of it like a dread
disease Properly directed, it can
be our best friend Without it. we
could not cool or heat or light our
place of worship, be it the
sanctuary of the temple or
someone’s living -room We could
not buy chalk or hooks or desks or
a roof over our heads to educate
and “turn on” our young and not-
so-young. We could not engage
rabbis who would be on 24 hour
call to affiliates and non-affdiales,
who also request/demand the
rabbi’s service and would scream
bloody murder if they were handed
an invoice “for services rendered “
We speak of “structure" as
though it were some sort of a
superimposed boogie man rather
than a blessing that enables us to
realize our hopes and aspirations.
It leads me to wonder what those
who are turned off by synagogue
structure and institutionalization
would replace it with. Smaller, less
formal, more intimate groups?
Fine But. beware: Every bag of
beans that goes into the chulent
costs money Every necessary
decision will force leadership lo
emerge Some, if not all. demands
for skilled Judaic inpul will require
professional assistance, and the
demands will escalate. The
equitable apportionment of aliyoi
will ultimately become a
committee decision The education
of your young will call for
requirements and standards
Before you know it. you. too. will
have all the institutionalization
and structure you can handle.
Even anarchists ultimately form
societies, collect dues and elect
officers.
The American synagogue is far
from utopia, our local synagogues
included Bui. ihe charge that the
very structure that keeps our
synagogues viable is a “turn off - lo
Jewish life is largely unjustified It
is a feeble dodge used by those who
would substitute for it
commitment that might be a mile
wide, but only a quarter of an inch
deep. For all that is wrong, this is
one guilt trip we need not buy into.
Iranian stand-off
Crisis is far from over
by Kenneth Herht
I he Red and Black (l rmrnitx of (icorgia)
The crisis in Iran is far from over
and its full implications have yet to
be felt. The consequences of this
crisis will linger a long lime after
the fate of the Shah and the 49
American hostages being held
since Nov 4 in Teheran have been
determined Carter has responded
to the situation in the best way
possible with patient waiting for
a diplomatic breakthrough that
until now has failed to appear.
Clearly, this is a standoff that
neither side can afford to back out
of gracefully. Looking back with
hindsight at the roots of this crisis
it is apparent that from the
beginning it was a no-win situation
in terms of United States prestige
and interest In fact. American
security has been severlv
jeopardized and the venomous
anti-American fervor emerging
among Ihe millions of Khomeini's
supporters has the potential to
spread to neighboring Arab
nations whose lifestyle and culture
are similarly based on Islam Of
greatest concern to the U S is
Saudi Arabia which supplies 14
percent of the United States' oil
Saudi Arabia's form of
government is based on a feudal
monarchy with central powers
controlled by the ruling family
This type ol government is just as
susceptible to overthrow, if not
more so, than the Shah's
government before Khomeini
came to power Just in the last few
weeks we witnessed an attempt by
a fanatical Islamic group,
proclaiming allegiance wnh
Khomeini, lo take over and hold
hostages at the great Mosque in
Mecca. Saudi Arabia, the holiest
site to Islam
Now the situation seems lo be
under control, but it was a clear
demonstration that there is an
opposing faction in Saudi Arabia
that has the potential as well as the
precedent to overthrow the
existing pro-American govern
ment to be replaced by a fervently
anti-American regime The
consequences of such an
occurrence can only he seen as a
severe threat to American national
security. We have also witnessed
mob attacks on American
embassies in Pakistan and Libya,
predominantly Moslem countries.
I et us not forget that in Iran we
are witnessing emphatic anti-
Americanism such as this country
has never seen. This is apparently a
backlash against a creeping of
American culture, values, and
ideas into Iranian society which
perceives this influence as corrupt,
immoral, and a danger to Islam
Hence, there is an overwhelming
rejection of American and Western
values, such as respect for
international law Also, let us not
forget that a very similar situation
of American influence exists in
Saudi Arabia where an equally
strong Islamic force prevails. Just
as the masses in Iran arc revolting
against American influence there,
we cannot discount the possibility
See Crisis page 21