Sh`ma 3 journal of Jewish responsibility

Sh'ma
3 journal of Jewish responsibility
13/249, MARCH 4, 1983
(Recession affects michigan's synagogues
Ernst J. Conrad
The citizens of the state of Michigan have ex'perienced a continuous decline in the economy
diince 1975. Beginning with the energy crisis of
that year, there has been a marked decrease in
.die purchase of automobiles, passenger cars, vans,
trucks, and busses. For practical purposes, the entire state depends on the one industry. The skilled
labor force cannot be sustained by other industries
-which have contributed to the growth of the
1 population and public institutions; pharmaceutical
^companies, furniture building, extensive
jagriculture and tourism.
iDne must take into account that manv ancillary
i
'
*
items are part of making an automobile. There is
a complete tool and dye industry. Plastics,
upholstery, electronics, intricate design work— all
constitute part ofrthe automobile empire. There is
an elaborate distribution system whereby parts
are brought to factories and the finished product
a sent to distributors throughout the counry and
i&road. The headquarters of the major
ttntomobile manufacturers provide work for
'•cretaries, accountants, engineers, designers,
^liade publications staff: jobs often held by Jewish
feople.
Ihe inevitable conclusion must be that many peoipfe have already lost their positions, many factories have been closed, businesses have declared
ifcolvency, and people have left the state. This
tmst J. Conrad is rabbi of Temple Kol Ami in
West Bloomfield, Ml.
M
has had its negative effect upon the ability of the
state to raise the taxes necessary to maintain adequate services. The educational institutions
especially have suffered greatly.
People are moving away; there is no sense of continuity, particularly in the Greater Detroit area,
where vitality in commerce, industry and culture
was a landmark a generation ago. The decline in
tax revenues is felt in the diminishing appropriations for all public institutions, such as mental
hospitals, public health services, social services,
detention facilities and colleges and universities.
At one time the state could be justly proud of the
University of Michigan, Michigan State University
and Wayne State University. Research was continually going on in medicine, science and
engineering. Ever since the recession became
noticeable, outstanding faculty members have accepted calls to other institutions. Research has
diminished with the exception of an enclave in
Ann Arbor which continues to thrive as an oasis
in the wilderness. Fortunately, private endowments have helped to replace public funds
and thus have preserved a measure of excellence
in the research associated with the University of
Michigan. In the most recent past, as if to aggravate the precarious situation, Federal policies
have not proved helpful in providing grants to
students or faculty in the pursuit of academic excellence.
If the academic community appears to be singled
out after the initial statement about the decline of
the automobile industry, it must be remembered
that Jews are preeminent on the administration
and faculty of our major educational institutions.
They also constitute a far higher percentage of the
student bodies than of the general population.
The Synagogue Feels The Pinch
What is the direct impact of this economic change
on our congregations and community institutions?
As a rabbi, I can speak only about the effect it
has on the congregation. There are others in
charge of the Jewish Welfare Federation and its
constituents who would be able to present the appropriate statistics pertaining to decline in
membership and in funds raised to maintain the
United Hebrew Schools, the Jewish Community
Center, the Jewish Vocational Service, and the
Jewish Family Service. There seems to be no question that Jewish people who have lost their jobs
have gone to other agencies for direct financial
support, as well as for counselling and retraining.
Stress on families is noticeable. However, it would
be presumptuous to attribute the increasing rate
of divorces, spouse abandonment, abuse of
children, dependence on alcohol and on other
drugs to the declining economy. These problems
have been with us, but seem to be aggravated at
this time. Unfortunately, new economic conditions
make it hard to maintain as high a living standard as in the past.
The synagogue which depends on the voluntary
contributions of its members often experiences a
regression in membership. Yet it would be a
mistake to say that there is an obvious decrease in
numbers. The diminution is one of membership
participation and of the amounts raised to maintain a necessary level of programming. Nor would
it be fair to generalize. There are still some old
and established congregations who have been well
endowed and who enjoy a large membership of
families that have not been as severely affected by
the recession as the young professionals and
business executives for whom Michigan is merely
a transit for a promising future. Congregations
largely comprised of members of the medical profession are also suffering less because the health
system has been expanding nationally and insurance has covered medical expenses incurred by
the average citizen.
It is precisely the young families of professionals,
educators, or business persons, that find it difficult to maintain membership in our congregations. There is a question of priorities. Housing
costs have been so high that mortgage payments
constitute the major part of the monthly budget.
Inflation, although it has declined in recent years,
is a powerful force when we consider shelter, food
and clothing, the very necessities of life. It is the
prerogative of each unit to decide how to spend
the decreasing resources of a family income once
the necessities have been paid for.
Jewish Education Compromised
Do we suggest that Jewish parents are no longer
interested in providing their children with a
Jewish religious education? Are they no longer
searching for a proper place to worship, to find
adult Jewish education, and Jewish social life? In
fairness to the generation in its late twenties and
thirties, there is a very active and positive feeling
towards Jewishness, the Jewish people here and
abroad, and our Jewish institutions. But what to
support first? Consequently, there is intense shopping for the most value at the lowest price. People
will not join a congregation unless they know the
full extent of their financial obligations. In
theory, each congregation is willing to make concessions in accordance with the needs and
capacities of the applicant. But in practice,
obstacles to a liberal financial policy arise. There
is an innate pride in many young people not to
ask any concessions, even if it involves their own
spiritual well-being and the religious education
for their children. Unless they can contribute
their share, they do not wish to be recipients of
what they consider charity. Thus, they opt out of
Jewish participation in the hope that the present
economic emergencies will disappear. In some
Sh'ma
a journal of fewish
responsibility
Editor Eugene B. Borowitz
Asst. to the Editor Margaret Moers Wenig
Administrator Alicia Seeger
Fellows Solomon S. Bernards, Yoel Kahn, Paul D.
Kerbel, Michael J. Shire, Michael Skakun, Louise
Solodar, Carolyn Toll
Production CLM
'
Graphics
Contributing Editors /. David Bleich, Balfour Brickner, *
Mitchell Cohen, Daniel J. Elazar, Blu Greenberg, Paula u
Hyman, Nora Levin, David Novak, Harold Schulweis, pi
Steven Schwarzschild, Seymour Siegel, Sharon
>|
'j
Strassfeld, Elie Wiesel, Arnold Jacob "Wolf, Michael
f
Wyschogrod.
|
Sh'ma welcomes articles from diverse points of view.
Hence articles present only the views of the author, not those "i
of the editors. We do not correct obvious typos.
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13/249, MARCH 4 , 1 9 8 3
M eases, they will postpone their affiliation with the
i congregation until the children are ready to
^""j feceive Bar or Bat Mitzvah training or to undergo
I ionfirmation.
|;fj
hereI With the continuing tendency to terminate
to i -eligious education after Bar or Bat Mitzvah or
| Confirmation, the years during which a youngster
an fjrill be exposed to Jewish teachings will be further
/.limited. Nor will there be any continuity in terms
of p.of developing any leadership among young
jfo/rparents who do not remain long enough in one
;ent r tongregation to take root. These prospects are not
e f jeiy encouraging. In this state, as elsewhere in
f tiese United States, demographic problems of
jf fnaller families, late marriage, and a high inter; Jnarriage rate seriously affect the future of the
) ewish community within the next century.
j Confidence Despite Difficulties
j It speaks well for the religious community of this
r.uea that there is no immediate sense of despair.
11 i few synagogues have had to close because of
| declining membership and inability to maintain
I heir facilities. There have been some congregate J ions who have been on the verge of bankruptcy
naJ ind who have gone into public receivership. Ad^ I uittedly, there have been too many building proj ects, predicted on the surpluses accumulated in a
jnore affluent decade, which continued during the
(present crisis. In some instances, staff had to be
I .'nit and all aspects of the synagogue program had
i
to be curtailed. With the decline of revenues,
OK
i here is also an understandable tendency to look
II -or gimmicks and new resources; the popularity of
J J i n g o g a m e s h a s consequently grown in recent
I .'ears. T h e r e h a s a l w a y s b e e n a d a n g e r w i t h i n
j American J e w i s h structure to look for
f
the
scapegoats
a difficult times a n d the functionaries of our
Jmagogues are not exempted from becoming
vic-
.'fcns o f t h e d e c l i n e i n m e m b e r s h i p a n d
income,
rtfet, a t t h e s a m e t i m e , r a b b i s , c a n t o r s ,
educators,
«Ocial w o r k e r s , a n d r e c r e a t i o n a l e x p e r t s
connected
*ith the synagogues c o n t i n u e to exhibit zeal
and
ngenuity in sustaining an active J e w i s h life.
Sup-
Jort f o r o u r n a t i o n a l i n s t i t u t i o n s , t h o u g h
decreas-
•g, is a t a h i g h l e v e l , a s is t h e s u p p o r t o f
the
Jnited J e w i s h A p p e a l , H a d a s s a h , C o u n c i l
of
Wvish W o m e n ,
B'nai B'rith, Ort, etc.
Somehow
It J e w s o f this a r e a d o not fear that their
decline
I numbers a n d e c o n o m i c potential will lead to a
Solution of the proud and creative
communities
At h a v e c o n t r i b u t e d s o m u c h t o t h e
American
Irish a n d w o r l d J e w i s h
scenes.
Jewish pioneers came to Detroit as fur traders
more than two hundred years ago under very difficult and isolated circumstances. The community
has grown with the industrialization of the state
and has flourished as the automobile industry expanded. In spite of its decline, it will persevere; it
will not vanish, and will maintain a meaningful
Jewish life regardless of the circumstances that
may envelop the state and the nation. •
Unemployment among detroit's jews
Albert J. Ascher
Popular mythology characterizes Jews as wealthy,
upwardly mobile and immune from the pain of
poverty. While to some this sounds like antiSemitic mythology, it is a concept widely held by
many Jews, and until recently was accepted by
large segments of Detroit's Jewish community.
But three years of economic depression in
Michigan and a jobless rate of nearly 20% in the
Detroit metropolitan area in beginning to change
all this. For the first time in many decades, there
is substantial unemployment among Detroit's
70,000 Jews. During 1982, 3,000 Jewish people
came to Detroit's Jewish Vocational Service, not
just to seek career change to expand their occupational opportunities as in the past, but now
because they are in trouble. Many of them are
skilled workers or professional or business people.
Few have ever needed professional help before
to seek or retain work. The Jews being served
by JVS are fearful of job loss, or are unemployed
and often willing to settle for jobs below their
previous expectation. Students seeking financial
assistance are visiting JVS in record numbers, and
although our student loans for last year exceeded
$100,000, not all needs could be met.
O t h e r young people, their studies
completed,
c o m e to J V S a n d a c c e p t j o b s b e l o w their level of
training. T h e y are part of a new generation
of
downwardly mobile Jewish youth who now
doubt
t h a t their level of o c c u p a t i o n a l a c h i e v e m e n t
will
equal that of their parents. N e w l y laid off
teachers and social workers, w h o entered their occupations certain of j o b security, n o w
are
dismayed that their services are no longer
needed.
Albert I. Ascher is the Executive Director of the
Jewish Vocational Service and Community
Workshop in Detroit.
3
j
Some clients are young women, previously married, with children. They are seeking basic entry
jobs so they can support themselves and their
children. Some are receiving public assistance.
Many adult children have moved back to their
parents' home because they can no longer afford
their own home.
The depressed economy has adversely affected the
basic support system of elderly clients served by
JVS. Some cannot be certain that they can both
have adequate food and also afford to heat their
homes. Their medical care may be inadequate.
The InvisibHity of The New Poor
In contrast, the casual observer visiting Detroit's
Jewish community would have difficulty seeing
this. The visitor sees a community occupying
spacious homes on tree-filled lots. He will see excellent Jewish institutions, housed in modern
structures. These are synagogues designed by internationally famous architects. The visitor will
quickly learn that the 70,000 Jews who live in this
community expect to raise $19 million for the
1983 Allied Jewish Campaign, and will send most
of these funds to Israel, where it is felt there is a
greater need.
Because the new poor are barely visible, it had
been possible, in the past, for the affluent community to believe that Jews were spared the
ravages of a collapsing economy. But this is beginning to change. After three years of economic
stagnation, even those who are well off know of
friends who can no longer meet house payments.
Others have children who cannot enter their
chosen professions. As a result information regarding Jewish poverty is treated with greater
credibility than previously.
Recent publicity in the Detroit Jewish News,
describing the situation of a group of isolated,
elderly Jewish clients served by the JVS resulted
in an outpouring of offers of assistance from the
Jewish community.
The Jewish Welfare Federation of Detroit is currently involved in a planning process to identify
and serve the "new poor". The Board of Trustees
of the JVS has organized a task force to find jobs
for its clients. Participation in this task force will
enable these leaders to confront, first-hand, the
economic and social problems that affect our
community. The leadership of the Jewish Scholarship Service (a committee of the JWF) has, in
cooperation with the Jewish Vocational Service,.
67
been reviewing the growing financial needs of
; K
Jewish students and is seeking additional funds tel.
support their already expanded efforts.
Agency Resources May Be Insufficient
g
The Detroit Jewish community is witnessing a •! I
beginning awareness of growing economic
I
distress. This awareness is leading to constructive)
steps to assist those most adversely impacted by ijj
the economic depression. However, despite the j<} I
generosity and careful planning of Detroit's
t
Jewish community, there may not be sufficient oi fl
resources to deal with both the growing needs of U
our local community and the compelling need of li
Israel. Yet, the various Jewish social agencies e i
must seek creative ways to expand their resources jj Jt
if the new poor are to be served. The Jewish
ti
Vocational Service, with a long history of effec- >• $
tively capturing public funds, today derives 80% j> j
of its 3.5 million dollar budget (the largest in its i:
history) from sources outside the Jewish commun 11 a
ty. Indeed, this Jewish organization is one of the |j
largest non-public jobs agencies in Michigan.
Other Jewish agencies are seeking other non"
traditional funds to enable them to cope with th€
growing needs of our community.
It is too soon to measure the effectiveness of thesii!
beginning efforts and to know if the combination
of goodwill, planning and professional expertise j \
that characterizes Detroit's Jewish community ; 1
will be sufficient to meet the demand. •
i ,
...but others say about small towns...
'' i
Soul, not Size, Determines Jewish Worth
Rabbi Trepp (Sh'ma, 13/247) touches on matter!) 1
very close to the hearts of those of us who live i f t i I
small communities. But the positives of small cil '
life are missing from his article. I do not accept' 1
his concept of "unconscious guilt" because we've' '
removed ourselves from the "core of Jewish ViUr '
ty." Where is it written that only large cities 1 1
house this core of Jewish vitality? Many people j 1
choose to live in small communities because of t I
!
advantages; better schools, lower crime rate,
cleaner environment, lower cost of living, etc.
Many people, and many Jewish people, would 1
rather raise their families in this kind of environ !' 1
continued on page 71'
Meyer L. Bodoff
Utica, N.Y.
1
K'ra
n Zakhor Professor Yerushalmi
brilliantly traces the development of
Jewish historical awareness from Biblical to modern
times. He makes the distinction between collective
memory, reinforced by tradition, prayer, study of
sacred texts, and modern Jewish historical analysis.
Jewish historical analysis is a product of
nineteenth-century European historicism, rather
than, as Yerushalmi carefully shows, an evolution
from within the fold of Jewish writing. The role of
the Jewish historian is to recreate the past, or
aspects of that past, and thereby build a bridge to
his people. His function is one of scholarly enrichment; it does not and can not include the restoration of Jewish memory. "Modern Jewish
historiography," he writes, "cannot replace an
eroded group memory which... never depended on
historians in the first place."
Professor Yerushalmi identifies the secular roots
of the historical approach to Judaism, the ideology
through which Jewish history "becomes what it had
never been before— the faith of fallen Je\tfs. For the
first time history, not a sacred text, becomes the arbiter of Judaism."
This is a provocative and well-documented
volume. It is a transcription of four lectures given
by the author, and totals more than 100 pages, including excellent, highly detailed endnotes.
Especially recommended is the chapter (lecture) on
sixteenth century Jewish historiography,
Yerushalmi's specialty.
(Louise Solodar)
THE NIGHT SKY OF THE LORD. Alan Ecclestone. Schocken. $14.95.
examined and intuited by Christians.
(Solomon S. Bernards)
The .Sh'ma Book
Review
ZAKHOR: JEWISH HISTORY AND JEWISH
MEMORY. Yosef Hayim Yerushalmi. University of
Washington. $17.50.
I
F
or students and practitioners
of Jewish-Christian dialogue, this
volume, written by an Anglican priest and originally published two years ago in England, is required
reading. Picking up Elie Wiesel's kingdom of night
theme in a Rritish poet's garb, the author asserts,
"To too many people Auschwitz is simply a
deplorable event in the past... failure or unwillingness on the part of the churches to give it a
primary importance indicates both insensitivity and
a lack of imagination... to neglect it is to lose a
great opportunity to learn from and along with
Jews what it was that went sour in relations between the two faiths long ago, why the cleavage persisted and grew more prolific of hatred, why at all
times the Jew has been held unwelcome in Christian society, and how in the mercies of God reconciliation might come about."
The reconciliation, the change of heart and
mind, the author demands of both Christian and
Jew. But the burden of Christian responsibility can
be lifted only if (a) anti-Semitism is acknowledged
and understood; (b) anti-Jewish theology is replaced; (c) the Jewish components of the Christian
tradition are recovered and embraced; (d) the
religious significance of Jesus must be newly conceived and presented to the world; (e) the existence
of the State of Israel is to be more deeply probed,
THE FUTURE OF JEWISH-CHRISTIAN RELATIONS. Ed. Dr. Norman H. Thompson & Rabbi
Bruce K. Cole. Character Research Press. $8.95.
J
ewish-Christian relations have
been continually dynamic both in
form and content. The medieval disputations,
though forums for damning Judaism and Jews, did
in fact provide the basis for a theological discussion
of the tenets of Judaism and Christianity based on
their respective texts: the political coalitions of Jews
and Christians in defence of civil rights or the State
of Israel have been recent manifestations of a differing form of interfaith relations. It is thus refreshing
to read a book that encompassess many facets of this
vital relationship. Theological presentations of differing Biblical and liturgical interpretations forms
one major section of the book, followed by Christian perspectives on the relationship after the
Jewish experience during the Holocaust. Educational, political and theological considerations are
all fully explicated in articles by Christian academicians, prominent Jewish writers and thinkers as
well as ministers of both religious and differing
denominations. All of these are collected in a book
that will undoubtedly be an important step in the
future of our joint relations.
.... ,
„., .
'
(Michael J. Shire)
THE JEWISH AMERICANS: A History in Their
Own Words 1650-1950. Milton Meltzer. Thomas Y.
Crowell. $10.50.
fascinating
collection
of
Jewish experiences in the United
States from the very earliest reminiscences of Jews
in New Amsterdam, through the fighting words of
Emma Goldman, to the pain and anguish of readjusting after Auschwitz, all told through excerpts
from journals, letters, memoirs, speeches and illustrations with brief introductions giving concise
background details. Meltzer's collection is a sheer
pleasure to pick up and browse through, as well as
being invaluable for the classroom.
(Michael J. Shire)
A
NEW WORLD JEWRY, 1693-1825: REQUIEM
FOR THE FORGOTTEN. Seymour B. Liebman.
Ktav.
T
his
is
a
well-researched
and ambitious work about the Marranos of Latin and South America. It suffers from
unclear writing and poor organization. Many
quotations and anecdotes add to the book's interest.
(YoelKahn)
THE JEWISH HOLIDAY
Nathan. Schocken. $9.95.
KITCHEN.
Joan
T
is
an
his
exciting
book
important contribution to cultural
anthropology with delicious-sounding and easy-tofollow recipes interspersed. Each recipe is preceded
by a captivating and informative introduction.
Ecumenical in spirit, the book includes Litvak Matzah Kugel and Turkish Baked Eggplant on facing
pages in the Passover section. A short treatise on the
history of rye bread includes: "The earliest bread
prepared by the Jews was made of flat cakes baked
between layers of slow-burning camel dung, as in
the Book of Ezra."
(YoelKahn)
EVERY GOY'S GUIDE TO COMMON JEWISH
EXPRESSIONS. Arthur Naiman. Ballantine Books.
$2.75.
F
69
or
those
in
the
know,
Yiddish expressions are among the
richest veins of humor and ironic amusement in the
American vocabulary. Mined relentlessly by comedians and ethnic revivalists alike, with at times less
taste than ardor, Jewish expressions now appear to
have caught the fancy of non-Jews. Where would
New Yorkese, the saucy tongue of the chic barbarians, be without its dash of home-bred Yiddish.?
Arthur Naiman's fairly brief catalogue is sadly
only a water-downed version of Leo Rosten, et. al.,
possessing none of their artful comments or yeasty
extravagance. Good for no more than a quick
laugh, it is directed less to the purported audience
of its title— the 'goy'— than to those half-way Jews
who enjoy wolfing down these items on the sly
much as if they were so many ethnic dishes forbidden in polite company.
(Michael Skakun)
W
w
ik
iU
ff
I
w>
r
CI
(it
AMERICAN ANTI-NAZI R E S I S T A N C E , Pol
1933-1941. Moshe R. Gottlieb. Ktav. $35.
m
•K
I
fascinating and heavily docu- 3'®
mented account of the efforts of
American Jewish agencies to bring down the Nazi
regime (from 1933-1941) through economic Pill
boycott. This little-known boycott effort and subsequent schemes to ransom doomed Jews make interesting reading for history buffs, heavy reading
for most.
(Carolyn Toll Oppenheim) I
!n
A
CREATORS
AND
DISTURBERS, A
REMINISCENCES BY JEWISH INTELLEC- r
TUALS OF NEW YORK. Bernard Rosenberg and
Ernst Goldstein. Columbia. $19.95.
eading
this
book
is
like k
.slipping unnoticed into a cafe frequented by such Jewish intellectuals as Isaac B.
Singer, Irving Howe, Alfred Kazin, Grace Paley,
Midge Decter, Hans Morgenthau, Irving
Greenberg, Justine Wise Polier, and others— and
from a corner table you eavesdrop on their talk.
Twenty-four important Jewish thinkers, each in a
separate chapter, ramble about the quality of their
lives as New York Jews and about fheir views of
contemporary Jewish— and political— affairs.
Juicy!
(Carolyn Toll Oppenheim)
R
THE THEATRE OF THE HOLOCAUST, ed.
Robert Skloot. U. of Wisconsin. $10.95.
T
his is the first
collection
of Holocaust plays, complete with an
r
excellent introduction and notes by Robert Skloot,
; Professor of Theatre and Drama at University of
Wisconsin-Madison. The four plays are Resort '76,
by Shimon Wincelberg, Throne of Straw, by H.
and E. Lieberman, The Cannibals, by George
Tabori, and Who Will Carry the Word?, by
Charlotte Delbo, herself an Auschwitz survivor. It
is an important anthology for students of modern
theatre and of the Holocaust. The common themes
are all-pervasive horror and affirming the choice to
resist evil.
(Louise Solodar)
GLORIOUS MORNING. Julie Ellis. Arbor House.
1 $14.95.
A
novel describing the "golden
age" of Yiddish theatre seen from the
eyes of a woman whose flight from pogroms in
Poland included aristocratic affairs in London and
led to a life of fame and fortune in New York's
Lower East Side. It is sentimental and sugary-sweet
and unfortunately contains historical errors.
(Michael J. Shire)
THE ARAB-ISRAELI WARS. Chaim Herzog. Random House. $20.
heavily
detailed
military
account of the major Arab-Israeli
wars plus the campaigns and antiterrorist activities
up to and including the operation "Peace for
Galilee." Herzog describes every military strategy
and deployment on both sides to demonstrate the
growth in experience and strength of the Israeli army and its commanders. Litde attention is paid to
the moral or political consequences of controversial
events from Deir Yassin to the seige of Beirut.
(Michael J. Shire)
A
THE LIVING WITNESS: Art in the Concentration
Camps. Marti S. Costanza. The Free Press. $19.95.
T:
'here are hundreds of books
to choose from in studying the written records of the Holocaust, but there are relatively few books which document the visual and artistic
testimony of the horrors which faced the Jews in the
concentration camps and ghettos. Mary Costa nza's
•ystematic, historical study of the art of the victims
of the Holocaust stands as one of the most important
works on the Holocaust to be published in recent
years.
Her sensitive analysis, documentation and
presentation of both known and previously
TO
unknown art created within the concentration
camp and ghetto shocks the reader. Ms. Costanza's
contribution to our knowledge of the Holocaust
places us in her debt. Her well-written essays and
graphically vivid reproductions present testimony
to the vast creative and literary expression with
which our people resisted the tyranny of the Nazi
regime.
(Paul D. Kerbel)
IDEAS LN FICTION: The Works of Hayim Hazaz.
Warren Bargad. Scholars Press - Brown Judaic
Studies #31.
Hi
ayim
Hazaz's
works
span
. from the Biblical period to the early
years of the State of Israel and from Russia in the
north to Yemen in the south. Hazaz's sense of unity
within the Jewish people and his concern for Jewish
history are analyzed in this short monograph.
While Bargad points out the considerable literary
flaws in Hazaz's works, he notes that "Hazaz had
his finger on the pulse of the times... there are some
writers who live most significantly for their age.
Hayim Hazaz was such a writer." For those who
may read the works of Hayim Hazaz, Bargad's
study is a helpful guide to understanding his work.
(Paul D. Kerbel)
THE WORLD OF THE YESHIVA. William B.
Helmreich. Free Press. $19.95.
T
he yeshiva, both as an academic
as well as a social organization, is an
essential element of Orthodox Jewry. Yet the inner
workings and sociological underpinnings of both
the yeshiva and Orthodoxy are little understood by
those outside these two often cloistered communities. This book by an Orthodox sociologist probes these two institutions and provides, sometimes
extremely perceptively and other times somewhat
tritely, an overview of what they really are and how
they really operate. If the topic interests you, read
(or at least skim) the book.
(Joseph C. Kaplan)
We regret we were unable to review the following
books which we received:
JEWS AND MONEY: THE MYTHS AND THE
REALITY. Gerald Krofetz. Ticknor and Fields.
$13.95.
IN NEW YORK: A SELECTION, MOYSHE-LEYB
HALPERN. Translated, edited and with an introduction by Kathryn Hellerstein. JPS. $9.95.
continued from page 67
ment. Jews living in small communities are far
more concerned about maintaining their identity
as Jews, than their counterparts in larger cities. A
much larger percentage of small town Jews belong
to synagogues, Jewish Community Centers, fraternal organizations, or even UJA campaigns. A
much more total communal environment exists in
the small town.
As far as charitable giving is concerned, again, I
disagree with Rabbi Trepp. Remember that
because these Jews are small in number, each
takes a greater responsibility in supporting UJA,
synagogues, Jewish Community Centers, as well
as fraternal organizations. It is not uncommon to
see families join two synagogues just to show support. Yes, small communities are facing serious
problems in the years ahead. But let us not miss a
unique sense of "Kol Yisrael" that also exists in
small towns.
Small cities are making great strides in communal
activities. Federations have developed Young
Leadership programs to develop and train future
Jewish leaders. These young people are standing
up and accepting their future roles. Small communities are pooling resources and forming community schools to better educate their children.
Funds are spent to bring Jewish cultural experiences to the smaller community.
Jews in smaller communities recognize their commitment to each other and to the preservation of
Jewish life. In fact, if one could measure concern
for quality of Jewish life, than "big city Jews"
could take a lesson from their small town counterparts. Perhaps small town Jews are not as
sophisticated as their relations in big cities, but
they are doing a fine job when it comes to maintaining and improving the quality of Jewish life
in America, while at the same time building
bridges to Jews in Israel and around the world.
...but others say about prison...
I served briefly as a "contract" rabbi to the
Eastern Pennsylvania State Correctional Institute
at Graterford, Pennsylvania. My experience with '
the Jewish prisoners at Graterford stands at
variance with Mr. M's. (Sh'ma 13/247)
To begin with, Graterford is a maximum security
institution, and that may account for the marked
difference in the attention of the "Jewish"
prisoners. I put Jewish into quotations because
some of my congregation at Graterford decided
that they were Jewish because our service took
place during their work day, or because through
the efforts of the Jewish Welfare Roard's
volunteers the Jews had wonderful food at holiday
celebrations.
The prisoners had no interest in being Jewish except to use their Jewishness as a lever to gain
privileges from the prison authorities. The room
assigned as a chapel was abused and often used as
a "shooting gallery" by the trustees. There was little sense of community, and the congregation of
10-12 men for services/discussions and 30-40 for
celebrations involving food had as much politick- j
ing going on as any temple on the outside. •
Anonymous
THANKS ARE DUE to seven more readers who
sent us contributions for the Purim issue:
Daniel Alexander, Steven Friedell, Joseph Kaplan,
Jeffrey A. Klepper, Eugene H. Levy, Sidney H.
Schwarz, and Judith Anne Teck. •
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