Ohio Jewish Chronicle, 1970-06-25

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Serving Columbus, "Centrar^and Southwestern Ohio \^^
VOL: 48 NO. 26
' JUNE 25, 1970 - SIVAN 21
President Appoints Rubenstein
Rabbi Samuel W. Rutienstein, spiritual leader of Agudas Achim Congregation, will leaVe on Monday, June 29 to attend the 32 session of the In¬ ternational   Cbn^ence  on
Rabbi Rubenstein
Public Education, to held in Geneva, Switzerland.
He was appointed by President Richard M. Nixon to serve as one of the th'ree members of the United States' delegation. Mr. Murray E. Jackson, Director, Office of In¬ temational Conferences of the State Department in a recent letter to Rabbi Rubenstein, commented, "The Department of State appreciates your willingness to serve on the delegation and I am sure your par¬ ticipation will be beneficial to the government and that you will find the experience personally rewarding."
Dr. Pardee Lowe of the office of Multi-lateral Policy Programs, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. will proviHe Rabbi Rubenstein with the necessary background in¬ formation for the con¬ ference.
Mrs. Rubenstein will accompany the Rabbi on the trip to Geneva. ¦ , Rabbi ^Rubenstein has been invited by ' the leadership of the Rabbinical Council of America to deliver a sermon in one of London's synagogues. This is in conjunction with a London" meeting of the Rabbinical Council of America to be held in July. Schedule permitting, the Rubensteins will attend the meeting with the Rabbinate of England..
The World's Week
BUENOS AIRES (WNS)-The*Argentinian govern^ ment has told a delegation from DAIA, .the central Argentine Jewish organization, that the Government regrets recent bombings of Jewish institutions but was ihvolved with other. problems and couldn't grant special protection td'the Jewish organization. ¦ .
The Argentinian officials suggested that the Jewish community protect its institutions.; A poll taken in La Plata where there was a faioinbing showed that a majority regretted the attack but feUthat "Jews are not liked much." ^^ ' ::i
JERUSALEM (WNS)"Foreign lVBnisterAbb^«ban will visit Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay next month as - an official guest Of these governments, llie Quick to¬ day trip. Which leaves no time for visit§ to other nations, was.designed to counter anti-Israel activities by Arab groups throughout Latin America.
NEW YORK (:W^fS)¦rAn Israel firni has struck oil, at a site near the Dead Sea and Was cah-ying out tests to ' see if the strike will result in commercialquantities of oil. "Ifhe find was at the Gurim-3 site foUr and 'a half miles south of the Negey town of Arav at a depth of over 4,500 feet. "
BRUSSELS (WNS)-The Catholic Sub-commission for JewishrChristiah relations iii Belgium has charged thattheanti-Israeire^lutions atthe World Christian Conference for Palestine held last month in Lebanon "were nothing short of an appeal to exert violence."
The Subeommission ^id me B^r^^ represent Christianity and that the Roman Catholic Church wasn't offieialiyrepresentW.^ \
" N|!W YORK^ (JTA) r A gift tof $500,000 to the Israel Elducation Fvihd of the United Jewish Appeal, has been announced by ,Ui'arles J. Bensley, president, and Dr. ' Ar^eh Nasher, executive director, llie gift, made by Mr.' and IVIrs. Alan H. Ginsburg of Lansing, Michigan, has been earmarked for the construction of a multi¬ stage nauticarschool in Ceasarea, Israel.
TEL AVIV (WNS)-Israel has protested to both the French and 'German Governments each natibh's decision to suspend air shipments of piarcels to Isriiel.
Dtv.tf4 t. AsffitM ..4 l*«iili l^lt    /
Blaine& Riiisia
TEL AVIV, (JTA)-- Premicr Golda Meir. said -this weeic that she'' was ^ "more and more convinced" that the Soviet Union precipitated the June,'M967 Six-Day War and is responsible for the ' con¬ tinuiitg strife inthe Mi((dle East."*''The Soviet ifnion, in
• pursuit of„'i;|ls- scheme-to dominate j^e MicldicpEast, does nof'care If Israel goes up in flames," Mrs. Meir said in an address to the International Conference of Social Democratic Women.
"We Socialists of the free world must realize, that the Soviet Union is a cruel dictatorship ruled - by a ruthless regime Which is. guided (inly by Us narrow interests," the Prime Minister declared.
She said a prime exahiple of the Soviet's nature is what happened to Czechoslovakia. She said that in recent nibnths Israel has been faced not only with Soviet.vveapons and advisers; .but r with Russicin pilots'ahd troops on
• ah operationaI;duty.'    V
"We are deeply'concerned that Soviet and Israeli pilots may meet. Our pilots will not. run away. If they were to do so il would mean that all of us would have to flee,". Mrs. Meir said. -
Defense Minister Moshe Dayan"^ told a meeting of Haifa high school students tiiat "the only way to bring .the Arabs to the negotiating table is to hit them hard," According to. Gen.  Dayan
"the greater their mijitary failures.the greater are the chances': that they will talk, they will shift from the hope ,, to defeat us to the realization that ,< setliements are preferable. '       'i''
Tliey must be made to understand that they cannot win." W; .,        ',''' .
Gen. Dayan said th Arabs were depending' on their hope that Israel cannot withstand the prolonged pressure, casualties and economic burdeiisof a war of
Jewish Birthrate On Decline
LONDON (WNS )-A study of\Jewish population trends during 1961^ indicates that the Jewish birth rate Was lagging Ijehind the world average and that the greater Jewish use of birth control methods and the interest in small families were important factors.
Th'e      study,      Jewisli '
Population Studies, 1961-68, also noted that' the loss of young adujts diie to the extermination of six million Jews by the Nazis, and an . increase in the proportion of marriages to nourJews and the subsequent withdrawal from Jewry also played an important role.
The book's editors, Uziel O. Schmelz and Paul Glikson, both demographers and statisticians with the histitute of Contemporary Jewry in Jerusalem, reported that the generally accepted  estimate  of   13.5
million Jews in-the world was too high.   .
They^jasserled that the Nazis "destroyed about a third of the world's 16.5 million Jews leaving just 11 million Jews at the end of World War II. During the years under istj^jdy, the Jewish populatjflRi'Of West Germany, Italy, apd Austria declined because.birlh rates fell below, the replacement level.
In Israel, a' baby boom ajTiong European Jews Which developed around 1950 was leveled off and there
was. now a decline in the Jewish birth rate, the study reports.
The growth  rate among
American Jews" was lowest
among the major religious
groups; ¦ The   fertility   of
United States Jewish women
is niore than 20 per cent
below the urban' American
population. It is more than a
quarter   below   the   entire
, white papulation and almost
,,3p per cent ,lo;wer than the
vhational ayprage, according
,.toi the book.,,V'
jjjVReporting'I on    current
•Jewish popi^ation, the study
said that 45 percent or five
million of the world's Jews
now live in the United States,
while Israel and Russia are
next with 2.5 million each.
Community Favors Center Opening 3 to 1
TTie Community responded to the Chronicle's request for 9Pinion on the opening of the Center pool on Saturday. We received 47 letters on the subject-(he count being 36 to 11 in^' favor of the opening
In future issues of the Pininiclo we will publish articles by some outstanding spealcers and leaders giving tlieir opinion on programs forthe Jewish Centers for the future especially con¬ cerning Saturday openings.
As a matter of interest to our readers, we reprint some
of the letters in this issue arid in-future issues.
Dear Editor:
ITie rt'cen,t action taken by. the board of trustees of the Jewish Center relative to opening the pool on the Sabbath impels us to register our  strongest  protest  and
express our deep dismay, not only at the action itself but over the implication it carries for the future of the Jewish community.
The'aclion itself smacks of self-denial and is totally inconsistent wilb-jcwish law and tradition as was stated by five rabbis representing orthodox, conservative, and reform _ Judaism. Th'e question niight *well be asked now whether in the hot too
attrition..
"They also pin their hopes on their ^ numerical superiority, the'ir ability to ' dispense favors of which other Countries stand in need, like petroleum ^nd the support of their votes in the United Nations, the Defense Minister said.
He warned that the aim of . the Egyptians, (the Syrians . and the Fatah is "t.o destroy usi'! "You must not lose sight of that fact," he told the youngsters.   *
Rabbis Board Reacts To Center Opening
¦Die Columbus Board of rabbis resigned from membership on the Jewish Center board.
This action and the stand of the board concerning the opening of the Center pool dn Saturday was stated in a letter to the Center President, David Roth dated .'June 18; ¦'¦ .¦'
The following is a copy of the letter from the Board of Rabbis to David Roth.
Dear Mr. Roth:
"Hie Columbus Board of Rabbis met in special session at Temple Israel on Thursday, June 18, 1970 for the purpose of considering ways of reacting jointly and individually to the opening of the Center swimming pool on the SJibbath inspite of the Board's strong oppiasition to this spiritually damaging move,
"Hie Coiumbus Board of Rabbis resolved to continue its efforts to prevail upon responsible Jewish leadership in our community to join them in the struggle to preserve the sanctity of the Sabbath and to Use its in¬ fluence piiblicly and privately to check this ever- increasing secularization of local'Jewish life.
The first action adopted at
distant ^iiliire other aspects cif JewiMi law and tradition will be examined and voted upon"  in   order   to   satisfy
' popular ' demand or for "sociological reasons".'    ,
Is it conceivable to per¬ ceive  a   meeting  of  well-
¦ inlentinncd yet totally unqualified people who will vote on such issues as "what is kosher and what is not, what is moral and what is (Continued on P'age 4)
this meeting of the Board of Rabbis is that those Rabbis who are now members of the Board of the Center resign from that Board. The followin;^:. Rabbis ^ Who are how rnembers of the Center Board and Who were present at the meetirig on June 18 are: Rabbis Nathan Zelizer, iSamuel Rubenstein, David Stavsky and Jerome Folk- man. Hiose Rabbis who are"— not now members of the Board of the Center and who support this action'are: Bennet Hermann, Julius Baker, Edward Feldheim, ; and Norman Berlat. '
ITiis action marks the beginning of a series of steps the Coluiiibus Board of Rabbis will be taking to bring to the attention of the Jewish community the detrimental consequences of. .opening the pool on the' Sabbath. Additional steps to - be taken by the Board of Rabbis will be announced in the near future.      ¦   '
Very truly yours,->:' Rabbi Nathan Zelizer,
Resident TTie Col um bus Board
of Rabbis
NRP Threatens
JERUSALEM (WNS)"The National Religious Party was prepared to leave the Cabinet because of the majority Labor Party's refusal to sponsor legislation in the Knesset which would make Orthodox conversions the only conversions recognized as valid in Israel.
Premier Meir has -been meeting \yilh NRP leaders in an attempt to work out a compromise, but past plans offered by other Labor Party officials have been rejected by some NRP leaders.
The NRP, supported by the Chief Rabbinate, has in¬ dicated that rccogriilion of conversions performed , by other lliari Orthodox rabUis in Israel or abroad would mean that the Govcrnriicnt has recognized as Jewish,
persons who were not Jewish according to Halachah.
Israel had just gone through a national debate over the question of Whp Is A Jew?' wlien the Supreme^ Court ordered the Ministry of the Interior to register as Jewish the children of a woman who wjbs not borU' • Jewish or converted. That itierilily crisjs was sup-- posedly ended when the .Government passed legislation which .'had' the "effect of recognizihg as Jewi.sh only'those born of a Jewish mother or converted. ; But that measure failed to state whether conversions by Reform and .Conservative rabbis jvduld be recognized as valid in addition to those performed by Orthodox (Continued to Page 7)   -
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