Page Two
JEWISH W E S T E R K: B U L L E T I N
Fridayy April. 30, 196.
'Treatment' for
IG r ST
A silent figure opens the door of an apartment building and stealthfully and quickly slips a little piece of paper into each of the letterboxes.
A few nights later, the same figure approaches a building in which several hundred persons are gathered together for a solemn commemorative program honouring the millions of their co-religionist men, women and children who were murdered by a regime gone mad.
Under one arm is a bundle. The figure stops in the parking lot and looks about to make sure no one is watching. Then begins the secret operation. Scurrying quickly from car to car, the figure takes a folded paper and places it on the windshield of each vehicle. In one of the cars are two people who look straight at him and assume the papers are ordinary handbills. He tries to look somewhat nonchalant. He moves on, reaches the last car and Walks hurriedly away carrying some of the unused papers. Later he deposits the remainder on the doorsteps of nearby residences.
The two onlookers get out of their car and casually remove one of the papers from the tiearest car. The unsolicited material and its uninvited promulgator are no ordinary entities.
The former is a most scurrilous concoction of hatred. The latter is a legacy of the Hitler paranoia, a tiny remnant or exuviae of a disease that must be quarantinisd to prevent contamination of the surrounding environment.
The madness of the scheme becomes apparent if one considers the motive for the distribution of the offensive material which was left on the cars of the very people at whom the abuse is ainied. Even a veteran anti-Semitic h^te. peddlar ojT liie XS)stibk yaii^t^^^ hard put to explain it. The latter would likely term the episode a "Jewish plot" and label the culprit involved as a fraud and in tlie pay of Jewish organizations. |Incidentally, he has in fact made similar charges in the past).
The real motives, in our view, are much less devious and much too obvious. It was clearly an attempt to irritate the temper of those citizens at whom the libels are directed hoping to stir up reactions thereby that would result in further publicity.
Common sense would indicate, therefore,
er
that the logical method of dealing with the matter is to refrain from letter-writing to newspapers and telephoning radio stations-
thereby frustrating the hatemonger's designs. Denying him the publicity he is seeking is undoubtedly the best method of dealing with him at this particular moment. As for the future, it should not be long before the matter is disposed.
For a consoling, factor, is the knowledge that - stressed.
:: (Continued from Page 1)1
not as an effort to ex9nerate the Jews from the guilt ^of.dei-^ aide, but as a means of exonerating the Church from the role its teachings have played in anti-Semitism and th^ hoi:-rors resulting from it. v: r
"As the Catholic Church ex- ^ amines the effect its teachings have had "on the history of anti-Semitism, the Jewish people have no role to play but to await 'with patience and dignity that act of Catholic con-Science which is represented in the Schema," Dr. Prinz
at this very moment in Ottawa a parliamentary committee is now preparing legislation that will provide our judiciary with the legal means of administering treatment to such abnormsal individuals over an extended period of time.
The Chairman of the Minister of Justice's Special committee on Hate Literature, Professor Maxwell Cohen, Dean of the Faculty of Law of McGill Uniyersity, recently revealed that the committee had undertaken^ a nurnber of studies arid is investigating many of the "legal, administrative land policy aspects of the probliem" including the experience of several other countries in attempting to regulate and eliminate such propaganda.
Whether an amendment to the present Criminal Code will be introduced or whether entirely new legal means will be adopted as recommended by the Canadism Jewish Congress, remains td be seen. (The Congress submission to the House of Commons Standing Committee on External Affairs called for a revision of the Criminal Code providing "a penalty of two years imprisonment to eyery-one who wilfully publishes orally or in writing a false statement, tale or news that causes or is likely to cause injury or mischief to a public interest ..." and . ; . "Injury or mischief to a public: interest shall be deemed to
The New York. Times cor-res^pondent noted ^that x^anges in the original draft's text.may be made next month during a -plenary meeting of the Council Secretariat for Christian Unity. Adopted against the pp-. position of ultra-conservative prelates and Bishops from^the Arab statps, the declaration had stated clearly that no blame for the death of Jesus could be attributed to the Jewish people alive in the days of Jesus and "much less" to the j;ews of today.. However, before it is promulgated as; of-fical Catholic Church doctrine, that draft must be adopted finally next September by the Ecumeinical Council.
^'Highest, Vatican authqri-ties" were reportedly in favor of revising the preliminary declairation "to insure its orthodoxy and purity of doctrine" and to safeguard the interests of Roman Catholics in Arab lands who fear their governments would discriminate
tended or calculated to prpritote contempt^^.^^ November. There has been in-or hostility against any class of persons or against any perison as a member of any class by reason of the particular race, nationality or enthnic origin, colour or religion of such class of person.").
But rather than spiecifying imprisonment for a fixed liiaximum or inim duration in ia federal prison, we would recommend a prolonged arid indefinite instittitioiialization so that adequate psychiatric treatment can be administered and every effort made to conquer the disease.
tense diplomatic activity between Arab representatives and the Vatican, the Arabs insisting that as the preliminary declaration stands, it Would be interpreted as Vatican support of Israel.
A sermon April 4 by Pope Paul VI illustrated the continued rejection of Jesus by many men, referring to the Jews who, "in the end; killed him." Assiirances by Vatican
LSmRS TO THE EDITOR
Dissent over chairmah s remarks
HONOR BY EXAMPLE
Dear Mr. Kaplan:
I write this letter in protest to a ridiculous statement made by Mr. Sam Heller at the Warsaw Ghetto Memorial on April 25, 1»65. Mr."Heller insinuated that Rabbis and Synagogues were more concerned with Kashruth than with honoring our Martyred.
I will not comment on his preposterous equation, for that is not my purpose. However. I would like to make these three points:
1, At no time was this Syna-
gogue, its Rabbi, or executive, asked to participate or help publicize this gathering in any way.
2. S c h a r a Tzedeck synagogue honors the Martyrs of the Warsaw Ghetto not once a year, -but four times, with special prayers during all Yis-kor services.
3. I personally would be glad to serve on any cornmit-tee concerning itself with honoring the memory of the Warsaw Ghetto, if so asked.
And finally, may I remind Mr .Heller that the finest man-
ner one can honor our dead is to live in such a way that would have caused our Martyred to proclaim: "Judaism still lives;
Jewish Children still learn;
The Torah is still sacred;
'Ani Mamin' is still aUve."
Don't you think, Mr. Heller, such a Memorial is more, enduring than a speech and more attractive than a bouquet of flowers? I do.
RABBI MARVIN HIER
''Oral abuse"
marks that were gross, in extremely bad taste, at best fit only for a private discussion, and certainly not at an open community affair.
In his opening remarks Mr, Heller noted the official formation of the Canadian Nazi party in Toronto just a week ago. He then took issue with the Rabbis of our city who in the past 15 years not only did not attend these memorial evenings, but also failed to speak of this holocaust from (Continued on Page 3;
Dear Mr. Kaplan:
Last Sunday evening I. along with several hundred fellow Jews ot this community, attended the Warsaw Ghetto Memorial program.
The evening started as I might have expected, with an excellent reading of a deeply moving quality. This was followed with^the chanting of the El Moleh Rachamim.
It was just after this that the whole evening virtually exploded for me. Mr. Sam Heller, chairman for the evening,
Mr. Heller replies
Dear Mr. Kaplan:
I thank you for the privilege of responding to the letters of Rabbi Hier and Mr. Abe Jam-polsky in connection with my remarks last Sunday during the Warsaw Ghetto Memorial Evening. As both letters, in their indignation, somewhat distort the sense of my remarks and the words I used, let me quote what I said from the actual text:
"And yet some of our spiritual leaders are much more concerned with the sale of Coca-Cola, which is not touched by human hands, in this Community Centre during Pe-sach, but do not find it nece-sary during the Pesach Yiskor Services to mention the six million of our brethren, members of our families,
wonder that our young generation is straying further and further from Judaism. We, for
(Continued on Page 3) See REPLY
, spokesmen that this was mer ly a pastoral reference to scri; tural texts without any -sifer, f icance for the declaratic; have failed to still speciilatic that it indicated papial adoptic of the conservative thesis.
The four-man ad hoc^ coi mission had been requested t the Pope to submit- a unari mbus document to theVnej Ecumenical Council sessid Since no unanimity was achie ed, the commission has portedly passed on its Work the Secretariat for Christi? Unity, headed by August Cardinal Bea. The latter h^ been the chief proponent of strong declaration, clearly e onerating the Jews ol the d< cide charge.
SYDNEY — The number Jewish judges here has risen iive with the recent appol ment of Simon Isaacs, as judge of the Supreme Com
Thought for the wee
From The Taltnud j
One must not promise to gi^l something to a child and li) give it to him, because there he is taught to lie. ; , :
, — Sukkah, 46,
JEWISH CALENDAR: (LUACH Candle lighting APRIt 30-8:07
1965
rs
Day. May 5 Israel Indep.
Day ____L May 6
Lag B'omer_____„,May 20
Indmotms Crmtedl
U.J.A. Men's Dinner......________
Habonim Parents Pageanl.. Friends Hebrew U. Dine-Dance
-May May
May I
Pioneer Women Bazaar__:......IVIay
Nordau l-ladassah. Tour..-------.'May t
N.C.J.W. Lunclieon______.—IWay 1;»
Beth Israel Extraordinary ' ?
Meet ~........._—............v...;..:.May t"
j'
Combined Indep. Day Oneg Shabbat
Ben Zvi Hadassali Tea.
-May t .May i
Scliara Tzedeck Men Dlne....May f Beth Israel Sisters Lunch—May f-Schara Tzedeck Donors
Dine ___________________________________May?)
Beth Israel Sisterh. Lunch May
Habonim Neshev ............—May
Beth Israel Annual Meet_June i Schara Tzedeck Sisters
Dine -----------------;_....June
Peretz School Spring DanccJune l "Israel, Land of the
Bible" ..------._________..«.June
Hadassah Day_____„....„June
Hadassah Academy Award9..June I
Talmud Torah Barbecue______June f
Centre Orch. Concert________....June i
J.A.E.C. Lecture__________^.Junef
Pioneer Wo. Adopt. Lunch_June i Schara Tzedeck Men PicnicJune i
Centre Choir Concert____^.Jiine
State Israel Redemption Function .._____.—■.----......^..June i
Centre Family Picnic
^une:
our
friends and relatives murder-No
The Jewish Western BuUetm
Official Organ of .the Vancouver Jewish Community Council.
Friday, April 30, 1965
'Published weelcly every Fridajf^ af 950 West 41st Ave., Vancouver ?3, British Coiumbia.
SAM KAPLAN Publisher and Editor
WILLIAM GELMON
Preside"!
ALEC BECKER
Publications Chairman
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