Page 2 JEWISH WESTERN BULLETIN Friday, April 26, 19 Passing of a president With the death this week of the President of the State of Israel, the Jewish nation mourned and with it the world mourned a little also. Messages of sympathy poured in from governments and institutions and private individuals. But in this there was nothmg unusual, for when the head of state of a country passes away, protocol demands that governments of other nations send their messages of condolence no matter what the state of their "normal" relations. However, for Yitzhak, the son of Zvi Shimshelevitch, there was not only a massive outpouring of tearful words from thousands of ordinary citizens of Israel and abroad; but also the formal communications from institutions contained a little less officialdom and a little more genuine grief- This was especially true in the tributes of people who knew him personally or w'ho had heard of him, for Yitzhak Ben Zvi was no ordinary chief of state. In the first place, the 78-year-old President had not inherited his mantle of office by birth as is the case in a monarchy; nor had he attained "power" by means of a violent coup. Indeed, if Ben-Zvi possessed any political ambitions whatever, of such there is no record. If anything, the very opposite is true. And if the ambition to rule Israel did perchance exist in his younger years, unlike other rulers, Ben-Zvi was not able to govern without first overcoming a very important hurdle: a Jewish State was non-existent and he himself would have to help build it if such "ambition" was to be fulfilled. But there is greater evidence to show that in those early years of Jewish renaissance, assumption to power was farthest from his mind. His life's dream had already manifested itself, and its core was the rebirth of a nation-'Hius the future president, because of his Zion- ist beliefs, found himself in the varied roles of statesman, labour leader, prisoner, writer, fighter, scholar, soldier. In Russia, his Zionist dream led him to aid in organizing Jewish self-defence against government-condoned pogroms which kept him always one step ahead of the Russian authorities. Arrest and imprisonment were part of the risks of his self-appointed task. When he emigrated to Palestine at the; turn of the century, he was among the community's first Hebraic writers and soon he launched his lifelong study of the origins and mores of the Middle Eastern peoples. (At the time of his death he was a recognized world authority on the latter.) During the early days of the Yishuv, Ben-Zvi was instrumental in founding "Hashomer," the first Jewish self-defence forces to be established since the days of the Bar Kochba revolt against the Romans. Later, with his close friend, David Ben-Gurion, he was imprisoned and exiled from his beloved Palestine- Tb-gether the two leaders journeyed to " North America where they formed the first Jewish Legion and another organization which would pirepare American and Canadian youth for pioneering life in Palestine. Ben-Zvi later served as a soldier in the same Jewish Legion and fought alongside the British under General Allenby. In the years which followed the remarkable scholarly Zionist became leader and organizer of the labour movement in Palestine and played a continuing role in the shaping of the nation that was to be Israel. Now, on the eve of Israel's fifteenth anniversary of independence, there seems little doubt that wihen histories of modern Israel are written, the name of Yitzhak, son of Zvi Shimshelevitch, will be recorded among the ^pte-most statesmen of the Jewish nation reborn. COMPETENT INSURANCE SERVICE call HAROLD AAANN OAKRIDGE INSURANCE AGENCIES LTD. 5504 Cambie St. FA 1-1241 From the Goldeiiberg Schara Tzedeck Congregratioi) One of Canada's best known rabbinical figures. Rabbi W. Gunther Plaut, this week gave the Je\yish community of this country low marks on the subject of their own Jewish history. The distinguished Toronto spiritual leader told an audience in the Jewish Community Centre that one of the chief reasons Canadian Jews are perplexed, is that they have not accepted the reality that the environment in which they live is an "open society-" Rabbi Plaut believes that as a result of a parochial, narrow-mindedness, Canadian Jews have not yet learned to live as first-class Canadian citizens. He charged that by building up a ghetto-like existence wherein Jews surround themselves by Jews and measure all events in terms of whether they are good or bad for the Jews, there has been a total misreading of Jewish fate and purpose amon^ Canadian Jewry. Maintaining that Jewish history can not be fully understood in purely naturalistic or scientfic terms, Rabbi Plaut said that for thousands of years the Jewish people have believed that they had a share in moulding the universe. "Only a religious explanation of Jewish history is possible," declared the speaker, who likened the Jew of history to a messenger of God. "You don't overburden a messenger with more missons than he can be expected to carry out at one time—you give him one mission at a tim.e." The Rabbi pointed to such former successful Jewish missions as bringing to the world the Jewish concept of social justice and morality which were delivered to the people of bygone ages and were riot kept solely for the benefit of the Jewish people. Their interest was in universal betterment. The speaker believes that at least part of the perplexity of Canadian Jews may be attributed to the fact that they have chosen to live in a room surrounded by mirrors, a sort of mirrored life in which one only sees oneself and other Jews. On the other hand, said the Rabbi, Judaism had always been a history with "windows," looking outward to the world. During the question period. Rabbi Plaut indicated that he was not overly concerned with the danger of assimilation as a result of a more universal approach to life by Jewry. Throughout history there had always been a degree of loss through intermarriage, particularly among those farthest from the mainstream of Jewish life. There appears to this writer to be one flaw in another of the Riabbi's arguments: that "Jews must have two feet planted in Jewish history but must be outward in thought." The question arises of how one ought to go about producing such knowledgable, well-planted feet without the fertile Jewish parochial "garden". There is no doubt that the audience last Tuesday evening was left with a feeling of stimulation and a considerable number of matters over which to ponder- It is a pity that a larger number did not experience so rewarding and enriching an evening. Two news items that sometime fall by the wayside and yet are somehow important. Both for what they tell and for what they imply. One comes from Israel: the other from New York city. ISRAEL Throughout the world countries honor their heroes who have made the supreme sacrifice. These heroes offered their lives fighting in defence of their home land or in obtaining its independence.. More often than not it is called Memorial Day or Armistice Day, It is during this day that tribute is also paid to the unknown soldier, the ine who has been declared missing in action and consequently has never received proper bur-iall • ' ': In Israel, too, the d^y before Independence Day is the! day for mourning and reni^mb^ance ior all who died figlitin^ j^or independence.- What about the unknown soldier? Somehow it was felt that one who gave his life and subsequently did not, because of circiimstances, receive a Jewish burial, deserves some special mention. For in this case there is no grave, no headstone, no one single plot of land to hold his or her physical remains. Here there is no small circumscribed piece of land where the faniily may gather to remember and perhaps even wet the wreath or the grass with a tear or two. But which day shall it be? And so, with the genius of a people that stood at Sinai, it has been decided, this ye^r, that only one day is proper on which to pay tribute to the unknown soldier, the one whose graveside and burial is unmarked. Which day shall it be? The l^th day of Adar, of course! And why? Because on that day Moses died and the Bible records for posterity, that "no one knows the burial place of Moses to th vary day." For the first time this yea therefore, the bereaved famili of the unknown soldiers a sembled on the 7th day of Ada recited Kaddish in unison an a Cantor of the Israel Arm chanted the Memorial Prayer And so it came to pass th in th^ year 5723 according the Hebre V Calendar and i the 15th year of the Third Je>^ ish Commonwealth, the 7th da' of Adar was fittingly comme orated both as the "Yahrzeit" Moses and as the Remembran ' Day for the gallant heroes w gave their most precious gi for the independence of the Ho Land. NEW YORK CITY Westinghouse has a Nation Science talent search each ye for high school students. Fir Prize is a $7,500 scholarshi It is a highly rated scholast contest with the winner usual finding himself being watch over by top government age cies as well as by private r search firms. This year the v/ere 22,000 contestants. The winner this year, y ask? Sylvan Coppel, 16, of f Bronx. A graduate of the Yes iva Rabbi Israel Salanter a a great grandson of a Chassid (Conlinued on Page 7) See RABfel'S STUDY Endorsations Grant BBY Tea Mr. & Mis. Mann .....Apr. 2 Ben Zvi Had. Ann. Tea ... May J.C.C. Seaiclj Series, Dr. P. Pi nous .......... May Ri(,'hniond's Pres. Ball .... May Young Ainner ................ May .I.C.C. Annual MeetinK ........ May < Nordau Had. Arehitet-tural Tour.....May B.I. Sister. 'J'orah Fund Lunch .......... May 1 U..J.A. 0))eninK Campaign Dinner .................................... May 8 J.C.C. Search Series Rev. W. Vicholls ................ May 15 Pioneer Wo. Log, B'Omer Tea. • •___________ May 1 S.T. Sister. Donor Luncheon............. May 2'> S.T. Sister. Donor Dinner..May 23 R.B.Y.O. Mav Weekend . . May 2.t J.r.C. Sear-'li Series, Panel Discussion May 2 Hadas.sah Closing Lunch .... .June T> T.T. Turnabout Tea ............ June ? S.T. Picnic .... .................... June 1 B.I. Sister's Schecler Tea .June J9 Pioneer Wo. Donor Lunch .Juiie 27t JEWISH CALENDAR (LUA€H)f Candle Lighting APRIL 26-7:01 1963 " 5723 Shavuoth May 29 Rosh Hashana Sep 19 Yom Kippur Sep 28 Succoth Oct 3 All holidays t>egin on the preceding evening. Knesset splits on German policy JERUSALEM — Members of the parties forming the Israel Government coalition are sharply divided among themselves on the question of the German Government's responsibility for the continued work of German scientists for Nasser. Achdut Haavoda who heretofore strenuously opposed Israel's delivery of light arms to : Germany now openly accuses ■ 'pleted Mizrachi is not keen to I face new elections to the Knes-1 set. In addition, its recent corn-Bonn of collaboration with | mitments to Mapai on elections jto the Chief Rabbinate forces it : to seek a way how to avoid a Government crisis. Even in the ranks of Mapai this conflict has added to the {frayed temperaments of dissent-•ing factions over many oth^r ; unresolved disputes. Some leading members do not see eye-to-eye with Ben-Gurion on his pol-v,x «w a.xy vj. .i,«oocx. vvim jicy of trust and friendship for its own party treasury sadly de-' "the new Germany." Egypt in the production of non-conventional weapons in violation of international law. Miz- rachi-Hapoel Hamizrachi, too, does not share Premier Ben-Gurion's determination to calm the storm of indignation that is raging in the press and that blames the Bonn Government of being an ally of Nasser. With The Jewish Western BulleUn Official Organ of the Vancouver Jewish Community Council Friday, April 26, 1963 Published weekly every Friday at 950 West 41st Ave., Vancouvi.r 13, British Columbia. ^AM KAPLAN Publisher and Editor WILLIAM GELMON President DR. J. ZACK Publications Chairman LFADING JEWISH WEEKLY IN WESTERN CANADA BULLETIN OFFICE: • 261-6304 Deadlines: Local News: Monday at 4:30 p.m. Advertising: Tuesday at 12:00 noon. Subscriptions: $5.00 per year; $5.50 per year in U.S. and other countries. Business hours: 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. except Saturdays, Jewish and Legal Holidays. Authorized as Second Class Mail by the Post Office Department, Ottawa and for payment of postage in cash. Tn tlie event of a typof?raphical error advertising goods at less than tlie projjer nrivC-, liie Jewisli AVestern Bulletin will lunii.sli letters to tiie advertiser .stating the correct price, but goods may not be sold at the price printed, and the difference charged to the newspaper.