m 12, msAN 4, 5^^ VANCOUVER, B.C.;:FRx ^riRCH 25, 1966
$5.00 per year, this issue 14c
NEW YORKA Yeshiva University professor has called for scraipping the entire Bar-Mitzvah ceremony, commencing Jewish studies at 13 years of age, and clbsing synagogues for one year in order to develop the Jew-ishness of the hoine.
Dr. Irving Green-berg, a professor of history at Yeshiva University, told 250 delegates to the recent national conference on Jewish
Bulletin News lesf
education that the present crisis in Jewish education requires an entirely new approach to Judaism. He said that curriculum planners and administrators must "scrap all cherished preconceptions and start all over again."
During his address to the fifth national conference of the American Association for Jewish Education, Dr. Greehberg said that the first consideraticoi for educators to determine is what is the purpose of remaining Jewish. "If Judaism is nothing but demo-
cracy or brotherhood, why not practice these in the original form?" he asked.
He suggested as an experiment, the reversal of the current practice hy starting Jewish education at 13, or Bar-Mitzvah age, so that the student can begin his Jewish studies when he is mature. "In
fact," he declared, "a good idea woiold be to scrap the entire Bar-Mitzvah ceremony with its Haftorah ritual, a procedure which has in the past
Rehabilitation is df/ier half xAU.J. k^sUfesaving task
If all immigration into Israel were suddenly :to cease, the United Jewish Appeal would still liaye an enormous jUfe-saviiig ipb to do.
1^ vi6w was (expressed by Sol D. Grariek, of Montreal, who was a recent visitor in the city. The national executive vice-president of the Zionist Organization of Canada Stated that the flow of immigrants to Israel might fluctuate by a few thousand more or less annually, but he emphasized that y.J.A. dollars were urgently required to finish the job that had been started.
Rehabilitation and the integration are the iiiipdrtant tasks facing World Jewry, liie tens of thousands of Jews whose lives are no longer in immediate danger biit whose daily welfare has not been resolved, still represents an acute problem the solution of which is largely financial, Mr. Granek told The Bulletin. "There are still 400 new settlements that have not been com-
pletely integrated into the nation. In non-statistical terms this means that countless nuihbers of human beings who are residents of these settlements hkve n( been provided with the essential physical and educational facilities to enable them to become independent and piroductive citizens."
Two-thirds of the burden of the cost of rehabilitation, Mr. Granek stated, is borne today by Israeli taxpayers; and only one-third by the rest of World Jewry through the United Jewish Appeal.
The Zionist leader paid tribute to the pace-setting example set by Vancouver's Jewish Community when it conducted the first strictly overseas United Israel campaign last year. The two sig-hificant results of the campaign according to Mr. Granek were that Israel had received more money and that larger sums for local causes were raised. In addition greater involvement of
both Zionist and new local leadership was brought to the fore by the two drives, he declared.
A UJ,A. objective of a 20 per-c/ent increase this year has been established by Jewish conmiun-ities throughout the world, said Mr. Granek, who recently attended the JKeren Hayesod conference in Jerusalem. This amount was deteiinined since Diaspora Jewry, excluding the U.S., last year raised $15,000,000 on behalf of the United Israel Appeal. This year a minimum of $18,000,000 will be sought during Israel's *Chai* year.
Asked about U.J.A.'s indebtedness in Canada, Mr, Granek revealed that since the Jewish Agency can not wait until money is gradually collected in the normal processes of fund-raising, several million dollars are now owing to Canadian banks. The total worldwide indebtedness of the Jewish Agency is now approaching the $300,000,000 mark, he concluded.
De jure relations to join Saigon - Jerusalem
WASraNGTON—Full and normal de jure diplomatic relations will be established between Israel and the Government of South Vietnam, according to their ambassador, Vu Van Thai, who noted the decision resulted from "recent negotiations in Bangkok between diplomats of both countries."
wasted thousands of man years."
"Since the synagogue has taken a central role and in effect, the religious school often wags the tail," Dr. Greenberg stressed, "the result is that Jewish education suffers. We must challenge the laymen who now use the synagogue as a comfortable shelter, and adopt an idea pi:oposed by Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch — to close the synagogues for 100 years, so we will have to develop the home. Perhaps we can be a little less radical," Prof. Greenberg added, "and close the synagogues for one year, informing the rabbis that their new function is to teach, resulting in forcing their erstwhile congregants to team and think."
Recognition of widespread complaints of Jewish adolesr cents everywhere t|iat the cnr-(Continued on Page 7) See DIGEST
Cheer Russian
TEL AVIV — Russian Jewish violinist, David Oistrakh, was cheered by 3,000 at the opening Mann Auditorium concert which inaugurated an 11-recital tour of Israel. Event was sponsored by Soviet Ambassador Dmitri Chuvakhin.
Oppose visits
JERUSALEM — Hebrew University Students Union has denounced plans by a group of geography students to visit West Gerinany to study the country's industrial development under auspices of the Bonn Government.
Shazor in Nepal
JERUSALEM — The Royal family of Nepal turned put at Gauchar airport in Katmandu to welcome President and Mrs. Salman Shazar for a one-week state visit.
Anti-cancer driv^
TEL AVTV — The American Cancer Society lauded an ahti-smoking educational campaign through promnient public posters and stamps affixed to envelopes, launched by Israel's cancer association to reduce Israeli deaths from lung cancer and allied diseases.
Hillelaims unfulfilled^ says UBC professor
great need for rehabilitating uewcomers who are:^ already iiji Israeli can; only be met tlirdugh'U.J.A; -dollars, Sol D. (Gfii^ek tells iBiillJbi^ Editor^ Saim K^lap; diij^ here^Mr. :Gr^e^ is. national yice-priesident of the Z.O.C. ^
EARLY DEADLINE
Special deadiine for^ Fqssbver Edi^
IS
12 NOOM MOND^ MARCH 28
A prominent university professor who recently declared that HUlel at U.B.C. did not have a positive Jewish program, las^ week reiterated the charge and issued a fiu:ther challenge.
Dr. S. Zbarsky was one of several participants in a three-lodge B'nai B'rith-sponsored evening called "Window on Youth" at the Jewish Community Centre March 16.
"I stand by my original statement," Dr. Zbarsky stated, referring to his remarks made last January at a workshop sponsored by Canadian Jewish Congress.
"The kind of Judaism generated with Hillel is of a negative nature," he said. "Those responsible for programming must decide whether they are going to provide only a iimch-type of program or whether they are going to program for all of the 150. He was referring to the 150 Hillel students who according to newly-elected Hillel Advisory Board Chairman, Sid Greenberg, "use Hillel facilities at one time or another."
Mr. Greenberg's four - point definition of Hillel's aims as a. Synagogue on Campus, an Ed-; ucational Institution, a Cpm-munity Service. Agenpy and a;
: Stiider[t. jGi^i^^ Agency, .;was;
: al^o cl^atle^i^g^ Zbarsky.:
"l^bese firs^^ are not'
fulfilled.: They. justu do, not happen,'VJDr..; ^Ijarsky giaid, v'The; students are opposed to this sort; of thing.. Th^y, just, don't want^
any;^art;d;f.it,";;:... I
"Wh^t t%i arguing f^^^^ is that-there ougl^l to. loe a Jewish ;pro-' gi^ism. I would ,iike to ■ know wjia^: a Je^yish prj|^hi?atiori is going ^o; dom'aj^w^ I
i)r. Ztiarsfey also' referred to^
earlier criticism by Rabbi; W. Solomon who deplored the aii-athy of Jewish members of faculty who seldom if ever turned out to Hillel programs. Pr. Zbarsky said he was not ceiilain the Hillel Advisory Board "w^ould want interference" and he told pi one Jewish faculty member who had offered on three ,6icca-sions to help, but had been rebuffed all three times.
"One indication of the absence of positive Jewish programming is the fact that you don't find Hillel students concerning themselves with Jewish matters in general.
"I don't hear of any Hillel students holding protest meetings in order to bring to the attention of others injustices occurring to fellow Jews abroad. I assure you that if the Arabs had 150 Arab students on campus there would be protest meetings," he asserted.
Rabbi Solomon, who serves as part-time Hillel director, acknowledged that "there is much lacking" in Hillel but deplored the fact that Jewish members of
(Continued on Page 14)
See UBC PROP.
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