A. J. Freiman, Ottawa President, Zionist Organization of Canada
Special Convention Message of Mrs. A. J. Freiman
Special Convention of Mr. A. J.
"It> is my earnest hope that everywhere in this broad Dominion, a greater spirit of enthusiasm and a greater spirit of self-sacrifice will be instilled into the activities of our people for the upbuilding of our homeland in Palestine, during the convention year, 1924.
"The last report of the World Zionist Organization places us at the forefront in point of financial contributions. But after all what does this amount to when we consider our possibilities, and how much is necessary before our task can be completed.
"We must work harder and give more. The burden must be shared by all our people, and not as it has been, by a minority. The greatest number have been indifferent to the responsibility which the Balfour Declaration has brought to us, and it seerrt� to me that the words recently spoken by Dr. Stephen Wise, with reference to American Jewry, can be applied with the same
force and truth to Canadian Jewry. He said, 'They don't k/iow enough to care, and they don't care enough to know.'
"How to make our people their duty and trufy perform it, ia a problem which has baffled greater men than. I, but I do hope that it will be at least partly solved by the convention ol 1924. We want nothing but whole-hearted service and reai personal sacrifice, commensurate with the great privilege that fate has given to us of thiS generation, so that posterity shall be proud of us for having measured up to the opportunity, which is ours.
"When the convention is over, let us all go back to our homes, firmly resolved that we shall not let a day pass without accomplishing something for our cause, without encouraging someone who has been indifferent in the past to join with us fcr the fulfilment of the age-long hope of Jewry."
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On the occasion of the third con vention of our Canadian Hudassah Organization, I extend a warm greeting to all members for their loyal, self-sacrificing service to our cause in our short but very active past. 1 think we all have every reason to be verv proud of our accomplishments, proud that we have been able to do so much for that most noble and inspiring aim of Jewry�the successful re-creat ion of a homeland for our people of to-day, and of the future, on the yjil where, in ancient cmtunes, a Jewish nation flourished and gave, as a nation, so much to the culture and advancement of the world of that day, and where, under the benign influence of the Almighty. Jewry mav again become a united race, utilizing all the genius and resources we can command for the betterment of our own position in the world, and the cultural, scientific and econ >m;c progress of all mankind.
I think Hadas-ah nn be said to br-the real motivating force in the Jewish womanhood of Canada to-day. It has brought us all nearer to one another. This is a vast country, and our people are separated by hundreds and thousands of miles, but we have come together, not actually in p--ron but in the spirit of that one great compelling Ideal of service for our homeland, and for the tisk of uniting the scattered men and wnnen of Israel of the world.
It has been a source of continual gratification to me to Cllow the enthusiastic and practical progress of each of our chapter? during the past year, a year which I fee! has been remarkable from mans aspects. There has seemed to me to be a more widespread consciousness amongst our women, of the responsibility which has been laid on us to work for the emanci-
pation of Jewry. Here in Canada, our life is a happy one, marred by none of the vicissitudes of life amongst Jewry in many of the old lands. We, therefore, must feel that we are called on to take a greater part in the common task of refounding our homeland, for we are more favourably situated to do so, and cannot but feel even - more inspired Ix-.cause of the fact that the happiness of hundreds of thousands of our people in Kurope practically depends upon us, for their hope is in Palestine, and the future of Palestine is in our hands, and in the hands of our brothers and sisters in other lands where our people have the resources which are necessary.
There have been several outstanding activities in the Hadassah work of the past year. We have energetically sup-ported the Keren Hayesod, co-operating in all the ways open to us with our men Zionists; we have made a special effort for the welfare of the Chaluzim, raising substantial funds to relieve those in distress, and to make possible their happy establishment in our homeland; we have become responsible for the present and future care of many little Palestinian orphans; we have laboured on behalf of the hospitals of Palestine, and finally we have decided to build a vitally needed domestic aftd agricultural science school for girls, for which we have already carried on much praiseworthy activity. This school seems to me to promise to be the crowning achievement of Canadian Hadassah's service in the cause of Eretz Israel.
It has been a year of splendid work, but we must go on. We must make further sacrifices; we must fully complete all the old tasks and take up new tasks until the dawning of that happy day of the future when we shall have a real homeland in Palestine.
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Mn. A. J. Freiman, Ottawa