Yeshiva University - Masmid Yearbook (New York, NY)

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M ASMID The poet Heinrich Heine, who was prob- ably as cosmopoHtan in his views as any man could be, in the last few years of his life, felt the necessity for religion and ex- pounded a system of Judaism which would pass today as conservative. Mendele Mocher Seforim. who for a lifetime had waged war on orthodoxy, was, during his last years, a devout religionist. Max Nordau, the great critic of European civilization during the last generation, famous for his agnosticism, was often discovered in his home enwrapped in Tallith reading the Bible. In our own days, there are at least two outstanding men who have left their radicalism, Dr. Nathan Birn- baum, whose keen mind had made him the leader of Jewish radical thought for decades, and who had adopted as his literary pseudo- nym the classical name of heretics — Acher — is now at the head of the organization of the orthodox Jews in Poland. In a lesser degree. Chaim Nachman Bialik. the famous national poet, recently surprised the Jewish world by issuing a call to Jews all over the world to remain steadfast to their religion. Not only great leaders have felt the lure of the soul of their people, religion; lesser lights, too, could not calmly withstand its call. Thus the Jewish editor of a communistic news- paper was reported to have been secretly put- ting on Tephilin on the day of his mother ' s Jahrzeit . Religion among Jews is not ac- quired; it is inherited. To be religious is their fate. Another factor which makes Jewish na- tionalism dependent upon tradition is a prac- tical one. So long as Jews live among other peoples, they are in danger of assimilation. This danger can be overcome by no other force than by religion. Foremost leaders of Zionism have married outside of the Jewish fold. An orthodox Jew, however, though he may be opposed to the modern political Zionistic efforts, is himself never exposed to assimilation; the Torah forbids the inter- marriage of Jews and non-Jews. A nationalistic Jew may or may not mingle with Jews; he may or may not give his children a Jewish education. But a tra- ditional Jew must of necessity mingle with Jews very frequently and he must give his children a Jewish education. There are a thousand bonds that keep the religious Jew with his people. The few threads that hold the nationalist to Jewry are in constant dan- ger of being severed. It is, indeed, the slogan of the religious nationalist — the Land of Israel for the peo- ple of Israel according to the Torah of Israel — that fascinates us. THE PRESIDENT ' S MESSAGE The Students ' Council, though still in its infancy, has shown justification for its ex- istence . The college authorities have recog- nized it as the official voice of the students, communicated through it official school mat- ters and discussed with it all matters pertain- ing to the welfare of the students. The Stu- dents ' Council, has this year attempted to es- tablish itself as the central organization for the promotion of extra curricula activities and the sponsoring of all student affairs. We trust that our successors will continue the program begun this year in expanding the college library. We urge the next council to continue the practice of Inter-Collegiate de- bating begun this year. The success with which we met this year should serve as an incentive to future debates. It is needless to point out that the publication of the Masmid depends upon the existence of a central organ- ization and a solicitous and energetic attitude on the part of this organization will assure the grow th and development of the magazine. It must be borne in mind, however, that in spite of all these propitious beginnings, the Students ' Council can never reap any fair degree of success unless the students awake to the realization of the importance of the potentialities of the organization. We believe that the spirit of indifference that first marked the students ' attitude towards the council has been considerably lessened; we hope it will have disappeared by the end of next year, when the first lap of our journey will be terminated. Naturally, efficient and con- scientious representatives must be elected who will be capable of gaining the confidence of the student body. There must exist a spirit of harmony and co-operation, a complete readiness on the part of all concerned to give unselfish assistance when the occasion arises, a realization that a feeling of sincerity must characterize both sides. It is only then that the organization will succeed. HYMAN MUSS. President, the Council of the S. O. Y. C.

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M A SM I D Nationalism and Religion By Hugo Mantel When the Uganda plan was brought up at the Zionist Congress in 1904 at Basle, the delegates were divided into two camps. The one was unhesitatingly in favor of establish- ing colonies anywhere, as long as Jewish eco- nomic conditions would thereby be mitigated. The other was opposed to any permanent colonization outside of Palestine. Even a temporary abode was objected to lest it might divert attention from the ideal of making Palestine the Jewish homeland. This division may be said to have been based on the degree of influence that religion had on the various factions of Zionism. The Eastern Europeans, though they might have abandoned religion, were still under the spell of the hope for a Messiah who would lead the Jews to their ancient land. The Western Europeans had been less impressed with reli- gion and they consequently felt no profound attachment to a strip of territory in Asia Minor. Their problem was Jewish suffering and they wished to solve it by settling the Jews in a distinct territory — regardless of its geographical position, though Palestine was preferred. The conflict fortunately ended with a com- plete victory for the Eastern Europeans. Pales- tine remained the center of Jewish hopes and activities. Thus religion won over economic expediency. But it was only in this respect that the in- fluence of religion was supreme in the Zionist Organization. In almost all of the other aspects, religion remained disregarded. Reli- gion, it was held, is a private matter; Zion- ism is concerned with the establishment of a national home for the Jews; the State cannot go hand in hand with the Synagogue. The European nations have shown the incompat- ibility of Church and State. The Church, it was claimed, is concerned with the other world, while the State deals with this world. Time has shown the fallacy of this atti- tude. Zionist leaders have come to realize that Judaism cannot be divorced from Jewish nationalism. In this respect we are different from the European nations. They had to banish the Church from the affairs of the State, for while their political, economic and social institutions had been the result of their natural development, religion had come to them from without. Among Jews, however, religion had always been the moving force. Their original problems were religio-moral ones; their political, social and economic in- stitutions had been based upon religion. The Jewish state has never been separated from the Jewish religion. Jewish nationalists, moreover, make their appeal for the sympathy of the world not a plea for mere preservation; the rejuvenation of the Jewish culture is their aim. The Jew- ish creative spirit is as youthful and as vigor- ous as ever; it is far from having had its final say. A national home, it is believed, will allow for a natural blossoming of this spirit. Diaspora Jewry, too, will benefit by Jew- ish political independence m Palestine. Theii prestige will rise both within and without. The healthy and spontaneous culture in Pa- lestine will inspire Jews all over the world for greater creativeness. Jewish nationalists, therefore, m.ust take two things into consideration. In the first place, that Jewish personality has been reli- gious in character. Religion has ever been the hub around which the wheel of Jewish history and culture has centered. Secondly, that whatever is lofty and noble in the West- ern religions has its roots in the Jewish reli- gious expression. They must note, too, that as Western civilization is progressing on scien- tific and mechanical lines, it is more and more in need of religious inspiration. That the Jews have their great opportunity in provid- ing for this need, needs no further discussion. Moreover, we cannot overlook the fact that Jewish nationalism without Judaism has no future at all. We cannot, for one thing, gloss over the spiritual aspect of nationalism. That G-d, the Torah, and Israel are united is no mere maxim but an historic fact. A Jew cannot permanently rid himself of reli- gion, try as he may. Jewish radicals have turned out more Ba ' ale Tshuvah, complete or half-baked, than the radicals of any other people. And those that did not have the courage to avow their return publicly, showed an unusual amount of uneasiness.

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M ASMID The End of Days By Abraham S. Guterman THE speculation as to the advent of the Messiah, and its attendant miracles, the resurrection of the dead, and the return of Jewish supremacy in the spiritual affairs of the world, is a very interesting side light of Jewish history. The almost univer- sal pastime of Jewish scholars in all climes and all ages has been to read into certain cryp- tic and enigmatic scriptural texts definite numerical significances, voluminous calcula- tions both mystic and mathematical which were finally twisted to fit some year in the Common Era. A natural consequence of this profuse speculation was that at various times men convinced themselves that they were Messiahs, destined to lead Israel back to the Promised Land, and to establish that vision- ary Utopia which legend has woven about the Messianic emancipation. In this rapid survey I shall discuss, first the forces behind these phenomena, second, the most import- ant methods of calculation, third, the more outstanding computations, and fourth, the most famous pseudo-Messiahs. The burning zeal for divining the advent of the Redeemer may be attributed to several factors. It was a combination of political aspirations, social emancipation, and religious and moral idealism. The Jews believed in the ultimate triumph of divine justice. They vir2 firm in the faith that the dictum of God promising national rehabilitation was invar- iable, and indelibly inscribed on the scrolls of destiny. Their unendurable hardships kindled the desire for freedom and rest, for a haven of refuge where their harassed and la- cerated bodies might find repose. An un- quenchable love of life dominated their spirit and aroused the desire for autonomy in a land of their own. Speculation was an insufficient bandage for their deep wounds, but a bandage it was, and though it healed only in parts, neverthe- less it mollified in a measure the degree of their pain, and its balsam refreshed the hope in the hearts of the people. As the burdens and terrors, the persecutions and tribulations of life increased, the Jew looked frantically about for some glimmer of hope, some ration- ale for continuing a rather painful and un- pleasant existence. The feeling that any day might bring the Messiah and an end to all his suffering filled him with the desire to live, so essential to the existence of a nation, and especially of a wandering nation. But he was unwilling to allow the advent of the Messiah to remain shrouded in mystery, to remain curtained behind the opaque veils of a divine promise. He groped about in the Scriptures and there by a great many methods he came to varied conclusions at different times and in different lands. It would be well to review briefly the vari- ous methods of calculation employed by the scholars and rabbis. The first and most im- portant source was the Book of Daniel. Seve- ral specific numbers of years are listed there- in, all of them indefinite and puzzling. In chapter 12 we encounter the greater part of these mystic symbols in which are sup- posedly hidden the secret of the final redemp- tion. Other scriptural texts scattered over the length and breadth of the Bible have also served as inspiration for speculative genius. Gematria or the assignment of a numerical significance to each letter of the Hebrew al- phabet, and the subsequent computations on this basis have been an important factor in many of the conclusions. Notarikon or the employment of each let ter of a word in the Bible as a series of first letters for the words in an improvised sentence gave many a mystic an opportunity for mental gymnastics. In- terpretation by the transposition of letters called Chiluf and the replacement of one letter by another called Temurah gave rise to many a startling prediction. It was a perfectly natural reaction that cal- culators should take cognizance of the length of former exiles and by the comparison of characteristics and support of scriptural texts establish mathematical relations to ascertain the end of days . Even more influence in this field was wielded by the science of astro- logy with its vast mystic background and the deep-seated belief in the minds of many that the stars were an open book for thos: that could read their ethereal language. In earlier centuries, both by Biblical and Tal- mudical dicta, this science was unalterably