AJR INFORMATION November, 1967 Ary Episode of the " Volunteers " Such Factors REFLECTIONS on TWO ANNIVERSARIES Have Come to Light
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Volume XXII No. 11 November, 1967 INFORMATION ISSUED BY THE ASSOCIATION OF JEWISH REFUGEES IN CREAT BRITAIN tiobert Weltsch nations. Experience has shown that their fears were vastly inflated. The Balfour Declaration itself tried to anticipate the two main objections to recog REFLECTIONS ON TWO ANNIVERSARIES nition of a Jewish nation's claim to Palestine. Opposition was bound to come from the Arab inhabitants of the country and from the October Revolution and Balfour Declaration assimilated Jews. For a whole century Jews— especially in the German States—^had fought This November two anniversaries will be Stalin, in her famous memoirs, years after for full emancipation and had based their celebrated the world over—the jubilee of the Stalin's death, states that claim on unreserved identification with the Russian October (Bolshevik) Revolution and " meanwhile an entire generation has grown nations in which they had attained citizenship. that of the Balfour Declaration. The two up to whom neither the name of Stalin This they were not prepared to jeopardise by events are, of course, incommensurable. But nor a great deal else, both good and bad, emphasis on ostensibly separatist Jewish 'rom the Jewish point of view there is a cer that is associated with this name, means demands. It was for this reason and also as a tain fateful relation between them. Zionism, anything at all" reassurance to the population of Palestine that until the First World War, was mainly a move- two clauses were inserted into the text of the ''^ent of Russian Jews, with a section of the same—perhaps somewhat exaggerated— Balfour Declaration, to the effect that German-speaking Jews playing a major part judgement applies to other historical events as " nothing shall be done which may prejudice in matters of organisation and ideology; thus well as persons. The young generation in Israel the civil and religious rights of existing non- what happened to Russia and to its Jews under today links the existence of its State more Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights the impact of such a tremendous upheaval to the three wars it had to fight than to the and political status enjoyed by Jews in any ^as naturally of decisive consequence to the Balfour Declaration which was the indispens other country". The first part of this pro future of Zionism. As far as the Jews were able start. Moreover, in their eyes the Declara vision, protecting the Arab and Christian concerned the two ideologies which after the tion is a somewhat questionable document population of Palestine, was later the cause of era of enlightenment competed for their which throughout the years has lent itself to much friction between the Mandatory Power misinterpretation and was practically refuted and the Zionist Organisation, which argued allegiance — Socialism and Zionism — both that all restrictive conditions were subordinate claimed to be the sole way to salvation. by the British Government. The State, it is said, has been enforced against those who gave to the principal purpose of the Mandate, Socialist Zionism tried to create a construc namely the Jewish National Home. But even tive synthesis. But the gulf was not bridged the Declaration. This is, of course, a half truth; the jubilee should provide an oppor before the Mandate was officially approved by and open conflict was bound to arise when the League of Nations, Britain had reinter one of the trends, Socialism, achieved absolute tunity of more precisely exploring what is the historical meaning of the document. preted the Balfour Declaration in the power in the State which was the principal Churchill White Paper of 1922, stressing the reservoir of Zionist manpower. This was just Western Jewry's Apprehension equality of the two nationalities—Arabs and at the time when, through the Balfour Jews—and the Government's commitment to ^declaration, a new chance had been given for When the Balfour Declaration was issued on both, and later the League of Nations spoke of the implementation of the Zionist idea in November 2, 1917, it was by no means in the " duality" of the Mandate, a term fre Palestine. Without going into details of accordance with the wishes of Western Jewry, quently used until Britain finally declared the history, one can easily see that a straight line least of all of those upper class circles which two parts incompatible and suggested first leads from these ideological dififerences to the were generally regarded as the representatives (1937) partition of the country into two States niajor clash which we witness today between of Jewish opinion. What the real motives of and then (1946) entirely abandoned the Man the State of Israel which was the ultimate the British Government were is a matter of date which had included the wording of the outcome of the Balfour Declaration and the— speculation. The whole story is masterfully Balfour Declaration. Unnecessary to say that actual or imagined—world interests of the treated in Leonard Stein's great book. But it is the struggle of the two " irreconcilable" Soviet Union. unlikely that in these days the celebration of claims of the two nations has in the course of the Jubilee will meet with opposition from time been tremendously exacerbated. It There are always vicissitudes and vacilla any Jewish quarter. After Hitler and after the underlies the present tense situation in the tions on the way of the materialisation of an foundation of the State of Israel many of the Middle East and what is nowadays usually idea, and looking back we sometimes observe old controversies ceased, and the events of called the " refugee problem" is in fact that the result is different from what the May/June of this year have revealed an over nothing else than the new aspect of the two pioneers and ideoloeists expected. Reality whelming solidarity of world Jewry in this fold claim laid, with different motivation, on seldom conforms to the imagery of idealists matter. As far as the " Free World " is con the country. and often compels them to deviate from their cerned, the apprehensions of an unfavourable pure intentions. That is the fate of all eflfect of a Jewish State upon the position of revolutions. One example is the French Jews in the diaspora have been proved base Israel and the Diaspora Revolution. And not all that has happened in less. It was different just in those regions the 50 years since the Russian Revolution was where no opposition against the idea of a As far as the second reservation of the in agreement with the concept of humanity National Home was voiced, namely, in Russia Balfour Declaration is concerned, this is rather which originally inspired many of the Russian and in the Moslem world. In these two great vague as nobody could predict the status of revolutionaries. Conditions change, obstacles sections of the diaspora the position of the Jews in other countries. It was intended to arise, some assumptions turn out to have been reassure anti-Zionists. As it turned out, how Jews has indeed been strongly affected by the ever, the building of the National Home and over optimistic or outright erroneous. Ethical exceptions taken by their countries of resi impulses, supported by a belief in Messianic later the development of the Jewish State dence against all indications of Jewish has had the ample support of Jews all over truth, are apt to become perverted when faced nationalism. Yet the worries about possible with hard reality. All this is well known from the world, far beyond the original Zionist suspicions of " double loyalty " had come from camp. In fact, during the post-war period the history, but one may doubt whether it will be the well-established, prosperous and patriotic admitted at the time of celebration. whole of Western Jewry has been transformed Jewish communities of Central and Western into a huge money collecting machine, often Even without deliberate falsification it is Europe. That their opposition has subsided to the detriment of spiritual an(J moral values. difficult for a later generation to see the begin may be explained by the general political nings in the right perspective. When Svetlana development and the guilt complex of Westem Continued on page 2, column 1 Page 2 AJR INFORMATION November, 1967 ary episode of the " volunteers " such factors REFLECTIONS ON TWO ANNIVERSARIES have come to light. And it is certainly wrong to put all the blame, as is often done, on Continued from page 1 its raison d'etre, the "ingathering of the organisational mistakes and bureaucracy, exiles ", and the fervent call for immigrants, though these may have occurred. The main This support of Palestine and later of Israel especially from Western countries, has been causes for disappointment lie deeper, they are became possible because of the unprecedented repeated by many leading Zionists during the of a physical and economic, but also of a prosperity of Jews in the Western affluent past weeks. This is certainly the core of the psychological and moral nature and, as Dr. society. In fact, it could be argued that with problem of Israel-Diaspora relationship. If a Weizmann frequently reminded his audiences, out the wealth of the diaspora, Israel would sober review of actual circumstances makes it no propaganda can obliterate inescapable not have been able to solve most of its prob appear unlikely that in the foreseeable future economic and geographical facts. And these lems, not only in the economic field. Never there will be a conspicuous immigration are not easily remedied. theless, the true relationship between Israel except, of course, of individual cases (which and the diaspora has not yet been clarified.