The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1904-09-22
THE JEWS OF AMERICA.
Dr. Isidor Singer Suggests the Forma'
ton or q Central C0nsist0ry.
From tho American isrd elite.


From tho American isrdshhc.
We modern Jews do not constitute re-
llgioua community in the sense Of the Roman
Catholic and the vaNous Protestant Churches,
and therefore neither the theoo gian nor the
synagogue as house Of prayer are the genuine
centres OF the Jewish community. Neither are
we. however. a nation In the scientific sense OF
the word. having neither a common land nor
common language OF our own. We are, alas,
since the destruction OF Jerusalem through
Titus. q religio national between nd -betwtxt.
too strongly rooted In the past to die. and not
sunk deeply enough In the new soil to live
genuine, independent life. Having done
nothing. in the political sense OF the WORD,
we have no history proper since that nintn
Of Alb. which buried forever the national
existence OF our Palestinian ancestors. our
only record Of the past consists in one gigantic
Memorbuch, with thousands OF chapters.
written in dozens OF languages, but all telling
Of the same woe. from the first prosecutions
Of the Jews in the Roman Empire to the nj as
sacres OF Kishlnef.
The question, the only real issue before
the modern. principally before the Am
erican. jew Ia: Can we stop this age long
martyrdom. and II so, how? All other ques-
tons OF merely doEmatc or congregational
Importance are nothing but trhes and side
issues. and the American born ms well as the
immigrant jew either does not understand
your petty reigio- communal policy or is too
delicate to show to you. rabbis and parnassim
presidents OF Jewish communites] the i'm
mense gulf W hich yawns between his and your
"Weltanschauung. rs far as Judaism Is con-
cerned. You only feel the result In numbers:
he stands aloof from the synagogue. and ]
am afraid that In spite OF the successful tours
Of religious revivalism by the energetic Rabbi
Iepln the ratio of the "unafiiated" Hebrews
will always remain five to one.
The prosperous son OF poor immigrant
s a so doHen or eTo Of
miseries has not the moral right to indulge
in the same expenses as his colleague Of old
lar to his. The one has only TO think Of him
self and his future; the other has noble duty
toward others TO fulfil. mean, the Roman
OF an undisputed national. territorial and SO.
coial inheritance. are free to spend part OF
Of their tH tai" o oD even
II they do not implicitly believe in their dog
matte tenets; They consider their churches,
English or French aristocrat looks at the old
castle OF his ancestors. which he maintains.
altho4gh for manX year he spends hardly
The Jewish commonwealth Of America. IL
It has the nerve apd pride to i've UP up to the
predestined by Providence. i. e.. to be the
6oel. the deliverer. Of, the o.ooo.ooo Jews
II eastern Europe and the Orient. must not
OF philanthropic institutions.
Entire Israel looks up TO us for the guild
ance Of it's future destinies. The great origi-
nator and leader Of Zionism is dead. IL ia
now up to us to raise on the free American
soil. with its unbounded possibilities. the
flag OF Greater Zionism. |. e., the systematical
transfer OF the centre of Judaism from the
Eastern to the Western hemisphere.
In 1880 there were about go, 600 jews In
the entire United States II some one had
York Jewish Charities that his successor
alone would have in 1904 to grappe with
population three times that number he would
certainly have been regarded az raving
lunatic. At the risk of being dubbed with
the same fatterng epthet ] continue to
maintain that it is possible, within the next
Russian Vale OF Misery into the enormous
territories Of North, Central and South Ameri-
ca. Austral in. South Africa and the Philip
pine Islands. without disturbing In the least
the economic equilibrium of those countries.
II our communal leaders and our, rabbits
have really made up their minds to do some
Of Israel. instead OF breaking up American
Judaism into about 900 organized and. per;
haps, as many unor ga nized congregational
fragments. Jealous and fighting one an
other. then 1t lie their duty to begin without
losing one day with the foundation Of Q GEN.
trail consistory Of the Jews OF the United
States.
body Of this kind would be able to cen,
tralize all living forces. moral. spiritual and
financial, OF the Jewish commonwealth OF the
United States. and the problem requires the
tireless activity Of a complete central cahi;
net. with hundreds Of capable and well paid
functiOnares.