New-York tribune., 1909-03-12
RIGHTS OF GREEK CHURCH JEWS
Gain Civil and Political Privileges of Orthodox
Russians by Changing Faith.

To the Editor Of The Tribune
Sir: Your contributor. Marquise de Fontcnoy is
undoubtedly person Of and varied knowledge e.
and supplies your columns with articles which are
usually as instructive they are interesting. In
your Issue OF the 9Th inst. however, this writer
makes a statement which is both incorrect and
misleading / feel IT, therefore my duty to correct
the same and | feel confident that in Your well
known love for fairness and accuracy you will pub
llsh this correction. The statement alleges that
the Russian Senate recently decided that Jews who
go over 10 the Greek Orthodox Church shoHd not
he thereby relieved from th"r political and civh
disabilities ana the Marquise goes to draw from
the supposed the inference that the restrictive
legislation which Russia directs against the Jews
is based not religious intolerance but on racial
and economic grounds.
This statement Is incorrect both as regards the
alleged fact the inference To-day. ever, the
Russian Jew who accepts Greek Christianity, the
state religion OF Russia, is thereby relieved of all
disabilities and becomes the full possessnr OF such
civil and political rights Russians in general
enjoy There is not a shade of racial opposition
10 the Jew in Russia. In fact, there is such
close physical similarity between the two peoples
that ii is often difficult distinguish them apart
and as for the undoubted intellectual and economic
abilities Of the Russian Jews Russia would gladly
welcome and encourage them If only they
labelled Greek Orthodox. Tie late fanatica perse-
cutor. Pobedonostseff, made this statement quite
openly That there Is no racial antagonism to the
Jews In Russia is further evidenced by the fact
that the Karaites ancient Jewish sect. who
differ from the other Jews merely through their
mona acknowledgement of the authority of the Tai
mud enjoy all the rights OF Russian citizenship.
What the Senate really did was this: 1t declared
that Jews who desired 20 pt Mahometanism
might do so under the law, but did thereby be-
come relieved from their disabilities a Jews. The
reas son FOR this singular decision is found in
the extraordinary tumble of pseudo liberalism and
actual reaction which at present prevails In Rus
sia After the japanese the government felt
compelled to make some concessions to the people
Among these we're the right of electing n Douma
and freedom of religion, 1t is to-day permissible
for Russian change his faith and accept any
other that he may please According to our way
OF thinking this would mean that may pro-
fess any religion he peases without suffering any
civil disabilities punishment i'm consequence.
Not so the Russian concept of religious liberty
as far as Judaism is concerned. The Russian jur-
lists declare that the decree promulgating religious
liberty did not affect the civil status of the Jew
but merely conferred him the right to enter
otter denominations besides the state church. and
perraitted adherents of other faiths become Jews
This absurd misconception Of religious Hberty
brings about the condition tli-t when Jew icsas