The Denver Jewish news., 1918-11-28
Jews Not Aliens

The Rev. Dr. David PhilipsOn OF
Cincinnati has addressed the following
communication to the Editor of the
New Republic (Ncw York,
To the Editor of the New Republic.
Sir:
The article Palestine Redeer,ed' in
Your issue of October >. has Just come
| to my notice. In addressing you ON
| the subject it is not my purpose to
| discuss the future of Palestine; this
| would carry hIa too far afield. My
object la pennihg this note is TO ell
Ter resJc :tful but none the less Wig
orous protest against the sentence to-
wards tho close, of your editorial
which reads: There are contributions
to the common life of mankind that
cannot he required of Jews so long
as they dwell as aliens among more
or less friendly peoples, restricted by
law OF custom to n narrow range of
vOcatious. ever conscious of scpara-
tist solidarity instead of the general
solidarity of which members of Il COM
pact nation are conscious" The sen
tence sounds so much like what I WIS
accustomed to see in anti-Semitic pap
ers in Germany, Roumania, Russia
and Austria in the days before the war
when such papers were accessible, that
1 could scarcely credit my sight when
read It in the columns of journal
of the character of the New Republic
whose writer's I have always felt to
he fair minded above all else.
A favorite anti-Semitic charge i5
that .Icws are aliens among the pco-
pie in whose midst they dwell. That
charge you now also make. althO with.
ont evil intent. | am willing to grant.
Still. the statement has appeared in
your columns and has come as n shock
to me. and I am sure. TO other Jews
of my way Of thinking. There are
thousands. yes. tens of thousands of
Jews who are profoundly American in
/ spirit. in outlook and in ideals. Jews
| were with Columbus when lie disccy-
cred Amcrica. and since then Jews
have participated in American life and
AmexIcans nchievement in NIL parts e1
the country what Injustice tisea to
| dub them aliens,
You speak of conscious separat
list solidarity" among Jews instead
of the general solidarity of which
members of compact nation are coL-
scious." I fear the scparatist nation
alistic movement among Jews known
as Zionism has led you to this con
clusion. But let me remind you that
there are any number of Jews in the
United States who have no conscious
sepnrntist solidarity other than re-
iigious solidarity and n solidarity of
sympathy with their suffering core
lisionists aha road These Jews who
consider themselves Americans and
Americans only in nationality are
Amcricas of the Americans. For such
| speak. This is our homeland. We
are conscious not of scparatist lew
i.ili national solidarity but, to use your
further phrase: We are conscious of
THE general solidarity of which mem
bcrs OF n compact nation are con
scious" and that compact nation for
us is the American and not the Jew
ish nation. For to our mind the Jews
constitute not n nation but an inter
national religious community. We
Jews are not aliens in the United
States. We are stirred to the very
depth Of our being by the proud priv
s,I,
parcel of this great people; Our Amer
ican birthright is our most cherished
national possession. No matter what
the future may have in store for l'al-
cstine. now happily delivered from the
bane If Turkish rule. the United States
will be our land and our home and
we will he included in the American
and not in the Palcstinian national
solidarity whatever complexion this
latter may take.
Your rcgrettablc characterization of
Jews as aliens leads me to elaborate
for u moment a statement limited ut
above and which have taken octais-
ion to make heretofore in discussing
Zionism. viz: that this latter day ma
tiOnaliSt movement Is sraught with
danger to the welfare of the Jews in
this country because il lends color to
the contention that the Jews consti-
tutc n scparatist national group. Your
statement bears me out No wonder
your editorial writer Judging from
Zionistic publications. has come to the
conclusion that Jews are aliens. But
not all Jews are Zionists or Jewish
natianalists. Many are American ma
tionaliSts. Such have never been ma
iionnlisis of my othnr l,.nd no,. ..nn