Dear Mr. Rosenberg:
I could put my reasons for my support of the Allied Jewish Campaign in one phrase: I believe in the righteousness and necessity of the causes involved and my obligation as a Jew to support them.
For many years and long before the War, the economic and political conditions of the Jews in parts of Eastern Europe were such as to call for help upon the part of all their co-reliigonists who had a sense of brotherly feeling and duty. These conditions were greatly aggravated by the War and the munificent effort of the Jews in America toward aiding in the rehabilitation of their brethren was an act unique in its size and devotion in the whole course of Jewish history. No sacrifices comparable to those made during that period are known, but it is unthinkable that we should desist in not, as it were, consolidating the things that have been done in economic reconstruction, in medical help, in sanitation, and last and first, in cultural aid to maintain the spirit of Judaism. I wish I could honestly say that the time had come when this was not necessary. Unfortunately, it still is necessary and hence we must go on.
The work of re-establishing Palestine and a Jewish life there was an obligation cheerfully assumed by many and carried on for a number of years. To those who have latterly gone into the work, it seems to be a case of noblesse oblige. The Jewish people as a whole have for two thousand years prayed and yearned for this opportunity. Through the fortunes of war, the opportunity has been granted in a public and international way. In effect, all of the great nations of the world have said to the Jewish people: you have an opportunity to carry out the longings of your people. We are bound to forget all minor discussions and accept this opportunity. Those of us who have taken a responsible part in the formation of the Jewish Agency not only dare not desist but do not wish to desist and we invite our fellow-Jews, who have not had the time to examine the details as we have, to do what they frequently do: accept our judgment that in supporting this part of the Allied Campaign they will be doing a decent and noble thing and one which it would be a disgrace to the Jewish people of the western world not to do.
I want to personally thank you for having undertaken charge of the New York Campaign—a Herculean task—and wish you and your associates the satisfaction which will come form a worthy task well done.
Faithfully yours, Cyrus Adler.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
