Jews in Germany Greeted by President Heuss and Chancellor Adenauer

President Theodor. Heues of West Germany. Chancellor Konrad Adenauer and other members of the Cabinet issued Rosh Hashanah greetings to the Jews in Germany. Dr. Adenauer noted with pleasure the substantial progress in the consolidation of the Jewish community and pledged the Federal Government’s support in future also. As for relations between the German people and the Jews in their midst, he said that “Isolated and regrettable upsets” must not weigh heavily in the scales, “bearing in mind the numerous proofs of harmonious concord that have become apparent during recent months.”

President Heuss referred to the “alarming” instances of cemetery desecration but he held that the reception accorded to the dramatization of Anne Frank’s diary by theatrical audiences throughout Germany should be interpreted as a “retroactive purge of the soul” Commenting on the stabilization of Jewish life in its organizational structure, he registered gratification that not only have old age homes been expanded, but that kindergartens and vacation centers for youngsters were set up.

In a message from Foreign Minister Heinrich von Brentano, tribute was paid to David Ben Gurion, “that great son of the Jewish people, who a short time ago made evident the vast changes for the better which German-Jewish contacts have undergone. ” Minister of the Interior Gerhard Schroeder, on his part, offered assurances that the Federal Government would provide some care for the hundreds of abandoned cemeteries in localities where no Jews have survived.

Social Democratic chairman Erich Ollenhauer asserted that the German people would not regain its inner equilibrium until it has succeeded “in banishing the last shadows which, in consequence of Nazi crimes, still becloud German-Jewish relations.” For that reason, Herr Cllenhauer indicated, the Social Democratic Party advocated the speedy establishment of normal diplomatic relations between Germany and Israel.