A delegation representing the Jewish community of Rigis expected to call on President Senegal asking him to use his good officer to persuade a local Catholic church from ousting a Jewish welfare institution.
The church now holds a judgment rendered by the Latvian Senate acting as a court, against the Linas Hacedek. Jewish hospital society, on the basis of an old Russian law. In 1925 T. Chedack, president of the society, purchased from the Church of Jesusan old house, ruined during the warfare, at 118 Dzirnavu Lela at the price of 120,000 Russian roubles. No formal deed was obtained in view of the unsettled conditions. Only the house was purchased, while it was agreed the church be paid 20 Latvian roubles annually as rental for the site which was part of the church’s property.
The Jewish society, with the aid of an appropriation from the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee repaired the house and equipped it for a Jewish maternity hospital at a cost of 3,000,000 Latvian roubles.
The church, however, now demands that the house be turned back to it at the original purchase price which, according to the rate or exchange would amount to 80,000 Latvian roubles or $385. The claim was brought before the Senate, which granted the judgment to the church on the basis of an ancient Russian law that the seller has the repurchase right at the sale price.
No appeal from the Senate decision is possible, but the conflict has attracted wide attention in the Latvian capital since it is felt that an injustice would be done to the Jewish welfare institution by compelling it to turn ever the improved property at the original price and besides, it will be deprived of its facilities for carrying on its work. A number of Jewish deputies have interested themselves in the matter and conferred with several members of parliament, clergymen, including Bishop Irbe, asking them to persuade the church administration to abstain from the threatened action.
In the meantime the Linas Hacedelc has arranged with the church administration to pay a monthly rental of $100.
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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.
