A Columbus rabbi told the opening session of the 1960 biennial convention of the National Jewish Welfare Board today that the principal task of American Jewry now was to find ways to preserve Judaism in an affluent society.
“Judaism has developed remarkable techniques for survival in the face of adversity,” Rabbi Jerome D. Folkman, chairman of the Committee on Home. Marriage and the Family of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, told the session.
“These techniques have given Jews a unique strength in the face of unspeakable persecution, distress and disaster,” he added. “Now we need to preserve Judaism in its characteristic spiritual and intellectual values in conditions of general prosperity.”
He said that an atmosphere of materialism “induces some to think of religion as a commodity that can be bought by dues-paying but otherwise inactive synagogue members.” He warned that such members “do not transmit spiritual values to the next generation. Religion must be caught, not bought. Children acquire spiritual values by witnessing parental behavior based on these values.”
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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.
