Dr. Nahum Goldmann, president of the World Zionist Organization, appealed again today for an end to the party framework of the Zionist movement which he said was “hindering the fulfilment of the Zionist task.”
Speaking at the World Zionist Actions Committee meeting, he said that unless the Zionist parties “agree to a new arrangement whereby they relinquish monopoly on movements there are no prospects for the movement’s rejuvenation.” He asserted that the parties were “debilitating” the Zionist movement and called on the Actions Committee to set up machinery “to deal during the coming years with various proposals for far-reaching changes in the movement’s structure.”
Yaacov Tzur, chairman of the Actions Committee–the supreme body of the World Zionist movement between Zionist Congresses–read a message from Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion in which the Premier expressed the hope that the meeting would “succeed in fortifying the unity of the Jewish people and also, if it is permissible to express the hope–which may or may not be fulfilled–that you will try to explain to all calling themselves Zionists that Zionism means returning to Zion.”
Dr. Goldmann said one of the critical problems of the Zionist movement was to increase immigration from the free countries. He added that otherwise, unless the Soviet Union opened its gates for Jewish migration, there would be no more immigration in Israel in a few years.
There were two other essential tasks for the Zionist movement to perform, Dr. Goldmann said. One was to ensure Jewish and Hebrew education and the other to organize the Jewish people as a fighting force to defend its right to create its culture, ensuring the Jewish future and linking the people with the State of Israel as partners in the upbuilding and consolidation of the State.
He argued that the organization of the Jewish people as a combatant creative force was becoming weakened particularly for the lack of a representative organization and the “growing organizational chaos” and the failure of American Jewry to realize that it must function within the framework of the world Jewish organizations. He stressed the “diminishing impact” of the Zionist movement in the United States and he urged reform of the movement’s internal structure.
SHARETT SAYS ZIONISM COULD EFFECTIVELY COUNTERACT ASSIMILATION
Moshe Sharett, chairman of the Jewish Agency executive, told the delegates that nothing could counteract assimilation of Jews more effectively than, Zionism and a strong Zionist movement was a vital necessity for Israel.
He said there was a rising wave of assimilation particularly among the young generation which he said was much evident in Western Europe and in North America and among a Jewry “which is prevented from participation” in the movement, presumably a reference to Soviet Jews.
On the other hand, he added, there was a freshening manifestation of an awakening of national consciousness from the roots of destruction and salvation, “the horrors of the holocaust and the splendor of independence.” Here and there, he said, “a Jewish spark is kindled” and there was an urge for the content of Jewish life in a new reality. These manifestations, he added, constituted a challenge to the Zionist movement.
ROSE HALPRIN REPORTS ON SENTIMENTS OF JEWS IN UNITED STATES
Mrs. Rose Halprin, chairman of the American section of the Jewish Agency, told the delegates that American Jews as a whole were very close to Israel but “paradoxically,” as the Zionist movement grew weaker, there was “a wider acceptance of the Zionist approach.” She described this as the Zionist doctrine of cultural interplay, of the importance of the study of Hebrew and Bible, of the need for deepening the content of Jewish education and of granting Israel “a central position” in that education.
Describing what she believed to be the “consensus” of American Zionists on aliyah, she said that while immigration was recognized as a major pillar in Zionism, “one cannot expect a mass aliyah” from the United States. She said “we believe that some of our youth will want to take their place as builders of Israel from positive idealistic reasons. We believe also that any negative approach, any attempt to create fear or uncertainty will not enhance aliyah by one iota.”
She reported that in the youth field, the Zionist movement in the United States had helped to revitalize the student bodies on the campus, helped to strengthen various Junior organizations and achieved a “good measure” of cooperation with non-Zionist youth.
She cited the increase in the Jewish day school movement from 193 schools with 30, 000 pupils ten years ago to 275 schools with 54,000 pupils now and said that it was Zionism which gave a substantial impetus to that growth.
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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.
