A dinner celebrating the 14th anniversary of Israel’s independence jointly with the 80th birthday of Harry Sacher, a pioneer of British Zionism, was held here last night before a distinguished audience. Proceeds from the dinner will be used by the Jewish National Fund to plant a forest in Israel in honor of Mr. Sacher, who was a close advisor to the late Dr. Chaim Weizmann in the early days of the Zionist movement.
Dr. Nahum Goldmann, addressing the dinner, paid tribute to Mr. Sacher as “one of the first chapters of the story of Israel through his close connection with Dr. Weizmann’s arrival in Britain and the issuance of the Balfour Declaration.” He described the guest of honor as a sincere and outspoken man who combined great qualities of an analytical mind with a sense of realism and vision, a man who had devoted his life to Zionism and whose presence “means a great deal” to the Zionist cause.
Other speakers lauding Mr. Sacher’s contributions included Lord Justice Cohen, Israeli Ambassador Arthur Lourie, Chief Rabbi Israel Brodie and Eleazar Lipsky of New York. Mr. Lipsky read a message from his father, Louis Lipsky, who referred to Mr. Sacher as his oldest British Zionist friend, a pioneer of British Zionism throughout the Weizmann era when he had an important role as journalist, writer and lawyer with whom loyalty “never lost its practical sense.” He added he wished him many more years of creative work.
In his response, Mr. Sacher said the evening had a double meaning–a personal one to him and to his wife and a national one. He said dedication to the Zionist cause was a joint lifelong task of himself and his wife. He spoke also of relations between the Jews of Israel and those outside and said these two Jewries should be homogeneous. There should be constant cooperation between the two entities, he said, adding that the elements of common vicissitudes should mold a single Jewishness. In eliminating the danger to which Israel and world Jewry was exposed, “we create a society worthy of being made,” he told the dinner guests.
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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.
