(Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
The question of whether or not an uncircumcised son of Jewish parents may be listed in the records of the Jewish population in Poland is the subject of an interesting controversy which is now engaging the attention of the leaders of the Jewish community in Warsaw and the Polish Government.
The case developed when Mr. Alter, leader of the Jewish labor party Bund which, although adhering to socialistic principles has in its platform a plank recognizing Jewish workers as members of a national Jewish ethnic group, refused to permit the circumcision of his son, but insisted on the inscription of his name in the records of the Jewish population, conducted by the Jewish Community Board, through the offices of the Rabbis.
The Kehillah refused to comply with this demand in view of the father’s failure to comply with the requirements of the Mosaic law. Upon a protest of the parents, the Minister of the Interior, General Skladkowski, issued an order to inscribe the boy’s name in the records of the Jewish population. When this order was received the question was discussed by the Kehillah Council which decided to refuse to carry out the Minister’s order. The Council recommended that the question be referred to a conference of Rabbis which is to formulate a memorandum to the government expressing the opinion of the Jewish community on this fundamental issue.
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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.
