Jewish Students Club at Yale First in School’s History

Yale University for the first time since it was founded 234 years ago, now has a Jewish club with the avowed purpose of cultivating cultural and religious interests among Jewish students. Isaac Rabinowitz, Ph. D., ’32, has been appointed director by the University. He has offices at 7 Lawrence Hall.

Aware that Jewish students at the University during their four years of residence lose all contact with Jewish activities and interests, representatives of several Jewish organizations in various parts of the State met in New Haven last fall in an effort to formulate some plan to remedy this situation. A committee was appointed to work in cooperation with University officials. Such men as Dean Clarence W. Mendell, of Yale College, Rev. Sidney Lovett, University Chaplain, Rev. E. Fay Campbell, general secretary of the University Y.M.C.A. and Professor Erwin R. Goodenough, of the History Department, were greatly interested, and after conference with them, it was decided to appoint a representative who would undertake this work on the Yale campus.

Dr. Rabinowitz, who received his Ph.D. in the Department of Semitic Languages, was appointed to this position and given an office by the University. He received his A.B. degree from the University of California in 1929 and wrote his doctorate dissertation on “Syriac Versions of Tobit.” In addition to this work as director of the Jewish Club, he is continuing at Yale his research in the field of Hebrew literature.

The Jewish Club is believed to be the first organization of this kind on the Yale campus during the 234 years of the University’s existence. Menorah societies and Jewish fraternities have been organized on the campus but not with the University’s cooperation. In the past no effort has been made to bring the Jewish students together, nor has any thought been given to problems of the Jewish student on the campus. The origin, purpose and scope of the Club were explained in an announcement sent to Yale students by the director.

“It should be clearly understood by all students, Jewish and non-Jewish that the Jewish Club is not intended by the University or the Jewish community to segregate the Jewish students “The Jewish Club is not a ‘club’ in the strict sense of the term; its name arose, more or less spontaneously out of the many analogies it bears to such bodies, for example, as the Catholic Club. There are no officers, no dues, in fact, no ‘organization’ except of the loosest sort. All students, Jews and non-Jews, are invited to attend the various meeting to participate in the several discussion groups.

Professor Erwin R. Goodenough, of the History Department at Yale, addressed the first meeting of the Club.

DR. SAPIR SPEAKER

Dr. Edward Sapir, Sterling Professor of Anthropology and Linguistics, and Honorary Curator of Anthropology in Peabody Museum, addressed the second meeting of the Club. He suggested that every Jew should express himself by taking part in some Jewish activity. The son of a chasan, a cantor, Professor Sapir said, that efforts to hide one’s identity as a Jew is a manifestation of a diseased mind. He described some of the research work that is going on today all over the world in various fields of Jewish endeavor in the past and present, pointing especially to the work of the Yiddish Scientific Institute in Wilno, Poland.

Other speakers expected to address the Jewish Club during the present school year are Dr. Louis I. Newman, of New York; Julian J. Obermann, Visiting Professor of Semitics at Yale, and Father Lawrason T. Riggs, the Yale University Catholic Chaplain. Immediate plans of the Club include the formation of two discussion groups, one dealing with Jewish History and the other, with Jewish Religion, both of which will be conducted by Dr. Rabinowitz.