The first corps insignia worn by a Jewish chaplain in the navy has been presented by its only wearer, Lieut. Commander H. Cerf Straus of Los Angeles, to the Naval Academy Museum at Annapolis.
Chaplain Straus joined the naval reserve 14 years ago and was recalled to active duty in 1941.The insignia was designed at that time, in the shape of a shepherd’s crook. As he was the only Jewish chaplain in the navy, he had it all to himself. Last year it was decided that the device bore too close a resemblance to a wisp of spaghetti left on the shoulder boards by contouted inadvertence. The navy designed a new insignia, consisting of the Mogen David and the tablets of the law, similar to that used by chaplains in the army. Chaplain Straus gave his old shoulder-boards to the museum. There are many Jewish chaplains in the navy now, all wearing the new device.
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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.
