A wholesome prospect for post-war America is the spirit of comradeship which exists among men living together under combat conditions, it was reported at a press conference here today by Rabbi Philip S. Bernstein, executive director of the National Jewish Welfare Board’s Committee on Army and Navy Religious Activities, who returned this week from a 35,000 mile tour of the Pacific war fronts.
The concern of men coming up against the enemy is “not with the antecedents of a gunner but with his character, his ability,” Rabbi Bernstein said. “As a result, prejudice is unthinkable. There is a remarkable and healthy spirit of team-work.” Particularly gratifying to Rabbi Bernstein was the evidence he saw of “a healthy, vigorous Jewish life among the Jewish military personnel.” There was no island however remote, no jungle however inaccessible, in which Jewish men were stationed, where they had not set up their own religious services, he reported. On Guadalcanal, the Jewish men in their spare time erected a synagogue which is truly beautiful, Rabbi Bornstein said, and at Ore Bay, working nights and week-ends, Jewish men have also put up a synagogue of impressive proportions.
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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.
