Position of Agudath Israel on Palestine: Memorandum Submitted to Lord Passfield “protesting Against

In view of the discussions in Berlin (reported in yesterday’s J.T.A. Bulletin) on the question of the entry of the Agudath Israel into the Jewish Agency, in connection with which it was agreed that pending the discussions, the Agudath Israel will not engage in any outside political intervention, the Jewish Agency, for its part, assisting the Agudath Israel in this respect by keeping it informed on political developments, as far as is possible on discretionary grounds, interest attaches to the latest memorandum which the Executive of the Agudath Israel Organisation submitted to the Colonial Secretary, Lord Passfield, in December, at the time when Rabbi Dr. Pinchas Cohn, the President of the Agudath Israel World Organisation, who participated in the Berlin discussions with the Jewish Agency representatives, was on a visit in London.

We would respectfully desire to take this opportunity of renewing our protest at the wording and the spirit of the White Paper, the covering letter to the memorandum, signed by Mr. H. A. Goodman, the Secretary to the Political Executive of the Agudath Israel Organisation says. We are of the opinion that the recent parliamentary debate on this subject has not served to clarify the situation, or to remove the obvious contradictions between the Balfour Declaration and the White Paper.

In previous memoranda which we have addressed to the Colonial Office, the memorandum begins, we have had occasion to define the nature of the contradictions in which the Agudath Israel World Organisation finds itself as the representative of Orthodox Judaism in respect to the Zionist Organisation.

While we affirm the imperishable nature and the actual perpetuation of the Jewish nationality and the indestructable bond between the Jewish people and its country, the memorandum proceeds, we reject from the depths of our conviction the secularisation of the Jewish people undertaken by Zionism and regard the Zionist maxim that religion is a personal matter as a betrayal of the universal, historical task of God’s people and the Divine revelation. In the sense of Jewish tradition, Palestine is to us a Holy Land in which Jewish life and a national Jewish home can rise only when the authority of the Jewish religious law which still lives to-day is acknowledged in its entirety within that home.

As the restoration of the Jewish State on the soil of the Holy Land is foretold and promised by the Torah and the Prophets, in agreement with the general upward trend of humanity towards morality, we do not expect this restoration from mere political constellations and State political measures. For this reason orthodoxy, organised in the Agudath, Israel, never perceived in the Balfour Declaration-quite apart from its far-reaching political importance – the coming of the redemption foretold by the Prophets, but the practical possibility of fulfilling on a large scale the religious charge which we hold sacred, to live in the Holy Land and to cultivate its soil for habitation.

BALFOUR DECLARATION WAS ADDRESSED NOT TO INDIVIDUAL PARTIES IN JUDAISM BUT TO ENTIRE JEWISH PEOPLE.

The Agudath Israel can co-operate in fraternal unity with the Zionist Organisation so long as it is a question of representing the common interests of the Jewish people in regard to immigration and colonisation in Palestine, and the safeguarding of life and property in the Holy Land to its full extent. But the Agudath Israel is compelled to reject the idea of concerted action and is forced to act independently as soon as religious or cultural questions are involved. As the sphere of activity of the Jewish Agency includes, unfortunately, not only the promotion of the economic organisations and the representation of the political interests of the Jewish people but also the financing and administration of the educational system and the culture of the people, Jewish Orthodoxy, organised in the Agudath Israel, has found itself unable to take part in the Jewish Agency because, according to the principles of Jewish relgious law, such direct promotion of irreligious educational establishments is forbidden by the faith. In consequence, the Agudath Israel cannot recognise the Jewish Agency as its appointed representative. The Balfour Declaration was addressed not to individual parties in Judaism, but to the entire Jewish people and it would therefore be contradictory to the sense and the spirit of the Balfour Declaration to grant power to the Jewish Agency as the sole representative of the entire Jewish people.

We have given sufficient proof in the practical policy which we have pursued in Palestine in common with the Zionist authorities, the memorandum adds, that we are not inclined to increase the difficulties of the Palestine and the British Governments by separatist tendencies within the Jewish Community.

But when the question arises of laying down anew the basis of the Palestine policy for many years ahead, we feel that we must also put forward independently our point of view, which is only the point of view of historic Judaism. We petition, therefore, in the first place, that in addition to the Jewish Agency our organisation should be on principle consulted in all discussions which are of importance to the relations of the Mandatory Power with Palestine and the Jewish people.

When your Excellency in an interview reproduced in the Press expressed your special sympathy for the old type of pious Jewish immigrant into Palestine, the memorandum goes on, this remark, giving proof of deep insight into the essence of the Palestine problem, awakened a sympathetic echo in our hearts.

We have no wish to keep away from the soil of their and our fathers the Zionist Haluzim who, for many reasons, have unfortunately become estranged from the faith of our fathers. We appreciate the idealism with which these young people are inspired, and we hope that one day they or their children may return on the Holy Soil to the tradition of their fathers.

But we see the greatest danger for the future of the Palestine Jewish settlement in giving preference to this radical element, and practically excluding the deeply religious Jewish youth represented by the Agudath Israel. We have for many years endeavoured in vain to obtain for our organisation, and especially for our labour organisation, the Poale Agudah in Poland, its proper share of influence in the Zionist emigration offices. We appeal to your Excellency to see that in the reorganisation of the immigration system, the representatives of the Agudah must be consulted in the organisation of the emigration offices, in order to ensure an impartial distribution of the certificates. We ask in addition that it should be incumbent upon the Jewish Agency to place at the disposal of our organisation a small number out of the 1,500 certificates now made available, the number to be afterwards agreed upon.

RELATIONS BETWEEN ORTHODOX JEWS AND ARABS IN PALESTINE ALWAYS BEEN EXCELLENT: ALTHOUGH POGROMS OF AUGUST 1929 INSTIGATED BY UNSCRUPULOUS AGITATORS IMPAIRED RELATIONS: ORTHODOX JEWS PREPARED TO CO-OPERATE WITH ARAB REPRESENTATIVES INSOFAR AS VITAL JEWISH NEEDS SAFEGUARDED: FAVOUR LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ON CONDITION ELEMENTARY NEEDS OF JEWISH PEOPLE PARTICULARLY JEWISH IMMIGRATION COLONISATION AND SECURITY KEPT OUTSIDE SPHERE OF PARLIAMENTARY MAJORITY.

The relations between the Orthodox Jews and the Arabs in Palestine have always been excellent, the memorandum continues. It is true, it says, that the pogroms instigated by unscrupulous agitators in August 1929, claiming hundreds of Jewish victims, including young men devoted to the study of the Torah, considerably impaired the relations between the Arab people and the Orthodox Jews. It is natural that in view of this event the representatives of the Agudath Israel in Palestine entered into close co-operation with all other Jewish parties for the protection of Jewish life. We are nevertheless convinced that any attempt to bring about an understanding between the Arab and the Jewish peoples can be successful only if the representatives of Orthodox Jewry are included in the negotiations. We ask, therefore, that in the efforts to bring about an understanding between the Arab and the Jewish people, representatives of our organisation should be included in addition to those of the Jewish Agency and the Vaad Leumi.

Organised Jewish orthodoxy is prepared to co-operate at all times with the Arab representatives, insofar as the vital interests of the Jewish people are safeguarded, the memorandum goes on. We assume that if the Legislative Council envisaged by the Government is set up, the elementary vital interests of the Jewish people, particularly the right of immigration and settlement, and everything appertaining to the maintenance of security will be constitutionally upheld in the sense of the Mandate, independent of changing Parliamentary majorities. If this condition is fulfilled, we look to the Legislative Council to have a beneficial effect on the relations between the two peoples living in Palestine, whose only advantage lies in co-operation.

The draft envisaged by the Government, however, the memorandum says, allows in our opinion for far too small a number of members of the Legislative Council. We believe that there will have to be a considerable increase in the number of members, as a pre-requisite for the successful working of the Legislative Council, and we propose that at least six seats should be reserved for Jews.

TO US NATIONAL HOME IS PRIMARILY SPIRITUAL JEWISH HOME: BUT SPIRIT NEEDS BODY AND SO LONG AS THERE IS NO FREE JEWISH IMMIGRATION AND SETTLEMENT IN ACCORDANCE WITH PLEDGES OF MANDATE THERE CAN BE NO DEVELOPMENT OF SPIRITUAL LIFE: JEWS CAN CREATE SPIRITUAL HOME ONLY IF MANDATORY POWER CREATES POLITICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE PRELIMINARY CONDITIONS: MEMORANDUM ALSO URGES RIGHTS FOR JEWISH CONGREGATIONS IN PALESTINE OUTSIDE ORGANISED COMMUNITY: SAYS LEADING CIRCLES OF KENESSETH ISRAEL HAVE UNDERSTANDING FOR THIS CLAIM AND PEACEFUL ARRANGEMENT NOT IMPOSSIBLE: URGES IMMIGRATION FACILITIES FOR MIDDLE CLASS AND SUCH THE WILL MAKE PALESTINE CENTRE OF FLOURISHING YESHIBOTH.

To us the National Home of the Jewish people in Palestine is primarily a spiritual Jewish home, the memorandum declares. The spirit, however, has need of the body, and as long as free and intensive Jewish immigration and settlement on sound economic principles is not possible in accordance with the pledges of the Mandate, there can be no development of deeply-rooted spiritual life. It is the task of the Jews to create the Jewish spiritual home in Palestine, but they can do it only if the Mandatory Power, for its part, creates the political and administrative preliminary conditions for this development.

The Communities Law in Palestine, the memorandum then says, has resulted in the establishment of a Jewish Community, the Kennesseth Israel, which is publicly and legally recognised, but the constitution of which, in our view, does not correspond to the basic principles of Jewish-religious life. The Constitution lacks the fundamental recognition of the authority of Jewish religious law in all the acts of the administration. For this reason about 20,000 Palestine Jews have exercised their right to withdraw, and have formed separate congregations, which while they can freely develop their inner life, lack, however, public and legal recognition and the right of taxation. We consider it an injustice that those very communities which hold fast to Jewish tradition and the Jewish spirit are disregarded by the State to the detriment of their rights. We consider the removal of this injustice an urgent necessity for successful inter-Jewish relations in Palestine, so that these congregations will be given equal public and legal recognition with the Kenessoth Israel, and in like manner the Rabbinates of these congregations, in addition to the existing Chief Rabbinate. We may mention that even in leading circles of the Kenesseth Israel there is an understanding for our claims, and a peaceful arrangement is not impossible, if the Government is agreeable to an alteration of the laws.

In its conclusion the memorandum urges that special facilities in regard to immigration permits should be given to teachers and students of Yeshiboth, in order to help to promote Jewish religious study and make it possible to establish flourishing Yeshiboth in Palestine, and also that middle-class emigration should be promoted to Palestine, in accordance with the detailed memorandum which the Agudath Israel Organisation submitted to Sir John Hope Simpson when he was in Palestine.