Spiritual Leaders of All Faiths Condemn Religious Issue in Elections

One hundred American clergymen, lay religious leaders and scholars–including representatives of the Protestant, Catholic, Jewish and Greek Orthodox faiths- -have issued a statement opposing “vigorously all attempts to make religious affiliation the basis of the voter’s choice of candidates for public office.” Such practice, the statement declared, is a “vicious practice and repugnant to all honorable Americans” because it sets “class against class, race against race and religion against religion. “

The following set of principles was put forth by the signers as guides to voters this year:

Exclusion of the members of any faith from public office violates the Constitution; the bearing of the religious views of a candidate upon his decisions in public office is a public matter; an office holder who cannot reconcile the responsibilities of his oath of office with his conscience should resign; voters should not support a candidate solely because no one of his faith has ever been elected to a public office.

Also: No religious organization should seek to influence or dominate public officials for its own advantage; no religious group should be given special advantages by the state or be allowed to use state agencies to restrict other faiths; a candidate’s faith should be viewed in its best light, rather than its worst.

All the Jewish signers are connected with constituent agencies of the Synagogue Council of America, which is composed of rabbinical and congregational representatives of the three branches of American Judaism–Reform, Orthodox and Conservative. The signers include:

Rabbi William F. Rosenblum, former president of the Synagogue Council; Rabbi Maurice N. Eisendrath, president of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations; Moses I. Feuerstein, president, Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations; Rabbi Bernard Bamberger, president, Central Conference of American Rabbis; Rabbi Edward S. Sandrow, president, Rabbinical Assembly of America; Rabbi Charles Weinberg, president. Rabbinical Council of America.

Also, Rabbi Jay Kaufman, vice president, Union of American Hebrew Congregations; Herbert Berman, recording secretary, Synagogue Council of America; Rabbi Sidney L., Regner, executive vice president, Central Conference of American Rabbis; Rabbi Wolfe Kelman, executive vice president, Rabbinical Assembly of America; Rabbi Israel Klavan, executive director, Rabbinical Council of America; Rabbi Morris Adler, Detroit; Rabbi Arthur Hertzberg, Englewood, N. J.; Morris Laub, director, Joint Commission for Social Action, United Synagogue of America,

In a television broadcast last night Vice President Richard M. Nixon said that it would be “tragic” if the upcoming Presidential election were determined in whole or in part, on the basis of the religious issue. He called upon Senator Kennedy to agree to a “cut-off date” for all talk about religion in the campaign. “As far as I am concerned. ” Mr. Nixon said, “I will refuse to discuss religion. ” He added that he had no doubt that Sen, Kennedy would put the constitution above his faith.

(Senator Kennedy said in California that he had watched Mr. Nixon on television last night and that he wished all political debate on the religious issue could be cut off “right now.”)