Taking as his theme “The World Jewish Problem,” Ludwig Lewisohn, American Jewish author who has returned to this country after a self-imposed exile to France, addressed a packed City Hall auditorium here last night.
Speaking under the auspices of the Joseph Frank lodge of the B’nai B’rith, Mr. Lewisohn was introduced by Maurice Samuel, who prefaced his talk by pointing out that Lewisohn is the greatest living spokesman of Judaism because he has gone beyond polities in his literary expression of Jewish problems.
Making an analogy between the primordial tribal scapegoat and the Jewish race, Mr. Lewisohn declared that the attitude of any nation towards Jews within its borders is an indication of the state of civilization of that nation.
“The reactionary fascist movement,” Mr. Lewisohn said, “is capitalizing upon the despair of nations at their incompetency to handle the present economic situation.”
Lewisohn recalled the biblical injunctions to give consideration to the fatherless, widows and especially strangers. Decrying the failure of Jesus’ attempt to make this philosophy world-wide, the noted author called for a return of the genuine principles of Christianity, which are being lost in the Communist and Fascist degenerative return to primitive demonologies.
Mr. Lewisohn, who is making his residence at the home of his wife’s parents until October, declared that he has been looking in vain for the signs of the depression. He has in preparation a new book of a philosophical nature, he said, which will be published in the fall. The title will be “Toward Religion.”
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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.
