Rabbi Melchior Says Polish Jewish Refugees Streaming into Denmark

The Chief Rabbi of Denmark said here that the Polish refugees streaming into Denmark would become more Jewish than they had ever been. Declaring that “these were top people in the Polish Government,” Rabbi Bent Melchior added that “they are looking for some kind of identity. It will be difficult for them to identity themselves as Danes, so they will have to identify themselves as Jews.” Rabbi Melchior, who was installed in his post last week, succeeding his father, who held the position from 1947 until his recent death, is on a visit to the United States. Speaking at a press conference at the Jewish Community Council of Greater Washington, he said the Polish refugees had been coming to Denmark ever since the government announced an unrestricted immigration policy in response to the upsurge of anti-Semitism in Poland. From last spring until the end of 1969, he reported, some 1,500 Poles emigrated to Denmark.

He said the Jewish community in Denmark numbers about 7,000, not counting the uncertain number of refugees from Poland. He said there is no “Jewish neighborhood” because apartments are so scarce that young couples take them wherever they can find them. As a result, Rabbi Melchior reported, Jewish education suffers. At his insistence, the Danish Jewish community is experimenting with a series of monthly “Jewish weekends” to replace the once-a-week Hebrew school lessons. He said the experiment was having “great success.”