Executive of American Rabbis’ Conference Meets in Cincinnati

(Jewish Daily Bulletin)

A special endowment fund for the Central Conference of American Rabbis, for the furtherance of literary works and other spiritual activities in behalf of Judaism has been established by Lucius N. Littauer of New York, Dr. H. G. Enelow, Rabbi of Temple Emanu-E1, New York City and president of the Central Conference of American Rabbis announced at a meeting of the Executive Committee held here. The fund will bear the name of Mr. Littauer and will provide $5,000 a year for the purposes indicated.

The Executive Board appropriated out of this fund allocations for several activities. The board voted to support the new congregation of the Marranos at Braganca, Portugal, who have returned to Judaism. They also made an appropriation for the restoration of the Israel Jacobson Temple at Seesen Germany, the first temple built for Reform Judaism. Further appropriations were voted for the publication of the Jacob’s Thesaurus of Hebrew books and the book of the late Professor Hakavy of Petrograd, left in manuscript at the time of his death ten years ago. This book will be under the editorship of David Maggid of Moscow.

Detroit was chosen as the city for the 1929 convention of the Central Conference of American Rabbis. The convention will be held from June 26 to July 2, 1929 and will mark the fortieth anniversary of the founding of the conference. A two-hundredth anniversary celebration for Moses Mendelsohn and Lessing, with special reference to their close friendship and the work they did in promoting good will between Jew and Gentile, will be held during the convention. In connection with the celebration the Board decided to publish a volume in commemoration of Mendelsohn, containing a critical survey of his work and his influence, by scholars of several countries.

It was also decided to dedicate the year book of the conference to the late Professor Mielziner of Hebrew Union College.

An annual prize was established for the best essay on some subject connected with Jewish theology by a student of the Hebrew Union College.

This prize was voted in honor of the seventieth birthday of Claude G. Montefiore, outstanding British Jewish Liberal leader.

It was recommended to the Tract Commission of the Central Conference and the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, that tracts be published in the Yiddish language, to present Jewish religious and ethical subjects in general, and the meaning and history of Reform Judaism in particular. The conference voted additional subsidies to various organizations working on literary and spiritual Jewish lines.

Dr. Enelow, president of the Board, was appointed representative of the Central Conference to the forthcoming Non-Zionist Conference.

Those present at the meeting were Dr. H. G. Enelow, New York, president; Rabbis David Lefkowitz, Dallas, vice-president; Morris Newfield, Birmingham, treasurer; I. E. Marcuson, Macon and J. L. Fink, Buffalo, secretaries; David ALexander, Akron; Leo M. Franklin, Detroit; Solomon B. Freehof, Chicago; Samuel M. Gup, Providence; Benjamin Friedman, Syracuse; Edward L. Israel, Baltimore; Emil W. Leipziger, New Orleans and Eugene Mannheimer, Des Moines.

The first meeting of the Executive Committee of the Texas Zionist Association, to be held since the National Zionist Government, will convene at Fort Worth, on Sunday, October 14. They sessions will be held jointly with a conference of United Palestine Appeal chairmen, and plans will be adopted for launching the 1928-29 United Palestine Appeal drive in the State. Louis A. Freed of Houston is President of the Association, while A. Golenternek of Tyler is Chairman of the United Palestine Appeal for the State.

A further distribution of income amounting to $7,017. from funds of the Community Trust was authorized by the Distribution Committee of the Trust. The beneficiaries of these allocations are teh Visiting Nurse Service of the Henry Street Settlement in Manbattan, the St. Stephens College at Annandale-on-Hudson, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in Paslestine, and Camp Edith Macy, maintained by the Girl Scouts at Briareliff, N. Y.

Clarence H. Helsey, Chairman of the Title Guarantee & Trust Co., and of the Trustees’ Committee of the Community Trust, said that the Trust’s appropriations during 1928 have passed $61,000/ This is larger than for the whole of any previous year. Following the establishment of the Community Trust’s offices in 1923, Mr. Kelsey said, disbursements amounted to $478. in 1924, rose to $16,152, in 1925, increased to $33,159. in 1926 and mounted to $56,634 in 1927.

“The expansion of the Community Trust,” he stated, “is illustrated by the fact that the number of its participating financial institutions has increased from six to twenty-two in five years and the volume of its distribution has been greater in each year than in any previous one.”