Jewish Post, Indianapolis, Marion County, 23 March 1994 — Page 41

Digest of the Yiddish Press Yaacov's World

visit to Devil’s island To live on in a name

By SAMUEL SILVER Devil's Island, where Alfred Dreyfus was isolated from April 13,1895, to June 5, 1899, is a tiny spot in French Guiana, between Venezuela

and Brazil. Dr. Simon Elias visited the island recently on a cruise with the ship. World Renaissance, which sailed out of Fort Lauderdale. Devil's Island is one of three that the French used to exile criminals. Royal Island, the largest, had administrative offices. St. Joseph's Island was for hardened criminals and Devil's Island, the smallest (and escape-free because of turbulent waters and sharks) was for political criminals. Dr. Elias tells Forward readers that hundreds of years ago Jews fled to those islands to escape the Inquisition that had been brought to Brazil from Portugal. Now the islands are tourist stopovers for cruises. On Devil's Island there is no spot that indicates where Dreyfus was incarcer-

ated. Among the passengers on the ship some were Jewish. Not one of them, according to the writer, had any idea who Dreyfus was. Resignation Recently, the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations staged a reception for UN diplomats representing 11 countries that were once behind the Iron Curtain. The organization called Union of Councils for Soviet Jews was angered when it learned that among those at the gathering were representatives of three Asiatic countries: Turkmenistan, Tadjikistan, and Uzbekistan, which they feel are anti-Semitic, so the group resigned from the conference. (The Forward) Israel welcomed

A front page story in the Forward provides fresh assurance that Israel, despite wrangles with its neighbors, is doing well in the international scene. For years the Jewish nation had cultivated good relations with the countries of Africa, providing them with scientific and agricultural expertise. Continued on page 12

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By YAACOV LURIA When my mother was in a tender mood, she called me mein kaddishel. Even as a kid, I knew what that meant. As her only son, I would say kaddish

in her memory after she died. Kaddishel seemed a wee bit gloomy. When I grew older, I came to understand that kaddishel looked ahead with hope. It betokened my mother's expectation that she would live on in my memory. Beyond that, she expected that if my two sisters and I named children after her, she might be remembered for generations to come. This would give her a touch of immortality. All this came back to me during a recent phone conversation with Judith Isaacson, whom you remember as the author of the Holocaust' memorial Seed of Sarah. Judith told me that her children and grandchildren had been named for friends and comrades in the camps who did not survive. She agreed with me that all of us should give the Holocaust martyrs a living memorial by naming children and grandchildren after them. Surely this idea has occurred to other people. I'll risk being redundant and make this proposal: Let's start a movement to name a child for every Jew murdered by the Nazis. Let the call "Make Their Names Live On!" go out to every Jewish community in the world. Let the names be drawn from rosters in Yad V'Shem and other Holocaust museums. In this computer age, organizing the project should not be an insuperable undertaking. A few years ago a girl named Sharon Fingerer was among the first participants in the program called The March of the Living. After her group returned from a visit to Auschwitz, Sharon exclaimed about the Jewish dead, "I want them to live through me." From Sharon's mouth to our

hearts! Let a noble thought become a universal action! But why draw the line at Holocaust victims? Why can't we extend naming to all fellow Jews who, for whatever reason, died without progeny? Here's an example from my own family: Within the last ten years I lost an older sister and her only son, who never married. I will not go into the circumstances of my sister and nephew's lives ex-

cept to say that they deserved better from life than they received. Yet they both bore their lot without rancor, without making demands on either God or people. My sisters name was Lillian (Leah Devorah). My nephew's name was Will (Chaim 2fev). May they be remembered! Yaacov Luria may be reached at 17637 Pomerado Rd., Apt. 227, San Diego, CA 92128.

Portion of the Week

Maintaining a balance

Tzav (Leviticus 6:1-8:36) Leviticus, Chapter 8, describes the consecration of the mishkan, the portable sanctuary carried in the Sinai desert, and of Aaron and his sons as priests. Moses assembles the entire congregation and performs the rituals that imbue the mishkan and the priests with holiness. Then he instructs Aaron and his sons: You shall not go outside the Tent of Meeting for seven days, until the day that your period of ordination is completed... You shall remain at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting day and night for seven days, keeping the Lord's charge—that you may not die— for so / have been commanded (8:33-35).

This period of isolation undoubtedly gave the priests time to contemplate their new status. Time spent away from their fellow Israelites may have strengthened their sense of connectedness to God. Their responsibilities as priests would set them apart from other Israelites; thus

their consecration involved a

physical separation from the people. At the same time, they were aware that on the eighth day they were to leave the Tent of Meeting and rejoin the people. The priests were consecrated to serve God in part through their relations with the entire nation. They were to "teach the Israelites all the laws which the Lord has imparted to them" (Leviticus

10:11).

Each of us struggles to achieve a balance between the private and public aspects of our Judaism. At times, we feel the need to be alone, to experience Judaism on a personal level, through prayer, study or contemplation. Such moments may strengthen us. But we must always be aware that the community is gathered outside waiting for us. We can never lose our sense of connection to others. Being a "kingdom of priests" requires that each of us employ our Jewish experience to teach

others.

Mission to Israel for NEW YORK — A Mission to Israel designed for intermarried couples has been announced by the United Jewish Appeal, stating that interfaith couples represent a sector that cannot be ignored today, and adding that the need to reach out to the nontraditional community reflects the realities the Jew-

intermarrieds ish community faces in the 90's. Leading the mission will be Mark and Sally Isaacs of Louisville. Mark, a former member of the UJA national young leadership cabinet, is an architect/developer and currently chairs the Louisville Federation's community relations council.

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