The Jewish Congress—and After
The article by Mr. Abel, as well as the one by M. G., was written for THE MACCABAEAN before the convening of the Second Session of the American Jewish Congress at Philadelphia, on May 30th and 31st. What transpired at Philadelphia bears interesting testimony of the clear vision and foresight of the writer of the following article. His faith in Jewish Democracy and in the ability of a representative Jewish body to take action that will uphold both the honor and dignity of American Jewry has been well awarded by the decisions of the Second American Jewish Congress. M. G., on the other hand, points the way towards creating a representative body in American Jewish life which will by its very composition add strength to Jewish communal life in this country.—THE EDITOR.
THE Session of the American Jewish Congress must take place as planned.
The American Jewish Congress must pass into history as something completed and well-rounded. It should be possible to look back at the movement with pride and satisfaction. Under no circumstances must Jewish national democracy be open to the charge of having begun what it could not finish—of coming in through the front gate and leaving by the political back stairs.
The struggle for the principles of democracy in American Jewish life does not end with the Congress. Only the beginning and the great precedent are here. The more splendid and honorable the precedent, the greater will be the chance for the successful carrying on of the fight.
The more splendid and honorable—here you have expressed the need for the Second Session of the Congress, and its limitations as well. The Congress derived its greatness from the fact that it represented a united American Jewry. This coalition of forces was affected through certain necessary compromises, which set limits upon the scope and the duration of the Congress. The agreement, once reached, must be observed, else there will be little of splendor or of honor to record.
Our friends—or supposed-to-be-friends—of the left profess not to be bound by the sanctity of the Congress agreement. So be it. It may be accepted as a correct position to assume, that great national problems, and more particularly a great national catastrophe permits, and sometimes compels, withdrawing from an agreement; especially when the other party to the contract is free to do likewise, and thus end the partnership.
However, it is even superficially apparent, that in the very interest of the people's work, on whose behalf certain radical elements have professedly sought to renew a Congress Movement, it is at this moment imperative to avoid preventable schisms in American Jewry—the one Jewish group which is now, and will remain, the most powerful support for the shattered, blood-soaked Jewry of Eastern Europe.
The First Jewish Congress achieved the supreme victory for the national Jewish political ideal. Through its Congress, the Jewry of America took a stand on the status of Jewish rights in the Golus lands, and on the Jewish claims to Palestine, which fulfilled the highest expectations, if not the ultimate desires, of the nationalists. Nowhere, in any of the West-European countries was such a stand attained as the expression of the Jewish body politic.
And the cause of Jewish nationalism will be greatly strengthened by the reiteration of a united stand of these problems at the Second Jewish Congress. Great truths do not become the property of groups of men through a single enunciation. They need to be repeated. But this can be accomplished only through a Second Congress that shall be in harmony with itself, that shall keep within its self.
prescribed bounds. An embattled Congress, and one divided against itself, may easily destroy what the First Congress created.
Long before the Congress was summoned into being there appeared the phenomenon of a partial democratization of Relief Work. This was the first (albeit indirect) result of the movement for the calling of a Congress. Thanks to the fight for democracy in Jewish affairs, begun as early as 1915, enough courage was found to build up two representative people's relief organizations by the side of the organization representing upper-class "Yahudim." It is only because of that fight for democracy that a certain measure of co-operation between all three organizations was made possible.
As yet, this democratization is only partially effective. The real power in the relief work is vested in the hands of the "Yahudim" element. The Central and the People's Committees did not know or could not learn, how to achieve the necessary influence in the Joint Committee. Such a condition of affairs is highly unsatisfactory. This is not because the two people's committees are more energetic or more capable than the other. They are not any more so than the third committee, and their make-up is no more democratic; the Central Committee is self-perpetuating and the People's Committee is practically so. This state of things is not satisfactory only because the party in power, with the very best intentions, has not the necessary understanding of the spiritual needs of East European Jewry, nor the desired hearty attitude to this Jewry, whom they are pledged to help and to re-establish.
According to Point Four of its program of activity the Jewish Congress has a voice in the problem of relief. It will be the duty of the Second Congress to make its voice heard, but only by way of adopting plans as recommendations to the Relief Organizations. It cannot attempt to make over the Organizations, nor can it take over the work of relief upon itself. The Joint Distribution Committee could not agree to such a proposal; to cause a break in the relief work at this moment would be to do great damage to the cause.
The political work which the Congress began is not yet completed. Jewish rights have been won, but not made safe. The anti-Semitic countries which were compelled by the Peace Conference to sign treaties with points providing for the rights of minorities, will seek every means to evade carrying out these clauses. It will be the duty of American Jewry, joining with the Jewries of the rest of the world, to stand watch, to protect what has already been won. This work cannot be left to the American Jewish Committee alone. But neither can the Jewish Congress make this sole duty its excuse for permanent existence.
And so we are forced to the conclusion that the Second Jewish Congress must keep within the bounds of the First