In the Beginning: 1854
Each week The American Israelite will print an item from the first years.
WITTY REPLY. — When in 1850 Dr. Jellenik was shot in Vienna by orders of Prince Windischgraetz; because the long journalist was suspected of being concerned in the rebellion — a Dominican monk ironically asked a Jewish student, “Do you not pity your Jewish brother who is to be executed to-day?” — “Yes,” was the reply, “because he has not been convicted of rebellious operations under the ancient Romans,” — “Why so?” the monk asked hastily. — “Because,” said the student, “he would have been crucified, and there he had a chance to become a god.” The monk was satisfied, and made up his mind to ask no more questions.
— September 29, 1854
150 Years ago
Items
- Mr. Frank S. De Haas, of New York, has been appointed consul to Jerusalem.
- Received (and delivered to the Secretary) $5.00 by Mr. Solomon Levy, of Eatonton, Ga., for the Theological Institute.
- Rev. Jacob L. Cardoz, for ten years associate rabbi preacher in Amsterdam, Holland, who recently arrived in this country, has left for Charleston, S.C. He is a cousin of Rev. J. H.M. Chumaceiro, of that city.
- The “New York Hebrew Teacher’s Assocation” numbers over thirty members. Their object is mutual help and protection. A register will be kept at some prominent office, for the benefit of those wishing to engage a teacher.
- Wood’s Theater. — At this beautiful and popular place of amusement, large crowds are nightly delights with the society play of “Surf.” The piece is well mounted, and all the actors well versed in their parts. Mrs. Macauley as Mrs. Noble displays line acting, and a thorough appreciation of the character she represents. Grand Matinee Saturday afternoon.
- We are requested by the President of K.K. B’nai Yeshurun to state that the annual general meeting of the members of the congregation will be held in the vestry of the Temple, Saturday, the 27th, at half past seven p.m., and that every member is expected to be present, as the committee who have been appointed to call on Dr. Isaac M. Wise to withdraw his resignation will bring their report before the meeting.
— September 26, 1873
125 Years ago
Jottings
- There are in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the two Turkish provinces now occupied by Austria, 1,000,000 inhabitants and among them about 300,000 Jews of Spanish origin. No anti-Semitism there and the Austrian government secured them equal rights with all other subjects of the empire. These Jews belong to the Sephardic genuine orthodoxy, are generally well-to-do merchants, mechanics, farmers and some few day-laborers in the cities.
- The Jewish residents of Bennington, Vt., are talking of building a synagogue.
- Mr. Isaac Bing of Wilmington, O., sends us $5 for the Hebrew Union College and $5 for the Cleveland Orphan Asylum, for which we thank him on behalf of the beneficiaries.
- Professor M. Margolis, formerly of the Hebrew Union College, now of the University of California, officiated at San Jose, Cal, during the holidays to the great satisfaction of his hearers.
- Miss Delaphine Love, daughter of Dr. I.N. Love, a prominent physician of St. Louis, and Mr. Charles Cohn, 22 years of age, a son of Col. Henry S. Cohn of the Louisville, Ky., “Anzelger,” were secretly married, “in a spirit of fun,” at Jeffersonville, last Saturday afternoon. The young lady was to have been Maid of Honor at the St. Louis “Veiled Prophet” ball on October 4th. She has been a frequent visitor in Louisville where she is a great social favorite.
— September 29, 1898
100 Years ago
Let the Ignorant Be Inconspicuous
A blind man sitting in the chimney corner is pardonable enough; but sitting at the helm he is intolerable. If men will be illiterate and ignorant, let them be so in private, and to themselves, and not set their defects in a high place to make them visible and conspicuous. If one will not be hooted at, let them keep close within the tree, and not perched upon the upper boughs.
Jottings
- The gentle cynic says that when it comes to a matter of right, it is just as permissible for women to smoke as for men, but it is, also, just as allowable for the ladies to chew tobacco, but he would not like to see them do it.
- There are now about seventeen, more or less, “only national Jewish weeklies,” in the United States. There may be some however, of which the Israelite has no knowledge. The number of “onlys” is rapidly increasing, and there is nothing to prevent them from being numbered by the score in the near future.
- The late Rabbi Isaac M. Wise, being asked whether or not he considered it necessary for Jews to fast on Yom Kippur, replied that whether it was or not, he wanted all the members of his congregation to observe the fast rigidly, inasmuch as all of them had at least three bountiful meals every day the year round, it is for the good of their souls to have them fast rigidly one twenty-four hours out of the year, to know what it feels like to be hungry. It would tend, he thought, to make them even a little more charitable.
- Religion by radio, or the latest method of procuring a machine-made sanctity free of cost, is apparently causing consternation among an increasing number of the Protestant clergy. Church services, their people find, can just as well be had in bed with the late Sunday morning coffee, as in the church edifice, or while taking the Sunday morning bath, or getting ready for the golf links, or the baseball grounds.
— September 27, 1923
75 Years ago
Thrift Shop Reopens for Season of ’48-’49; Needs, Aims Outlined
Beginning its ninth year, the Odds and Ends Thrift Shop, operated by the Council of Jewish Women at 240 W. Fifth street, is open for business after a short vacation period.
The Thrift Shop’s purpose is to supply clothing and household effects at minimum prices to men, women and children. From the proceeds, the Thrift Shop supplies the Council with some of the monies this organization uses in varied fields of philanthropy.
Utilizing a system of daily chairmen, the Shop is operated by a manager and a sales force of volunteers. Mrs. Leo S. Friedman is Thrift Shop chairman.
The shop is in especial need of children’s and men’s clothing and shoes. Any and all articles of clothing and household goods in good condition are wanted at all times by the Shop.
Cincinnati Social and Personal
- Miss Jacqueline Weiss, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Abram Weiss of West Englewood, J.J., is attending the University of Cincinnati, College of Liberal Arts, as a pre-law student. Miss Weiss, a niece of Dr. Victor E. Reichert, is residing at the University Memorial Dormitory on the campus.
- Mr. Sam Malcolm Levy has been appointed to conduct a new evening class on advertising campaigns, at the University of Cincinnati Evening College.
President of the Associated Advertising Agency, Dixie Terminal Building, Mr. Levy has a wide experience in advertising. He served in an executive capacity for seven years with the McCann-Erickson Co. of New York, before coming to Cincinnati.
— September 30, 1948
50 years ago
JCRC Sponsors Person-to-Person New Years Cards to Soviet Jews
A community project to send New Year’s greetings to Jews in the Soviet Union has been organized by the Jewish Community Relations Council.
Rabbi Solomon Greenberg, president of JCRC, and Steve Rosedale, chairman of the JCRC Committee for Soviet Jewry, made the announcement.
More than 6,000 pre-addressed cards are being distributed through area organizations, synagogues and religious schools. This is the first time such an extensive program of mailing to the USSR has been undertaken in Cincinnati.
The cards have a message in Russian which, translated, reads ‘L’Shannah Tova Tikvutanuh! A Happy New Year! From the Jews of the USA to the Jews of the USSR. We have not forgotten and we will not forget.”
Bar Mitzvah
Mr. and Mrs. Jerry E. Klein are pleased to announce the Bar Mitzvah of their son, Bradley Scott, on Saturday, Oct. 13, at 10:45 a.m., at the Isaac M. Wise Temple, Eighth and Plum Streets.
Bradley is the grandson of Dr. and Mrs. Milton H. Klein, of Cincinnati, and Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Rosen of Linden, N.J.
Friends and relatives are cordially invited to worship with the family and join them for the kiddush following the service.
— September 27, 1973
25 Years ago
JNF Honors Heimans with Tree of Life Award
By Phyllis Singer
Editor
Kim and Gary Heiman were honored Sept. 13 with Jewish National Fund’s Tree of Life Award in recognition of their commitment to Israel and the Jewish people.
More than 600 people attended the dinner at the Museum Center, which raised $501,000, announced Dick Weiland, dinner co-chairman. Proceeds will benefit the ongoing development of the reservoir at Arad, Israel.
Temple Members ‘Wise-Up’ for social action
More than eight years ago the Isaac M. Wise Temple introduced the social action program titled Wise-Up (Ultimate Program) to respond to the needs of the Cincinnati community. At the beginning of the Jewish year, Wise Temple congregants are asked to participate in more than 41 different projects including collecting food for the Cincinnati Free Store/Food Bank, serving food at the Over-the-Rhine Soup Kitchen, hosting the homeless through the Interfaith Hospitality Network, playing beeper baseball with blind adults and volunteering at local hospitals on Easter and Christmas.
Rabbi Lewis Kamrass, Wise Temple senior rabbi, said, “in performing the mitzvot of tzedakah (charity) and tikkun olam (repairing the world) our members are not only talking about the issues of the day, they are responding to them with action.”
— October 1, 1998
10 Years ago
Jewish Foundation’s Camp Livingston Grant Reflects JFC Goals
In its commitment to the mission of “investing in our community”, The Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati has recently invested in critical repairs and improvements in The Robert Krohn Livingston Memorial Camp near Bennington, Indiana. “In its goal to ‘make Cincinnati one of America’s great cities for Jewish life,’ the Foundation’s investment has helped strengthen Camp Livingston, our community’s Jewish resident camp”, said Gretchen Myers, president of the Camp’s Board of Directors. Livingston is nearing its 100th anniversary in 2020.
Wise Temple Congregational Dinner Features Legal Expert on Marriage Equality
In light of the recent Supreme Court decision on the Defense of Marriage Act and California Proposition 8 in June 2013, Wise Temple is excited to bring in noted national legal expert Marc Spindelman, Isadore and Ida Topper Professor of Law at Moritz College of Law at The Ohio State University. Spindelman will address the Court’s decisions and their implications for the future of the ongoing legal push for same-sex marriage equality and equal rights.
Professor Spindelman will be the guest speaker at Shabbat services on Friday, October 11. His talk will help shed light on the complex decisions reached by the Supreme Court of the United States in June on the federal Defense of Marriage Act and California Proposition 8. These Supreme Court decisions leave many questions about whether same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry.
— September 26, 2013
