Through Contest to Light.
History is diviner than we are apt to think, the wanderings of the human spirit after truth are not all delusion and loss; extremes however terrible, have instruction in them, which could never otherwise be realized; and antagonisms of opinion have displayed or called forth a mental tension, which the world could ill dispense with.
It has been the providential mission of one party to maintain the validity of divine authority in religion; it has been the mission of another to advocate the claims of reason and the light that is within us; it has often been the aim of a third to reconcile the claims of the two, and bring the world into harmony and peace. By few, comparatively, has it been seen that we should purchase this ascendancy either of authority or of reason at a dear rate—yea, that it were an unfruitful repose to consummate a perfect reconciliation of the two, before the fullness of the time has come; but that in their very antagonism we have the secret spring of real progress, and that in the continual separation effected by the reason, we are marching onwards to an ever higher, broader and more catholic unity in the clear comprehension of all that is truly implied in divine authority.
—October 3, 1856
Richard Wagner’s Fiasco
In the Frankfort o. t. M. Turngemeinde a swimming tournament was held, and three prizes given, all of which were won by Jews. If the Jews begin to swim, as it appears they have, Richard Wagner will have to write another book to show that the Jews’ swimming is not as classical as the Teutonic. That Wagner is more of a humbug than a composer is now admitted in Germany. Teutonism being now the fashion and mania in Germany, and a monument having been erected to old Hermann, nineteen centuries post festum, the Kaiser and all his faithful vassals being as Teutonic as the Rhine and Elbe, Wagner had to do something Teutonic par excellence, and he did the Nibelungen-Lied or three operas, in which he outdoes the buffalo, deer, and bear skins not admitted to grace, was superlatively Teutonic. But who will describe the patriot’s horror and mortification, who must read in a hundred different criticisms that operas without melodies, made of spectacle scenes and noisy Janissary orchestras, do not suit the German taste. The poor man speculating on Teutonic patriotism, although supported by the Kaiser and his host of vassals, made a piteous fiasco. If Heinrich Heine were alive, he would put Richard Wagner alongside of short-legged Massmann, to make Teutonic music for that extra Teutonic jumper of the King of Bavaria. Richard Wagner was a composer.
—September 29, 1876
Written for the ISRAELITE: STRAY JINGLES. BY SARA MESSING.
A GLIMPSE. A stretch of meadow clad in golden green, A winding stream that ripples gaily by; A bit of daisied field, a few bright clouds Low nestled ‘gainst the all-encircling sky; But sunlit waters and the breeze-blown leaf, The peaceful blue and each delicious part Of this sweet roadside view reveals anew Th’ Eternal Love that dwells at Nature’s heart.
A SMILE. A smile is like a rainbow, Which, though it fades away, Lingers in our memory Forever and a day. WHY? A heaven-born hope that ended with a sigh, A dainty bud that blossomed but to die: A soul that’s summoned while success is nigh— We smother grief and vainly wonder why!
REGENERATION. A golden green just lurking in the sod, A breeze-blown seed just bursting from the pod, A sun-kissed bud just waking with a nod, And oh, just everywhere, the smile of G-d.
SUNSHINE. A night of gloom, a heart of sorrow, A dismal, dreary, dark despair; Soft sunshine smiling with the morrow, Woos with her warmth and drives off care.
GIVE A LAUGH. If your work takes all your time, Give a laugh! If you’re out just every dime, Give a laugh! Suppose you’ve neither kith nor kin, Face the world with a real broad grin— Give a laugh! If a thorn gets in your hand, Give a laugh! If you’re losing all your “sand,” Give a laugh! Suppose that trouble comes your way, A smile will brighten any day; Face life bravely, gladly, say— Give a laugh!
WHY? I saw a lurid, livid arc of fire, A meteor shooting swiftly high and higher; With glorious light it pierced the cold, black sky, And traceless then it sank— I knew not why! I saw a youth start on through life to speed, And like that burning beam where’er his mind did lead, With one grand leap he reached his ideals high, And then his soul went out— I wonder why
—October 3, 1901
AS VIEWED IN GOTHAM
New York Rabbis Join In Urging Respect For Law—They Warn Against Trend of
Modern Life.
Rabbi Samuel Schulman:“…From the flapper to the superman, our civilization is blatant with the cry that man is his own master and that ethics are a survival from an old-fashioned age. In fact, anybody that talks of right and wrong is now pooh-poohed as a benighted Victorian….”
Rabbi Nathan Krass: “…There was a time when religion seemed to speak magisterially about matters that properly lay outside of its peculiar kingdom. It is only when we will have a clear understanding as to the function of religion that we will not fear science or philosophy….”
Rabbi Jonah B. Wise: “…Religion is the first-born of human genius. It sprung from man’s soul, not man’s soul from it. Just as the first-born in Israel had to be redeemed from the priest a remnant of human sacrifice, so each generation must redeem its religion from its priest…”
Rabbi Maurice H. Harris:“…every day is a day of judgment. The divine court is never closed. It knows no recess. It offers opportunity for perpetual appeal. Man cannot be justly doomed or saved at any one moment of his life. Human character is not a fixed quantity. We cannot draw a sharp line between the saved and the doomed. There are endless stages of improvement and retrogression in human life…”
Rabbi Stephen S. Wise: “…an awful problem faces Israel in our own time. In the world of material possessions, a legal title is the equivalent of an imprescriptible charter, but in the world of spiritual things a legal title, if such a thing can be, does no more than prove the spiritual poverty of them that hold no other title than the title of possession or tradition…”
—September 30, 1926
SOCIAL NEWS
Because of a delay in the arrival in this country of Eugene Takacs, Hungarian pianist, composer and teacher, his class in piano literature at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music will be taught temporarily by Dr. Arthur Darack, music editor of The Enquirer, it was announced by Dr. Luther A. Richman, Director and Dean of the Faculty.
Alpha Sigma Tau Sorority had its annual week-end affair Sept. 1-2. The lawn party was held Sept. 1 at the home of Marilyn Parkin at 1808 Greenbriar Place. The picnic Sept. 2 was held at Sharon Woods. Each girl was requested to bring a guest from another sorority who in turn invited a date, to the picnic Sunday.
The program for the year was outlined and a Benevolent Fund was established, in memory of Mrs. Rose Katona, to provide funds for scholarships and equipment for the Nursery.
Barbara J. Slutz, 1559 Elizabeth Place, a student at Walnut Hills High School, was a winner of the radio and television scholarships offered by Radio Cincinnati, Inc., for study at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music,
—October 4, 1951
Floyd Berg to Show Paintings
Floyd Berg, Cincinnati artist, opens an exhibition of his latest paintings Oct. 6, at Court Galleries, 7876 Montgomery Road.
Poems Dedicated To
Mrs. Hoffheimer
…Mrs. Hoffheimer teaches something out of the ordinary–yoga–to persons at Clovernook Home and School for the Blind, 7000 Hamilton Avenue, as a volunteer. One of her special pupils, Marjorie Book, 45, credited Mrs. Hoffheimer and the yoga class with stimulating her to write and rekindle her childhood interest in poetry…
Symphony Notes
Emanuel Ax, 25-year-old Polish-American pianist who captured first prize in the first Arthur Rubinstein International Competition, will make his Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra debut under Music Director Thomas Schippers, Friday and Saturday, Oct. 1 and 2, at 8:30 p.m. at Music Hall.
Born in Lvov, Poland, Emanuel Ax emigrated to Winnipeg with his family in 1959. He attended the Juilliard School in New York City. In addition to first prize in the Rubinstein Competition (1974) he won the Chopin Competition in Warsaw, Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels, Vianna da Motta Competition in Lisbon, and Michaels Award in the U.S.
Harold C. Schonberg of The New York Times wrote: “With his dream technique, he is a virtuoso who glories in being one.”…
—September 30, 1976
CHHE to move to Union Terminal
The Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education is moving to new exhibition space at Union Terminal when the Cincinnati Museum Center’s renovations are complete in November, 2018.
—September 29, 2016
Matisyahu headlines night of concerts for ish Festival
…Matisyahu, standing beneath the banner of the Jewish Cincinnati Bicentennial, addressed the crowd, passionately yelling into the microphone “Cincinnati! You have had Jews here for 200 years! 200 years of Jewish Cincinnati!” before intensely singing the timeless Jewish prayer of Shema Yisroel, or Hear O Israel.
—September 30, 2021