What is the cause of antisemitism? Why didn’t Jews fight back throughout their long history of oppression and persecution? Why do young people reject Jewish tradition and how can we do better with the next generation? These are questions many ask today, but they are not new. In fact, they were asked by Dr. Solomon Grayzel at Adath Israel Congregation in Trenton, NJ when he came to speak here in 1961.
The Linder Archives at Adath Israel includes audiovisual material that has been digitized. One recording is of a lecture by the rabbi, historian, and editor Solomon Grayzel probably from 1961. There is no date on the reel-to-reel tape, but based on the books and plays he mentions, the speech likely took place in that year. (In fact, the address, entitled “Books, Bible and Modern Man” occurred on December 5, 1961 as part of the Adath Israel Adult Lecture Series.)
Unfortunately, I have only been able to find a reel with the first part of Grayzel’s lecture. Perhaps the second half is hidden away somewhere in our archive room, but for now we will have to remain in suspense as Grayzel lays out the important questions of his (and our) time, but the recording cuts off before he can fully answer them.
Grayzel’s talk centers on literature as a vehicle to understand the sociological position of the Jews. While one can read books for pleasure and literary nuance, he invites the audience to read novels with an eye to what they tell us about the authors who wrote them and the worlds they depict. For him, books hold up a mirror to the society that produces them.
Throughout his lecture, Grayzel refers to contemporary fiction. He notes that Philip Roth’s recently published short story collection Goodbye Columbus generated a lot of controversy due to the negative portrayal of American Jewish life. Rabbis and other communal leaders were outraged by Roth’s disturbing depiction of Jews without moral character. While Grayzel himself was offended, he rejects the idea that Roth is just an antisemite or what might be called today a self-hating Jew.
Grayzel makes the case that Roth is not presenting a distorted view of the community or that he is defaming American Jewry. Instead, he argues that Roth is uncovering some painful truths that must be acknowledged. Young people at the time were rejecting Jewish tradition and values, and this fact was important for the community to recognize so that it could respond.
While Grayzel praises Roth’s qualities as a writer, he offers some harsh criticism of Leon Uris, author of the novel Exodus about the founding of the State of Israel. He thinks Uris’s English is atrocious and his facts are distorted, but he is a good storyteller, which accounts for the book’s popularity. Grayzel is primarily interested in it because it puts forward the idea that the Jews only took up arms when they felt united behind the cause of Zionism.
In light of our current debate between Zionism and anti-Zionism, Grayzel makes an interesting comment on the cost of Jewish freedom. He wonders whether the creation of a Jewish state was really worth it because war and the violence independence requires is “a denial of all the ideals and all the history that has been ours for the past centuries.” Grayzel is no anti-Zionist, but he is comfortable acknowledging the cost of Jewish self-determination.
Ultimately, Grayzel’s asks how we can take the social criticism expressed in the books he mentions and help the Jewish community ensure that there is a better future. His answer is that it must start from scratch and shape the next generation by beginning all over again with the Bible. I’m not sure where he was going with this line of thought since the recording ends prematurely, but I assume he was advocating for better Bible education amongst Jewish youth.
Such an argument makes sense from Grayzel since he served as the editor of the Jewish Publication Society and oversaw the publishing of its translation of the Bible which we still use today in our Etz Hayim humash. He served in that position after a brief stint at Congregation Beth El in Camden (now Voorhees) as it’s founding rabbi. He also taught at Gratz College in Philadelphia, which just recently announced a partnership with the Jewish Theological Seminary to digitize his papers.
There is another ironic connection to the Bible in Grayzel’s career. He served as an expert witness in School District of Abington Township v. Schempp. The case, which eventually made it to the Supreme Court, struck down Bible study in public schools. Grayzel was opposed to the idea that biblical readings could provide neutral moral lessons. For him the Bible was a religious book to be taught by each faith according to its tradition.
We can take a certain comfort in knowing that the same questions and problems we grapple with today were vexing even in the golden age of American Jewish life in the 1960s. There is a poignant moment in the recording when Grayzel begins his talk. He had been introduced as “probably the foremost Jewish historian in this country,” but he demurs. Noting that his lecture is being recorded, he remarks that he himself does not believe that he is the foremost Jewish historian in this country, knowing that future historians will listen to this speech in 100 or 200 years and disagree with the characterization.
There is something powerful about hearing Grayzel speak to us directly, 65 years in the future. He knows that his words are being preserved for posterity, and he wants to get them right. Sometimes archives not only give us a glimpse into history, they open up a conversation between the past and the present.