The Catholic times. [volume], October 28, 1955, Image 4

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4—THE CATHOLIC TIMES
Friday. Oct. 28.1955
THE
CATHOLIC TIMES
Published Every Week by
The Catholic Times, Inc.
Columbus. Ohio
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St. Franeia de Sale*. Patron of the Catholic Free*.
Pray for u»1
This Psnpr Printed by Union Labor
The Bishop s Appeal
The Bishop is not appealing for himself. He is
begging for the children of the people of the
Diocese of Columbus, present and to come. In
his position as Chief Shepherd he must do ev
erything possible to bring souls to their eternal
salvation. He deserves the undying gratitude of
every soul he thus helps to Heaven.
Important in the work of saving souls is
that of moral training. Holy Mother Church di
rects that this be done and urges her Bishops
and priests to aid the parents in their solemn
ohligetmn in this matter. Sometimes little ones
have no parents, or are left lonely and without
care due tn broken homes. These, too, must re
ceive Inving spiritual and temporal care. An or
phanage at best does not take the place of a good
home and family life. But it does everything pos
sible to care for and direct innocent hearts to
the source of all love and consolation. Our lx»d
Himself. The devoted Franciscan Sisters who
have cared for St. Vincent Orphanage through
many long years alone can testify to all the
heartbreaks of little children, and the patient
and prayerful task of healing and training anew
bruised souls.
What these Sisters have endured in the way
of housing as they cared for the orphaned chil
dren of the Diocese has been nothing short of
disgraceful. The quarters for the children were
considerably hotter, but the old buildings have
got beyond proper decency in many respects.
Tn the matter of high schools, proper Catholic
training nf the modern “teen-ager” is a must.
Pastors of the city this year reported a marked
increase of non Catholics wanting to enroll their
children in parochial schools. Precious is the re
ligious training of our schools. No sacrifice is too
great to provide it. To make no sacrifice now
will he extremely expensive in future tears and
heartbreaks on the part of parents and relatives
Meanwhile, the scholastic standards of our
Catholic schools are of the highest, as they en
deavor to keep abreast of the best in modern
methods. While doing this the Catholic educator
is not carried away by false modern and pro
gressive Phil osophies of teaching, Live of God,
love of neighbor, love of country are essential in
his training. Discipline is just as necessary for
moral and intellectual accomplishment, There is
no substitute These qualities of the Catholic
•chools make them the most patriotic institutions
in nur beloved country. In justice, they merit
the grateful consideration of all of our non
Cathnlie neighbors.
mIli -Our Hope
Hope is hased on promise. Youth is the es
sence of promise. Youth is a tree just beginning
♦n flower, a gold mine undug, a field in the pro
cess of cultivation.
Youth’s contribution to society may bp as lim
ited as that of Aladdin, hut its potentialities are
as unlimited as those of his famout lamp.
These uplifting thoughts are being empha
sized this year by seven million Catholic young
men and women actively observing National
Catholic Youth Week from October 30 to No
member 6
National Catholic Youth Week should divert
the national eyp from the exceptional diseased
tree tn wee the green healthy forest. Fnr very
delinquent given space in the press, 100.000 youth
are an unheralded joy to their family and com
munity.
In contrast to the deadend purposelessness
In life marking the delinquent, America's seven
million Catholic youth wish to underscore their
wholesome purposefulness in life a life aimed
at lovp of God, love of country,“love of neighbor,
and proper love and respect of self.
Because it is still in the formative stage,
youth needs and seeks help and guidance. It
prefers a guiding hand to a shrug of unconcern,
a word of encouragement to caustic crimination.
Youth realizes it has much tn learn. So it asks
for a teacher rather than a critic. It knows that
its very inexperience makes it a special prey to
the traditional dangers in our .society crime,
narcotics, immorality. So it asks for special
help It seeks healthy playgrounds and recrea
inn tn keep it from the traps of crime and
dnpe It hopes for healthy literature and enter
tainment to keep it from moral debasement.
The Kingdom Eternal
The Church celebrates on Sunday the Feast
nf zChrial the King Tuesday will he the Feast
nf All Saints, and on the following day comes
he annual commemoration of All Souls. Sink
ingly significant is this association of the three
observances: we first profess our loyalty to Him
Wfyi is King over the entire universe alter
thirl we pay tribute tn those hnly men and women
alt dnwn the centuries who attained sanctity by
their fervent loyalty to Him and by their obed
ience tn His will and then we offer prayers fnr
all the faithful departed, an obligation of love
that hinds us because we, and they, are part of
His kingdom.
Courage and consolation arc to be found
In meditating upon the meaning of these observ
ances. For here is the spiritual unity that is our
protection against the evils and temptations sur
rounding us we are members of His kingdom
which is "eternal ana universal, a kingdom of
holiness and grace, a kingdom of justice, love
nd peace," as the Church proclaims in t{je sub
lime Preface of Sunday's Mass.
His kingdom is indeed “eternal and univer
sal His sovereignty did not begin yesterday,
nor mil it end tomorrow, nr ever: Hr is a ruler
over all. and all men owe Him obedience through
nut every moment nf their lives, in all their af
fairs His is truly a kingdom "nf truth and life,"
"of holiness and grace." when we submit to
His rule we share in a glorious heritage, raising
IM up frnm deceit and death, and making us
rich tn sanctity. It is, radiantly, "a kingdom of
justice, love and peace" to which He calls us,
he fulfillment nf man’s highest aspirations,
♦he source of true happiness.
And how dn we attain this kingdom, tn which
He opened the way by shedding His blond for
*ur redemption’ Hr gives us His commands and
counsels through His Church the example nf
His saints, honored by the Church, shows us the
application of tho«* command® and counsels.
Fnr the saints were men and women like our
seves, confronted by the same temptations,
weighed down by the same cares suffering, most
nf them, worse hardships than are our lot. They
kept clearly in mind, at all'times, the distinction
between His kingdom of love and the world’s
kingdom of indulgence and baseness we, loo,
by imitating the saints in constant loyalty to
Him, are kept in the course He would have us
follow.
The Gospel of Sunday’s feast tells how Pilate
asked Jesus the same question w’hich the incred
ulous world is still raising: “Thou art then a
king?” The answer was addressed to Pilate, hut
the Savior’s words still ring out for the whole
world to hear: “Thou sayest it I am a king. This
is W’hy I have come into the world, to bear wit
ness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth
hears My voice." The saints heard that voice
heard it in the phrases of the Beatitudes that
are the marks of true Christian living: “Blessed
are the poor in spirit Blessed are the meek
Blessed are they who mourn Blessed
are they who hunger and thirst for justice
Blessed are they who suffer persecution for
justice's sake Blessed are you when men
reproach you, and persecute you, and. speaking
falsely, say all manner of evil against you. for
My sake."
Of such is His kingdom.
Just Among Ourselves
Passing Commant Considered or Inconsiderate
Oliver Wendell Holmes, the elder, the poet
and Autocrat of the Breakfast Table, once wrote,
“You may set down as a truth which admits of
few exceptions, that those u'ho ask your opinion
really want your praise.”
O.W.H. was talking, of course, of people who
ask your opinion of theii works and pomps, of
their appearance, or of their achievements. He
might have gone on to say that those who ask
your opinion about events or situations really
want one of three things: (a) confirmation of
their own opinion (b) a chance to air their own
opinion or (c) an argument.
It seems, then, that it is a “truth which ad
mits of few exceptions” that people who ask
your opinion are to be handled warily, since
their approach is suspect. They are nol simple
questioners they are only making an approach
they have an ulterior object in view.
“Well,” says Jones, displaying his new car.
or his new suit, or a letter of praise from his
boss, “what do you think nf it?” Naturally, you
are not going to hurt the feelings of a happy
man you tell Jones that the car or the suit or
the letter is "great!" Nor are you telling a lie,
no matter what your objective opinion is for
anything is great that can give honest and inno
cent pleasure to a person, Rut. if you really do not
like what Jones displays, you wisely refrain
from detailed comment.
Dr. Johnson felt that when an author showed
him his work and asked his opinion of it, he was
not bound to express his true mind. For, said he,
asking another’s opinion of your composition is
putting him tn the torture: it is usually a case
of compelling him either to hurt your feelings
or to tell lies. He can lawfully squirm out of
the situation by an evasion. He can say what
you show' him is interesting, or intriguing he
may even say it is amazing it could be any or
all of these without being of high quality. And,
ten to one, you are pleased with his comment.
“Is that poetry?" cried one versifier, writhing
with joy and satisfaction as Johnson was read
ing his lines, “Is that Pindar? Is that poetry,
sir?" “Well," said the Doctor, “we have here
a
great deal of what is called poetry."
Have we not all, or nearly all, had experience
of the friend who asks, with full candor and
humility, the benefit of our opinion? “Now, I
want you to tell me honestly just what you
think of this. Don’t be afraid nf hurting my feel
ings Speak plainly and even harshly, if need
he 1 can stand that. But I do want your frank
opinion.” Ah, beware, beware! Don’t you give
any frank opinion! If you value the friendship
nf this friend, if you cherish your own peace
of mind, brush off this assignment somehow,
and deliver no opinion.
Mind you, the friend who asks your opinion,
say, for instance, of a speech that he has writ
ten for public delivery, and of which he wishes
your preliminary notion,,—is almost certainly sin.
cere and humble and honest in his approach.
He does not know his own inner deeps until
a
critic unwisely stirs them up by adverse com
ment. He is prepared, albeit unconsciously, to
resent the criticism he asks for. He is inwardly
ready to be hurt by anything short of whole
hearted and enthusiastic approbation.
Says Mr. A. Io Mr. B, "Please listen while I
run through a little speech I have prepared for
the Bull Monse convention next week. I’ll lake
it as a real favor if you will point out anything
in the composi|ion or delivery that needs cor
rection Just speak your true thoughts don’t
try Io soften your criticism deal with the thing
objectively without any considers!am of per
sonalities or feelings." Alas for poor Mr. ^R.
consents to hear the speech. He puts up an es
tablished friendship for sudden destruction.
And so Mr. A. delivers his speech. Mr. B.
listens in agony. He feels that the whole thing is
silly. He doesn't care for his friend in the role
of orator. He would like to advise Mr. A. to
call the event off. Rut he just sits and listens
and suffers. Afterwards hr gives words of hol
low praise. And then, and then he commits the
unpardonable offence of doing what he was
earnestly requested to do: he offers a small
criticism.
“There is one thing I’d like Io say, and I
think I ought to say,” declares Mr. B., inwardly
wishing that he had not heard the contended
speech, “and that is this: you have, it seems to
me, a slight tendency to swallow final syllables
your voice suddenly fades out at the end of
each sentence. In this and in some other in
stances, I notice a want of clear articulation.”
There! Mr. B. has said it. Now Mr. A. won’t
think him an insincere softie, but a true add
candid friend who speaks his mind.
But Mr. A. sees the matter differently. He
feels a slow burn welling up within hub. He
controls himself with a manifest effort. “It’s
strange you should say that," he says, “for 1
have always prided myself nn my articulation.
My speech-teacher in college said mine was the
blearest enunciation he ever heard. I have many
speech-faults I know, but surely had articula
tion is not one of them. Tell me I can’t com
pose a speech tell me I lack the grace of smooth
delivery tell me I mispronounce words, and I'll
agree with you. But don't tell me 1 do not enun
ciate clearly, for I know better."
And there is an end of a Inng and beautiful
friendship. Diner Wendell Holmes was right:
those who ask your opinion really want your
praise.
5
n
WASHINGTON LETTER
WASHINGTON The visit
President Carlos Castillo Arm
as of Guatemala plans to pay
to this country at the end of
this month has a very special
interest.
The visitor comes from a na
tion which only recently threw
off a Red-tainted regime which
had dominated it for some
years. It is seeking now to coun
teract the effects of communist
propaganda and demagoguery
exercised in high places. Ob
servers who have recently vis
ited Guatemala say it is not
altogether an easy task.
Coming at a time when the
Free World stands in some
danger of being^ deceived by the
new “smiling faciyie” of world
communism, this reminder of
Guatemala’s experience should
have a sobering effect.
Reporjs from Guatemala say
that former Red leaders are re
turning to that country and to
El Savador from more dist
ant places, and at a time when
the new regime is still deeply
engrossed in the problems of
reconstruction' Guatemalan po
lice were said to have evidence
that several groups are at work
plotting the overthrow of the
present government.
MONSIGNOR HIGGINS
In view of the pending mer
ger of the A FL and CIO, sched
uled for the early part of De
be appropri
ate to sum
marize some
of our impres
sions of the
cember, it may
He
CIO and its
place in th*
American
scene during
the two brief
but exciting
decades of its
existence. A
similar column on the place of
the A FL will follow shortly.
In our opinion, the establish
ment of the CIO in the middle
’30s was one of the most im
portant landmarks in the his
tory of the United States. It
was truly a great step forward
in the development of human
progress—not only in the Unit
ed States but, by force of ex
ample and moral influence, in
other countries as well.
Militant Industrial Union*
One way of measuring CIO’s
contribution to the cause of so
cial justice and to the strength
ening of American democracy
is to compare the statistics on
wages, hours and working con
ditions of millions of men and
women in the mass prodtK’tmn
industries before and after
1935. The record speaks for
itself, and it must be credited
in large measure to the efforts
of the CIO and its affiliates.
Academic theories to the con
trary notwithstanding, the phe
nomi nal progress reflected in
these statistics never would
have been achieved in the ah
scence of militant industrial
unions. It is now- generally
agreed, I think, that the estab
lishment of militant industrial
unions would have been post
poned, perhaps for many years,
in the absence of the CIO.
Freedom, Brotherhood
In the final analysis, how
ever. this remarkable improve
ment in' the material standard
nf living of millions of indust
rial workers is less important
Geneva Please Note
Guatemala's ‘Red' Problem
But what, could be Guate
mala’s chief problem now, in
the opinion of qualified stu
dents of such matters, is the
task of “unpoisoning" the
minds, of the masses. The re
gime of President Castillo
Armas, is finding it hard to
overcome the propaganda din
ned into the ears of the work
ers and Indian peasants during
the time Reds exercised high
authority.
Coupled with this is the fact,
they say, that Guatemala had a
hackground of some decades of
selfish Liberalism, European
style, when the communist
preachings of hate and animos
ity began to reach the people
on a large scale.
But, given time and a reason
able, calm, Guatemala is in a
very good position to work out
its proper destiny, observers
feel* There are some very en
couraging “bright" spots in the
picture. A new Constitution is
expected to go into effect early
next year. Liberalism and So
cialism have both been discred
ited with many leaders. The
Church has gained juridical rec
ognition. Freedom of education
is established with the door
open for religious instruction
On to Greater Heights
than CIO's historic contribution,
at what we might call the spir-%
itual level, to the cause of hu
man freedom and human broth
erhood. We are not referring
specifically to what the CIO
has done, for example, to pro
mote the cause of interracial
justice. To be sure, that was
a very important contribution
to the strengthening of Amer
ican democracy, but what we
wish to emphasize in particular
is the broader contribution
made by the CIO to the cause
of self-government in industry.
A well-known Catholic phil
osopher, Professor Yves Simon
of Chicago University, makes
this point very forcefully
in a recent book on The Phil
osophy of Democratic Govern
ment. "So long," he says, “as
the labor union remains faith
ful to its idea and keeps itself
from corruption by economic
power, free from monopolistic
practices, free from subserv
ience to party ambition or state
bureaucracy, it constitutes
a
unique means to train masses
of men in self-government
Over and above resistance to
unfair management, labor or
ganizations have accomplished
the double feat of helping to es
tablish discipline among mass
es of men and of giving such
discipline the higher meaning
of autonomy.”
Matt Production Unions
This is true of every labor
union worthy of the name. But
in recent years it would seem
to have been particularly true
of the mass production unions,
most of which have been affil
iated with the CIO. For the mil
lions of semi-skilled or unskill
ed workers organized into these
unions were the very people
mpst in need of an effective
means of achieving self-governj
meat in their working lives.
In the absence of strong un
ions, handed together in
a
strong federation, these work
ers would have been voteless
citizens nf the industrial com
mumty victims, at the worst,
All of which makes it clear
that a people do not easily ex
tricate themselves from the
coils of Red propaganda, once
they are entrapped.
Fortunately for Guatemala,
and for our hemisphere rela
tions, too, Castillo Armas is
.thoroughly determined to guar
atee by the Constitution fair
legislation for workers and
peasants. He wants to avoid
those pitfalls that might con
tribute to the Reds’ return to
power.
of industrial serfdom or. at
best, beneficiaries of a new
degrading type of paternalism.
The Everlasting Problam
The CIO has had its prob
lems during the past two dec
ades, notably the problem of
Communist infiltration. Fortun
ately that problem was met
head-on and s'' far as the CIO
is concerned no longer exists.
There is still the problem of
rank-and-file apathy jp many
CIO locals and internationals,
but this problem is not confin
ed exclusively to the CIO.
To the extent that the AFL
and the CIO can solve this prob
lem in the unified labor move
ment which, thanks be to God,
is about to come into exist
ence, they will put all of us
even further in their debt. For,
to repeat, a vigorous democrat
ic labor movement -r which
meins a labor nibvement in
which there is active rank-and
file participation—is one of the
strongest possible bulwarks of
political democracy. For that
reason, as Professor Simon has
written, "any reform which
would jeopardize the operation
of labor unions or alter their
essential constitution is bound
to arouse the suspicion of the
democratic mind."
The danger of such “re
forms" is always present but,
in our opinion, it should not
be exaggerated at the present
time. All things considered, we
would expect the unified labor
movement, in cooperation with
enlightened management, to
make gradual but. steady and
substantial progress in the
years ahead—thanks, in no
small measure, to the solid
foundation established during
the past twenty years by the
CIO.
The CIO is not going out of
existence as of December. Rath
er it is going on to even great
er heights as an integral part
nf what promises to he the best
and strongest labor movement
in the history of the modern
world.
Inquiry
A
b’V-
lb
ft
in the public schools. New re
ligious orders are permitted
to enter the country, after a
period in which the admittance
of needed missionaries was se
verely restricted.
While Guatemala must con
tinue to defend itself against
the possibility of Reds again
gaining a dominant position
in the country, it must also
guard against falling into a
wholly negative “anti-commun
ism" that would prevent social
advances. What Guatemala must
strive to create is a lively spir
it of Christian cooperation.
That is why it is necessary to
overcome many wrong ideas
that are in the minds, of. the
people.
2-------------- Fat er
Q. It seems to me that "vir
tue" is taken as a kind of “sissi
fied” quality. Why has Chris
tianity so degenerated that
our ideals seem so weak and
unappealing to the world?
Should we not emphasize the
manly qualities of Christ more?
A. Words can take on new
meanings but the Collegiate
Dictionary derives virtue from
Isatin “virtus” meaning
strength, courage, virtue, from
“vir” meaning man. It defines
virtue as moral excellence.
The fact that moral excellence
has sometimes been confused
with hypocrisy and pious pre
tense, as seen in the “holier
than-thou” school of action,
does not change the Christian
idea. Christianity has pot oe
generated in this respect, for
the Catholic Church in partic
ular has always insisted upon
virtue as something fulfilling
the best in human nature. Pla
to emphasized the cardinal vir
tues of prudence, justice, fort
itude and temperance, which
are hardly “sissified” if picp
erly understood and applied.
Some -ects have Dvisted them
to their own fancy and mad?
them ridiculous but the Catho
lic Church has insisted upon
the supernatural virtues of
faith, hope and charity as well
as the cardinal moral virtues
and taught them all in a rea
sonable and appealing way.
Virtue makes a map more n
Iv and a woman more woman
ly Wicker and confused peo
ple have always tried to con
vince themselves and others
that sin is something good, that
it shows character, etc. The
Kest answer lies in the lives of
Christians who exemplify true
virtue.
Q. Did Christ actually go into
Hell after His death? What,
about the words "descended
into hell" in the Apostles’
Creed?
A. Until the full revelation
of the New Testament the idea
and the words expressing the
idea of hell were not precise.
The ancient people, including
the Jews, used expressions
which are translated “hell” al
though they do not refer ex
clusively to the place of the
damned. There certainly was a
definite teaching on punish
ment for the wicked in the Old
Testament and the existence
and eternity of hell is clear
from the New. The expression
in the Creed, however, refers to
the place we usually call Lim-
RICHARD PATTEE
I knew, of course, before ar
riving in Israel, that Hebrew
was the national tongue and
that the ancient language had
been resur
rected, dust
ed off and
more or less
equipped for
20th century
demands.
Even though
one may
know theor
etically that
the Israelis
speak the
language of
Abraham and
Moses, it is
something of a shock to dis
cover that they actually do in
practice.
Israel is one of the few na
tions in the world where al
most all its citizens have had
to learn their mother tongue,
so to speak, after becoming
adults. In most countries the na
tionals speak the laqguage of
the country with a reasonably
good accent in Israel a very
large proportion of Israelis
still speak very bad Hebrew.
Moreover, there are a vast num
ber who speak it more or less
but who have not learned to
write it properly.
Linguistic Unity Hurdle
I have just been reading
One can imagine taking in a
million newcomers over the
past seven years, most of whom
were quite innocent of even the
basic elements of Hebrew, and
molding them into a linguistic
unity! The extraordinary thing
is that the Hebrew prevalent in
Israel still bears some resemb
lance to the Biblical language
of which it is the modern ver
sion.
What, No Vowalt?
I am one of those people end
lessly intrigued by languages,
even foreign grammar. Before
visiting Israel I took the pains
to learn the Hebrew alphabet
and could manage, with some
effort, to stumble through a
simple text. The really devast
ating thing about the whole
business is that th* beginner
Corner
eal ey-----------------------—
ho. It was (he resting place for
just souls who died before the
Redemptive death of Christ and
were kept “in prison” (I Peter
3:20) until He descended to de
liver them and conduct them
into heaven. As St. Cyprian
says, “He went like a great
king who delivers his subjects
from a prison where they have
been kept in durance.”
Q. By what right can ont
man claim to speak by divine
authority and state that an
other man does not so speak?
How can the Catholic Church
teach that it alone has the
truth?
A. If God chooses to give at»
thority to someone exclusively
it should be obvious that some
one would have divine -utbon
ify and no one else would have
it. From the life or Christ it i*
clear that He chose Apostle*
and trained them and that H*
gave them special powers, not
granted to others. The Bible
clearly teaches that Christ es
tablished a divine society (and
only ONE). He gave the Apost
les power to teach (Matthew
28:19 Mark 16:15), to govern
(Matthew 18:18: John 20:21)
and to sanctify the souls
of
men (Matthew 28:20, John
20:22 Luke 22:19). “He who
hears you, hears me and he
who rejects you, rejects me
and he who rejects me, reject*
him who sent me,” (Luke 10:16)
makes clear our obligation to
accept the Church He estab
lished as His infallible voice.
What other church can serious
ly claim to be the historical,
united Church established by
Christ Himself—rather than
a
man-made institution of the
sixteenth century or later.
Q. Who is the patron saint
of
hunters? of bricklayers? of
athletes?
A. St. Hubert (feast is No
vember 3rd) is patron saint of
hunters, foresters and he is al
so invoked against rabies adfl.
for the protection of dogs. St.
Stephen (December 26th) i*
patron of bricklayers, stone
workers and so are the Four
Crowned Martyrs (November
8th). St. Barbara (December
4th) is also mentioned as pat
ron of stone-masons. St. Sebas
tian (January 20th) is patron
of
athletes in general there are
others for particular activities.
Send questions to Father Ed
ward F. Healey, Inquiry Cor
ner, The Catholic Times, Box
636, Columbus (16) Ohio.
Hebrew Language
is started off with his httla
texts carefully vocalized—that
is to say, the vowels are pro
vided in the markings. But
when he lands in Israel, he dis
covers that signs and notices
are all written without vowels.
To those who know even less
Hebrew than I do (and this
takes a bit of doing) I might
add that the language is norm
ally written only with the con
sonants. Thus it is a sort of
shorthand which leaves an un
common amount of interpreta
tion to the imagination. If my
name were to be written in nor
mal Hebrew characters, it
would appear as follows:
Rchrd Ptt. The first part
ought to be fairly intelligible,
but the last could just as easily
be Pitt or Pott or Putt as any
thing else.
One writer has suggested that
in the word dog were written
as
the Israelis would write
it
—that is, dg—it might very
possibly be dig, dag, dug, Doge,
dago, edge, adage or ads gio,
There is absolutely no way, so
far as I could discover,
of
finding out which word is
in»
tended except from context.
Extraordinary Bon Yahude 1
How did this remarkable
phenomenon of the restoration
of Hebrew come about? The
original Zionists, even Dr. Theo
dore Herzl who was the father
of the movement, did not think
of Hebrew as the language of
the future state. There wa»
some suggestion that perhap*
Yiddish would do, but this i*
obviously the lingua franca
of
the Jews from central and east
ern Europe and has nothing tn
do with those from the Yemen
or North Africa.
a
little book by a Hebrew univer
sity professor, Eliezer Rieger,
called “Modern Hebrew,” which
deals with the methods and
techniques of learning this
language. This competent au
thority suggests that in all
probability a couple of months
of intensive labor will suffice
to get a good smattering, but
that something like 1800 hours
of hard work will be needed to
write it. This is not frightfully
encouraging when one thinks
that 1800 hours distributed at
say five hours a day, would
take up a year.
The whole business was th*
job of one of the most extra
ordinary men that has ever
lived, Ben Y’ehuda. There is, in
cidentally, a first rate study
of
this energetic and dedicated
Jew by Robert St. John, called
“Tongue of the Prophets." It
tells the story of how Ben Ye
huda established himself in
Jerusalem during the last cen
tury and began his life work
of reviving Hebrew as a living
language. Through years of ad
versity and difficulty
he kept
at the task until, at the end of
his life, most hf the Jews in
Balestine were actually speak
ing it.
The process of taking a lan
guage that died over 2.000 years
ago and adapting it to the need*
of today is no small matter. I
am no authority for judging,
but if the fluency and verbosity
which characterize the people
of Israel is any rriterian, theW
Ren Yehuda succeeded
very marked degree.