martillo@ihuxt.UUCP (Yehoyaqim Martillo) (07/24/84)
>Re Martillo's comment that the "Test for Jewishness" gives no >reason for pride: You have to identify yourself as being Jewish >before you can develop pride. Pride has to come from knowledge. I am reminded of a discussion I had with my karate instructor at Harvard. He was a Japanese Buddhist monk who attended the Harvard Divinity School to learn about non-Japanese religions. Judaism had impressed him but he had become aware that most American Jews knew less than nothing about their heritage and "were unworthy of their ancestors [his phrase]." He remarked to me, if American Jews knew what they had, they would be so proud. It is almost as good as being Japanese. I gave the correct reply, "No, it's better." My friend would not have respected persons who considered themselves inferior to him. As for using the holocaust as a test, there is no honor in having been so weak and divided that we were almost wiped out. No people can seriously use a national shame to define themselves. If Jewish is to be defined by having suffered the holocaust, I would forget about being Jewish. The aim of American law is to punish the malefactor. Jewish law tries to prevent wrong by encouraging individuals toward morally upright behavior. We would have had cause for pride if we had had the power of the Germans and then chose not to do evil because we had learned ethical behavior. I see no way to be proud of never having had a choice. -- Who wouldn't break for whales? Yehoyaqim Shemtob Martillo