PM Daviv Ben-Gurion speaking at the 10th Annual Biblical Studies Conference in Jerusalem, 1962. Sitting on the right: Dr. Haim Gevaryahu
The Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth, dated May 29, 1964, contains a full-page article about the mission of one, Dr. Haim Gevaryahu, to “the Diaspora”.
Dr. Gevaryahu is one of the leaders of the Society for Biblical Studies, and the goal of his mission was to increase Jewish and Zionist consciousness among Diaspora Jews.
It is highly doubtful that many bothered to read journalist M. Barash’s whiny and boring report on Dr. Gevaryahu’s travels around the globe.
We – we bothered. And here is a gem from that article:
Swedish Jewry too is consumed by assimilation and is still far from the idea of immigrating to Israel. At a party at the home of Charlotte Etlinger, president of WIZO, Gevaryahu mentioned the opinion of historians that anti-Semitism too plays a certain role in preserving the existence of Jews and Judaism. Anti-Semitism, he said, is like Jewish livelihood: excessive wealth and abject poverty – both are not “healthy” for the existence of Judaism, as the sage said in the book of Proverbs: “give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread.”
So is anti-Semitism: too much of it or too little is undesirable, but in reasonable degree it is desirable. It reminds Jews that they are Jews, and urges them to keep adhering to their people and remain loyal to their ancient homeland.
Well done, Dr. Gevaryahu, congratulations! We like people who talk candidly about all sorts of things, for example, about the connection between Zionism and anti-Semitism. By the way, we wish you not to suffer from anti-Semitism; not even to a “reasonable” degree.
[This is a translation of a short article that was published in Matzpen, July 1964]