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Show I Jews Caught So Dynamic History By SYLVIA KRONSTADT Chronicle Staff Writer The Jewish community caught up in the dynamic evolutionary processes of history was the subject sub-ject of Dr. Ellis Rivkin's final lecture lec-ture Wednesday evening, "The Nation-State and Beyond: Unity in Diversity." The four-lecture series, sponsored by the Salt Lake Jewish Community, was entitled "Challenge, "Chal-lenge, and Response: the Dynamics of Jewish History," and featured Dr. Ellis Rivkin of Cincinnati's Hebrew Union College. In his previous lectures, Dr. Rivkin Riv-kin had traversed the significant segment of Jewish history to the 16th century, and Wednesday evening eve-ning he sought to explore "the last of the past, and the first of the future." In the 16th century, Jewish people peo-ple were dispersed all over Europe, the Ottoman Empire, and the Near East. They had retained their 3000 year-old concept of the single diety, although this concept had evolved and expanded among individuals, and since the separate philosophies had not lost their identity, the result re-sult was individuality within an integrated in-tegrated whole thus, "unity in diversity." Good and Evil Times "Jews knew good and evil times," I A i L Dr. Rivkin comments, "but they did not understand why they were expelled ex-pelled from some areas and desired in others. They felt that God was either being good to them, or punishing pun-ishing them. The result was a mott-ley mott-ley unclarity." In the 16th century, Jews were expelled from England, France, and Spain. "But born in the 16th and 17th centuries," Dr. Rivkin continues, "was a whole complex of directional direc-tional force that gave patterning to Jewish experience. This was a new and vital economic form modern capitalism a form with it's own l irmer dynamic a driving force, continually breaking down precapitalist precapi-talist forms. It was restless, dynamic, dy-namic, innovating, and changing." The immediate and concrete effect ef-fect of the new system upon the Jewish people was the emergence of a new entreprenurial class, whiich grew out of the violent political, economic, and social changes within precapitalist nations. na-tions. The "divine right" monarchies, monarch-ies, with the subsequent introduction introduc-tion of representative governments, such as Parliament. Intellectual Revolution Accompanying this vast economic econom-ic transformation, was an intellectual intellec-tual revolution demanding univer-salism univer-salism and individualism. The universalism represented the free interplay of individuals within society, so-ciety, without religious or ethnic prejudices. The individuality was the result of a new religious emphasis em-phasis upon individual salvation and the "natural rights" concept ELLIS RIVKIN ture of the church and sought the new individual rights that were the core of the sovereignty of the age. They demanded that the Jewish mind be as free as the non-Jewish mind." A resulting period, known as the "enlightenment," found the old controls unnecessary, and adopted a more liberal Judaism, without abandoning historical h e r i tage. "Jews were denying the binding quality of Jewish laws," Dr. Rivkin , states, "which had previously equalled denying the auhority of the Jewish faith." Rivalry and Hostility At the beginning of the 20th century, cen-tury, however, rivalry and potential - hostility developed among the competing com-peting nation-states of Europe resulting re-sulting in nationalism. The sacrifice sacri-fice of universality for the emotional emo-tional appeal and unifying effect of irrational nationalism strengthened strength-ened the old precapitalist institutions, institu-tions, resulting in the danger of anti-semitism, and the viewing of Jews as alien. The reversion to nationalism na-tionalism of countries all over the world and the continuous depressions depres-sions of capitalist states caused anti-semitism to become rampant even in France, England, and the United States. "Just as the triumph of capitalism emancipated the Jews," Dr. Rivkin continues, "its stagnation threatened their existence." exist-ence." Dr. Rivkin's basic hope for the future consists of a global capitalism, capital-ism, and the stripping of Europe's freedom to destroy itself. "What killed anti-semitism in Germany was being able to buy a Volkswagen Volks-wagen and head off for a weekend in Italy instead of clobbering Jews," Dr. Rivkin remarked. "In other words, since wherever economic eco-nomic stability develops, anti-semitism withers away, the Jew's prime hope is his affirmation of diversity, and committment to a larger society." of John Locke. Thus, as Dr. Rivkin comments, "Whenever capitalism achieved a beachead and began a new mode of thinking, Jews, irrespective of their beliefs, found welcome and equality." The emancipation of the Jews, therefore, was generated not by the power of the Jews, but by the power of this new form. "Nations born of entreprenuria, such as America," Dr. Rivkin continues, con-tinues, "give the Jewish people complete equality. There is no mention men-tion of Jews in the constitution no amendments or qualifications no giving or taking of special rights but simply the assumption that Jews can enjoy rights through the force of their individuality and personality." States which remained anti-Jew had long histories of precapitalist forms, and large, powerful institutions. institu-tions. Their "old orders" were never completely broken down, and their influence of monarchies and the church remained strong. These old institutions represented the constant possibility of the rise of anti-semitism. Medieval Judaism "It was only natural," Dr. Rivkin remarks, "that the old medieval Juadism, which had its roots in ancient political and economic systems, sys-tems, was outdated. Jews began to challenge the autonomous struc- |