The Menorah Journal, Volume 1, 1915 | Page 2

to
bestir ourselves to emulation and to deepen the consciousness of
noblesse oblige; striving always to be sane and level-headed; offering
no opinions of its own, but providing an orderly platform for the
discussion of mooted questions that really matter; dedicated first and
foremost to the fostering of the Jewish "humanities" and the furthering
of their influence as a spur to human service.
It will undoubtedly prove necessary on more than one occasion in the
future to emphasize again the fact that the Journal is an unqualifiedly
non-partisan forum for the discussion of Jewish problems; and that
accordingly neither the Menorah Journal nor the Menorah Societies are
to be regarded as standing sponsor for the views expressed in these
columns by contributors. Nor will the Journal have any editorials
expressing the views of its editors or of the Menorah
organization,--particularly since the Menorah organization takes no
official stand on mooted subjects. The editorial policy will be one of
fairness in giving equal hospitality to opposing views; and space will
gladly be given to reasonable letters or articles that take exception to
statements or opinions published in these pages.
The Journal is singularly fortunate in having enlisted the co-operation
of the distinguished leaders of Jewish life and thought who comprise its
Board of Consulting Editors. The assurances already in hand of
important articles to come from our Consulting Editors and from other
notable men and women, both Jewish and non-Jewish, lend strength to
the editorial confidence that succeeding issues will more and more
repay the public interest. As an incidental but none the less vital aim,
the Journal hopes to be instrumental in encouraging our young men and
women, particularly in the Menorah membership, to devote themselves
to Jewish subjects as worthy of their best literary effort,--with
publication in the Menorah Journal as a prize to be eagerly sought for.
The Menorah hopes through the incentive of the Journal to develop a
"new school" of writers on Jewish topics that shall be distinguished by
the thoroughness and clarity of the university-trained mind and inspired
by the youthful, searching, unfearing spirit of the Menorah movement.

With these aims and these aspirations, the Menorah Journal bids for the
favor of the public. Scholarly when scholarship will be in order, but
always endeavoring to be timely, vivacious, readable; keen in the
pursuit of truth wherever its source and whatever the consequences; a
Jewish forum open to all sides; devoted first and last to bringing out the
values of Jewish culture and ideals, of Hebraism and of Judaism, and
striving for their advancement--the Menorah Journal hopes not merely
to entertain, but to enlighten, in a time when knowledge, thought, and
vision are more than ever imperative in Jewish life.

Greetings
From Dr. Cyrus Adler
President of the Dropsie College for Hebrew and Cognate Learning,
Philadelphia
[Illustration]
I AM very glad to be able through this first number of your Journal to
send a word of greeting to the Menorah men throughout the United
States. An Association which has as its object the promotion in
American colleges and universities of the study of Jewish history,
culture and problems, and the advancement of Jewish ideals, cannot but
fail to command my personal and official interest and support.
The Jewish people have a long and honorable record of literary activity.
Our Holy Scriptures, our Rabbinical Literature, our contributions to
philosophy, to ethics, to law, our poetry, sacred and secular, our share
in the world's history, all become part of the program which you have
laid out for yourselves as a means of cultivation. In their due proportion
they should (although they do not) form a part of the outfit of every
educated man. That they should be especially cultivated by Jewish
young people is self-evident, and, for several thousand years, they have
been.
You Menorah men have taken the modern form of association for the

purpose of carrying on these studies, of cherishing your Jewish ideals
along with your general culture or with your chosen profession, and it
was high time that you should do so. You already count thousands of
young people, and as time goes on you will gradually increase in
number. From among your group will come the future leaders of the
Jewish people in America, and your main body will form our
intellectual backbone. It is my hope and belief that your movement will
gradually tend toward the maintenance and promotion of Judaism in
this land.
We are now a population of nearly three million souls. That such a vast
body should be lost to Judaism or should maintain a Judaism ignorant
of its language, its literature or its traditions, is almost unthinkable.
Conditions abroad may shift the center of gravity of Judaism and of
Jewish learning to the American continent. Your movement is one