Chapter I: Front Matter

THE MENORAH JOURNAL

VOLUME I
NO. 1

JANUARY
1915

Greetings: From Dr. CYRUS ADLER, LOUIS D. BRANDEIS,
Professor RICHARD GOTTHEIL, Dr. JOSEPH JACOBS, Dr.
KAUFMAN KOHLER, Justice IRVING LEHMAN, Judge JULIAN W.
MACK, Dr. J. L. MAGNES, Dr. MARTIN A. MEYER, Dr. DAVID
PHILIPSON, Dr. SOLOMON SCHECHTER, JACOB H. SCHIFF, and
Dr. STEPHEN S. WISE

A Call to the Educated Jew LOUIS D. BRANDEIS

Menorah: A Poem WILLIAM ELLERY LEONARD

The Jews in the War JOSEPH JACOBS

Jewish Students in European Universities HARRY WOLFSON

The Twilight of Hebraic Culture MAX L. MARGOLIS

Days of Disillusionment SAMUEL STRAUSS

Three University Addresses--President ARTHUR T. HADLEY of
Yale University, Chancellor ELMER E. BROWN of New York
University, President CHARLES W. DABNEY of the University
of Cincinnati

The Menorah Movement HENRY HURWITZ

From College and University: Reports from Menorah Societies

PUBLISHED BY THE INTERCOLLEGIATE MENORAH ASSOCIATION
600 MADISON AVENUE, NEW YORK -:- -:- -:- 25 CTS. A COPY

INTERCOLLEGIATE MENORAH
ASSOCIATION

For the Study and Advancement of
Jewish Culture and Ideals

OFFICERS

Chancellor
HENRY HURWITZ
600 Madison Avenue, New York

President
I. LEO SHARFMAN
University of Michigan
First Vice-President

MOSES BARRON
University of Minnesota

Second Vice-President
LEON J. ROSENTHAL
Cornell University

Secretary
ISADOR BECKER
University of Michigan

Treasurer
J. K. MILLER
Penn State College

THE ADMINISTRATIVE COUNCIL

Composed of Representatives, one each, from every constituent Menorah Society (The Representatives for 1915 will be announced in the next issue of The Menorah Journal)

There are Menorah Societies now at the following Colleges and Universities:

Boston University
Brown University
Clark University
College of City of New York
Columbia University
Cornell University
Harvard University
Hunter College
Johns Hopkins University
New York University
Ohio State University
Penn State College
Radcliffe College
Rutgers College
Tufts College
University of California
University of Chicago
University of Cincinnati
University of Colorado
University of Denver
University of Illinois
University of Maine
University of Michigan
University of Minnesota
University of Missouri
University of North Carolina
University of Omaha
University of Pennsylvania
University of Pittsburgh
University of Texas
University of Washington
University of Wisconsin
Valparaiso University
Western Reserve University
Yale University

Office of the Intercollegiate Menorah Association
600 Madison Avenue, New York

THE MENORAH JOURNAL

VOLUME I JANUARY, 1915 NUMBER 1

An Editorial Statement

THE MENORAH JOURNAL, in its efforts to carry forward the aims and aspirations of the Menorah movement, will necessarily be far more than merely an "official organ" for the Menorah Societies. That function, indeed, becomes increasingly important as the Menorah Societies multiply in number and influence throughout the country. In this special appeal to Menorah members, however, the Journal will be more than a news medium; it will supply important material for study and discussion, and stimulate thinking and active effort in behalf of Menorah ideals. And inasmuch as the furtherance of Menorah ideals means the advancement of American Jewry and the spread of Hebraic culture, the Journal should appeal to every one in America who sympathises with these purposes. The Journal will be conducted with this general appeal always in mind--with the desire, indeed, to make it a model publication dealing with Jewish life and thought. To publish a periodical that shall measure up to this high standard, with its accompanying influence and power, is one of the aspirations of the Menorah movement; and the Menorah auspices and conditions are so peculiarly favorable to the achievement of this ambition as to lend every encouragement to the effort that will be put forth to make the Journal a genuinely significant publication for the whole of American Jewry.

For conceived as it is and nurtured as it must continue to be in the spirit that gave birth to the Menorah idea, the Menorah Journal is under compulsion to be absolutely non-partisan, an expression of all that is best in Judaism and not merely of some particular sect or school or locality or group of special interests; fearless in telling the truth; promoting constructive thought rather than aimless controversy; animated with the vitality and enthusiasm of youth; harking back to the past that we may deal more wisely with the present and the future; recording and appreciating Jewish achievement, not to brag, but 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_