My Brethren And Sisters I Should Like...

President McKay and Counselors: ¶

my brethren and sisters: I should like to say something about a people whom we all know and respect. I refer to the Jewish race who today are suffering in their native land of Palestine because of peoples who are determined to drive them from their homes — homes that have belonged to them from the far distant ages. In every period of the world's history, the Jewish people have stood for the brotherhood of mankind and have recognized that God gave the world its first children who came from heaven. From the days of Abraham, the Jews have maintained their identity as have no other people in history. They have remained one race in blood, instinct, and faith in one Supreme Being. They still follow the words of the Prophet Jeremiah when he addressed the Jewish captives in Babylon: ¶

Build ye houses and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them; And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the Lord for it [his blessings] ... ye shall have peace. (Jer. ¶

29:5, 7.) What great help the Jews of all ages have given to the divine principles of life! Levinger in his History of the Jews tells us that Columbus had with him on his first voyage, five Jews, including the man who first stepped on American soil. When they reached the first little island, the interpreter, who was a Jew, was the first man to write a description of the land. In the chronological writings of Padre Claudio Clemente is preserved a form of prayer said to have been used by Columbus on Friday morning, October 12, as he stepped on the land of the New World. The prayer was used by Cortez, Balboa, and Pizarro in their discoveries. ¶

Columbus declared in one of his letters to the king and queen of Spain that he was the "agent in the hand of God to go forth upon the mighty deep." According to Washington Irving, Columbus, when he set foot on the island of San Salvador, uttered the following prayer, which has been translated from the Latin: ¶

0 God, our Father, eternal and omnipotent, creator of heaven and earth and sea, we glorify Thy Holy name, praise Thy majesty, whom we serve in all humility, we give unto Thy Holy protection this new part of the world. ¶

Jews continued coming to America, but they were poor lowly immigrants, and their suffering was something terrible. And yet, the Jews were ever ready to help in times of distress. During the American Revolution, the "great majority of the Jews in the thirteen colonies were ardent in the cause of Liberty. ¶

Jews were elected to the Continental Congress." And many of them in every colony advanced all the money they had to help the American army. The man who did more, however, than any other Jew, was Haym Salomon, a wealthy Jew who lived in Philadelphia. ¶

Haym Salomon was a native of Poland. ¶

He was liberally educated, and his family was very cultured. Robert Morris writes in his journal: ¶

I sent to Haym Salomon and desired in every way to have him raise funds for the army. The men were starving everywhere. ¶

Haym Salomon responded. He first gave money to the starving soldiers and then to such men as Jefferson, Washington, and James Madison. At the close of the war, he had given all he had, $700,000, and within a few months, it is said, Salomon died of starvation. The family was never reimbursed, and the wife and children suffered greatly, owing, of course, to the death of husband and father. Theirs was a great sacrifice for the gaining of American independence. ¶

The place held by the Jews in creating our English literature is now becoming known. The character of Shylock in Shakespeare's famous comedy sums up the tragic position of the Jew in medieval Europe. The German, Lessing, in his Nathan the Wise was instrumental in having the ideals of the Jews understood. And it was a Jew, Spinoza, who helped to bring about the enlightenment which enabled the Jews to take a place in modern society. We can hardly realize the large number of Jewish writers who have created the literature of America. Fannie Hurst, Edna Ferber, Sholem Asch, and Robert Nathan are only a few of the many famous Jewish writers here in our country. You no doubt have read Israel Zangwill's The Melting Pot, which is a direct outcome of his visit to America. ¶

The Jewish people have had their own music since the days of Abraham when they used to sing and dance in their sacred meetings. And to think of the famous Jewish actors on the American stage who gave renown to the old Salt Lake Theatre. It was Charles Frohman who once declared that the Mormon theatre in Salt Lake City seemed to have a spirit of light that made the actors play at their very best. ¶

Charles Frohman lost his life when the Lusitania went down some years ago. ¶

As he stood on the deck of the ship trying to comfort the passengers that were weeping and praying, he said, "Why fear death. ... it is the most beautiful experience of life." ¶

The history of the Jews through all the ages beginning with the Holy Bible is a story of faith, love of God, and tenderness for all mankind that someday will become known. ¶

In September 1823, the Prophet Joseph Smith prayed to the Lord to forgive him his imperfections, and in answer to his humble pleading God gave him a vision, and a glorious person stood before him. "When I first looked upon him," said Joseph, I was afraid, but the fear soon left me. ¶

He called me by name, and said unto me that he was a messenger sent from the presence of God to me, and that his name was Moroni; and that God had a work for me to do; . . . (J. S. 2:32-33.) The Angel Moroni then quoted the eleventh chapter of Isaiah, saying it was about to be fulfilled. ¶

Knowing this historic fact, the sculptor, Cyrus Dallin, made the Angel Moroni that graces the central tower of our Salt Lake Temple. ¶

And now comes an event in the history of the Church that causes the most intensive faith in the work of God in this day. The Prophet Joseph Smith sent Apostle Orson Hyde to the Holy Land in 1841, where he dedicated the land for the return of the children of Judah. The prayer was prophetic in every way. Beautiful are the words of Orson Hyde as he prayed to God that the Holy Land of the Jews should be saved. I give only a few words of the prayer: ¶

Now, O Lord! Thy servant has been obedient to the heavenly vision which Thou gavest him in his native land; and under the shadow of Thine outstretched arm, he has safely arrived in this place to dedicate and consecrate this land unto Thee, for the gathering together of Judah's scattered remnants, according to the predictions of the holy Prophets — for the building up of Jerusalem again after it has been trodden down by the Gentiles so long, and for rearing a Temple in honor of Thy name. . . . ¶

Grant, therefore, O Lord, in the name of Thy well-beloved Son, Jesus Christ, to remove the barrenness and sterility of this land, and let springs of living water break forth to water its thirsty soil. Let the vine and olive produce in their strength, and the fig-tree bloom and flourish. Let the land become abundantly fruitful when possessed by its rightful heirs; let it again flow with plenty to feed the returning prodigals who come home with a spirit of grace and supplication; upon it let the clouds distil virtue and richness, and let the fields smile with plenty. Let the flocks and the herds greatly increase and multiply upon the mountains and the hills; and let Thy great kindness conquer and subdue the unbelief of Thy people. Do Thou take from them their stony heart, and give them a heart of flesh; and may the Sun of Thy favor dispel the cold mists of darkness which have beclouded their atmosphere. ¶

Incline them to gather in upon this land according to Thy word. Let them come like clouds and like doves to their windows. Let the large ships of the nations bring them from the distant isles; and let kings become their nursing fathers, and queens with motherly fondness wipe the tear of sorrow from their eye. (D H C 4:456-7, italics added.) How beautifully the Prophet Isaiah has given words of encouragement to Zion: ¶

O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringeth good tidings, Lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God! ¶

Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, And his arm shall rule for him. (Isaiah 40:9-10.) May we give our faith and prayers to the Jewish people in all the world this day, I ask in the name of Jesus Christ. ¶

Amen. ¶