Recognised for their great work

JORDAN MOSHE

With these words, community stalwart Marlene Bethlehem captured the spirit of the award presentations that took place at the South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) conference in Houghton on Sunday.

She was one of a number of personalities recognised for their contribution to the South African Jewish community, clearly lending credence to the Talmud’s dictum.

Bethlehem, former president of the SAJBD, received the Mendel Kaplan and Eric Samson Community Service Award from current president Mary Kluk, who lauded her for her decades of service in Johannesburg and further afield.                

“In a communal career spanning more than half a century, Marlene has involved herself in activities ranging from welfare and humanitarian work to human rights activism and relationship building, preservation of Jewish culture, and extensive political engagement on behalf of both local and international Jewry,” said Kluk. 

Bethlehem was also recognised for having served as chairperson of the Jewish Women’s Benevolent Society and the Jewish Community Service, both of which made her an honorary life vice-president. She was also praised for her work at the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture, where she has been president since 2016. 

Kluk added that Bethlehem had made history in 1995 by becoming the first woman to be elected as national chairperson of the SAJBD. “In this capacity, you played a role in helping the community adapt to, and become a meaningful part of, the transition to democracy,” she said. “You have brought enduring honour to South African Jewry through the senior positions you have held on prestigious national and international forums.”

Also recognised were Merle Rubin and Shirley Resnick, both of whom have played equally crucial roles in the Cape Town and Johannesburg Jewish communities, respectively. 

Addressing Rubin, SAJBD’s national vice-chairperson, Rael Kaimowitz, said: “It has been said that the true measure of any society can be seen in how it treats its most vulnerable members. The defining characteristics of your life have been in how quietly, unobtrusively and without desire for recognition you have gone about realising this idea.”

Rubin was lauded for having overseen women’s burial purification services at the Jewish cemetery in Cape Town, and for being among the foremost kosher caterers in the city, notable for her generosity in making functions affordable. “You epitomise what it is to be an eishet chayil, the lofty ideal of Jewish womanhood described in our sacred scriptures,” said Kaimowitz.

Presenting the award to Resnik, Mark Pozniak, chairman of the SAJBD Gauteng Council, said: “As the long-serving head of the Chevra Kadisha’s financial assistance team, your unstinting commitment to ensuring the best possible outcome for those in need of a helping hand has been combined with empathy and sensitivity.”

Pozniak praised Resnik for her contributions in Johannesburg, among them taking on the responsibility of women’s burial purification at Westpark Cemetery for over 30 years, and for running the Chev’s bridal gemach. “For all this and more, you have been described as a true pillar of Chessed,” said Pozniak. “Someone who, behind the scenes, has brought comfort and rendered assistance to innumerable members of our community.”

Additionally, four legal giants – two from Johannesburg and two from Cape Town – were posthumously acknowledged for their contributions. They are Solly Kesler, Ivan Levy, Mervyn Smith and Harry Schwarz.

Harold Jacobs, SAJBD Gauteng’s vice-chairperson, paid tribute to them for the several decades they devoted to defending the community’s rights. He said: “Members of the legal profession have been at the forefront of the board’s work, whether in combating anti-Semitism, safeguarding religious rights, dealing with immigration and citizenship, or resolving intra-communal disputes. Tonight, we pay tribute to them.

“In their own unique way, they played a vital part in helping guide SA Jewry from apartheid into a new era of multiracial democracy.”

Jacobs outlined the respective achievements of these legal stalwarts, making the significance of their contributions emphatically clear. “Levy stood at the forefront of the board’s work in fighting anti-Semitism,” said Jacobs. “He spearheaded the application to ensure that the Protocols of the Elders of Zion remained banned in South Africa. He put his expertise at the disposal of the board in pursuing the landmark hate speech case against Radio 706.”

Speaking about Schwarz, Jacobs characterised a noted, brilliant parliamentarian who fought apartheid as a member of the liberal opposition, and also devoted hours of his time to Jewish communal work, including serving on board committees. He rendered critical assistance in addressing complex issues relating to payments made from compensation funds for local Holocaust survivors.

Capetonian stalwart Kesler made his contribution in the capacity of chairman of the constitutional and legislative subcommittee. Said Jacobs: “Under his guidance, this body made input into the new Constitution and subsequent legislation, including the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act.”

Fellow Capetonian Smith formerly served as national chair of the SAJBD and stood at the forefront of combating anti-Semitism. Jacobs explained that Smith had headed up the board’s long-running hate speech complaint against Radio 706 and devoted hours to ensuring that the case was brought to a satisfactory conclusion. “He drafted many court papers for the board, including the initial letter of complaint in the 10-year-long hate speech case against [trade union federation] Cosatu’s Bongani Masuku,” said Jacobs. 

He concluded: “At this 50th conference, we remember and pay grateful tribute to these four great Jewish South Africans and to all those members of the legal profession who served our community so well.”

Bethlehem’s final remark certainly spoke for the philosophy common among all those recognised. Quoting Pirkei Avot, she said: “It is not your duty to complete the work, but neither are you free to desist from it. With these words in mind, I hope to contribute to this wonderful community for many years to come.”