The mysterious history of the HOD

JORDAN MOSHE

This organisation was once an integral part of the very fabric of Jewish life in South Africa. It touched the lives of almost every Jew in the country by operating according to one simple principle: love thy neighbour as thyself.

When Polish-born Joseph Distiller and Louis Faiga arrived in South Africa at the turn of the 20th century, they were united in the goal of helping fellow Jews. Following the conclusion of the Boer War in 1902, the economic and social conditions in South Africa were not particularly inviting to the Jews of Eastern Europe. Distiller and Faiga aimed to create as comfortable a landing as possible for Jews immigrating to South Africa, fostering a sense of companionship, and helping them adjust to their new reality.

To this end, in 1904, they established an organisation which was the first of its kind founded in the Commonwealth. A branch of the English based Hebrew Order of Druids, the organisation inaugurated its first lodge on 27 November, naming it in honour of the great man himself, Dr Herzl Lodge. This would eventually become the primary base of the Hebrew Order of South Africa, and it is from here that positive change unfolded across the Jewish community at the time. The organisation continues to make a difference today, operating from its headquarters in Oaklands, the same premises as the above-mentioned event held so many years ago.

When Stan Klaff joined the order more than seventy years later in 1976, he didn’t quite know what he was getting himself into. “A friend suggested that I join the order, saying it was something worth doing,” says Klaff. “The next thing I knew, I was part of something much bigger than I had thought, a place of unique opportunity.” Today the grand secretary of the HOD, Klaff says the mandate of the organisation he joined has undergone significant change since its establishment.

“The organisation assists members of the community,” he says. “That’s its mandate. When it was formed, it assisted its members by providing weekly meals, legal advice, assistance in finding a job, and even a medical service which was a forerunner of today’s medical aid.”

Although the scope of its services has changed considerably over the years, the organisation remains a functioning fraternity, and continues to promote and extend cultural and communal ties within our community, stimulating interest in Jewish affairs, assisting charitable community causes, and supporting those who are most in need of help.

Says Klaff: “We ran lodges in virtually every town in the country at one point. Wherever there were Jews, you could be sure a lodge could be found. Our members emigrated overseas, and took the HOD with them wherever they went, eliminating barriers for other Jews looking to emigrate themselves.”

In the 1960s and 1970s, lodges opened in Israel, America, England, and Australia, bringing the eventual total to about 22 lodges worldwide, seven of which Klaff consecrated personally.

Sadly, the organisation went into decline in the 1980s, resulting in the closure of several lodges the world over. Still, the HOD remains committed to its core values: a sense of identity and the determination to assist.

“We do not allow our members to marry out of the faith, nor can anyone join if he has done so,” says Klaff. “Our aim is not to secure a necessarily religious Jewish identity, but to ground a Jewish identity, one which enables Jews to be a part of the faith, and be part of a community.”

Together, the HOD’s members strive to reach out to others in our community, often operating behind the scenes and assisting the less fortunate. Over the past few years, the HOD has championed yearly Rosh Hashanah charity campaigns, assisted the Chevrah Kadisha in its charitable endeavours, given a home to the Jewish Genealogical and Yiddish societies, and involved itself in numerous other charitable undertakings on behalf of the community.

“Whatever we do, we contemplate a long-term goal for the people in our community,” says Klaff. “We are a network of individuals able to assist one another as Jews and brothers. In a way, we operate almost in secret, making our contributions where we can, but avoiding having a public face.”

Klaff says Jews today face challenges which were unknown in the past century, and maintains that it is incumbent upon organisations such as the HOD to play a leading role in confronting them.

“We need to show what we can do as Jews. We’ve moved away from some of the original founding aims of our organisation, but replaced them with ones which are just as meaningful and relevant to life today.” Klaff believes that issues such as anti-Semitism, intermarriage, and the future of Judaism are all matters which the HOD can play a part in, and he is determined to see this happen.

“In the digital age, we need to learn to adapt and harness technology for our benefit,” he says. “At the same time, we are not a Facebook group. The HOD is an organisation of people who are actual friends, sharing a close bond with one another which is expressed in various ways. When you join a lodge, you join a circle of comrades.”

Although the HOD has mainly older members, Klaff aims to inspire younger men to join the ranks, encouraging them to get involved in a platform from which they can bring about positive change.

“There is no limit to what you can achieve,” he says. “With the little resources you have at your disposal, you can make changes you would never have thought possible. We continue to punch well above our weight in spite of our challenges, and have every intention of doing so well into the future.”