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Dr. Jonathan Paradise is EmeritusProfessor of Hebrew at the Universityof Minnesota.Reprinted with permission of the author.HEBREW: WHO NEEDS IT?Jonathan ParadiseWe are living and witnessing one of themost spectacular events in Jewish culturalhistory: The revival and flowering of Hebrewas a spoken language after centuriesof restricted use. Each year sees an outpouringof poetry, essays, novels, and publishedresearch in an astonishing array offields.The outpouring of Hebrew creativity is ofavalanche proportions. University librariesaround the world spend many, many thousandsof dollars each year for new acquisitions,to keep up with the pace of publication.Hebrew is alive, full of vitality, addingand consolidating new vocabularies and idiomsat an ever-accelerating pace. Indeed,the revival of Hebrew culture ranks amongthe greatest achievements of modern JewishHistory.Yet what would we Jews in the UnitedStates know of all of these truly epochmakingdevelopments if we were to look atour own Jewish communities’ use of Hebrewin the public sector? If we were to examineourselves, much as a visitinganthropologist studies and analyzes a foreignculture?We might begin by asking, “What are theroles Hebrew plays in the life of an averageAmerican Jewish child and especially in theeyes of typical parents?” What situationsoccur—either frequent or occasional—where the knowledge of the Hebrew languageis brought into play? What rewardsdoes Jewish society extend or deny personson the basis of their competence in the Hebrewlanguage?The answers to these questions and theothers which could be posed by our hypothetical“anthropologist” are crucial. For itis those answers that will determine thedegree to which members of the society regardthe task of Hebrew language acquisitionas an important one. If Hebrew isimportant—in the “real world”—then time,effort, and resources become “worthwhile”investments. And if Hebrew is consideredtrivial or of marginal importance, the reversewill be true.The sad fact is that the Hebrew language isof marginal importance in most sectors ofthe American Jewish Community. Amongthe various “mitzvot“ observed by the subsetsof organized Jewry— philanthropic activity,support for Israel, observance ofSabbath and festivals, kashrut, service tosynagogue and federation—the study anduse of Hebrew as a means of communication,as a Jewish Language, does not ranklow in the list of the cardinal duties of Jew.It is not even on the list.This being the case, it should surprise noone that competence in the spoken or writtenlanguage is rare among lay persons inthe American Jewish community. After all,why should anyone invest the time and effortrequired to learn skills that are useless?And for the present, Hebrewknowledge is useless. The most that is required(in some quarters) is alphabet training:i.e., the ability to decode the phoneticvalue of the symbols without regard formeaning. This, so that the person may recitethe prayers at an acceptable pace.Now, it is not an easy task these days toget people to derive satisfaction from roterecitation of meaningless sounds. It isnatural to resist it. Nor is it an easy taskto master the “reading” of lengthy textsModern Hebrew culture, Hebrew language, living and spoken, should berecognized as a natural component of being Jewish. The knowledge of thelanguage and ability to use it with ease should be seen as an indispensableadjunct of a fuller and more meaningful Jewish life.P A G E 32 • C O N T I N U I T Y M A G A Z I N E