THE BURDEN OF TRADITION

 The phenomenal tempo¹ made by the United States in preparation for the war is a very interesting phenomenon of our time. What England did in many years of struggle America has achieved within a few weeks. It took England more than a year and a half before she saw her way clear to resort to compulsory² service, and it required many weary months to organize the administrative³ branch of the war service and to place the country on a solid war footing. Even countries with long military traditions, such as France, Italy, Austria, and even Germany, had to struggle long before they were in the war with both feet. America, though unmilitaristic, did all that within a very short time. Over night there was a national army in America. The economic life of the country adapted itself to war conditions, and everything to conduct a war on an unheard-of scale was created within a few months. That a non-militaristic country like America could adapt itself to war conditions within such a short time must puzzle every observer, and it will be a puzzle to the historian of the future, also, unless he recognizes the touchstone of American genius as displayed at present. This touchstone is the absence of long historical traditions.

 

We Jews, who are preparing ourselves to start a new life as a nation, ought to learn in this respect. We have old traditions of our own and we are burdened with a great many non-Jewish traditions in addition, for we have lived in the last two thousand years in the Diaspora and among those people whose life has been shaped by thoughts and the spirit of ancient Rome. The European state that is today undergoing a crisis as never before is the inheritance of old Rome. The entire system of European politics is Roman in origin. International political relations can be traced to ancient Roman origin. A comparison between the history of the international relations of ancient Rome and that of any European state during the last five hundred years will clearly show that the international political movements in Europe for the last centuries have their parallel in international political movements of ancient Rome. All the severe criticisms leveled by Montesquieu against ancient Rome are still timely today. All branches of the activities of the European state, civil administrations, jurisdiction⁴, matters military, foreign affairs, and so on, are more or less remnants of ancient Roman civilization.

 

In short, we have to be conscious of the fact that the life of the Jewish people in Europe was lived amid a system of Roman civilization. The old Jewish preachers, who characterized our present Diaspora life as Goluth-Rome, knew what they were talking about, though they could not exactly explain why they characterized our present Goluth as Roman in nature. Since we have lived for two thousand years in this system of civilization, it goes without saying that we have been greatly influenced by it and that we ourselves are definitely subject to Roman traditions in addition to our own. Traditions sometimes strengthen a nation, but they also may weaken it. The most traditional people in the world, the Chinese, are practically the weakest, while the most non-traditional people, the Americans, are today the best fitted for modern life.

 

National traditions, of course, cannot be cast away over night. In the Diaspora old and genuine Jewish traditions were the life-giver of our people. They were the main force that preserved us from annihilation, as long as we were facing the problem, "How can we best preserve our national existence?" Today, however, we are not only facing the problem of preserving our national existence, but also that of rebuilding our nation and reorganizing our people so as to make its future safe. Since the entire Jewish problem has changed so radically⁵, our attitude to the complex Jewish traditions must change. We cannot possibly use the same methods in rebuilding our national existence as in preserving our nation. The two different problems need two different positions. Just as China is a terrifying example of what slavery to tradition can do to a nation, so is America an edifying⁶ example of what traditions can do in strengthening a nation. A nation does not live to uphold traditions only; and where, instead of helping⁷ a nation, traditions handicap it, they will be superceded by new traditions to be created by national deeds.

 

We do not want to describe our future life in Palestine, for we are today unable to do so. We are only anxious to lay stress upon the fact that what we have called our traditions in Diaspora life will probably have to be revised in a Jewish Palestine. Life is much stronger than the Book and the principle derived⁸ from the Book. In the Diaspora it was the principle of the Book that shaped our life, because it helped to preserve it. In Palestine, where there will be an active Jewish life, Jewish life itself must work out its own principles. This is what we should bear in mind, whether we are orthodox or free-thinkers. We must go to Palestine with the consciousness of freedom and not with the feeling that we are the creatures of traditions. We will have to free ourselves not only from many Roman traditions that was most worthy⁹ in the Diaspora, but will be superfluous¹⁰ in Palestine.

 

The future Jewish State in Palestine will draw its strength from Jewish life and not from principles of the Book; it will be free from all inorganic¹¹ traditions which we have acquired during our long life in the Diaspora, and from those traditions which were un-Jewish in nature.

1 tempo   

n.(音乐的)速度；节奏，行进速度

参考例句：

• The boss is unsatisfied with the tardy tempo.老板不满于这种缓慢的进度。
• They waltz to the tempo of the music.他们跟着音乐的节奏跳华尔兹舞。

2 compulsory   

n.强制的，必修的；规定的，义务的

参考例句：

• Is English a compulsory subject?英语是必修课吗？
• Compulsory schooling ends at sixteen.义务教育至16岁为止。

3 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

4 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

5 radically   

ad.根本地，本质地

参考例句：

• I think we may have to rethink our policies fairly radically. 我认为我们可能要对我们的政策进行根本的反思。
• The health service must be radically reformed. 公共医疗卫生服务必须进行彻底改革。

6 edifying   

adj.有教训意味的，教训性的，有益的v.开导，启发( edify的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Young students are advised to read edifying books to improve their mind. 建议青年学生们读一些陶冶性情的书籍，以提高自己的心智。 来自辞典例句
• This edifying spectacle was the final event of the Governor's ball. 这个有启发性的表演便是省长的舞会的最后一个节目了。 来自辞典例句

7 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

8 derived   

vi.起源；由来；衍生；导出v.得到( derive的过去式和过去分词 )；（从…中）得到获得；源于；（从…中）提取

参考例句：

• Many English words are derived from Latin and Greek. 英语很多词源出于拉丁文和希腊文。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He derived his enthusiasm for literature from his father. 他对文学的爱好是受他父亲的影响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

10 superfluous   

adj.过多的，过剩的，多余的

参考例句：

• She fined away superfluous matter in the design. 她删去了这图案中多余的东西。
• That request seemed superfluous when I wrote it.我这样写的时候觉得这个请求似乎是多此一举。

11 inorganic   

adj.无生物的；无机的

参考例句：

• The fundamentals of inorganic chemistry are very important.无机化学的基础很重要。
• This chemical plant recently bought a large quantity of inorganic salt.这家化工厂又买进了大量的无机盐。