Jews

It distresses me to read that officials at Pierce College believe they have the authority to deny students and campus visitors their rights by levying unconstitutional restrictions. Our wonderfully fair law allows for reasonable time, place and manner considerations. Yet, the campus officials have arrogated to themselves more control than is proper or allowable by law. Their rules and restrictions are illegal and immoral, designed to prevent freedom of speech and religion. If one must ask another's consent to exercise his or her right, then it is no right but a privilege from a grantor to a grantee.

I greatly appreciated the article entitled "What Black/Jewish Split?", Op-Ed Page, May 19. The writers, the Rev. Thomas Kilgore Jr. and Rabbi Alfred Wolf, stress an important point regarding both black and Jewish political and social concerns. I agree with them wholeheartedly when they state that " . . . Perhaps Jews and blacks act no differently from any other interest group in the American body politic." This article was a favorable accompaniment to the front-page article "Signs of Peace Seen as Jews, Jackson Meet."

The idea of the former president of the Southern Baptist Convention that Jews who do not accept Christ are not saved is entirely wrong. It is at variance with biblical teachings of the love of God. Of course, the whole world may be lost in a nuclear war if humanity does not change its ways. Bigotry and war are anachronistic and must be ended if anyone is to survive. I feel it is high time for religions to stop fighting each other and join together in a common effort to make the world better.

The Vatican opened part of its secret archives to let historians review millions of diplomatic letters, private correspondence and other church documents to gain insight into how the Holy See dealt with the persecution of Jews before World War II. Researchers said it could take months or years to study about 30,000 bundles of documents from the 1922-39 papacy of Pius XI, a span when the rise of Nazism, fascism and Soviet-bloc communism gripped Europe.

I completely understand how Connie Haskell feels about Zubin Mehta's remarks about how the Poles treated the Jews during World War II (Calendar Letters, Dec. 20). It is quite natural for anyone to have such feelings when one's people are criticized. What happened in Poland can only be understood if one is familiar with the brief history of pre-WWII Poland. I was born in Poland, I am Jewish, I was liberated from the Nazi death camp Dachau by the American Army. Many members of my family did not survive.

Re "Holiday Traditions Tug Hard at Our Heartstrings" (Dec. 25): On Christmas Day a story about holiday traditions featured a Jewish couple. The couple in no way fits the premise of the article. The celebration of Christmas has no root or place in Judaism. There are no Jewish activities that go back "hundreds of years" that justify the celebration of Christmas. Yes, these people exist. My objection is that the intermarried or secular Jew is the portrayal of Judaism that is presented by The Times.

David E. Ross (Letters, Oct. 17) does not speak for Judaism when he advocates abortion. To describe abortion as an "unfortunate event" is convenient for people who need an excuse to justify their actions. Judaism as a whole does not advocate abortion. Ask your rabbi. LISA ANN KROHN Thousand Oaks

An informal prayer liturgy, designed for Christians and Jews to use together in settings ranging from living rooms to a church or synagogue, has been published by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago. The prayer book was written by Rabbi Leon Klenicki, director of interfaith affairs of the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith, and the Rev. Bruce Robbins, general secretary of the United Methodist Commission on Christian Unity.