Dear Abraham: I am writing this letter in a purely personal capacity (because, in the official organizational sense there is so very much to be said). A dear friend of mine and a very distinguished rabbinical leader, Rabbi Herschel Schacter and his wife, will be arriving in Bombay on Friday January 31st (9:15 A.M., AZ 768) and staying until Sunday February 2nd at 6:00 P.M. Because I suspect that they will be staying at the Taj Mahal, I have asked Mr. Manasseh to arrange for the Rabbi’s Shabbat meals, since Mr. Manasseh is closest to the hotel. I wonder if it will be possible for you to obtain the services of some young person (someone who has a car at his disposal will certainly be welcome) who will guide the Rabbi and his wife through some of the more interesting parts of Bombay, most especially things that are of Jewish historical interest. At the same time, it would be good to give Rabbi Schacter a brief, concise, but thorough report on the problems at present pressing on the community, especially the Bene Israel. While he will not have time for any conclusive action, nevertheless he is a man of very wide and profound experience, and it certainly will be worthwhile consulting with him. I am sure that the women will also find Mrs. Schacter to be most charming. Because we are not yet completely sure of whether or not Rabbi and Mrs. Schacter have succeeded in getting reservations at the Taj Mahal, I have asked him to write to you directly, as soon as he has confirmed his hotel reservations. I know that I can count on you to find someone qualified to assist the Rabbi and his wife during their brief stay in Bombay. My fondest regards to Mr. Penkar and all my dear friends in Bombay. Cordially yours, Rabbi Norman Lamm.

Dear Reb Nachum: Enclosed is the clipping I discussed with you this morning. I did see the statement by Professor Rotensterich in Haaretz of January 22, the substance of which you conveyed to me. It is my feeling that perhaps it would be prudent to emphasize that the few laws in Israel which bring the area of personal status under religious law are certainly not responsible for restraining the aliya of "modern" Americans. Do our opponents see in the individual freedom that is characteristic of American life any positive ties on the part of Jewish intellectuals to the Jewish people? Do they possess any roots that restrain the corrosive influences of assimilation and intermarriage threatening to engulf us? Do they think that if Israeli society would liberate itself from the hallowed historic roots then this would ipso facto motivate the aliyah of those intellectuals who are so concerned with individual freedom of conscience? Do they think that a cursory knowledge of Jewish history or even the Hebrew language would be adequate to deepen the bonds of affinity and kinship with the Jewish people and its homeland, if we rend asunder the ties of religious practice which unite our people in Israel and in the Diaspora?I leave this in your capable hands. While I realize the many pressures under which you labor, I earnestly ask that you dispatch the letter to the Jerusalem Post at your earliest convenience. "דבר בעתו מה טוב"I know you are at least as concerned with these issues as we all are. I also hope that you have taken care of the request for the letter from the American Friends of the Hebrew University and that you will forward it to me upon your receipt of same. Thanks a million. Regards from house to house.Cordially yours,Rabbi Herschel Schacter