In “Walter Mondale then and now” we referred to the Macalester College event honoring Rabbi Bernard Raskas on the occasion of his retirement from the faculty at age 80. Hillel Raskas writes:
As the oldest son of Rabbi Bernard Raskas, I want to respond to the Blog entry. Interestingly, I also was a summer intern for Walter Mondale, working in his Washington, DC, Senate Office in 1974. On the night former President Nixon announced his resignation, I was in the office sending a taped message from then Senator Mondale to Minnesota radio stations.
I appreciate the writer’s kind remarks about my father. My parents have always been strong supporters of the Democratic Party – although Republican former Governor Elmer Anderson [who also spoke in honor of Rabbi Raskas at the event] was always a friend. Over the years, I am sure my father’s respect and support for Walter Mondale was apparent to all. Yet, when the phone rang in our home at 3:00 a.m. with a call from a congregant in need — a sick child or a dying parent — my father never asked how much money the family would contribute to the Temple of Aaron or their political allegiance. My father always remembered that he was first and always a Rabbi, Teacher and Preacher in Israel.
To which we can only add our own “Amen.”
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