June 28, 1984

OVER the last decade, crafts have changed enormously. No longer just the products of cottage industries or homemade wares sold at street markets, crafts works in clay, metal, glass, fibers and wood are being purchased by major museums, exhibited at specialized galleries, shown at major crafts fairs and, most importantly, sought by a growing group of collectors. While the interest in functional crafts continues to grow, the stronger trend is toward crafts as art, today's craftsmen as professionals and the sale of their works as a business. ''There are more professionals engaged in making everything from wearable art to handmade furniture to clay and glass sculpture,'' said Paul J. Smith, director of the American Craft Museum in Manhattan. ''There are increased opportunities for work to be shown and sold: more museums originating exhibitions and greater support of the artist through active and serious collecting.''

The New Jersey Supreme Court ruled today that someone who ''directly serves'' liquor to a guest and allows him to drive away drunk can be held liable for injuries to others if the guest has an auto accident. In a 6-to-1 ruling that the court said was without precedent, Chief Justice Robert N. Wilentz wrote that the court recognized the adverse impact of the decision on accepted standards of social behavior. But the opinion said the intrusion and the exposure of social hosts to lawsuits are outweighed by concerns that innocent victims be adequately compensated and drunken driving curbed. Case Reinstated The ruling, which is not retroactive, reinstates the case of an Oceanport woman who was seriously hurt in a head-on collision with another car in 1980. She sued the driver of the other car, who had pleaded guilty to drunken driving. Then both the driver and the injured woman sued a Long Branch couple who had served him Scotch in their home just before the accident.

Walter F. Mondale appears to be facing a deepening problem in his efforts to strengthen his support among Jews without offending the black constituency of the Rev. Jesse Jackson, which is considered important to Mr. Mondale's chances in November. This became increasingly clear this week as some Jewish leaders have begun to call for Mr. Mondale to repudiate Mr. Jackson for his association with Louis Farrakhan, the leader of a Black Muslim group who in a Sunday radio broadcast described Judaism as a ''gutter religion'' and characterized supporters of Israel as ''part of a criminal conspiracy.'' Mr. Mondale, who seems to have enough votes to win the Democratic Presidential nomination, condemned Mr. Farrakhan for his statement and called upon Mr. Jackson to repudiate his associate, but the former Vice President stopped short of criticizing Mr. Jackson, as some Jews are now urging him to do. Major non-Jewish organizations and the White House joined Jewish groups today in condemning the remarks by Mr. Farrakhan. (Page A22.)

Stacey Lynn Merkt, who has become something of a symbol in the conflict between the Federal Government and the growing movement among American churches to aid undocumented aliens, was sentenced today to two years of probation for transporting three Salvadorans who had entered the country illegally. The sentence was the first given to a member of the movement among church people opposed to United States policy in Central America to provide sanctuary to illegal aliens from the region. Miss Merkt, 29 years old, called the sentence unexpectedly lenient. Nonetheless, it was considered an ominous sign for the sanctuary movement. The Administration says many of the participants in the movement are motivated politically to undermine United States policy in Central America.

''This court senses that there may be a substantial change occuring in social attitudes and customs concerning drinking, whether at home or in taverns.