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Radio EditorialY O M H A S H O A H 2 0 0 0 Tribute to Eastern European Judaism The tragedy of the Shoah cannot be told by describing the fate of six million Jews.It has to be told six million times - the collapsed world of every victim. The limit of time dictates us to make shortcuts. We do this by singling out an example of a person or a group. This year we pay special tribute to Eastern European Jews. The Jewish people were homeless since 68 of the Common Era till 1948. After the fall of the Temple Jews were exiled in almost every country on the Globe. During times, clusters of Jews were formed which brought about special accomplishments in many ways. But pain was always part of Jewish life. The longing for our Temple and anti- Semitic excesses were hard to take. On top of this, expulsions from various countries kept most of the people on the move. At the time before the Holocaust there lived about 16 million Jews. 9 million Jews lived in Europe - from them 6 million were killed. From the 6 million - 4,851,000 - over 80% were Jews from Eastern Europe. The great number of Jews living in Eastern Europe did not come by chance. These underdeveloped countries invited the Jews to come, as they recognized their ability to improve their economies. And the Jews came and contributed as expected. But church, envy and ignorance laid a fundament for hate which was fertile ground for the Nazis' deadly endeavors. But Judaism in Eastern Europe flourished. In religious life some of the greatest of our Rabbis were active. Learning establishments taught children from "Cheder," till Rabbinic Yeshive. Every Jew usually spoke three languages. The language of the country, the language of the people - Yiddish, and of course Hebrew. How otherwise could one study the Torah? They organized themselves in special communities - Kehilot - and took care of their needs in every way. The life in their "Shtetels," expressed their special style in religion, culture and tradition. The greatest admiration was paid to people who excelled in learning of Torah. The study of he Torah not only enriched the people with Jewish values but also sharpened their minds in fierce discussions related to the studies. In the late 19hundred, a part of Eastern European Jews started to leave anti-Semitism behind. The greatest part, opted to rebuild their life in the "Goldene Medine." Some of them may have looked poor, when they entered the hall at Ellis Island. Their valise may have been small but their heritage was immense. Rich in Jewish values, their brains well trained through experience and studying, they faced the New World with exploding energy. The innumerable achievements in almost every field are legendary. How come that a group of people representing less than one quarter of the World population received 18% of all Nobel prizes? Jewish Americans, who are descendents of Eastern European immigrants represent today about the same number as the Eastern European Jews who were killed in the Holocaust. Though each person is a world for him or herself, we have the right to see ourselves as spiritual heirs of these Holocaust victims. This inheritance does not bring us any rights, but what it does bring us, is the huge responsibility to carry on - where our ancestors fell. Victims of the greatest crime in History - the Shoah. We pay them our tribute.
- I am Shlomo Fleischmann Click here to see more articles |
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