Friday, March 29, 2024 -
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Hope in the Holocaust

Back in January, when we blogged about the different Holocaust memorial days around the globe, we found out that Israel selected the date of 27 Nisan (which this year falls on Monday, April 8th) because of its proximity to the anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, which happened 70 years ago this month. “It’s no surprise,” we wrote back then, “that the nascent Jewish state would choose to remember the Holocaust within the context of Jewish resistance and perseverance.” We left out a third adjective associated with both the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and Israel: hope.

When we discussed insights from the Passover seder last week, we discovered that hope is also a crucial element to the story of Passover, that hope is the first step in the process of redemption. As such, it seems like no coincidence that the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising began on Passover evening. Or indeed that Israel’s national anthem is called “HaTikvah”, the hope.

The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising also raises the philosophical question of undertaking fruitless battle: Is it worth taking a (dangerous) stand if one knows one will fail? The resistance fighters knew how slim their chances were against the evil Nazi machine. But that’s the incredible thing about life: at any given moment, we never know how things will turn out. And that’s exactly where hope dwells, in that uncertainty, or in that belief that one day things may get better.

Yom HaShoah is an incredibly difficult day. Speaking about the staggering human, cultural and societal losses and hearing from the survivors who went through hell is emotionally very challenging. Perhaps this year, however, we can also carry with us the kernel of hope that sustained people in many different and horrific situations throughout the Holocaust, even as hope failed to ensure their survival.

There are many, many memorial events (detail on the IJN’s Community Calendar) happening in Denver, but also in Boulder and beyond – in Wyoming and Albuquerque too. Please take the time to join your community for this important day of remembrance.




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