By Rabbi David Wilfond, Director of Education
The teens arrived in Europe on Monday. Many of the participants are on a high as this is their first time in Europe. Tuesday, they were awed by the beautiful medieval architecture of the Prague Castle and the 12th century Charles Bridge decorated with historical statues. Prague was lively, picturesque and fun. Even the historic Jewish quarter had a joyful feeling about it as the students learned about the wise Rabbi Low and the legend of the heroic Golem, a type of early super-hero. Only at the end of the Prague tour did the group learn that until 1940 there were more than 90,000 Jews living in Prague. Today, there are only about 3,000 Jews in Prague. Where did they all go? What happened to this beautiful, creative and productive Jewish community?
To answer this question, today, Wednesday, the group traveled to Terezin, following in the footsteps of the Prague Jewish community that was deported from Prague to Terezin in 1940. Here the group learned about the heroism of Rabbi Leo Baeck, Dr.Victor Frankel and the first woman Rabbi Regina Jonas to keep people’s spirits intact as they faced hardships and deprivation. One of the most moving sites in the Terezin Gehetto is the secret synagogue. Here people prayed in secret for strength to cope, and for hope of a better tomorrow (all this under the noses of the Nazis and under penalty of death). Our group concluded the visit by holding a prayer ceremony in this holy space.
From Terezin, the group journeyed to Krakow, Poland. On the way the counselors showed the participants the film “Schindler’s List”. This famous film tells the story of the Jews of Krakow during the Holocaust and helped to prepare the participants for their upcoming journey through the Krakow Jewish Quarter, the wartime Ghetto and the Schindler Factory during the day on Thursday.
This Thursday night, the counselors will lead the group in a program preparing them for their visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau. This is the world’s largest grave site. The ashes of 1.2 to 1.5 human beings lie here. A visit to Auschwitz can be a sobering lesson of the potential for cruelty that can lurk in the human soul. A visit to Auschwitz can be also an inspiring opportunity to encounter the stories of survivors who refused to surrender their dignity, their morality and how others encouraged them to survive if only to be able to tell the tale of their survival against all odds.
First thing Friday morning we will visit Auschwitz-Birkeanu. After a memorial ceremony and debrief, we will close out the week with Kabbalat Shabbat. Every NFTY in Israel group in Europe (about 300 souls) will gather together for a of a musical and lively Shabbat service led by the teens and staff on guitars in the Classical Reform Style of URJ Summer Camps. Breathing new-life into this beautiful, old synagogue and filling it with song has the power to fill our teens with healing and hope. Being with friends and celebrating shabbat after a visit to Auschwitz, is like seeing the miracle of seeing a flower bloom in the desert. It gives hope to see life affirmed. It gives hope to celebrate the best of Reform Jewish values. It gives hope to lift ourselves from the depths of sadness after the Holocaust and to commit ourselves to live life fully and to be advocates of justice on behalf of the vulnerable – wherever they may dwell on this earth.
