Broken Glass, Preserved Memory
Please don’t let them find out I’m Jewish. Please don’t let them find out I’m Jewish. It is November 10, 1938, and Margot Gunther (Jeremias) is riding the train to school. It’s an hour ride from her home in Hoffenheim, Germany to Heidelberg where her school is. [Redirects to the Times of Israel]
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When it’s an attack on your own community
I awoke on Sunday morning in Singapore to the news that another synagogue was under attack. The rabbi and several congregants of a synagogue in Texas were being held hostage by an unknown assailant. An old story, a repeated story – Jews under attack for being Jews. [Redirects to the Times of Israel]
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How to Teach Race Relations: Lessons from Holocaust Education
A group of 7th graders sit in a circle, white kids in the center, black and brown kids on the outside. They have been sorted by a “privilege” score assigned based on the color of their skin. The white students are trying to find a way to apologize to the students of color for the sins of their ancestors. [Redirects to the Times of Israel]
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How to deal with antisemitism in our schools
“Never ascribe to malice what can be explained by ignorance, confusion, or ineptitude.” This statement was made by Rabbi Geoffrey Dennis in response to a disturbing incident that happened in Texas last week. In a teacher training in Southlake, a suburb outside Dallas, the curriculum director made a surprising statement: “Make sure that if you have a book on the Holocaust, that you have one that has an opposing…that has other perspectives.” [redirects to the Times of Israel]
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Changing Times, Changing Celebrations
Sometimes it takes the wrong holiday to get us to the right one. [Redirects to the Times of Israel]
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Stand at the Water Gate with Me
Our ancestors have always moved into the unknown. Their strength and stories help us as we move and grow. Consider a sunny Rosh Hashanah morning, 2500 years ago. Before the ruins of the First Temple, the men and women of Jerusalem gather at the Water Gate. [Redirects to the Times of Israel]
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Holocaust Education for Our Modern Conversation
Twenty minutes. That’s how much time I have to teach a group of white, Christian, Texan women about the Holocaust. One message – that’s all I’ll get. If you had time to pass along one message about the Holocaust, what would it be? [Redirects to the Times of Israel]
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Never Again Means Not Now: Looking Inward Edition
Anger. Sadness. Fear. Recognition. I would not presume to speak for the community of color. But these are some of the things I would be feeling if this were happening to the Jewish community. [Redirects to the Times of Israel]
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Teaching the Holocaust through Story
How do we even begin to understand the experience of the Holocaust? How do we give our students insight into something we can barely comprehend? [Redirects to the Times of Israel]
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On the meaning of liberation, for the 75th anniversary of V-E day
Seventy-five years ago, death camps and labor camps were liberated one by one as the Allies marched across Europe. On May 8, 1945, the armed forces of Nazi Germany surrendered to the Allies. The Jews of Europe as a people were liberated, freed from their slavery and oppression. Free to emerge from hiding; free from the threat of arrest and murder; free to be Jews again. What does it mean to be liberated? [Redirects to the Times of Israel]
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How will we remember the Holocaust when there are no survivors left? Ritual.
Today, another Holocaust survivor passed away. I do not know their name – perhaps you do. Unlike their families who were torn from them before their time, some of these people are dying of natural causes, and others, sadly, of COVID-19. We should not be surprised by this. The Holocaust ended 75 years ago. The youngest survivors are in their 80s.
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Yom HaShoah in a time of social distancing
Can we still commemorate the Holocaust on Yom HaShoah in a time of social distancing? Yes! Our new service, Light from the Darkness, allows us to honor the survivors’ memories and to learn from their experiences with a ritual of remembrance that can be performed in our homes. [redirects to the Times of Israel]
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