CCAR RESPONSA
New American Reform Responsa
201. Holocaust Memorials and the Jewish Tradition
QUESTION: Does the Jewish tradition encourage permanent Holocaust Memorials? Are there any negative overtones or problematic aspects to such a memorial? (James Katz, Vancouver BC)ANSWER: Our tradition has always tried to combine an adequate respect for the past and the memory of martyrs alongside a positive outlook toward the future and the world around us. We know very little about monuments of any kind in ancient times. It was reported that some of the kings of Israel built monuments on their tombs and certain historic events were marked by monuments. So for example when Joshua crossed the Jordan he placed some stones as a memorial to this occasion. However, the other grand events of the past were not marked in any fashion. That was true for military victories, the crossing of the Sea of Reeds, etc. Even in the Hellenistic period of our history, the days of the Maccabees, we find no monuments to their heroic struggle. It is interesting that this is so as the entire Near East is littered with monuments usually to victories and often covered with long inscriptions as well as magnificent art work. In subsequent Jewish history there were grave markers for individuals or sarcophagi with inscriptions upon them. We possess these from the later Hellenistic and Roman periods in Israel, the rest of the Near East, as well as Italy (E. Goodenough Jewish Symbols in the Greco-Roman Period Vols I & 3; Lee I. Levine (ed) Ancient Synagogues Revealed, etc). However, none of these were memorials are to any group of individuals or a specific event. It was only in the Middle Ages at the time of the Crusades that mass martyrdom was noted in elegies as well as historical chronologies. Some of these have survived synagogue poetry or in other forms. Although they were not physical monuments they represented a step in that direction. Even if those Rhineland communities in the twelfth and thirteenth century had wished to memorialize in a concrete fashion it would not have been possible as their lives were too uncertain and they were frequently driven from one community to another. In subsequent centuries major tragedies were commemorated not only in literature, and synagogue poetry, but also in special monuments or plaques. So, for example the old Jewish cemetery in the cities of Worms and Prague contain memorial tablets to commemorate tragic persecutions over the centuries. Such plaques may be found in synagogues also. Where it was possible sad events of the past were remembered in a permanent form within the Jewish community. So for example those Jewish soldiers who died in the first World War, either on the Allies side or on the side of the Central Powers, have been memorialized in fountains and statutes as well as whole buildings. For instance the great synagogue in Augsburg had a memorial fountain to those who died in that war while the Budapest Jewish community built an entire synagogue as a memorial. It was only rarely possible to erect a memorial in the general community. That, of course, is possible nowadays in the Western world. It would be entirely appropriate to do so and to remember the Holocaust in this fashion. There is a long tradition which slowly moved in this direction. We should, however, exercise some caution for a number of reasons. The resources even of the American Jewish community are not unlimited and so monuments should serve a useful purpose as well as a commemorative one. A museum, educational center or something else along those lines would for that reason, in my mind at least, be preferable to a statue or a fountain. Such facilities could take many forms all of which would be appropriate as memorials. Further more we must ask ourselves what we wish to accomplish by such a memorial. On the one hand it is necessary for us and for the entire Western world to remember the Holocaust so that nothing like it will occur again to us or to any other group of people. However, we certainly do not wish to look upon ourselves as primarily survivors of this tragedy. There is a great deal which is positive which we have accomplished in the modern world and much in our tradition that has nothing to do with suffering and persecution. So it is important that monuments, memorials, museums, and educational institutions not only recall the tragic days of the past but also the positive and hopeful outlook of Judaism.June 1989
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