We recently read Parshas Zachor, the portion in the Torah that charges us with the responsibility to remember. It is on this charge that we embark upon the most joyous of days, Purim, the time when the Jewish people triumphed over the arch Jew-hater Haman, a descendant of Amalek, the nation that attacked us as we came forth from Egypt for no other reason than we were Jews.
This commandment of remembering was given to us so that we would remain aware that this hate never dies, that Amalek’s descendants are present in every generation, and that our only protection from them, our only sanctuary, is Hashem.
But how many of us really remember? I know many of us hear the reading in our synagogues, but remembering it, absorbing it, is another matter.
I cannot repeat this too often: Everything in Jewish history is replay. “Ma’aseh avos – whatever happened to our forefathers is a sign to us the children.” Yet we do not want to hear, we do not want to remember. And if we continue like this we are destined, G-d forbid, to repeat the same tragedy.
The sinister spirit of Haman continues to hover over us. The Holocaust and the present threats coming from Iran and company are just one example of this menace. Still we refuse to hear or understand.
There is no Haggadah or megillah that records the unprecedented evil of the Holocaust. We must rely on our memories and on first-hand accounts. But the generation that lived it is quickly disappearing, and those still in our midst are mostly weak or infirm.
My grandchild’s teacher wisely assigned her class to interview survivors. And so my grandchild called me and asked, “Bubba, can I come over to interview you?”
I will share with you her report. But I suggest we all try to speak with survivors while we still can so that their lessons and experiences will remain in our hearts.
Conversations With Bubba I interviewed my Bubba, Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis, who as a child experienced first hand the Holocaust. My Bubba was born in Szeged, Hungary, where my great-grandfather, HaRav HaGaon AvrahamHaLevi Jungreis, was the chief rabbi of the Orthodox synagogue. I feel privileged to share Bubba’s story and words with you.
Hungary was the last European country to be occupied by the Germans. At this point assimilation, intermarriage, even conversion to Christianity was rampant in the big cities. Jews were very anxious to be accepted in Hungarian society. In the villages, however, Yiddishkeit, yeshivas, and Torah thrived. In Szeged, which was the second largest city in Hungary, there was much assimilation, and the “neolog” (Reform) movement was most prominent.
My great-grandfather started what today is called the “baal teshuvah movement.” He built a beautiful Orthodox shul, a mikveh, and he disseminated Torah. His house was in the heart of the Jewish community so it was always filled with people…. The family found room for them all.
While anti-Semitism was always rampant in Hungary, Hitler’s anti-Semitism was different – he was a true Amalek. His hatred of our people was demonic. One of the major goals of his declaring war was to annihilate all Jews and he never deviated from it.
If there was one Jewish child who escaped to the forest, Hitler was prepared to send an entire platoon and hunt down that little boy or girl. It didn’t matter to him whether a Jew was Orthodox, chassidic, Reform, intermarried, or a convert to Christianity. As long as there was a trace of Jewish blood in him, Hitler demanded that he be exterminated.