A few weeks ago, my facebook page was filled with comments and articles about the Holocaust. It took me a few moments to realize that it was January 27th- the day that the United Nations declared to be an international memorial day for the victims of the Holocaust.
The Jewish calendar intentionally commemorates and celebrates, Yom Hashoah (Holocaust Memorial Day) Yom Hazikron (Israel’s Memorial Day), and Yom Ha’Atzmaut (Israel’s Independence Day) within a ten day period. This reflects our communal understanding of the historical interconnection between each of these days. As one of the more powerful articles reminded me- we are coming much closer to losing our last first hand connections to these horrific atrocities. We must therefore, even on days that are not “Yom Hashoah” take time to pause and listen to some of those last first-hand accounts and eye witness testimony. As Jews, and as human beings, we must work tirelessly to create a world where such horror is unimaginable. Unfortunately, we still have much work to do.
May we be inspired by the accounts in the link below to do better each and every day and may we continually speak out against hatred, bigotry, and injustice in our world. Soon there will be no more survivors to teach our children and grandchildren the lessons of the Holocaust. That means, it is now up to each one of us.
Click here to read: Soon There Will Be No More Survivors, and to watch their stories.
**There will be no Tuesday Morning Torah next week as I will be on our Torat El Mission to the Jewish Community of Cuba. I will look forward to sharing my reflections with you, upon my return.