Israeli Students Talk about the Holocaust

It’s 10 AM on Thursday, April 19, and sirens are sounding all over Israel.   It’s not an air raid drill, but the nation-wide commemoration of Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Memorial Day.  For two minutes, the country comes to a standstill as people interrupt their activities and stand in silence while the sirens wail.  It’s an eerie sight to see the traffic completely stopped on the roads and highways, with drivers coming out of their cars and standing in silent reverence to remember the six million Jews who perished in the Holocaust.

Headlines in the Hebrew newspapers on Yom Hashoah

On the eve of Yom HaShoah, the main commemoration ceremony took place at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem, attended by President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.  During the ceremony, six holocaust survivors lit six torches representing the six million victims.  In his speech, Netanyahu emphasized the need to learn from the past in order to secure the nation’s future:

“Our enemies tried to bury the Jewish future but our future was born again in the land of our forefathers.  Here we built a base, and a new beginning of freedom, and hope and action.”

Netanyahu also issued a sobering reminder that the Jewish people still faces an existential threat today in Iran’s repeated calls to “exterminate the Jewish State.”  The Prime Minister said that the Iranian threat is a danger not only to Israel but also to world peace:  "It is the world’s responsibility to stop Iran securing nuclear weapons" said Netanyahu.

For me as a Christian, it’s always a bit surreal to experience Yom Hashoah in Israel.  For the younger generations in the West who grew up in an unprecedented time of peace, the Second World War and the Holocaust seem to belong to the distant past – terrible days now relegated to the history books.  But for the Jewish people and nation of Israel, the Holocaust is still an open wound and a call to vigilance.

I was present on Thursday at a brief but moving Holocaust commemoration service on the Mount Scopus campus of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, attended by several hundred students, faculty and staff.  The function began with a recitation of the “Yizkor” prayer (“may [God] remember”), followed by speeches, memorial songs and poems.  The ceremony ended with everyone singing accapella the Israeli national anthem, “HaTikvah” (“The Hope”).

The memorial ceremony at Hebrew University

I asked a few students what were their thoughts and feelings on this day.

Avigal

“When I was in high school, I travelled to Poland,” says Avigal, “but from year to year I feel less connected to those tragic events.  This makes me a bit sad, but it’s good that we have these kinds of memorial services; they help you to understand the importance of every day.”

Yonatan agrees: “it’s still very hard to grasp these things and speak about them.  Even when I was in Poland and in Auschwitz, it was hard to grasp what happened there, so it’s even harder here.”

I asked Yonathan what he thought is the role of Israel and the Jewish people today to prevent such events from happening again.

“First of all, we need to ensure that our own behavior and actions are right,” he said, “and then we must make sure that those who suffer from anti-Semitism in the world have a safe place and refuge here in Israel if they want to come here.”

Noga Cohen feels a close connection to the Holocaust, as well as a moral obligation to be learnt from it: “It really shaped my own identity, because I am the granddaughter of a survivor and my mother is a Holocaust scholar.  I’m glad that this day spurs us on to reflect on how to build a better future, and on the importance of fighting against racism in Israeli society.”

Her friend Tom adds: “There are many lessons to learn beyond our own identity as Jews.  On the one hand, it’s not the only genocide that occurred in history; on the other hand, for us we experience its meaning as a people, with implications on the existence of the State of Israel.  There are differences and similarities between the holocaust and other tragic events that happened in history, and I think we need to keep in mind both aspects.”

Noga and Tom

A few steps away, two religious students provided a different perspective.  Rafi tells me that he is troubled at the recent politicization of the Holocaust:

“In recent years, the society has been instrumentalizing the Holocaust for different purposes: the right has used it to warn us against Iran, and the left relates it to the racism of some Jews against Ethiopians and Arabs.  These are important topics, but I don’t agree in relating them to the Shoah, because it was a unique event in history.  I think we need to separate the commemoration from the lessons that need to be learned.  The Shoah is a sacred topic that used to be apolitical and unifying, but now it has become political and divisive.”

Benny and Rafi

Rafi’s friend Benny then explains his own personal connection to the Shoah:

“Both grandparents on my father’s side survived the Holocaust in Auschwitz and Mauthausen, and all members of their families were killed.  This past remained with us in our family, and so you could say that this day is half sacred for us.  On a national level, it’s something ungraspable, both in the scope and amplitude of the evil that was behind it.”

But why did this happen precisely to the Jewish people?

“I think the Jewish people have a certain calling that no other nation has, and this really bothered the Nazis.  I think the Jewish people brought a certain morality to the world that Hitler didn’t want.

And how should we relate to the Shoah today? “First, by remembering this day” says Benny.  “Second, by perpetuating the characteristics and calling of the Jewish people, precisely in the places where they were not wanted – being a light to the gentiles in a moral way – and for this we still have much work to do.  It’s a good day for us to do some soul searching, to improve ourselves for next year, to perpetuate and justify our existence.

The Yizkor Prayer for Martyrs

May the L-rd remember
the souls of the holy and pure ones
who were killed, murdered, slaughtered, burned, drowned, and strangled
for the sanctification of the Name,
because, without making a vow, I shall give to charity on their behalf.
As reward for this,
may their souls be bound in the Bond of Life,
together with the souls of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob;
Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah;
and together with the other righteous men and women in the Garden of Eden.
Amen

Christian Tourism in the Holy Land: A Background Briefing in Preparation for Holy Week

In advance of the coming Holy Week, the Religious Tourism Desk of the Israeli Tourism Ministry invited members of the foreign media to a background briefing on Christian tourism and the events of Holy Week, offering some unique interview opportunities with leaders of the Catholic communities in Jerusalem.

The meeting, which took place on March 28 around the Christian Quarter of the Old City, was led by Uri Sharon of the Religious Tourism Desk.  He began with a general briefing on Christian tourism in Israel, followed by a short tour of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Uri Sharon speaking with the group of journalists in the Christian Quarter

Sharon underlined the importance of pilgrimages to Israel, pointing out that tourism in the Holy Land had peaked in the last two years with some 3.4 million visitors in 2010 and 2011, 60% of which being Christians, and half of these coming as pilgrims or spiritual travelers.  He emphasized how a pilgrimage to the Holy Land truly enables pilgrims to encounter and discover the “Fifth Gospel,” learning the geography of the Bible, experiencing its landscape and nature, and in this process getting better acquainted with the human side of Jesus who lived, died and resurrected here in this land.

During the tour of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Sharon led the group of journalists up the hill of Golgotha, where a Greek Orthodox liturgy was taking place, and then to the “Chapel of Adam” just below it, believed to be the tomb of Adam and Eve in Christian tradition.   He explained how the fact that Christ’s blood poured down onto the tomb of the first parents of the human race illustrated His redemption of all humanity from the very beginning, including all those who lived before the coming of the Savior.

After a brief historical overview of the Sepulchre, the group walked to the Latin Patriarchate, where they were received by Fr. David Neuhaus, Patriarchal Vicar for the Hebrew-speaking Catholic communities in Israel.

Fr. Neuhaus gave a fascinating overview of the complex historical and pastoral reality of the Church in the Holy Land: from the restoration of the Latin Patriarchate in the mid-19th century to the establishment of the Hebrew-speaking Catholic community in 1955, to the pastoral challenge of the waves of Catholic immigrants settling in Israel in every generation – such as the thousands of Filipinos who came in the 1990s and most recently some tens of thousands of Eritreans.

Fr. David Neuhaus addressing the journalists

The Patriarchal Vicar also spoke about his own Hebrew-speaking community and the particularities of a Catholic community in Israel praying the Church’s liturgy in the Hebrew language.  He underlined the points of contact between the Jewish and Christian liturgy, such as the link between the Passover Seder and Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, and the solemn fasting on Good Friday as reminiscent of Yom Kippur.

He also discussed some details of the coming program of Holy Week in Jerusalem, as well as some of the issues affecting the coexistence between the different Christian confessions in the Holy City.  If the sharing of the holy sites sometimes causes difficulties and tensions, he said, there is also hope for greater cooperation and coming closer together in the future.  For example, he indicated that there is a strong likelihood of adopting a common date for the celebration of Easter between the Catholic and Orthodox communities, beginning as early as next year.

The next stop was the Notre Dame Center just outside of the New Gate, where the group was welcomed by Fr. Juan Solana, Chargé of the Holy See.  From the rooftop, with a stunning view of the city in the background, Fr. Juan told the group how despite the recent unrest in many countries of the Middle East, interest for the Holy Land remains high and tourism continues to thrive.  He also mentioned a growing interest for the Jewish roots of the Christian faith, noting how he frequently receives requests from Christians who wish to participate in a Jewish Passover meal.  This interest for the connection between Passover and Easter is especially relevant this year as the two feasts coincide – as in the Gospels – with Passover Eve falling on Good Friday.

Fr. Juan Solana and the group on the roof of Notre Dame Center

The morning concluded when Fr. Eamon Kelly, Vice- Chargé of the Notre Dame Center, addressed the group.  “Many pilgrims coming to the Holy Land feel that they can make the words of Psalm 87 their own: ‘every man was born here’ – he said.  “They feel that somehow their origins are here.”

Fr. Kelly explained how Notre Dame Center, located in a place that used to be right in “no man’s land,” at the dividing line between the conflicting parties from 1948 to 1967, strives to be a place of peace and encounter for people from all sides.

This will also be the goal of the Magdala Center, currently being developed on the shores of the Sea of Galilee in the north of the country: to replicate the experience of Notre Dame as a place of encounter and peace.  Fr. Kelly spoke of the hand of divine Providence as he told of the sensational discovery of a first-century synagogue right on the site where the construction of an ecumenical chapel had been planned.

With the culmination of the Church’s liturgical year upon us, it is indeed time to rediscover the “Fifth Gospel” and to return to the place of our origins, following Christ through the last events of his earthly life in the very sites where they took place.  A blessed Holy Week, and happy Passover and Easter to all!

Rediscovering the Holy Temple of Jerusalem

During Lent, one great way to gain new insights into Christ’s life, passion, death and resurrection – and also into our own Christian liturgy – is to get to know the place that was at the center of Jesus’ own spiritual life: the Temple.  The Jerusalem Temple was the holy seat of the Divine Presence and the heart and soul of Judaism in Jesus’ days.  So it’s no surprise that the Gospels present Jesus’ life and ministry as revolving around the Temple:

Soon after He was born, Joseph and Mary presented Jesus in the Temple (Lk 2:27). 

He taught in the Temple at age twelve (Lk 46) and then throughout his life (Mt 21:23; Mk 12:35; 14:49; Lk 19:47; 21:38; Jn 7:14; 8:2; 18:20); He also healed in the Temple (Mt 21:14). 

He viewed the Temple as his “Father’s House” and drove out the money changers from it out of concern for its sanctity (Mt 21:12; Mk 11:15; Lk 19:45; Jn 2:14). 

Finally, Jesus said that He is Himself greater than the Temple (Mt 12:6) announcing that His own body would be a new Temple (Mt 26:61; Mk 14:58; Jn 2:19-21). 

There have been two Temples in the history of Israel: The first was built by King Solomon around 970 B.C. (cf. 1 Ki 6), and it was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C. (2 Ki 25).  The Second Temple was built by Zerubbabel after the return from Babylonian Exile in 516 B.C.; it was renovated and enlarged by King Herod the Great around 19 B.C., and was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D.

The Temple as it looked in Jesus' days

Both Temples were built on the Temple Mount, approximately where the Muslim Dome of the Rock stands today.  This is why the Western Wall is the holiest site for the Jews today – because it is the closest spot to where the Holy of Holies used to stand.  There, the Divine Shekhinah rested over the Ark of the Covenant and between the Cherubim as the tangible sign of God’s Presence in the midst of His people.

The Temple Institute

One really interesting way of getting acquainted with the Temple of Jesus’ days is by visiting the Temple Institute in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem.  Situated on Misgav LaDach Street, one arrives there by walking down from the main square of the Jewish Quarter towards the Western Wall.  Misgav LaDach is the last street on the left just before going down the stairs leading to the Wall.

The Temple Institute is quite small, consisting of three rooms, a bookshop and small movie screening room.  The bookshop offers a number of superb books on the Temple, as well as Bible Atlases, Temple models, and more.

The guide explaining the role of the priests and of the altar of incense

In the first room, the main showcase features two figures, one of the High Priest and one of a regular priest, standing next to a golden altar of incense just like the one that used to stand in the sanctuary.  Incense was offered daily on this altar, rising towards heaven and symbolizing the prayers of the people rising to God.  The High Priest is wearing his intricate “golden garments,” consisting of ephod, breastplate, robe, tunic, turban, belt, crown, and pants). 

As I walk around the room, a guide explains to a group of religious Israeli school children in Hebrew the role of the different instruments that were used in the Temple service, as well as the significance of the High Priest’s garments.  In other displays around the room, there are musical instruments that were played by the Levites in the Temple service, such as a lyre, harp and trumpets. 

At the center of the second room is a superb model of the Herodian Temple as it would have looked in Jesus’ days.  In the corner stands a small stone altar of sacrifice.  The walls of the room are decorated with several beautiful color paintings of the Temple in its former glory.

Model of the Second Temple

In the screening room, a short animated film explains various aspects of the Temple service and its sacrifices.

Walking down a few steps, we arrive at the third room.  On the right side, there is the large bronze laver which provided water to wash the priests’ hands and feet. 

In the main showcase, there is the table of showbread, with golden racks made to hold twelve large loaves of bread.  The twelve loaves (corresponding to the twelve tribes of Israel), that used to be constantly present on the table in the sanctuary and were replaced every Shabbat, represented the material abundance that God provides to the world.  On the left and right, there are vessels for the Temple service and bottles of wine for the drink offerings.

The guide in front of the table of showbread

Absent from the museum is the beautiful golden Menorah that lighted the interior of the sanctuary and symbolized God’s Wisdom and His spiritual blessing on Israel and the world.  (The Menorah is on open display outside, further down on the way to the Western Wall). 

Here also the walls are decorated with several beautiful scenes of both the first (Solomonic) and second (Herodian) Temples, including views of the inner sanctuary and of the High Priest offering incense in the Holy of Holies on Yom Kippur.

The Temple as Pillar of Creation

The guide asks the group of children: How far back does the Temple go?  Only as far back as Solomon? What are its origins? 

Abraham has a vision of the Temple

As a hint, he points to a picture in the back.  There, we see an image of the Aqedah – of Abraham about to sacrifice His son Isaac.  As he raises his knife to kill his son, Abraham has a mystical vision of the future Temple.  Indeed, the Bible tells us that Abraham’s offering of Isaac took place on Mount Moriah (Gen 22:2), the very place where the Temple would later be built.  This means that Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son to God was a foreshadowing of all the future sacrifices that would be later offered in the Temple.

But the Temple even goes further back in time.  In fact, Jewish tradition situates the Temple at the beginning of the creation of the world.  As some midrashic sources tell us, the Temple had been part of God’s design since even before creation, and it was built on the foundation stone of the world, called in Hebrew the Even Shetiyah.  This idea shows how it has always been God’s desire to dwell among His people, even from the beginning of time.

For religious Jews, the furnishings, instruments and garments prepared by the Temple institute are not just artifacts of historical interest.  They have been made according to the strictest requirements set out in the Torah for the purpose of being used in the future Third Temple.  Indeed, religious Jews pray every day for its speedy reconstruction.

Christian Fulfillment

Christians see the Temple differently: for us, a visit to the Temple Institute is first of all a fascinating journey through time.  It’s a unique opportunity to discover the magnificent house of worship that used to be at the heart of Jewish life for nearly 1,000 years.  But we also see the Temple fulfilled in Christ, in the Church’s liturgy, and in our own lives when through faith and baptism we become “temples of the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor 6:19).

As the Epistle to the Hebrew tells us, Christ is both the sacrificial victim who atoned for our sins and our High Priest who is “seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven” (Heb 8:1).  Now, at Mass, the priest acts in persona Christi (in the person of Christ) and offers incense on our behalf, representing our prayers rising to heaven.

The laver prefigures the priest’s washing of hands at Mass before the Eucharistic prayer; it’s a sign of his need for spiritual purification as he silently says “Lord, wash away my iniquity; cleanse me from my sin”.

The Menorah reminds us of Jesus who is the “light of the world” (Jn 8:12), represented by the lighted candles on the altar at Mass.

The loaves of showbread also prefigure Jesus who is the “bread of life” (Jn 6:35), and the drink offerings of wine foreshadow his turning water in wine at Cana (Jn 2:9).  And Christ now continues to remain present with us in a special way through His Body and Blood, given to us under the form of the Eucharistic bread and wine.

Christians who believe that Jesus’ resurrected body is the New Temple, and that this New Temple of the Holy Spirit is perpetuated in the Church and in the Body of every baptized believer, cannot share the same desire of our Jewish friends to see the physical Temple building reconstructed.  But we can pray with them for God to “return His Shekhinah to Zion” so that His presence and the power of his love and salvation may again come to dwell in its fullness, both in Jerusalem and in the entire world.

Discovering the Jerusalem from the Time of Jesus

What did Jerusalem look like in Jesus’ days?  For most of Christian history, this question remained shrouded in mystery.

When the Temple and city were destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D., the ruins remained buried for nearly two millennia - even after the Jewish People began to return to the Land of Israel at the end of the nineteenth century.  During the war of Independence (1948), the Jewish Quarter of the Old City was largely destroyed by the Jordanians and it remained off limits to Jews for 19 years, until Israel retook the Old City during the Six Day War (1967).

After the Six Day War, during the renovation of the Jewish Quarter (1967-82), the ancient site was uncovered, revealing spectacular finds: a luxurious Second Temple period residential quarter in the Upper City of Jerusalem.  Because of its grandeur and opulence, it was renamed the Herodian Quarter, also known today as the Wohl Museum of Archeology.

In the days when Jesus came up to Jerusalem every year to celebrate the Jewish festivals, the wealthy aristocratic and priestly families lived in the magnificent houses of the Herodian Quarter.  It is easy to see why this area, built on a hillside overlooking the nearby Temple Mount, would have been particularly attractive to priests who ministered in the Temple every day.

Today, this is the largest and most important site from Second Temple times that can still be seen in Jerusalem’s Jewish Quarter.  Perhaps even some of the priests and Sadducees whom the Gospels recall as disputing with Jesus, lived in these houses.

Descending three meters below the present ground level, we go back 2,000 years in time, to the upper city of Jerusalem in the Herodian period.

One of the houses in the Herodian Quarter

The archeological remains of the cellars of six luxurious homes - probably then two stories in height - provide a vivid picture of the inhabitants’ wealth.  Numerous storage rooms, reservoirs, bathhouses and ritual baths, ovens, colorful mosaics, frescoes, elegant household items and other decorative adornments led archaeologists to conclude that the residents enjoyed a very high standard of living.

One unique find is the seven-branched menorah (candelabra) carved on one of the walls. This is the oldest explicit depiction of the menorah, and it was probably carved by a person who had actually seen the original menorah, still at use at that time in the Temple.

Throughout the museum there are displays of terra cotta tableware, imported amphorae for wine and delicate flasks.  The presence of several ritual baths and many stone vessels are an indication that the residents were priests who strictly adhered to the Jewish laws of ritual purity, because stone vessels were not subjected to ritual impurity.

Comparative pictures in the museum show how the site developed over the years, with illustrations of the Jewish Quarter in the 1940s (before it was destroyed in the War of Independence), during the excavations in the 1970s, and the rebuilt Jewish Quarter in the 1990s.

On the eastern side of the site, we arrive at a row of columns that belonged to a “peristyle” – a colonnade surrounding an open court – which formed part of an especially fine mansion.  The Peristyle Building testifies to the wealth of the neighborhood and to how the inhabitants designed their homes meticulously in the Greco-Roman style that was popular in those times. From here the residents would have had a splendid view of the Temple esplanade where Jesus spent much of his time when he was in Jerusalem.

The Columns of the Peristyle Building

A little further down, there is a beautiful mosaic floor found in the reception hall of another elegant Jewish residence.  Then, we come to the “palatial mansion”, the largest and most splendid of the houses uncovered on the site, probably inhabited by one of the families of the High Priest.

As one nears the end of the tour, a burnt room provides a glimpse of the tragic and violent end of the neighborhood and its inhabitants: The charred wooden beams that collapsed from the ceiling and the burnt mosaic stones testify to the great fire that raged in the city and to the destruction wrought by the Romans –the last moments of Jerusalem in its glory.

The Herodian Quarter as it would have looked in the days of Jesus

The Wohl Museum is situated just off the main square in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem.  Guided tours and private tours are available, as well as MP3 recorded tours.  For reservations, call 02-626-5922 or visit http://www.jewish-quarter.org.il/ 

German-Israeli Reconciliation... in Yad Vashem and Auschwitz

Recently I covered for Travelujah in collaboration with Catholics for Israel the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the Wannsee Conference, organized by the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem.  Following the moving wreath-laying ceremony at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum, I interviewed a unique pair of friends just outside the Hall of Remembrance.

Maren Steege is a young Christian woman from Stuttgart in Germany, and Eliel Fos is a young Israeli Messianic believer from Haifa. As leaders of the "Yad b’Yad" program, they regularly take teams of German and Israeli youth on reconciliation missions to Auschwitz.

"Yad b’Yad," which means "Hand in Hand" in Hebrew, expresses the organization’s goal to lead Israeli, German and Polish youth to walk hand in hand through Auschwitz, overcoming their pain and shame with the love of God. By guiding young people on a cultural, social, spiritual and historical journey to God’s grace, forgiveness, and power of reconciliation, Yad b’Yad teaches them to overcome the dark history of the past and create hope for future generations.

In the midst of the sober ceremony remembering Wannsee’s “Final Solution,” the smiling faces of Maren and Eliel in the brisk January wind were in themselves a living testimony that their commitment for reconciliation is working.

Maren, what brings you here today?

Maren: I came here from Germany with a delegation of 70 people representing Christian organizations. We have a heart not just for Israel in general but also for the individual persons here.

Eliel, how does it feel to see all these German and Austrian pastors here?

Eliel: It's very special to be with this group because they represent such a major part of Germany. They are making a strong statement in saying: "we will stand with Israel." This is something that is really encouraging to see as an Israeli and as a Jew. It’s also very special to be here together with Maren because we went to Auschwitz together as part of the “Yad b’Yad” program.

How did it feel to go and lay a wreath together, as a German and an Israeli?

Maren: For me, it was a real honor. In my heart, there are two sides beating together: on the one hand, even though I don't look like it, I have Jewish blood in my ancestry line. On the other hand, I also have a great-grandmother who had quite a high position in the Nazi regime. It took us a long time - many years - for us as a family to overcome that.

I just met her once, when I was 1 1/2 year old. When she saw that my brother and I were the only ones in the family who were blonde with blue eyes, somehow we had the feeling that she wanted to pick us out in a sort of idolatrous furthering of the ancestry line. Somehow I was a "chosen one" for her. But I decided to do the opposite in my own life, and to really stand with Israel. And so I'm very honored to stand here… it's something that words cannot express.

It’s also a privilege to be able to organize these youth exchanges, because it's not just with words but also with deeds that we can really change something.

What do you think is the most important thing for young people in the future, and how is all of this connected to your faith?

Eliel: I think there’s an important lesson to be learned in this place – and the young people really have to learn it. It’s our history, our past, but these kinds of things can also happen today. The problem is that people don't learn... they forget. And it's hard for young people to relate to what happened because your mind cannot contain it.

For Israel, the Holocaust is a national wound, and it’s a wound for every Israeli. I think there is no way out of it apart from the cross and Jesus. He is the one who can take this burden from us and bring healing into our heart, with true reconciliation based on true love between our two nations.

Can you tell us more about the trips you lead to Auschwitz?

Eliel: We first took the Israeli kids – all believers in Yeshua – to Maren's church in Stuttgart.  Then we went together to Auschwitz, and it was a very deep time.

Maren: When we go there, every Jewish teenager has a German partner. So the Israelis don't go there saying in a general way "these are the Germans who did this" because you cannot deal with such a large mass of people. But at that moment you have your German partner with you, one person who is an individual. In the first week of the program, they already build good friendships, and then finally they come to Auschwitz.

When we talk with the youth and ask them: "what is your biggest fear, what are you most afraid of?" they often answer: "that the experience in Auschwitz changes our friendship, that it breaks something."  And the Germans kids say: "maybe my Israeli friend will not be able to look at me anymore."

I remember a situation last time, when we were standing there in the gas chamber. There was a boy - he was about 16 years old… at that very moment, he took a picture out of his pocket. It was a picture of his grandmother, and he said: "it was here where she took her last breath."

Then we had a ceremony, and I must admit that seeing the young teenagers, my mind could not really grasp what happened there. But I know that it's really worth it to invest in friendships with Israel – not just superficial friendships but deep ones, because friendships will be like a bridge between us.