Remembrance

Yom HaShoah was yesterday. What is Yom HaShoah? It is the day where we remember the atrocities of the greatest genocide of our time- the Holocaust. So what does this mean for you and me? First of all, I don't believe you need to be Jewish to understand the horror of what occurred, there's no family that went unaffected during those times. However if you are Jewish there is a certain clench in your stomach you feel when you stop and think about what happened to those two generations removed from us.

To me, remembrance is something I am not sure how to handle. In Isreal, the whole country stops for two minutes in a moment of silence. But what can we do? Do you light candles and say a prayer? Is there a walk or a race that would raise awareness? Would anything suffice? Maybe I am being small minded. Readers: is there an example of something symbolic in your life to show your appreciation for someone or something?

I am not sure of the exact moment I became aware of the responsibility of being Jewish. I imagine it started when I went to Isreal in 2007. It was not about the hardcore rules of being Jewish, either. I am fairly Reform, I don't remember the prayers from my Bat Mitzvah, I can hum along in temple, but that's the extent. The history is where I began to feel a connection to my religion, moreover where I came from. This fact is not unique to being Jewish, it is what Americans have always fostered a bond over.

Religion is obviously a tricky topic. Which is why I don't want to go there. I want to lay the foundation of where I am in my discovery of a personal connection to Judaism, but that does not have to ring true for everyone reading.

What should ring true is the responsibility we all have to remember and then speak up for others. I've read countless articles that clearly demonstrate how aware the USA was of what was going on in Germany. Not just to the Jews, but to anyone who was 'different' or a risk to the ideals of the state. Domestically, the USA has come some way. As far as Foreign Policy, we waiver between isolationism and shoving democracy down other people's throats. The Holocaust should teach us understanding.

We should remember the Holocaust for that reason. To show that understanding is the only way to solve an issue, any issue. For us, forgetting was never an option. Remembering is a noble and necessary act.