Elie Weisel and the Never of Today: A Meditation for Yom HaShoah v'HaGevurah
Each year, we have always used Nevers. Our entire lives. Never forget. Never again.
Elie Weisel, zichrono l’vracha in his famous work, Night, said it well, using Never so poetically and painfully.
Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, that turned my life into one long night seven times sealed.
Never shall I forget that smoke.
Never shall I forget the small faces of the children whose bodies I saw transformed into smoke under a silent sky.
Never shall I forget those flames that consumed my faith for ever.
Never shall I forget the nocturnal silence that deprived me for all eternity of the desire to live.
Never shall I forget those things, even were I condemned to live as long as God Himself.
Never.*
Today we are part of the legacy of Nevers–and it’s strange as we are told to never forget something we did not see. And to never again with something we did not experience.
Sadly, this year, the Never is now and it’s not hard for us to remember.
We will never forget Oct 7 and how it brought back the images that we have seen on screens and museums of so much that happened on the Shoah. Sadly, we don’t need to imagine – smoke, pillage and destruction.
Never forget what happened to our people in the Shoah–remember where they were vulnerable and were murdered. Never again, never again should we be caught off guard.
And every year, on Yom HaShoa veHagevura, we remember the bravery of those who stood up to the Nazis in the Warsaw Ghetto and this year we also can picture their bravery as we saw so many in Israel, heroes of all ages stand up to evil on Oct 7 and beyond.
This Yom HaShoah when I feel more connected to the pain and history of my people than ever before–I say, Never Forget is now, Never Again is Now
Never.
(slightly edited)
Comments
Post a Comment