Youth trip to Poland

Review

"To be a Jew is to remember". This sentence by Ellie Wiese stood above our invitation to this year's trip to Oswiecim/ Auschwitz. For some time now, it has been a particular concern of the Tor nach Zion association to familiarise young people with the topic of the Holocaust and the Jewish roots of our faith.

So this time we invited younger people in particular.

We met bright and early on Ascension Day and set off in two minibuses in the direction of Poland. The atmosphere was good and full of expectation. After what felt like an endless journey with a few traffic jams, we finally reached our destination. We were accommodated in three beautiful wooden chalets for 5 people each. In the afternoon we made our way to Oswiecim and visited the only synagogue there (out of 20!) that was not destroyed by the Germans. In the neighbouring room we were amazed by some precious candlesticks that came from the large synagogue, were buried shortly before the Germans arrived and only reappeared in 2004. A wondrous story that is unfortunately too long to be told here (but feel free to ask me about it :). Afterwards, we had a cosy drink at Café Bergson in the Klugerhaus. In the evening, we had our first round of discussions about our expectations and fears regarding the trip. This time we had the privilege of having some really talented praise leaders in our group. So we ended the evening worshipping our Lord. That is, I ended the evening like this. The young people still had endless energy to play together.

The next morning, after a devotional with communion and a wonderful hotel breakfast, we went to the LIDL supermarket. There we met up with our Polish guide Jacek. He showed us around Oswiecim and told us about the life of the Jews before the war. We then travelled to Birkenau, the infamous extermination camp. Jacek told us about Shlomo, a Jew who had to work in the Sonderkommando in the gas chambers. He miraculously survived the horror and made his story known. Around midday, we took a shuttle to the Auschwitz 1 camp, where there are many brick houses in which the prisoners had to live in horrific conditions. Today, each house contains a different exhibition. Jacek took us through some of them. I am always most impressed by the Jewish pavilion. At the beginning, lots of film clips are shown of the normal life of Jews before the war. Holidays by the sea, celebrations, family photos..... On the second floor you can hear speeches by Hitler, Goebbels and Göhring to the German people. I am always stunned by the enthusiasm and frenetic cheering. At the end of this exhibition there is a book of gigantic proportions with the names of the Jews who perished. In the afternoon we finished our tour filled with information, impressions and emotions. Now we needed a long break. In the evening, we celebrated Shabbat together with the Jewish people. We took time to talk about what we had experienced, to pray and to sing.

On Saturday morning, after devotions and breakfast, we set off for Krakow. What a beautiful city! We started in Kazimierz, the Jewish quarter of Krakow, visited the Old Synagogue, the Jewish market, took a break by the Vistula, looked around the former area of the Krakow ghetto and visited a photo exhibition of lost places, former Jewish sites that are now deserted. We ended the evening in a cosy restaurant in the Jewish market.

The next morning, after devotions, breakfast and packing, we travelled to the Fountain of Tears exhibition by Israeli-Canadian artist Rick Wienecke. It depicts in a unique way the identification of Jesus with the suffering of his people in the Holocaust. About 5 minutes away is the old Jewish ramp. This is the place where the trains arrived until the beginning of 1944. Later they travelled directly to the camp. We had a final round of prayers in front of the railway carriage that commemorates this time. Then we headed home again. This time it took us even longer than on the outward journey because there was a big traffic jam at the border.

Looking back, I am infinitely grateful for this trip, the open hearts of the young people, their interest in the topic and, of course, for all the protection of our Lord. THANK YOU JESUS! Kerstin Kluge