Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:
“A voice is heard in Ramah,
weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted,
because they are no more.” – Matthew 2:18
There is always a moment in a vacation when you feel that the experience transcends sightseeing and reaches the level of real deep-down learning and visceral engagement with a place.
That happened Monday here in Krakow, out in the WW2-era Jewish district, and it made me cry.
Just an hour later I was in a park overlooking the city in the late afternoon sunshine, taking spectacular photographs of the view… but in that moment, standing in the Plac Bohaterów Getta, in the middle of all those poignant chairs, I felt the emotional weight of what happened there and I could not help myself, I cried.
Each large metal memorial chair in the plaza represents a thousand adult victims. Each small chair stands for one thousand children. Krakow’s thriving, industrious, civic-minded Jewish community was rounded up and herded into the cramped walled ghetto which served as a holding place prior to extermination.
Trains came to this square to take the people off to either labor camps or extermination centers; both had the same end game. Many people, especially children and the elderly, were simply shot where they stood before even boarding the train.
Why did this memorial trigger me?
We think we already know this story; and most of us do… academically. But yesterday afternoon, standing in that place and looking at our beautiful, vibrant, joyous grandson, I found myself visualizing families like ours packed into in this space.
I see five-year old boys (just like our grandson) watch their mothers being murdered and their fathers herded into a cattle car headed for hard labor then execution. I see a grandfather like me witness unspeakable atrocities against his family before being murdered himself. I see those small chairs representing the brutal end for so many children, and I begin to cry.
I think I cry because A) I am a great big softie and the older I get the more things seem to touch me, and B) I hear too many people talking as if “rounding people up” is a good idea, and C) we are so easily blinded by hate and by propaganda and by misinformation and by our prejudices.
Blinded by hate; it is hate that blinds. The saying “love is blind” is not true; love typically sees clearly. This is what makes love so powerful; this is what makes love so costly.
But seeing clearly also hurts. The truth is that we are broken and lost and in need of grace.
I saw all of that Monday afternoon, and a lot more. But I am not emotionally equipped to say any more about it in this post.
Never forget the tragic and terrible consequences of forgetting Christ’s instruction to love our neighbor as ourselves. Of course that is not possible unless, first, we love God… and allow God’s love to enter our lives.
In love, and because – ultimately – it is love that will save us – DEREK
Amen! 🙏
Amen , again we say, AMEN !
Very powerful and emotional summary today. Tears flooded my eyes too, thinking of the unnecessary death of thousands. I’ve watched programs on YouTube regarding the Holocaust, and cried thinking of the victims. It continues in many countries, including our America, where innocent people are shot walking down a sidewalk. The cry reaches our Lord, He is aware and will return soon to right all the wrongs and bring peace and comfort to all. Thanks, Derrick, for a beautiful commentary. Regards to all, be safe, Diana Craig
Thanks, Diana. So much pain in this world and such a need for grace and light – Derek
Derek,
The horror of this history should never be forgotten. Your description of your emotions there reminded me of my own feelings when I visited there. Went with my 17-year-old granddaughter. She insisted on including Auschwitz and Birkenau in our European trip after her high school history class. I was reluctant to go- but she had to see for herself that such cruelty actually happened. I thanked her for making me confront this unbelievable travesty. So emotional.
Sometimes it takes the insight and the motivation of a serious student. I am glad your granddaughter wants to understand history.
Thank you, Derek, for this poignant reminder of what happened and what could happen again. How could I not weep. Still a need for grace & light.
Derek, what a powerful meditation! I had similar visions and emotions when I walked through Dachau Concentration Camp outside Munich in 1979. Decades later even the word “Dachau” conjures up visuals, emotions, and visceral reactions. Bless you in your never forgetting what you saw and felt today, and for sharing your insights; reminding us of what can happen, what did happen, and what we must not let occur again. Grace and peace to you, my friend: grace and peace.
Thank you, Hugh. My aim through these blog posts is to constantly expose people to both light and truth… and also to the hope and promise found in the Good News. May your 2025 be full with unexpected blessings…
[…] But I do want to offer these additional thoughts and photographs from the afternoon that started with such a gut-punch at the Jewish Ghetto Memorial. […]