The Evangelical Pope | "I Have Come to Yad Vashem."

Each week we let Saint Pope John Paul II share meaningful signposts to spark socio-economic resolves through justice and righteousness combined with mercy and compassion; in short, love

The words of the ancient Psalm rise from our hearts:

          "¹³ For I hear many whispering,
                      'Terror on every side!'
           They conspire against me
              And plot to take my life.

          ¹⁴ But I trust in you, Lord;
                      I say, 'You are my God.'

          ¹⁵ My times are in your hands;
               deliver me from the hands of my enemies,
               From those who pursue me" (Psalm 31:13-15 New International Version NIV).

1. In this place of memories, the mind, heart, and soul feel an extreme need for silence. Silence in which to remember. Silence in which to try to make some sense of the memories that come flooding back. Silence because there are no words strong enough to lament the tragedy of the Shoah. My memories are of all that happened when the Nazis occupied Poland during the War. I remember my Jewish friends and neighbors, some of whom perished, while others survived.

I have come to Yad Vashem to pay homage to the millions of Jewish people who, stripped of everything, especially of their human dignity, were murdered in the Holocaust. More than half a century has passed, but the memories remain.

Here, as at Auschwitz and many other places in Europe, we are overcome by the echo of the heart-rending laments of so many. Men, women, and children cry out to us from the depths of the horror that they knew. How can we fail to heed their cry? No one can forget or ignore what happened. No one can diminish its scale.

2. We wish to remember. But we want to remember for a purpose, namely to ensure that never again will evil prevail, as it did for the millions of innocent victims of Nazism. 

How could man have such utter antipathy towardhumanity? Because he had reached the point of contempt for God. Only a Godless ideology could plan and carry out the extermination of a whole people. 

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What attracted 1930s Zionists to fascism

By Richard Silverstein, Tikun Olam

               "A Jewish studies graduate student earlier today pointed me to a fascinating study of pre-WWII Jabotinsky Zionism and its impact on latter-day Israeli politics. As most of you will know, Israel's current extreme-rightist government is an ideological heir of Jabotinsky. Much of its garrison state militancy, hatred of Arabs, and urge for territorial aggrandizement stem from Jabotinskyean Zionism. Further, it's the adulation of the powerful strongman leader and its dog-whistle dalliance with outright fascist discourse all harken back to lessons learned from Jabotinsky."

Read more … 'Jabotinsky and Zionist Case for Fascism."

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Saint Pope John Paul II: The honor given to the "just gentiles" by the State of Israel at Yad Vashem for having acted heroically to save Jews, sometimes to the point of giving their own lives, is a recognition that not even in the darkest hour is every light extinguished. That is why the Psalms, and the entire Bible, though well aware of the human capacity for evil, also proclaim that sin will not have the last word. Out of the depths of pain and sorrow, the believer's heart cries out: "I trust in you, O Lord; I say, 'You are my God'" (Psalm 31:14).

3. Jews and Christians share an immense spiritual patrimony, flowing from God's self-revelation. Our religious teachings and our spiritual experience demand that we overcome evil with good. We remember, but not with any desire for vengeance or as an incentive to hatred. For us, to remember is to pray for peace and justice and commit ourselves to their cause. Only a world at peace, with justice for all, can avoid repeating the mistakes and terrible crimes of the past. 

As Bishop of Rome and Successor of the Apostle Peter, I assure the Jewish people that the Catholic Church, motivated by the Gospel law of truth and love and by no political considerations, is deeply saddened by the hatred, acts of persecution, and displays of anti-Semitism directed against the Jews by Christians at any time and in any place. The Church rejects racism in any form as a denial of the image of the Creator inherent in every human being (Genesis 1:26 NIV).

4. In this place of solemn remembrance, I fervently pray that our sorrow for the tragedy which the Jewish people suffered in the twentieth century will lead to a new relationship between Christians and Jews. Let us build a new future in which there will be no more anti-Jewish sentiment among Christians or anti-Christian feeling among Jews, but rather the mutual respect required of those who adore the one Creator and Lord and look to Abraham as our common father in faith. 

The world must heed the warning that comes to us from the victims of the Holocaust and the testimony of the survivors. Here at Yad Vashem, the memory lives on and burns itself onto our souls. It makes us cry out: 

               "I hear the whispering of many – terror on every side! – But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, 'You are my God.'" (Psalm 31:13-15 New International Version NIV). ¹

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When Zionism imagined Jewish nationalism without supremacy

By Meron Rapoport, +972 Magazine

               "In his recent book, Dr. Dmitry Shumsky shows that, contrary to popular belief, the forefathers of Zionism did not envision a state based on Jewish supremacy. And yet Zionism, he says, inevitably involves the oppression of Palestinians."

Read more: 'When Zionism imagined Jewish nationalism without supremacy.'

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John Paul II greets the Consuls General: "In this important sphere, no accomplishment or gain - no matter how small it may seem - will fail to have a positive effect on the entire family of man. I encourage you to bring all the energy of a deeply-felt ideal to your work: that of building a world firmly based on solid foundations of peace, justice, and respect for human rights and dignity. May God who is the source of our peace abundantly bless every effort aimed at securing an era of sincere understanding and cooperation among the nations of the earth." ²

Excerpted from:

1 Jubilee Pilgrimage of His Holiness John Paul II to The Holy Land (March 20-26, 2000), SPEECH OF JOHN PAUL II, VISIT TO THE YAD VASHEM MUSEUM, Jerusalem – Yad Vashem, Thursday,  23 March 2000

https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/speeches/2000/jan-mar/documents/hf_jp-ii_spe_20000323_yad-vashem-mausoleum.html

2 Jubilee Pilgrimage of His Holiness John Paul I to The Holy Land (March 20-26, 2000), GREETING OF JOHN PAUL II TO THE CONSULS GENERAL, Saturday, 25 March 2000

https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/speeches/2000/jan-mar/documents/hf_jp-ii_spe_20000325_general-consuls.html