Tuesday, March 06, 2007

 

You never know what comes across your pass

When we were walking towards the arena, we passed by a memorial to the Holocaust. It seemed odd that a city such as Boston would have such a monument, however, it took me by surprise. I went on line to see what it was about. I copied two paragraphs and there is a quote down below that I thought was an amazing statement.

The New England Holocaust Memorial was built to foster memory of and reflection on one of the great tragedies of our time, the Holocaust (Shoah). The effort was begun by a group of survivors of Nazi concentration camps who have found new homes and new lives in the Boston area. Dedicated in October, 1995, over 3000 individuals and organizations from across the community joined in sponsoring the project.

The design utilizes uniquely powerful symbols of the Holocaust. The Memorial features six luminous glass towers, each 54 feet high. The towers are lit internally to gleam at night. They are set on a black granite path, each one over a dark chamber which carries the name of one of the principal Nazi death camps. Smoke rises from charred embers at the bottom of these chambers. Six million numbers are etched in glass in an orderly pattern, suggesting the infamous tattooed numbers and ghostly ledgers of the Nazi bureaucracy. Evocative and rich in metaphor, the six towers recall the six main death camps, the six million Jews who died, or a menorah of memorial candles.

There was a quote by Lutheran Pastor Martin Niemoeller that is engraved in one of the stones at the site, I wish I saw it that night.

When the Nazis came for the communists,I remained silent;I was not a communist.
When they locked up the social democrats,I remained silent;I was not a social democrat.
When they came for the trade unionists,I did not speak out;I was not a trade unionist.
When they came for me,there was no one left to speak out.

Jamie

Comments:
Amazing quote is right... very convicting. I also like how it said that it's like a Manorah lit for those who died in those camps.

- Troy
 
I was just sharing with some co workers today about the monument. Thanks for the information. I think out of history nothing intrigues me like that period. I don't know why. I guess some of it is I'm curious how people got so caught up in the hatred of a people group, and I pray that I never become one of those. I also think that there is so much that's inspiring about it. In the midst of the ugliness of evil there was good and hope. The people who hid Jews, worked the underground to save lives, and the those who fought to liberate those and to protect our freedom as well.

Jenn
 
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