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VISIT TO POLAND & UKRAINE

Have you heard the expression "Beyond the Pale"? Like many other expressions used as a matter of habit, you probably don’t know about its origin. Today "Beyond the pale" is a saying to indicate that something has either been said or done, which has gone beyond what is acceptable.

In relation to its original meaning, you and I are living "beyond the pale". But between September 8^th and 17^th, I had the opportunity to live "within the pale". So what is meant by "the Pale"?

When pales or palings are put together they are used to form a fence, or an enclosure. But this saying comes from what is known as "The Jewish Pale of Settlement" which was coined by the Russian Czar - Nicholas I, and meant that Russian Jews were confined to live in a specific area. This arose as an anti-Semitic action, but I haven’t got time to give a deeper history lesson.

In reality this area incorporated Poland and the Ukraine. Laws were first passed in 1795, then in 1835 Nicholas I enforced them, so that by 1897, it is estimated that there were more than 5 million Jews living within the Pale. But around that time, the Pogroms developed – another anti-Semitic action, which aimed to drive the Jews "Beyond the Pale". (Again no time to develop the history lesson). So the irony is that, first they forced the Jews to live within the Pale, and then they forced them beyond the Pale. I have to hang my head in shame because history tells me that it was Christian Anti-Semitism that was responsible.

Today I want to share some of the experiences that I encountered "within the Pale" – (in Poland and the Ukraine).

There are just three experiences from my visit to Poland that I will share briefly. But first some basic information about the Jewish population, past and present. Prior to WW2 approximately 10% of the total population of Poland was Jewish or in actual terms approximately 3,300,000 people. How many live in Poland today?

I have some figures showing world Jewry, and today it does not rate in the first fifteen. Mexico has a population of approx 48,000 and Mexico is the 15^th in size. Australia has in excess of 100,000 Jews in our country.

Some estimates put Jews in Poland today at around 30,000, which is less than 0.1% of the total existing population of the country. Poland has the reputation of being the world’s largest Jewish graveyard, for in Poland over 3,000,000 Jews perished under the Nazis. That is, half of the Jews who were slaughtered during the Holocaust were Polish Jews.

It is impossible to take it in, but just think about this – about 90% of the Jewish population and about 9% of the total population were put to death, because they were Jews - or as Hitler referred to them "vermin"!

This leads me to the first experience that I want to share.

Unfortunately the Jewish cemetery in Warsaw is unkempt and not in good condition. I can only speculate about the reason for that.

Poland is of course a so-called "Christian" country with a church attendance of over 90% on Sundays. It is predominantly Catholic. So maybe the government – largely Catholic - does not consider a Jewish cemetery worthy of expending finance! I don’t know, but I did observe that other cemeteries (viz-Christian cemeteries) are well kept.

But that is not the point that I want to make. The first impression indelibly placed in my mind, was to see the extensive nature of this Jewish Cemetery in Warsaw. I spent about an hour there, and did not have time to walk its boundaries. Moreover because it is overgrown by trees, it is impossible to see its boundaries. It is a huge place in the heart of Warsaw. But the staggering fact is this – the dates on the tombstones were prior to 1941. (There were only a few exceptions)

To see such an extensive Jewish cemetery in the heart of Warsaw told me one thing – that Warsaw once had a thriving Jewish population – at least prior to WW2. The interesting fact also about the heart of Warsaw was the name of the main street. Anybody know what it is called – still to this day? Answer - "Jerusalem" Street. Now why would that be? You guessed it! Warsaw had a strong Jewish presence. This leads me on to the second experience I want to share

B. My visit to (the remains of) the Warsaw Ghetto.

I can only mention this briefly, because the Ghetto has all but disappeared. By and large where the Ghetto was, is now comprised of new buildings. But we were able to see some nearby buildings that were typical of those which had existed in the Ghetto area. How many years ago was it that we had Abraham Biderman as a speaker at Celebration Shalom? I thought a lot about Abraham while I was walking through the Ghetto area.

He was one of 500,000 Jews that were confined within this "smaller Pale" (if you like), in this section of Warsaw and who were required like Jews everywhere under Hitler’s rule to wear the yellow star. Most of those who were confined within the Ghetto were finally sent to one of the Extermination Camps. Have any of you seen the movie "For the Ones I Loved" staring Michael York? Worth seeing! It gives a vivid understanding of what Ghetto life would have been like. My understanding is that the movie is based on a true story.

Right on the edge of the Ghetto is one of the remaining buildings. It is a Synagogue. It was not however used as such during those years of terror. The Nazis used it as a stable for their horses. But I must hurry on to the third experience, which I want to share which was my visit to the one of the death camps.

Lublin is located about 2 hours drive south of Warsaw. Majdanek is one of the few death camps that retains much of the original structure and buildings. It was the second largest of its kind built by the Nazis; this one was the brainchild of the murderer Heinrich Himmler.

It consisted of experimental booths, where testing was carried out to see just how long those entrapped would last under certain types of "gas". Cyclone B gas was finally chosen as the most effective. I don’t want to go into details, for indeed I could not. But I saw with my own eyes the remains of the gas ovens, the human incinerators or crematorium and finally the huge pile of ashes now placed under a mausoleum.

One of the excuses given during that time of terror was that the "non-Jewish people" did not know what was going on. I came to realise how ridiculous that really is.

First of all, the people in the various locations adjacent to the camps would have seen them being built. Second they would have seen and heard the extent of people being taken into the camps and not coming out. But beside all that, Lublin is just so close to the Camp itself. While I was going through the camp I could see the old houses of Lublin some of which are built on a hill. I could hear dogs from neighbouring houses barking. Is it fair to say that many of the people of Lublin would have both seen activities at the Camp and heard the screams of those being taken against their will into Majdanek?

One of the memories, which will stay with me forever from within the Death Camp at Majdanek, comes from within one of the buildings. This building would be about 10m x 20m. Around the edges of the inside of the building and right up the centre there are shelves, which are caged. On those shelves are placed a total of 1 million shoes – representing men women and children who perished at that Death Camp!

After 4 days in Poland we took a flight to Kiev, where a brand new set of experiences awaited me. Kiev is the capital of the Ukraine and is a beautiful city. The country had been under the Communist rule for decades as part of the USSR until the early nineties when it became an Independent State once more. It is fair to say that it is still trying to come to terms with the new "free economy". The gap between "the have’s" and have not’s has widened. People may earn between $50 - $5000 monthly. The majority earn less than $500 monthly, with a high percentage of that closer to the $50 mark. Moreover I am talking about professional people including Doctors and Dentists.

There are still over 1 million Jews living in the Ukraine, but almost as many as that lost their lives during WW2. Russia and the other "Soviet" States have a long history of anti-Semitism. If Poland may be called the "world’s largest Jewish Graveyard", then the Ukraine would be known as the "world’s strongest Anti-Semitic Country".

When I asked, "what attitudes were like today in this regard" the answer was ambiguous. "Anti-Semitic acts are against the law" I was told, but as I moved around and talked to people, I became aware that it (Anti-Semitism) is still deep within the soul of the Ukrainian people.

But let me share my encounters with some of the history of the Ukraine.

Meet Bogdan Khmelnytsky

It is obvious that the people of the Ukraine revere Bogdan Khmelnytsky. In the centre of Kiev there is a statue of him, which is the most prominent in the city. He is known as the "Father of the Cossack’s", the "Liberator of the Nation" who rallied the Ukrainians in their struggle for Independence around 1650. He has been compared to Oliver Cromwell in leadership status. His face appears as an icon on their precious drink "Vodka". His image also appears on their money (show example).

As I was in the departure lounge on the last day in Kiev I picked up this magazine called "Airport" which is the State International Airport magazine, and guess what? There is an article on page 6 to 8 (show article) in both Ukrainian and in English on none other than "Hetman Bogdan Khmelnytsky" espousing the virtues of this man of yester-year (as though they wished they had a leader like him today). The article concludes with this comment "In the memory of the Ukrainian people, Bogdan Khmelnytsky has always remained a great statesman and liberator. He was – and remains – a Ukrainian Moses who led the nation along the road of freedom and national dignity".

Have you got the picture of how this man has been and is still regarded? Unfortunately it is only part of the truth. The other part is that he should also be called "The Hitler of the Ukraine". He was a raving Anti-Semite who like the Nazis murdered countless Jews in his era. Time does not permit me to give the deeper history lesson, but let me say it is clearly recorded.

On the outskirts of Kiev, there exists a picturesque ravine called Babi Yar. Once it was a famous part of the landscape in what was and still is a beautiful city. But on the 29 September 1941 it became an infamous graveyard. This happened 60 years ago. In 1941 Kiev contained a Jewish population of 175,000. In mid September that year the Nazi forces captured the city under Heydrich’s command. Immediately this notice was put all over the city, which read:

A "buzz" went around the city that they were going to be repatriated to other places including Palestine. It was however just another Nazi lie. The fact was that they were taken to Babi Yar and within a 36-hour period 34, 000 were systematically shot and thrown into the ravine and covered over. Those who missed out at that time were eventually hunted down and exterminated. Only a few escaped.

We are all familiar with the make believe town of "Anektevka" where "Tevye, with wife Golda and their five daughters lived". It is a magnificent humorous musical with a sad ending depicting the Pogroms in evidence at the turn of the 20^th Century, which forced the Jews "beyond the Pale".

I was blessed to be able to visit some such villages as Vinnitsa and Berdichev, though they had a rather larger population than I imagined was true of Anektevka. We stopped in Berdichev where there was an old Synagogue. Our guide went to see if it was open with the idea of us having a look inside. It was late Friday afternoon (close to the beginning of Shabbat). He came back and said that it was closed and that the Rabbi was not present.

I asked if we could go and have a look around, which we did. After a few minutes an elderly man dressed in a dark suit and black hat walked up to the entrance to the Synagogue. I went up to greet him with "Shabbat Shalom". A smile appeared on his face, he reached out his hand and responded "Shabbat Shalom". I managed to tell him that I was from "Aus-tral-ia", which he understood, and then I called for our Ukrainian guide to come to my aid once I had run out of common words. So through interpretation I got into good discussion with this 81-year-old Jewish man, who had served in the Russian Army.

He told me that this town with a population of 80,000 once had a Jewish contingent of 39,000. But all that had changed. Today, the Jews there numbered only 6,000. As we were in deep discussion, the chief Rabbi arrived who I learned had been educated in USA and spoke fluent English. Immediately he invited me into the Synagogue, which was also extended to the rest of the group and we were treated with great cordiality and respect. It was one of those pleasant serendipity type experiences.

But I come to the most important part of my talk, the reason for my being in the Ukraine. I reckon it was one of the most significant of my life’s experiences

Bus runs to collect and transport the Olim (the Jewish people)

I was thrilled to be part of two bus runs. One which left at 1.30am from Kiev to pick up a group of 8 people at a place about 6 hours drive away, the other run involved a night stop over in another town so that an early start from that end could be achieved to return to Kiev with 7 people on that run. The travellers are required to be at the Airport about five to six hours before departure time in order to finalise Ukrainian Red Tape.

I was able to speak with the people and experience some of the mixed emotions involved in making such a lifetime move. Many of these people are amongst the "have nots" of Ukrainian Society, and in spite of what we constantly see as trouble in Israel at this time, for them it means opportunity, a new start and above all "Hatikvah" (hope).

In conjunction with our tour, there was a visiting choir from Ariel in Israel conducting recitals in various cities in the Ukraine. The 20-person choir comprised Jewish people who had originally lived in the Ukraine, but had already made their "Aliyah" and were now returning to tell their own Jewish people "You should do as we have done – pack up and go and live in Israel". I hasten to add that this whole concept has a prophetically biblical base recognising that it is God’s purpose for the Jewish People to go to the "land of promise" which He gave to them as outlined by Scripture.

I attended the last concert, which was held in the main Concert Hall in Kiev to a packed Jewish audience. It was a thrill to bring a greeting from Australia, which afterwards resulted in a number of people wanting to talk with me about their relatives who live over here.

I believe that this is a moment of opportunity that we should not miss. The doors of the former Soviet Union are open to legally carry out this work. But circumstances can change quickly. The recent events in the US should tell us all how unpredictable things are.

The Ukraine Political elections are to be held in the near future and one of the couriers told me that the communist party is once again gaining momentum. He also told me that he has heard speeches by one of the candidates blaming the Jews for the present economic condition of the country. Where there is smoke there is fire, and there has been plenty of fire against the Jews in the past. One would logically think that such antagonists against the Jews would welcome the opportunity to be rid of them by sending them to Israel. But evil logic never works that way.

Let me conclude with Isaiah 49:22  "Thus says the Lord God, I will raise my hand to nations and lift up my ensign to peoples; and they shall bring your sons in their bosoms, and carry their daughters on their backs".

The amazing thing is that you and I can play a part in the fulfilment of that prophecy.

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