Voices were hushed, lights were low. The normal environment of Sar Shalom Messianic Congregation is one filled with the sounds of chatter, bursts of laughter and the occasional squeals from children. But this was not a normal evening. Tonight the congregation was recognizing the more than 6 million lives that were taken during the holocaust.
Richland County Commissioner Marilyn John presented a proclamation recognizing Holocaust Remembrance Day, observed on April 12, 2018. The proclamation spoke of the ties of Ohio and Israel, both past and present, and that “both Israel and the United States are prosperous nations comprised of immigrants, with representative democratic forms of government, and share exceptional histories.”
Elder Steve McEllhatten shared the timeline of events that led up to the holocaust and the religious persecution that became the societal norm. “Because they refused to conform to the cultural norms in the secular and other religious practices of the countries in which they lived, they became easy targets for those wanting someone to blame for all things that were not going well. They were blamed for everything from the black plague in Europe, to the financial depression, and even for being ‘Christ killers.’ They were looked at as being inferior to the so-called Aryan race,” he said.
He encouraged all to never forget and to continue to observe this important date. He also encouraged prayer for Israel and Jerusalem, to stand and advocate for Israel, including buying Israeli-made products and speak out against discrimination and anti-Semitism. McEllhatten shared a quote that was displayed at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem that touched him on his most recent trip to Israel: “Forgetfulness leads to exile while remembrance is the secret of redemption,” Baal Shem Tov.
Congregants also watched a video detailing the heroic efforts of Master Sergeant Roddie Edmonds of Knoxville, Tennessee, who served in the US Army during World War II. Edmonds was the highest ranking officer amongst the prisoners at a German POW camp. The German guards announced the Jewish soldiers must report the following morning. Recognizing the danger, Edmonds ordered all of his men, Jews and non-Jews, to stand together. Upon seeing all the soldiers together, a German commander questioned how many of the soldiers were Jews. Edmonds famously replied “We are all Jews.” Those brave words saved the lives of the hundreds of Jews under his command that day.
“We are all Jews.”
Master sergeant Roddie Edmonds
Rabbi William Hallbrook invited Shoshanna (Susan) Ricer Walker to speak to those in attendance. Ricer Walker shared how many of her family members were murdered in the holocaust, to the point of near annihilation. She was also delighted to share how her family has rebounded, and she added that 15 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren are now thriving in the Ricer family tree.
Rabbi William offered some closing thoughts, “Many here in this room have family that were lost in the Holocaust, and we want to question why. We must know God is sovereign. There is hope. There is joy in the Messiah.”
He recounted a story of two brothers that were walking, one brother reached down and grabbed a bible off a corpse. He later read that bible and came to believe in Messiah. His brother, too, became a believer. Rabbi William lead a prayer referred to as the Mourner’s Kaddish. He reminded everyone the Kaddish prayer is for living, and that it is a positive prayer of hope. One of the lines include the hopeful prayer “May God’s majesty be revealed in the days of our lifetime and the life of all Israel … speedily, imminently, to which we say Amen.”
Lexington resident Amie Mutti is a wife, mother of three boys and student at Yeshiva Shuvu.
