Jew Gentiles the Word Holocaust Term Paper

Thus, in order for the righteous people to save the Jews they had to quicker and far more efficient than the troops who were looking for the Jews. The rescuers and the Jews who they had helped always lived in the constant danger of being caught. Everyone knew that as soon as the rescuers or the Jews were caught they would be persecuted.

Seeing how the media and the government had brainwashed almost everyone, there was always the fear of being reported by a neighbor or any other person. All the persons knew that their best interested would be served and they would be saved only if they helped Hitler in his cause. This made it even harder for any moral person to go on and help the Jews. The people who did decided to rescue and save the Jews had to alter their daily routine to quite an extent. They had to live in their own house as exiles and be extra careful to no one else came in. These people put their social life on hold just so the Jews wouldn't get caught.

Many people would actually wonder that if there was so much danger and pressure on these people then why did they go on to help the Jews? Some of the gentiles went on to attain some personal gain like money or something else. However, most of the people helped the Jews mainly due to a sense of Christian calling. These people felt theta they had some sort of commitment with God. T They felt that they had a duty to keep their neighbors safe. Therefore, these people merely acted to defend another human being in need. (Paldiel, 377)

There were gentiles present who were not Christians but the majority was either Catholic or Protestant Christians. Help was given by these gentiles in different ways. Some of the gentiles went on to offer food and others went on to offer shelter. Since the ultimate destination of the Jews was going to be concentration camps and death, their major objective was run away before they get caught. Therefore, majority of the gentiles worked on fleeing the Jews away from Germany. These people organized underground trains that would smuggle the Jews out of countries like Switzerland. This was necessary because most of the areas were under control of the Nazis and the Nazis worked to make sure that no such fleeing occurred. A lot of Jewish families were pushed to the position where they had to give their children away to children families just so they are not killed. (Rodgers 1)

Examples of Gentiles

There are many famous gentiles who have been recorded in history as heroes of mankind. On of the most famous families in the Ten Bloom family. This family went onto make a house in Holland that would only serve to accommodate Jewish refugees. They were merely part of the long chain of Christians that was devoted to providing for the Jewish people. Due to their efforts and hard work, about eight hundred people were saved from the concentration camps. Unfortunately, this family was caught by the Nazis and was sent to the concentration camps.

Raoul Wallenberg

Raoul Wallenberg was another gentile who belonged to Sweden. He was a humanitarian who resided and worked in Budapest, Hungary before the second world war stared. During the holocaust, Wallenberg worker to give protective passports to many Jews and even worked on providing them with Shelter. Even though the laws and the government were pretty serious about smuggling Jews, Wallenberg did not back off or get scared. No matter how difficult it got, he worked to provide freedom for these persons.

Carl Lutz

Carl Lutz was a Swiss vice Consul in Hungary up until the second world War. While he was in Hungary, Lutz started to cooperate with the Jewish Agency for Palestine. His major aim was to have Jewish people reach a safe place where they could start their new life. Thus, he worked to provide immigration documents to Jewish children and thus assisted them in emigrating. When the Nazis took over Hungary and started to send Jews to the death camps, Lutz made a special sort of contract with the Nazis and the Hungarian government. He asked for permission to provide eight thousand protective letters to the Jews in Hungary. These letters would basically be permission to allow them to immigrate to Palestine. A smart act that Lutz carried out was that he misinterpreted the letter himself and turned that permission or 8000 families and not just 8000 people. Thus, due to his efforts, tens of thousands of Jewish people were sent to Palestine. He also worked on making safe houses in the country. Lutz had made about 76 houses that were declared as annexes of the Swiss legations and thus they couldn't have been attacked. Thus, apart from issuing emigration letters, he worked on shielding the Jews inside Hungary's well. His efforts saved thousands from the gruesome fate of the concentration camps. Chiune Sugihara Chiune Sugihara was basically a Japanese diplomat who assisted many Jews to flee Germany. He worked to give these people transit visits to Japan. Most of the people who were successful in fleeing included the refuges of Lithuania or of the German occupied Poland. Suighara was inquired on many occasions as to why he carried this noble but dangerous act. He said that it was basically due to the look that he got after looking at the teary eyes inside the concentration camps. Despite the dangers or the troubles, it was very hard to not sympathize with them. The scenes and the tortures that he saw inside the camps made him want to do something for the Jews. He was aware that carrying out this act might result in him getting fired or even killed. Sugihara basically was so confidence and so sure about this act that he didn't think twice. He stated that he carried out this act in the spirit of neighborly friendship, humanity and philanthropy. Due to these reasons, he got courage and the motivation to take on the dangerous task. Anfre Trocme and Magda This French couple is also known for their commitment to helping the Jews. Andre was basically a pastor and when most of the churches were encouraging Anti-Semitism, he had the guts to talk against it. He urged his protestant congregation to hide the Jewish refugees and help them stay safe. When France was under Nazi control, his efforts did not stop and he continued working for the Jews. The couple along with the member of the church continued to make safe houses for where the Jews could hide. These examples basically show that the rescuers and the gentiles were actually normal people. Even though some had their religious or political reason, their major reason for helping the Jews was humanity. These people did not plan to be rescuers but t when the need arose, they couldn't contain themselves. Many scholars claim that the righteous peoples all had two factors in common: courage and humanity. These people let go of all the pressures and the dangers and still felt the need to empathize and connect with the Jewish community. Surely, they were quite separate from the majority and had courage that no one else had. Thus basically leads us to the conclusion that courage and humanity together motivated these gentiles to go on to help the Jews. The entire world witnessed the atrocities against the Jews but either they lacked humanity or they lacked courage. They had the guts to hide the Jews in their home, help them to flee, give them false papers or merely rescue their children. Regardless of what and how these gentiles helped the Jews, they were successful in making a difference. These rescuers were quite an exception and it is because of them that a lot of Jews are alive today. Works cited Block, Gay and Malka Drucker. Rescuers. New York: Holmes & Meier, 1992. Print. Jewishvirtuallibrary.org. "Righteous Among the Nations:" History & Overview | Jewish Virtual Library." 1944. Web. 27 Apr 2013. . Paldiel, Mordecai. The path of the righteous. Hoboken, N.J.: Ktav, 1993. Print. Rodgers, Jennifer. Jewish-Christian Relations: Righteous Gentiles in the Holocaust. n.d.. E-book. Satucket.com. "The Righteous Gentiles." 2009. Web. 27 Apr 2013. . Yadvashem.org. "The Righteous Among the Nations - Yad Vashem." 1944. Web. 27 Apr 2013. ......