I am from Hungary. Today is a particularly painful day for me because of the people who were murdered as a result of antisemitism and hate-based violence during the Second World War in Hungary. Most of the murders were carried out by the fascist Arrow Cross Militia. When I think of that, I feel ashamed.
I also know that in order to heal, we must forgive and let go. We must find compassion in our hearts for ourselves and for others.
Tonight and tomorrow we Remember by lighting a candle and moving our focus from paint to peace and loving. We acknowledge the painful losses and we move our attention towards healing and Oneness. What we focus on is what we get.
It is time to heal. It is time to bring Peace and Loving to the places where it hurts. I would like to invite you to spend the day focusing into and contemplating on lifting our consciousness out of the sphere of separation that wants retribution and revenge into Oneness that carries Compassion for all.
It is time to heal, it is time to forgive, it is time to Love through Compassion for self and others.
Never again can only be reached through love and compassion, not by blame and hatred.
When is Yom HaShoah?
Yom HaShoah is observed on the 28th of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar, which usually falls in April or May in the Gregorian calendar. In 2024, Yom HaShoah is honored from sundown on May 5 through sundown on May 6.
Observing Yom HaShoah
Yom HaShoah gives the Jewish community and others space to reflect together on the immeasurable loss wrought by the Holocaust. Many communities observe Yom HaShoah with presentations from Holocaust survivors or their children, and—through their stories—living reminders of the exclamation, “Never again.”
Budapest: Shoes on the Danube Bank Memorial
The Shoes on the Danube Bank Memorial in Budapest, for the thinking and tenderhearted person, is also one of those places that will stir the heart to the very soul. You see, this memorial was created to honor the Jews who were killed by fascist Arrow Cross militiamen during World War II.
Jews were ordered to take off their shoes and to stand at the edge of the river. The evildoers then shot the Jews in the head and their bodies fell into the river where the current carried their bodies away.
Not unlike the German Nazis, the Arrow Cross Party was a highly nationalistic party whose objectives were to purge Hungary of those who were not descended from the region’s ancient Magyar tribes. Between the Arrow Cross Party, and later the invading Nazis, it is estimated that up to 600,000 Jews lost their lives through outright murder in Hungary, or later being shipped to German concentration camps.
