April 26, - Experiencing Yom HaAtzma’ut at Majdanek

Our senior class missed the happy feelings of Yom HaAtzma’ut at Beth Tfiloh. On Israel's Independence Day, the class of 2023 had the challenge of observing independence and freedom at Majdanek, one of history's most infamous death camps.

A cold, biting wind blows in the faces of classmates in an unwelcoming way. They have just seen gas chambers, crematoria, the harrowing site of more than 10,000 pairs of shoes worn by men, women and children, all victims of Nazi evil.

Still, the voices of our senior girls saying tehillim tempered the unforgiving wind. Senior Noah G. led his class in the saying of Kaddish, literally over the ashes of Majdanek's victims. In a strong message to honor Israel and the Jewish people, the senior class beautifully sang Hatikvah.

On the horizon, looking over fence posts, barbed wire, a crematoria chimney and wooden barracks, the traffic of Lublin buzzes by. We even hear church bells ringing in the distance. We remind ourselves that it is Yom HaAtzma’ut everywhere else. 
The children of Beth Tfiloh for several urgent, important minutes, brought Yom HaAtzma’ut here in this most unlikely place. We will all remember where we were on Israel's 75th birthday. 

Gaia P. ‘23
Today was a very eventful day. We woke up at around 7, ate breakfast together, and started the day off by touring an old yeshiva, which happened to be located in the hotel we were staying at. Our tour guide, Rafi, better known as RG, taught us about the origins of Daf Uomi and the history of the yeshiva, as we danced together. We also learned that our hotel was an old Nazi headquarter, meaning we were sleeping in the same room where some SS generals had slept.

We then started driving to Majdanek, a concentration camp. The bus ride was lighthearted; we listened to music, laughed, and talked. But all of the sudden, I look to my right and see a huge field surrounded with barbed wire. What initially struck me was the fact that there were apartment buildings literally overlooking the camp. There was also a city with big buildings just a couple miles away. To be honest, because I’ve seen pictures, videos, and movies, I didn’t think this would phase me as much as it did. But walking with my classmates on the same ground as the Jews did was a completely different experience. We saw the rooms where the Jews’ clothes were stripped, where their hair was cut, and where they were bathed with boiling hot water. We saw the gas chambers, cremation machines, and the hundreds of shoes that belonged to survivors. 

One of the most powerful moments was walking on the grounds in complete silence with “אני מאמין” playing in the background. We reached a dome that held a huge pile of ashes of holocaust survivors. We stood in a circle, linked arms, and sang Hatikvah. 

Following this, we went to an old synagogue in a small polish village. We learned about its history and danced there together. Then we had some really good soup for lunch. 

We got back on the bus, and we didn’t have much information about our next stop. We arrived at a forest and were each given a candle and a lighter. Rafi told us an emotional story as we linked arms, and, for the second time today, walked in complete silence to what looked like a patch of grass surrounded by a fence. However, we reached it and realized it was a mass grave for babies. We each lit our candle and placed it around the grave, as Rafi told us more tragic stories. He then said that each of us had five minutes to ourselves to write to someone we love and care about. Each person sat on their own and, again, we were silent. Many tears were shed, and we concluded by linking arms and singing “המלך מגואל”. It was an extremely powerful and meaningful day.