Why Deny the Holocaust When We Can Simply Forget about It?

January 27 is the International Holocaust Remembrance Day. In recent years, there has been a sharp resurgence of antisemitism, which seems to be accelerating. The Jewish Agency’s Fighting Antisemitism page states, “With violent instances of antisemitism on the rise across the world, we are devoting more resources than ever to expunge this epidemic and ensure Jewish safety.” However, the efforts are not working. A report that the Jewish Agency recently released has found that antisemitic incidents on U.S. campuses have gone up by almost 50 percent during 2022, compared to a year earlier.

The only people who have ever managed to rise above the innate selfish tendency in human nature and balance it with kindness, as it is in the rest of nature, were the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who united “as one man with one heart” and were declared a nation—the Israeli nation—at the foot of Mt. Sinai.

Even worse, as time passes, people forget about the Holocaust, or come to think that it was far less horrific than it actually was. This fork-movement of forgetting what had happened, on the one hand, and the spreading of antisemitism around the world, on the other hand, has reached levels that remind many Holocaust researchers of the venomous atmosphere that prevailed in Europe before the Holocaust, and which eventually allowed it to happen, if not accelerated and exacerbated it. I believe we have every right to be worried that what occurred might recur.

However, I also believe that we should acknowledge that our efforts are futile, and unless we overhaul them, matters will continue to deteriorate at an accelerating speed. But in order to change course, we need to know in which direction to turn, and for this to happen, we need to understand the roots of antisemitism.

Antisemitism has a very deep root. In fact, it is embedded in the laws of nature; it is one of its foundations. Allow me to explain.

The people of Israel are not like any other people, as much as they would like to be. The whole world treats us differently, and there is nothing we can do about it because the reason for the world’s attitude toward us is buried deep within us, deeper than we can see.

Two forces drive the universe, drive all of existence, all of creation. They are contradictory forces that always operate one against the other. The only way to reconcile them is to be aware of them and make a conscious effort to harness both of them for a higher cause.

On the inanimate level, these forces manifest as darkness and light, spring and fall, or as magnetic forces that pull or push away. On the animate level, they manifest as life and death, and love and hate. On the human level, they manifest as altruism and egoism, giving and taking, kindness and cruelty.

Because they are contradictory, the two forces are locked in an eternal struggle. However, they are of equal power, and therefore neither ever “wins.” Instead, they “take turns” dominating, and as a result, our universe evolves and changes ceaselessly.

Humans are the one exception. In every human being, the inherent tendency toward egoism wins. If we examine the history of humankind, we will see that the motivation behind all the changes that have ever happened was the glorification of its perpetrators or other self-centered drives.

The only people who have ever managed to rise above the innate selfish tendency in human nature and balance it with kindness, as it is in the rest of nature, were the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who united “as one man with one heart” and were declared a nation—the Israeli nation—at the foot of Mt. Sinai. However, the Israeli nation achieved what it achieved not for its own sake. It did this so as to become a model nation, a proof of concept, or if you will, a startup nation.

Yet, like most startup companies, Israel’s idea was great, but its product never reached the market. The Israelites operated it for a while but eventually, even they abandoned their own invention and joined the rest of the self-centered world.

Nevertheless, the seeds of love of others, of the commitment to build a society based on mutual responsibility and loving others as ourselves, remained buried deep within every Jewish person, even though they do rarely feel it, if ever. Yet, every Jew carries a hidden spark of love of others, which puts us at odds with everyone who wants to remain self-centered, which is all of humanity, including the Jews themselves. This is why everyone hates Jews, and Jews hate Jews more than anyone.

But for all the hatred and attempts to annihilate the Jews, it will never succeed. Since it is impossible to annihilate a force of nature, it is impossible to eradicate its expressions. Moreover, the more self-centeredness prevails around the world, the more the world deteriorates, and the closer we are getting to another world war. The only way to escape another global cataclysm and another round of punishment against the Jews is if the Jews become what they are supposed to be—a model nation based on mutual responsibility and love of others.

There is no point protesting against antisemites; it will not deter them or diminish their numbers. The only solution to the oldest hatred is to stop looking outward, and start looking at one another. We need to put our heads and hearts together in search of ways to unite and nurture mutual concern despite the deep division and profound hatred among the various factions of the nation. If we do this, if we only try, it will dissipate the hatred of the world toward us and will usher in a new era in the history of the relationship between the Jewish people and the world.

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Holocaust Remembrance Day: Reflections On New Antisemitism

Holocaust Remembrance Day is a time to reflect on the past, and how modern-day circumstances prove that the ominous specter of antisemitism didn’t simply die with World War II.

Indeed, Holocaust survivor Manfred Goldberg, recently stated that social media had given antisemites propaganda power “that the Nazis could only dream of.” Mr. Goldberg also shared his fears of a “bleak” future without survivors to tell their stories. 

The need for cohesion is as crucial today as it was in those days. Jews must embark on a shared path to become a unified and thriving people once again with a desire for a common spirit and vision. We must set aside our materialistic impulses and our fears for the sake of this and future generations.

In my book, New Antisemitism Mutation of a Long-Lived Hatred, I emphasized the fact that antisemitism is alive and kicking and should serve as a wake-up call to Jews all over the world. Like Mr. Goldberg, many in the Jewish community have grave concerns for the future. 

For example, Steven Spielberg, who established the USC Shoah Foundation to preserve the memory of the Holocaust, has expressed deep concern that genocide is as possible today as during the Nazi era. “When collective hate organizes and gets industrialized, then genocide follows. We have to take it more seriously today than I think we have had to take it in a generation.”

Within three months of Hitler’s coming to power in Germany in 1933, a nationwide boycott of Jewish businesses and professionals was ordered. The Nazis’ official explanation for the boycotts was that they were implemented as a counter-reaction to the demands of Jewish organizations in the US and Britain that were boycotting German-made products due to the Nazis' rise to power. This action legitimized anti-Jewish activity and gave it official support which had not existed until that time, and it marked the commencement of the war against the Jews, with the penetration of the German consciousness with antisemitic ideology. 

The Nazi boycotts were accompanied by harassment and vandalism of Jewish businesses, people, and institutions. The boycotts were followed by a widening cyclone of actions that led to the deaths of six million of our brethren. For this reason, it is understandable that when Jews hear the word “boycott,” it still triggers a brutal reminder of the beginnings of the Holocaust.

There are differences between the 1930s and today, the major one being the existence of the State of Israel. The position of Israel today in relation to worldwide Jewry is similar to that of the Jews of Germany in the 1930s: it stands at the frontline and bears the brunt of a new war against the Jews. Antisemitism has been repackaged under the guise of anti-Zionism. 

Israel is an intrinsic part of the collective Jewish identity and is perceived as such by the nations of the world. So, when judgment is passed and punishment is imposed on Israel, it falls on the entire Jewish collective and not only an individual part. The increasing pressure against Jews and the State of Israel is a wake-up call for Jews to come together and ask essential questions: Who are we as a people? Where do we come from? Where are we headed?

The Jewish people are a unique example in humanity. The fact that our ancestors originally came from a wide variety of backgrounds, united above their differences, and became one nation, united “as one man with one heart,” makes us unique. But this uniqueness does not mean we are to look down on others; it means we are to serve others by using our ancestral wisdom to benefit humanity. Giving the world an example of unity under the motto, “love your neighbor as yourself,” is what the nations subliminally demand from us. They instinctively feel Jews hold the keys to peace and prosperity in the world, and their complaint for our not sharing these keys manifests as antisemitism. 

It is incumbent upon each and every Jew to unite above our differences yet again. The only thing that will put an end to the new war against Jews is our making the entire Jewish people as one. As the great Kabbalist Rav Yehuda Ashlag wrote about the pivotal role of the Jewish nation and what is expected from us to fulfill:

“[The Creator said] ‘You shall be My Segula [remedy/virtue] from among all peoples.’ This means that you will be My remedy, and sparks of purification and cleansing of the body shall pass through you onto all the peoples and the nations of the world. The nations of the world are not yet ready for it, and I need at least one nation to start with now, so it will be as a remedy for all the nations.” The Writings of Baal HaSulam, The Arvut [Mutual Guarantee] 

Over time, Jews have abandoned the unique connection we once cultivated and have become self-centered. However, the pressure of globalization is forcing us toward interdependence once again as humanity seeks a way to live together peacefully but cannot find one. Until Jews relearn how to create unity between us as before, the world will lack access to the knowledge of how to accomplish this necessity for integration and will continue to blame us for its woes. It is mounting pressure upon us until we finally change our course of action toward cohesion rather than division.

The need for cohesion is as crucial today as it was in those days. Jews must embark on a shared path to become a unified and thriving people once again with a desire for a common spirit and vision. We must set aside our materialistic impulses and our fears for the sake of this and future generations.