fredzio54
08.05.03, 14:21
Poland's historical tolerance for all religions led to its becoming a haven
for European Jews beginning in the 13th century. While other countries were
persecuting Jews, in Poland they were granted freedom of worship and assembly
by Prince Boleslaw the Pious and King Casimir the Great. Jews won the right
to create social institutions and form groups of worship. Later, this freedom
led to the birth of the Hasidic movement in Eastern Poland in the 18th
century. Over the centuries, Jews became part of a thriving middle class of
professionals, scientists, and merchants. They contributed much to Polish
culture, especially literature and music. Nobel prize winner Isaac Bashevis
Singer was born in Poland, as was world renown pianist Arthur Rubinstein.On
the eve of World War II, the Jewish community in Poland, the largest in
Europe and the second largest in the world, comprised well over three million
people.They resided mainly in Warsaw, Krakow, and Lodz, but also in the
smaller cities of Lublin, Bialystok, and Tykocin. During the Holocaust, the
Jewish population was decimated and nearly all Jewish centers were
destroyed.Today, the Kazimierz district of Krakow, featured in the film
Schindler's List, has a small community of Jews. The Remuh Synagogue, built
in 1533, still holds services and the Jewish cementery is intact. The Old
Synagogue is now a museum devoted to Judaica. Two competing Ariel cafes offer
live Jewish music and delicious food, a tantalizing glimpse of the vibrancy
of pre-war cafe culture. Other centers have survived, including the synagogue
at Tykocin, built in 1642. Jewish theater is preserved in Warsaw at the State
Jewish Theater, the only professional Yiddish-language theater in Europe.
Warsaw's Jewish Historical Institute carries out research on Jewish history
and culture. In spite of the resurgence of Jewish culture, the Holocaust
still haunts Poland. The camps at Auschwitz-Birkenau and Majdanek stand as
constant reminders of this century's darkest hour."
Auschwitz - a German name for the town Oswiecim, where, in 1940, the German
Nazis built the largest concentration camp in the history of mankind. Since
World War II, the name has become a symbol of the martyrdom of the milions of
victims from all over Europe: mainly Jews, Poles, and 26 other nationalties.
Oswiecim is located 70 km west of Cracow. Today, the camp is a museum that
displays exhibits and documents concerning Nazi crimes. Open daily from 8 am
till 4 pm.
