"This was but a prelude; where books are burnt human-beings will be burnt in the end." ~~the German poet Heinrich Heine in 1820
Although I visited Dachau years ago¹ and I've read many books--both fiction² and non-fiction³--dealing with life in concentration camps, I don't recall ever reading any individual accounts specifically about this particular camp, until I encountered this poignant diary by Father Jean Bernard from Luxembourg. Nor do I recall reading about the internment tortures reserved for priests and other Christian ministers.
As I was reading Priestblock 25487: A Memoir of Dachau it was hard not to recall the eerie silence of Dachau's vast empty spaces marking off where derelict huts had once housed skeletons. But for the Grace of God, Father Bernard, too, would have joined the many souls who died there. His memoir is unique in several respects and worth reading, no matter how many books you may have read about the Holocaust.
First, it is about what happened to Christian, both Catholic and Protestant, clergy at the hands of the Nazis. For those who may have thought the Jewish nation alone suffered during those terrible times, they need look no further. In fact, there were punishments vindictive guards delighted in reserving just for priests on special feasts and other holy days.
And yet the strength of the story comes from the author’s intelligence, compassion for his fellows, and lack of self-pity or belaboring the horrors. The suffering endured by these men is beyond imagining; that is sufficient.
However, for me, it was Father Bernard’s unwavering faith in Christ through it all which speaks louder than anything and is the most important reason to read this book.
Worth reading and rereading—a reminder of how blessed we all are...perhaps most especially in our priests!
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¹ 1985 to be precise, just after my husband and I were married. We went together; it was a trip we never forgot!
² The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, I am Bonhoeffer, The Book Thief, The Valley of Light and Angel Girl being some of the fiction I've reviewed here on my blog and on Goodreads.
³ Night, Man's Search for Meaning and Concentration camp Dachau, 1933-1945 are a few of the many non-fiction books on the Third Reich which I've read and reviewed; most of rest I've not gotten around to reviewing yet.
6 hours ago
2 comments:
Sounds like an interesting book. I will track it down. I see that you have already read Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl, a psychologist with some interesting insights who also survived the camps. I found that book illuminating.
The topic is of some interest to me because the father of one of my Israeli co-workers was an Auschwitz survivor, was part of the group that put God on trial and found God guilty, and still harbors anger toward God over the experience. (He did not lose his faith; one is not angry toward someone that one does not think exists.)
In a very different scenario, my cousin married a woman who grew up in the camps in the Baltic countries. Her view of life is quite different, very positive, and thankful that the camps prepared her for nearly anything that could happen. She needed that faith because when her three boys were still small, someone (never found out who) murdered my cousin for his Christmas bonus.
Life can be bad, but God is good. That is the meaning that comes through to me time after time, not just in association with major atrocities but also in association with the bad things that happen to good people as they go about mundane life everywhere.
Dear Elizabeth,
Thank you for your thoughtful and articulate comment! I have always had a fascination with the great crisis periods in world history because I think they reveal more about God and humanity than other times. While it is true that God seems to be missing from places like Auschwitz and Andersonville, when you read books about incredible priests like St. Maximilian Kolbe, Father Jean Bernard or Peter Whelan you know He is there.
Yes, life can be hard at times, very hard, but God can take the worst that happens and bring the greatest Good from it when we cooperate with His Grace!
God bless you!
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