Before World War II, Gestapo used to return the ashes of the murdered to their families • In a halachic document, the rabbi of Frankfurt on the subject
Decades after the Holocaust, "Israel Today" came to pass regulations explaining how to treat the ashes of the victims brought by the Gestapo to the families of the victims. The documents were written by Rabbi Menachem Mendel Kirschbaum, a very short time before World War II, and were now for the first time revealed on the occasion of General Dedication. Tomorrow (Wednesday) they will be auctioned off at the London Treasures auction.
During the early years of Nazi rule in Germany, the Gestapo would occasionally return ashes to their families. These were Jewish detainees who were arrested and sent to concentration camps, where they were eventually murdered in cold blood and their bodies burned. Cynically and shockingly, after the murder, the Gestapo contacted the families of the deceased and informed them of the death. Then the bereaved families were forced to pay the financial costs of the victim's "eating and feeding" period before his death, and only then would they send the murdered ashes. Of course, it was impossible to tell if the ashes were indeed of the specific family member or not.
Photo: London Treasure House
Throughout Orthodox Jewish history, he has taken a negative view on the burning of bodies, and in principle respect should not be given to the rest that allowed his body to be burned. Thus, the Jews encountered a problem - the shocking circumstances surrounding the burning of their families brought them to a situation where it was unclear what to do in a halakhic way.
In a pamphlet published by Rabbi Kirschboim, the mayor of Frankfurt in Germany, he deals with the unusual Halachic questions. According to his instructions, the devoted fellow in Germany must put the remains of the burned into a coffin, along with a prayer shawl and shroud, as if the body were completely intact. The goal, he said, was to strengthen the belief that the perishing is ready to awaken and resurrect the dead, and that the deceased believes it.
The small book was published in 1939, probably in 1939, just before the outbreak of the war. After printing.
Photo: London Treasure House
The rabbi's fate was tragic. A few weeks before the outbreak of the war, he emigrated to Brussels. Although he had a license to immigrate to Eretz Israel, he gave up the right, hoping that he could return to his community in Frankfurt after the war. In 1943, the Nazis were arrested and deported to Auschwitz.
At the same time as the unveiled document, seven rare pamphlets from Kristallnacht and the Nazi extermination were presented. Among other things, memorials were written in memory of Holocaust victims and congratulations to the success of the Allied armies. For example, one document reads: "Find proper rest under the wings of the Shekinah. The souls of our brothers who were murdered and slaughtered and strangled masses of terrible cruelty in all countries under the malicious government."
Photo: London Treasure House