When a young boy is hanged in front of hundreds of camp prisoners in Bena, someone mutters "For God's sake, where is God?" (65) and one has to ask themselves the same question when spending more than a single moment reflecting on that dark period of history in the 20th Century.
Elie Wiesel's Night depicts only a single experience of the Holocaust out of six million souls whose suffering is, to this day, unimaginable. A young boy who experienced such loss notes, at the beginning of his journey was told that, "Man comes closer to God through the questions he asks Him....Man asks and God replies. But we don't understand His replies. We cannot understand them. Because they dwell in the depths of our souls and remain there until we dies. The real answers... you will find only within yourself."(5)
After reading the story of Eliezer, one can only wonder what those answers will be for each of us. What answers will adequately address the horrors of so many people, those who lived through them, those who did not live and those who allowed this great tragedy to occur.
While sitting in class for only a single day, watching a fraction of the injustices that these people suffered through, it was interesting to see how easily history could repeat itself. One might say "Well, the teacher TOLD us to separate ourselves. She TOLD us to segregate according to some random qualifications. She TOLD us to take work that wasn't ours and claim it for our own. Our grades were on the line. What choice did we have?"
Might those be the same kinds of justifications the Germans and Poles and Italians, and French made about their situations as they watched an entire collection of people stripped of their belongings, their homes, their families, and their lives?
Write a response to this blog, integrating quote support from the book, and address your reflections on the class this past Friday. Relate, directly, how you think the Holocaust was able to exist and how it could happen again in spite of everything we know about the past and its history. Explore the Essential Question at the top of this blog, keeping in mind that every one of us has their own interpretation of who and what God or a Higher Power is in our lives. Be sure to keep your response courteous and mindful of others' belief systems while you honor your own take on things.
The Holocaust, in my opinion, was able to happen because of rivalries. The Jewish population has been used as a scapeoat to others for many years including before World War 2. But what made World War 2 so significant in history is the fact that one man tried to completely clear out one whole race. It wasn't only a Holocaust, it was a genocide. And sometimes we ask ourselves well how do things like this happen. People argue that things happen for a reason and that we always learn from past experiences, but in this case we didn't really learn and those who might have captured the message were too afraid of risking it all on the line to proove that history was repeating itself. If World War 1 had already happened and we saw what the outcome of it was why did we not try to prevent the second one. Why did we call ourselves a "neutral" nation when we saw it comming.America proclaims to be the number one country in fighting for justice, but in the World War 2 case America was the last one to move a limb and the only reason they did it was because japan incited them to do so otherwise we would have still remained neutral. While in the ghetto Elie notes "Only three days ago, people were living here. People who owned the things we were uding now. They had been expelled. And we had already forgotten all about them"(Wiesel 20) making it evident how when it comes to war or conflict it's pretty much every man for themselves. If Jews were forgetting about their own kind, if they weren't willing to help themselves what would inspire America to help them? Moishe the Beadle even confesses "I wanted to return to Sighet to describe to you my death so that you might ready yourselves while there is still time. Life? I no longer care to live. I am alone. But I wanted to come back down to warn you. Only no one is listening to me"(Wiesel 7) pointing out how even when they were being told what was comming up for them no one wold listen. The silence of the jews is due to many of us not listening. It is due to us not willing to do something when we were seing the repetition of history, when we were seeing all the injustices being committed. And honestly I don't think that the Italians, Germans, Poles, or any other race can justify themselves by saying I did it because Hitler told me to do so. The jewish people had no voice, they couldn't be heard but them. They had a voice they could've said hey stop bro i don't think what you're doing here is fair. As a matter of fact before Hitler became chancellor of Germany or even ruler he was placed in jail for these same ideas. Hitler could have been stopped before he caused so much damage. But when he began talking to the people about how Germany would be such a better place and how the economy would be boosted and how they would get revenge from the Treaty of Paris and how they would regain their dignity that was lost due to the signing of this treaty, people began to follow.
ReplyDelete(continued...) In desperate needs people want to hear that everything will be okay that things will get better. And so when Hitler sugarcoated his plans people began to fall into the bandwagon. We saw it happen in our own classroom. Knowing that we are all "friends" in there or atleast we're all classmates the people in the front didn't even bother to say 'why do they have to sit in the back". The ones in the front seized every opportunity given by the teacher to get themselves to a better place, which is what the Germans did. They wanted to secure themselves, they wanted to be sure that they would be allright even if it meant getting rid of some people. When I was sent to go sit in the back, i'm not going to lie I was very upset. When they took my paper I was even more upset, every nerve in me incited me to do something but then there was another part of me that said don't she grades you. I felt so foolish and like such a coward. It was like she had some sort of control over me that inspired this feeling in me that took control over my body not letting my thoughts express themselves but instead letting the coward in me express itslef. And i think this is how the jews felt. Wiesel notes "We must do something. We can't let them kill us like that, like cattle in the slaughterhouse. We must revolt...Let everybody find out about it [Auschwitz] while they still have the chance to escape. But the older men begged their sons not to be foolish: We mustn't give up hope, even now as the sword hangs over our heads, So taught our sages"(Wiesel 31) make it is evident how not only in me the feeling was established.The jews thougth about revolting too but then there was their parents who begged them not to, who told them to keep hoping to never loose hope. And that was how I felt, as if this was all just a joke and it would be over as soon as the message of segragation got through. I hoped for it all to be a joke, but when i tried to be disobedient it was like the hope in me got lost and i felt incapable of doing anything just like the jews. Perhaps it is that we really don't know enough of human nature to fully understand how something like this could happen. When just trying to rebel by myself I couln't do and i was one person now how hard would it have been to get so many people, 6 million to be exact, to work together specially with the elderly who still "hoped". They asked themselves "where is God" but in life there are thigns that God cannot resolve. I believe that tehre is a God and that he guards and protects us he's somewhere and he never leaves us alone. But I also believe that God cannot make EVERYTING evil go away. There's going to be bad and good things happening to us. We just have to learn how to cope with them and actually learn what happened and how we can prevent it; Because many of us always talk about change but who is really willing to do somethign for a chnage?
ReplyDeleteThe Holocaust happened not only because of Hitler himself, but also because of the people who supported him. During Friday’s activity, Ms. Camacho separated us, sending the straight-haired people to the front and the curly-haired people to the back, and she told the front people to take the back people’s poems and claim them as their own. Even though “Germans” from the front knew that taking “Jews” work was unfair for those who actually put effort in their poem, no one stood up, no one said anything; instead, the classroom was just so silent. This was because we were scared of Ms. Camacho, who is the one that controls our grades and because of this fear, history just repeated itself again. “A prayer formed inside me, a prayer to this God in whom I no longer believed" (Wiesel 91), showing that sometimes even the nonbelievers believe that God is out there, and we just do not know exactly where. He is someone you cannot prove if He exists, but you cannot prove He does not exist. I believe that God gives hope to people, for example, even though I do not usually believe in God, when I am having a hard time, I always send a prayer to him. Everything happens for a reason, and sometimes we do not know the reason and that is okay, because we are not God, and that is what separates us from God, as he is the All-Knowing, not humans.
ReplyDeleteYes! I agree with you Jing Jing! The only reason history repeats itself is because there are people who are willing to let it happen again. As I said before we need to stop just talking about change and ake it happen. I don't why somethimes a human being is so afraid to act for what he/she believes in. Fighting for what you believe in is what makes you, you. It's also what makes the world so dieverse and what makes you feel so good about yourself because you did something.Because you made a difference. :)
DeleteEven though Hitler was indeed powerful, and very intimidating to the Germans, his power truly came from the people. During Friday’s segregation experiment in Ms. Camacho’s class, Ms. Camacho had power whether we supported her or not. Even if we had backed away from her, and told her this was wrong, the idea of grades was still there, because she still controlled our grades. I think that’s the only difference between the Holocaust and our classroom’s environment on Friday. In addition to that, I think that the experiment was very interesting, and I thought many ‘German’s’ reactions to being able to take the ‘Jew’s’ papers was obvious. I thought that many would jump up, thinking their grade was saved, and I knew they wouldn’t mind sacrificing others’ grades. It took us time to realize what was going on, and it took much more time to realize we had to unify. As we tried to come together, I noticed how difficult it was to unite, even though we knew this was just a project, and we must unite, unlike the Jews, whose lives depended on that unity. Going off onto today’s debate, and today’s topic, I believe that God does exist. Contrary to Elie Wiesel’s belief, I think that if put in a situation like his, my belief in God would just strengthen, instead of deteriorate. While Elie Wiesel says, “Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust” (Wiesel 32), I would not. I think that I would be faithful in God, and sure he would get me out of what he put me into. And if not, then there must be some good in it. Just because you can’t see the wind, doesn’t mean it’s not there. Just because you can’t see your brain, doesn’t mean it’s not there. I believe, that similarly, just because you can’t see the good, doesn't mean it’s not there. And just because you can’t see God, doesn't mean He’s not there. As for learning a lesson, I don’t believe that the world has learned truly the lesson given from all this fighting. No matter how many wars we get into, we still get into a new war, and we fight all over again. Maybe it takes much more that the murder of humanity to learn a lesson. Who knew?
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Zehra!And nice writing :) The Holocaust happened not only because of Hitler himself, he was a really powerful and intimidating leader, and he used his power to make people supported him; therefore, the Holocaust happened. Ms.Camacho was like Hitler on Friday, she had her own power over "Jews" and "Germans". History just repeated itself again, no one stepped out and stopped it. We should not keep quiet when were in a harshly situation, I believe that we have to be united and work together, sometimes they are stuff that we cannot do independently.
DeleteMany Christians, like myself, believe that in everything our God does there is a purpose. More often than not, that purpose is not revealed to us unless through great tragedy and suffering. Most times, the universe is stumped when asked the unanswerable question; why. I believe, even though it seems no one has learned from the tremendous mistakes made in the past, the Holocaust did not occur in vain. I also believe the reason for it will not be revealed to us any time soon. I totally and absolutely agree with Moshe the Beadle when he says, "Man questions God and God answers. But we do not understand His answers. We can't understand them"(Wiesel 4). God is all-knowing, we know so little; we hardly know ourselves. How can we begin to try to understand someone so complex, so supreme? How can we doubt Him when there is no proof against Him? There have been times where I have lost faith in God, only to find that my faith and belief in Him had grown exponentially. Now I, we, the entire population of Earth must ask ourselves, what can we individually do to change the world for the better?
ReplyDeleteWell you have a true point, and I will try to not sound like I'm bashing your God, as I, and no one can prove that He is real, and also no one can disprove his existence. I believe that everything happens for a reason, but sometimes that reason could always be the key for a certain even to occur or not occur. I believe it is in the human nature that things such as the Holocaust occur. There have been many genocides way before the Holocaust, such as what the United States did to the Native Americans as they said that the Manifest Destiny, or their "God given right" was to expand to western land at any cost. Yet, it has been clearly shown that it was for economic reasons. The government used religion as a tool, which is why they also tried to convert the Chinese into Christianity. They, believing that it was all for the best of everyone, suppressed those who were of a different religion. Maybe if the people would have worked together history would have been written differently, but as we have seen, it is very difficult to try to get everyone to agree on standing up against the oppressor because of fear. As we did not live through the past in events such as the Holocaust, we cannot know for sure if everyone did not rebel because of fear, or because they were benefiting in some way. As to the higher being that may or may not exist, he cannot always interfere to solve everyone's problems, as he can only be the creator but not the decision maker. As long as only certain people understand the real picture, then we will keep experiencing war and killings of one another.
Delete“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it’s time to pause and reflect.”
ReplyDelete-Mark Twain
Now, I put this quote to reflect on what happened in our class because this should have been done. Maybe there wasn’t a majority on one side or the other, but the message is clear. How could the other side of the class just watch the other go through injustices? Yes, they were nothing compared to the injustice that victims suffered in the Holocaust or in other times and places, but it was interesting and incredibly frustrating to see this happen before me. People stood by and did nothing. “I pinched myself: was I still alive? Was I awake? How was it possible that men, women, and children were being burned and the world kept silent? No. All this could not be real. A nightmare perhaps…” (Wiesel 32). I now fully understand how speaking out against horrific acts could have made a difference between the life and death of a victim. Many deaths could have been prevented if people could have just spoken up. “There no longer was any distinction between rich and por, notables and the others; we were all people condemned to the same fate” (Wiesel 21). I could say that instead of thinking about all of the “what ifs” we should listen and learn from the past, but that is not the case. Humans are doomed to let history repeat itself that is a fate we must accept. The Holocaust was not the only genocide in history. We can look back at genocides listed in the Old Testament. When will human beings finally learn from their mistakes? That’s where God comes in the picture. God works in mysterious ways, a way that we can’t understand because we are but humans. Our minds aren’t capable of understanding His ways, and we never will be able to until we enter Heaven. “For the first time, I felt anger rising within me. Why should I sanctify His name? The Almighty, the eternal and terrible Master of the universe, chose to be silent. What was there to thank him for?”(Wiesel 33). We, searching for a culprit, tend to blame God for every bad thing that happens in life, but all I can say is that things happen for a reason, a reason only God Himself knows. “Never shall I forget those moments that murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to ashes” (Wiesel 34). Eliezer, at that dark time in history, believes that his faith was gone forever and only he knows if that belief is still strong today, but God never left him. God is there for the believers and no-believers alike.
I agree with you, people often blame God for the injustices they see happening in the world but there is no possible way for them to conceive the reasons why these things are happening. They can't understand and so they look to God, who is supposed to be kind and protect us from these injustices but they are not the fault of God, but man. They say that God will look after them and solve their problems but they do nothing to try and change it themselves.
DeleteOn friday, our class went through the "selection process" & yet no one had a clue about what was occuring just like how the jews did not know what was happening at the beginning of their "journey", they believed they were being moved because the war was too close when in fact they were being moved to Nazi concentration camps, just like how the people in the back were to move their desks & did not know why. Once people realized this was an experiment on HISTORY REPEATING ITSELF, "There was silence all round now, brokem only by groans"(115) and some people began to look back at the board but turned back when Camacho said too(wih their own will). After several attempts at getting Camacho's attention with papers and noise and head turning, " The wind of revolt died down"(40) & people just laughed & cooperated with Camacho & did not stand up for their grade. The people in the front were given the choice to claim a poem from the back ad theirs and did, "Here, everyman has to fight for himself & not think of anyone else"(115) & some classmates stated how they were willing to sacrifice someone's grade for theirs. Some people justified their actions after class, " I would have cried out if I could have done so"(103) & yet this was an excuse for not standing up for the injustice. If people have a mouth they have the right to speak up, but no one did. There are no excuses, " We areall brothers, and we are all suffering the same fate"(50) no matter what side of the room devised us or how our looks are unique,because that is what makes us special. The fact that rebellion laid in our minds & was not represented with our actions, makes us no better than the person inflicting the cruelty. I believe people say, "And...there was no one who thought of revenge"(119) because they were to blame as well, they never spoke out for justice, for themselves or for rights. (Continues....)
ReplyDeleteThe Jews went through the same thing, just to the extreme; they witnessed brutal murder everyday & never stood up as a whole knowing what was going on was cruel. Jews made excuses too and why did they allow this to happen because of FEAR! People believe that if they cooperate the punishment will not be as devastating as if rebellion were to take place. People also felt that they would not be heard. Wel of course if not everyone contributes than nothing can be accomplished. Unfortunately, I believe history will keep repeating because of fear, resentment, anger, ignirance & other factors of evil that are a part of humans and contribute to feelings. Humans are not perfect and therefore I do not believe in world peace because every person thinks differently and although peole agree they will,argue eventually. No matter how many compromises no one will ever be fully satisfied because this world is filled with flaws. People are these flaws because we constantly make ourselves the victims & rarely stand up for others (not 100%). In order to "better" the world we need to find the balance between feelings, dignity, respect & courage. (continues...)
DeleteMany people suffer tragedies and wonder, "For God's sake, where is God?"(65) & they cannot believe what type of a "good" God would allow these tragedies. I in the other hand have never questioned that there is a God. I may question religion but never question God (i think its just how i was raised). Either way i believe that only God knows why he/she/it does things. I know there are devastating events that occur in everyones lives but we cannot look at the negative things all the time. We should look at the positives & take the opportunity to better ourselves. In 2009 my father, grandfather & several uncles passed away in one night due to a Drug Cartell incident, i do not blame God i only blame ignorance, anger, selfishness, and the psycho. I cried for a long period of time but i took the opportunity to get closer to family that is present and devote tine to those i love. As for God i am not to judge i can only say that God works in mysterious ways & the tragedies are clear ways that turn around the lives of many for better.
DeleteI think that the Holocaust was able to exist due to fear, selfishness, and human ignorance. Many people, not just the Germans, feared Hitler. They feared speaking out of term against a leader whom everyone followed. In comparison to the class activity on Friday, many of the front people, including myself, followed what Ms. Camacho said and didn't oppose it, though it was unfair for the back people. Why did we not oppose it? Some may be afraid to voice out their reasons, while others may only mind their own business and take advantage of the benefits Ms. Camacho offered us. Like Hitler, Ms. Camacho lured us into what she wanted us to do: turn against each other and fall into her trap of the the “Germans” feeling superior to the “Jews”. With this advantage, Hitler made it harder for people to oppose him, ans similarly, Ms. Camacho used our grades against us. Through selfishness, some may have perceived that they had no choice in their actions. Also, in spite of countless times where history has repeated itself, human ignorance continues to allow such events to happen. Even though we, as humans, continue to say that we won't let this happen again, it does. In Night, Moché says, “You don't understand. You can't understand....I wanted to come back to Sighet to tell you the story of my death. So that you could prepare yourselves while there is still time....No, I wanted to come back, and to warn you. And see how it is, no one will listen to me...” (Wiesel 17). Perhaps, this is a clue that humanity can't understand the continuing cycle of injustices and how to stop it. No matter how many times we may try to “prepare [ourselves] while there is still time” by learning about past occurrences, humans will not listen and will continue down this unending tunnel.
ReplyDeleteIn response to the essential question, I believe there is a God somewhere, and though powerful and almighty, allows humanity to live through their actions with the belief that there's a reason for everything. Although the issue is controversial on whether or not there is a God and how you can prove it or not, I think that everyone has a God or Higher Being that they may pray to, even if they don't believe. However, I think that “Man is too small, too humble and inconsiderable to seek to understand the mysterious ways of God.” (Wiesel 83) and must put their faith into such a being.
I definitely agree with you that the Holocaust occurred because people feared opposing Hitler, since he was a dictator. No one wanted to state the situation, in the risk of losing their lives and the lives of their loved ones. It makes sense to me now that the people in the front didn't stand up for those in the back because they were either too scared to go against Ms. Camacho, or they were happy that they got the advantages. I bet some people in the front were just happy because they were told the outline was due on Thursday. I also think that it was a motivation for us to do something about the situation because she used our grades against us. I think you brought up a good point about how even though we learn from our mistakes, there are some who don't listen, so as you said, "we will continue down this unending tunnel."
DeleteI agree with Lesley it's that fear in humans that let events like the Holocaust happen. The fear of not standing up to what one believes is right. Or not saying what you want. Like Lesley said this tunnel of fear will keep on going and so will be those humans who will take advantage of this fear.
DeleteThere could be a higher being, somewhere out there, there could be. Whether or not we believe in this higher being, it is up to us. The Holocaust led many to believe that there was no supreme being, after all, why had he allowed such an atrocity as the Holocaust to happen? Elie Wiesel was among those who lost his religion, “I was the accuser, God the accused. My eyes had opened and I was alone, terribly alone in a world without God, without man. Without love or mercy. I was nothing but ashes now, but I felt myself to be stronger than this Almighty to whom my life had been bound for so long. In the midst of these men assembled for prayer, I felt like an observer, a stranger.” He lost his faith in God, because he felt that God was not there in his greatest time of need that He, was not there for His children’s greatest time of need. One could also say that this was a time of endurance and trials, and that the Almighty being has the best interest of his people at heart. Leading to the question of why he would allow such atrocities such as the Holocaust to happen.
ReplyDeleteThe Holocaust was allowed to happen partly because the Jewish people were sure that they were not going to be reached by Hitler. They were sure that he wasn’t going to keep his promise, ‘“The people were saying, “The Red Army is advancing with giant strides… Hitler will not be able to harm us, even if he wants to…” Yes, we even doubted his resolve to exterminate us.”’ But after being forced into a journey of a slaving Jew, and losing his religion a person next to Elie while he was in the hospital said, “I have more faith in Hitler that in anyone else. He alone has kept his promises, all his promises, to the Jewish people.” Of this, Elie saw, was true. No one else, not even the Supreme Being promised to follow through on such actions of violence against the Jewish race. But the Jews weren’t the only ones at fault for not rebelling as many people thought they should have, the Germans and the others who let their families and friends be taken are to blame as well. They let them be taken, “German troops had penetrated Hungarian territory with the government’s approval.” It was only after this announcement did the Jewish people in Elie’s hometown begin to worry, and no sooner had they begun to worry they began to hope that the Germans would not come that far, but “In less than three days, German Army vehicles made their appearance” on the streets of Sighet.
Experiencing the Holocaust led Elie Wiesel to lose his faith in God, but not his faith in human beings. He talks about many things in his speech, about how the world stood by while the Jews were being annihilated slowly, and how the world still stands by even when there are still many atrocities going on in this world. “And then I explained to him how naive we were, that the world did know and remain silent. And that is why I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Wherever men or women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must – at that moment – become the center of the universe.” The world must not remain silent while others suffer, one side must not remain silent as the other side suffers. No, we must all stand up, and try not to let history repeat itself as time moves on.
I agree with you Rachel,for the most part. I believe that you're right in saying that there may be some higher being out there, and that it is up to us in whether or not we believe. I also agree that many people lost their faith and trust in their God after such an event happened like the Holocaust. However, isn't it in our darkest moments that we truly need to believe in God? That its when your faith is truly tested? Perhaps this was one of his tests? Who knows? I believe that humans may never be able to understand the works of this "supreme being", as Shianne had said. Just as Moche the Beadle said, "Man questions God and God answers. But we do not understand His answers. We can't understand them"(Wiesel 4). Also, even after Elie had said that he no longer trusted in his God, he states, "A prayer formed inside me, a prayer to this God in whom I no longer believed" (Wiesel 91) which shows that he may truly have faith. It kind of goes along with what Shianne had said about losing her faith, but later realizing that it had only grown instead. I also find it interesting how you said that Hitler is the only one who kept his promise to the Jews and that it is better to trust in Hitler than God.
DeleteWell, I'm saying that it's interesting that you mentioned one of the Jews had said that. It gives a different view point and another outlook that I hadn't realized before.
DeleteThe Holocaust one of the grayest days in this time period. Why gray because gray is in between black and white, light and dark. The Holocaust had its bad and its good, even thought it might seem crazy. Yet its true we are shown good lessons as to not let any one tell us what to do or just to speak out and say "Hey this isn't right". Even though we are taught these lessons in the Holocaust we see how we don't learned from them.Like this past Friday how Camacho separated us by our hair, similar to what Hitler did in the Holocaust with the Jews. It wasn't fair yet nobody stood up and say "This is not going to happen again History wont repeat again." Yet it did it happened again and it happens many time and everywhere but why. Why did we let this happen again was it really because of our grades? Or is it because we see a little bit of glory from the someone and we let them talk us into acting the way they want?
ReplyDelete"Where's God? How can I believe, how can anyone believe in this God?"( Wiesel 77). After a long discussion with my parents about God and the Holocaust we finally agreed that there was a God or someone out there that help few people survive this horrible event. Perhaps this was a lesson from God a lesson to everyone reminding us how one man can convince people to kill for no reason, yet we haven't learned our lesson. There has to be something out there that helps us humans or at least something to believe in.
My eight grade teacher always said " Failure leads to feedback and feedback leads to success" we failed, we failed this past Friday by letting history repeat again. Yet we should have learned from this event how we are going to stand for each other, we are not letting anyone tell us to do something we know is wrong. We are going to stop from history repeat again.
I thought it was really interesting how you described this horrible time in history as gray rather than black. Before, I personally thought that this dark time was exactly as it sounds: black. But when I looked up the meaning behind the color gray it told me that gray was a true neutral color, the color of sorrow. I think this color fits perfectly with the Holocaust. I also agree on how you say that we shouldn’t let other people control us like Anne Frank stated in her diary, “People can tell you to keep your mouth shut, but that doesn’t stop you from having your own opinion”. We have our own opinions yet we don’t state them because of fear. I believe that humans are doomed to repeat history as long as that fear keeps them from stating what they believe in. As for God, we are the only ones responsible for the good and evil in this world.
Delete"For God's sake, where is God?" (Wiesel 65)
ReplyDeleteNow I will have to avoid mentioning anything about God for fear of causing a crusade throughout out the school, but I would like to state there is a flaw in a part of your blog. When you wrote “Relate, directly, how you think the Holocaust was able to exist and how it could happen again in spite of everything we know about the past and its history,” it is happening right now and I immediately thought about Guantanamo bay and a another example of Holocaust style camps. In North Korea, for example camp 12 and camp 22, there are many concentration camps that have many Koreans detained until death doing hard physical labor and living in mud house slums with the populations amounting to those of a large city. When people say that “There will never be anything like the Holocaust again! We have learned from the Germans!” I am in a outrage over how all of us are allowed to be ignorant of such thing. There is a is inhumane treatment happening right on the other side of the Pacific Ocean and I feel like we are the British. We are allowing a country so close to us gain power and what is actually important, the fact that the North Korean government may be committing crimes against humanity. We are literally at their door step, the most powerful nation in the world and I don’t know if it we turn a blind eye or simply are made ignorant of what is happening there. I think the American government is allowing this with the same reason the British before WWII, simply it was appeasement.(Please realize “the British” is the government, not its people) It seems to me the British could care less about the Jews and more about their own personal interests. Why let Hitler grow in power? He made it very clear with things like Mein Kampf of what he was planning to do, yet the British said “hey we feel bad for WWI taking all your land Germany! How about you start conquering all the lands around you and kill some people, wont ya!” When you realize WWII happened just because the British, being one of the superpowers, allowed for this all to happen, doesn't anyone think perhaps this may be a bit of foreshadowing? That if we allow such things to happen in modern times that guilt will never leave humanity and stick with us till our demise? Instead of focusing on stupid things like who gets to marry who, let’s focus on saving an oppressed people! We don’t need to go and destroy North Korea, simply liberate their people. Let’s not send them to a different land, like the British Mandate of Palestine. See what a mistake that was? Keep them in Korea, but make sure they are free! Isn't that what the core idea of our government supposed to be? Freedom and liberty for all?
Well, for one, North Korea has nuclear power. So, America and the rest of the countries are backing up because they don't want their own innocent citizens to die at the their hands, the government's or North Korea's. Also, the British did not think that Hitler was serious, till he overtook the land, and again, they didn't want their own citizens to die because of what seems like a small threat. The only difference between the British back then and America now is that America has many more countries on it's side, with the exception of China. Although if China decides to support North Korea in a possible World War III then North Korea has the largest army in the world backing it up, not to mention the labor force to create weapons and bombs. On the other hand though, if China decides to side with North Korea then they lose their biggest consumer, America. So there are multiple sides to this issue. It isn't about whether someone has liberty or not, it is about whether a country wants to sacrifice all of it's power and citizens just to free another country who's citizens are already supportive and afraid of their own government. To free the citizens would be to have said to any white person that slaves were equal to them in the 1800's. So again, multiple reasons, and not enough of a reason to attack the government of North Korea.
DeleteNot sure if anyone has seen it this way, but nuclear power is the greatest peace keeper. Every country so far has been very hesitant to use nukes and most have defenses or a allied country who will help defend them. America doesn't have a lot of actual "allies", remember in Euro? Most the world thinks of America and its people to be obnoxiously nosy in other countries affairs. I'm sure China wont turn their back on America because America is what makes China a economic superpower, doesn't it? I don't think all the politicians there drink that much opium tea. Like They don't get super high and go around doing this:
DeleteShen: Hey Sifu, you know what we should do?
Sifu: No, what?
Shen: PFFFTTTTT we should prank call America!
Sifu: BWHAHAHHAAHAH LETS DO IT!
*Starts calling*
American person:Hello?
Shen: Shhh, shhh. Hey America! F you!
*starts to put down phone*
Shen: Wait do we even have a military?
*brings phone back*
Shen: America, JUST KIDDING!
Okay I have now completely forgotten what I was doing in the midst of imagining Chinese politicians....
Wow! Some amazing responses here, folks, with great reflection and insight to both the Holocaust and the classroom experience on Friday. It appears that many of you are in tune with why I divided the class: that, in lacking humility for what has occurred in the past, we fall prey to allowing it to happen again, in whatever form that may be. Though it's true that no physical harm came to anyone in this activity, what is also clear is that CHOICE, each and every student's choice, was central to the outcome of that day. God was certainly not a viable scapegoat in this situation, and as Meliza notes, "everytime we suffer we seem to believe that God does not exist. When actually we are the ones making each other suffer and repeating history and making the world full of anger and a horrible place. And we are creating hate and anger among each other and it's not God." God seems to be the single factor that is NOT a part of the equation here, in the classroom activity, or in the Holocaust. As Eduardo writes "we are the ones that must take responsibility" for our actions of hate or violence or abuse of power, not God.
ReplyDeleteAnd though you were all in fear of your grades and the power I held over you because I have the ability to wield damage to your grades, is not your fear of a low grade similar to the fear others had regarding their well-being or their lives? Is one so very different than the other, as you all fight for your high GPA's and a chance to go to the college of your choice? Can we really afford to say "If I was in THAT situation I would act differently, when in fact, we have the choice to act differently in ANY situation. It seems to really all come down to CHOICE.
I believe that the Holocaust had occurred in the basis of human nature. Every single person has the light and dark in them, everyone. Adolf Hitler, however, seemed to have much more of a deeper connection to the darkest parts of his mind. Everyone seems to forget that Hitler was a normal man, just like any other adult. If you placed him next to a child, he would look no different than men today. He was a human being and he was man, and that really is the saddest part of it all. Unfortunately, it continues to get worse and the same mentality still thrives through people's minds in present day and this is because of one reason: history will ALWAYS repeat itself. This will happen even in the places that are least expected, such as classrooms. As matter of fact, this type of segregation and selection was done in my class this past Friday. Like Hitler, Ms. Camacho used her advantages of having promised the "Germans" grade (in Hitler's case, lives) at safety. As a result of this, some Jews dared to take on this new figure who had supposedly been claimed as their leader. As Wiesel notes, "We must do something. We can't let them kill us like that, like cattle in the slaughterhouse. We must revolt...Let everybody find out about it while they still have the chance to escape. But the older men begged their sons not to be foolish: We mustn't give up hope, even now as the sword hangs over our heads, So taught our sages." (31). This is around the same type of mindset that the students in my class had developed. Unfortunately, not much unity had been played out in either of these revolts. This did not last very long, seeing as they had been shushed or killed, just like in class (minus the killing). Just one class period participating in a simple activity can be proven to show just how easy it is for history to repeat itself. Now, back to the Holocaust, such a horrid period of time. It was actually so horrid that it couldn't help but make people question such a great force that everyone has believed in for so long: God. Eli is first introduced to this thought when a young boy is hung in front of the prisoners and a man behind him could not help but to note, "For God's sake, where is God?" (65). As for me, I believe that God does not necessarily have to be a figure. My God is laughing up till 2AM with my sister, the way a mother loves her child, the act of kindness, being able to fall in love; that is all God to me. Yet, God gives us these abilities, he does not interfere within the lives of people meaning he had no role in the Holocaust. That, in which, is our job. It is our job to make this change and get rid of this terrible disease of history repeating and clean it out of our systems. If Hitler could influence so many people to commit one big murder, what do think the effects would be if it were the opposite? The possibilities are endless. It is not too late, so make a difference now when your time is still ticking.
ReplyDeleteAh! YES! Melanie I agree with you at the max percentage there is, so 100% it is. xD I agree with you that the so called "God" does not interfere with the humans. Human nature is what causes anything from occurring or not occurring. I also agree that God does not have to necessarily have to be a person or a figure at all. For all we know, if a higher being does exist, he can be a cute little panda or something. Great minds think alike..Well, I doubt you might think "God" is a panda.
DeleteI believe that the Holocaust was able to exist because people, and even the Germans on Hilter's side, were afraid to go against him. He was a dictator, so people did not argue with him out of fear of losing their lives and the lives of their loved ones. He was a dictator after all, and at the time no one could argue against him... he would definitely not allow that. The Germans (Nazis) might not have liked the idea, however, they just went along with it because they scared risking their lives, which does show selfishness in man. In our discussion in class today, someone was saying how maybe God was trying to teach us a lesson. This does not really make sense because why would even more wars occur? Why would God sacrifice the lives of over 6,000,000 people. Surely he would not allow that? Other genocides have occurred despite what happened during the Holocaust, another reason why I don't think we learned a lesson...maybe man is being selfish here again? He knows it's wrong yet does it again. However, I do have something to say about this.... Usually, God helps those that do something right and good for the world and others, and punishes those that do something wrong... Based on this... Is this saying that God was trying to punish the Jews? and if so.. what did they do? That is definitely a question I have. This is related to our activity from Friday. Mrs. Camacho has total control over us, so we definitely would not go against her. She controls our grade, just like Hitler basically controlled the lives of his generals and followers. They would not dare to oppose him, because he could instantly get rid of them and their families.. and where would they go? They wouldn't have a place because that era was a harsh period and people were suffering. Something like the Holocaust could definitely happen again, because people are still selfish, so if anybody gets a crazy idea into their head, people will probably not go against them. Too often does a government assume something.. like what happened with a group of Muslim men after the terrorist attack. If someone wants to exterminate a certain group of people, the government will do everything to make them believe that it is alright and say they are just doing it for the people's protection. This is what happened with the Jews, because they have been scapegoats for centuries. Young Eliezer begins to doubt God when he says, “A prayer formed inside me, a prayer to this God in whom I no longer believed" (Wiesel 91), He does not believe that God could allow something so terrible to happen. Similarly, this is shown as Eliezer says,"Where's God? How can I believe, how can anyone believe in this God?"( Wiesel 77). He believes that this is like nightmare, and could not possibly be happening. God would not allow this. This topic will always be debated, and the existence of a superior being. Why would He allow this? One might never know.
ReplyDeleteWell reasons can arise from wherever, you just have to come up with something that is possible and for that believable. The ones who designate these reasons are the humans. People with so much potential to do anything. Normally anything to be happy or just satisfied, in order to not feel scarcity. I think that ultimately it all started with human selfishness, the desire to please oneself, the fuel that drives someone to do something, anything. History repeats itself because people do not get the opportunity to learn better. Why better? Better, because it would grant humans the abilities to make the best decisions, always pertaining to their own perspective and criteria. If people need the opportunity to learn better then education must be spread carefully to make sure people learn what is good for them and for others. Maybe the world needs to be united and there must be mutuality gained by trust which would be gained by communication. So the world needs to be honest with itself and help fix the natural and synthetic problems of the world. And yes I agree that God and the existence of a superior being will always be debated. The big enemy of progress is ignorance. Maybe we need to know more. Or maybe i respectfully say the creator of the bible and of other books of religion was a genius. To create a fascist like doctrine that would unite the world by eliminating the "enemies" of humanity. So then now in 2013 and for the past centuries we have been stuck in a blob by the category of religion that cant be proven right or cant be proven wrong ultimately producing confusion, thus ignorance.
DeleteNot to bag on you or anything, Sveta, but I just wonder why everyone blames God. I think that's funny, because we(humans)have been given a mind, and when we don't use it, we blame God for not stopping us. Why do we blame Him when it was OUR fault for not using our minds? And I'm talking about all horrible events that have stained the world's history: World War I, the Holocaust, 9/11, etc. Why should He help us, when half the time we don't even thank Him? He's given us minds and bodies, capable of doing whatever we need or want. He shouldn't need to help us further. And sometimes, He knows things that we don't, and He knows when to help us and when not to.
DeleteWARNING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! IF YOU ARE EASILY OFFENDED BY OPINIONS OR VIEWS, I WOULD NOT READ THE REST OF THE REPLY BECAUSE I DO NOT WANT TO HEAR ABOUT IT AT SCHOOL
DeleteWe need someone or something to blame. If we have a person to blame then our mind is more at peace, to blame oneself is like saying you are depressed, no one realizes that they are depressed till someone else says anything. Also another reason why I can see blaming God helps, I see the most devout people pray and worship to him, yet they are in horrible circumstance, they have family dying right and left it seems. So blaming God could be someone's way of dealing with things, like putting some deep feeling in a box in the back of your mind, locking it up, and then forgetting about it, but do you really forget about it? No. So they could blame God so they can deal with life as it is. Then deal with whatever problem that they locked away later, or till everything becomes too much for them. If God is all knowing then how come he let created us in Eden? Many people say that God’s greatest mistake was creating us, look all around us. Corruption, violence, and drugs exist because we are so-called “human”, but what is the definition of being “human”? Is it to be the lowest on the rank of spirituality? Or is it to be one just trying to survive in different situations? Sorry if the following statement is offensive, but humans created religion, there is evidence of that too. Archeologists recently unearthed a monk’s grave, and in it, they found a copy of Mary’s view of what happened to Jesus. They also have found other scriptures in other areas that do not appear in the Bible, but appear in good condition. Also according to evolution, there is no way that God created every animal in the Garden of Eden and were all named by Adam, does that mean that every new species and sub species that we discover are named by God telling those scientists what they should be named? So concluding, religion could be a form of blame, originally meant to explain the world to us, but as time went on science went to explain everything for us so now we need someone or something to blame.
And now you started a crusade Rachel, have fun with it XD
Deletebut this is very logical and I agree with you completely
Can I get a like button here??..This is very true and I also agree with Syrus. Rachel you will still get people who get easily offended to read it xD..You will hear about it anyways, so good luck.
DeleteWow! I love what you said Rachel, I agree. :) Couldn't have said it any better. I also agree with Syrus when he says it's logical because, it is, I haven't really looked at it that way yet.
DeleteThe Holocaust was allowed to happen because the Germans were going through a great depression and they looked to blame it on anyone but themselves. Hitler was able to provide them with a scapegoat and they allowed him to systematically kill off an entire race because they were too afraid to stand up for the Jews and they wanted so badly to believe that their problems could be solved by getting rid of the Jews. This is what our class was subjected to on Friday, we were split up into separate groups based on our characteristics. The people with straight hair that sat in the front, were able to take credit for someone with curly hair's work. The people in the back were not allowed to turn around or to take part in any conversation. No one stood up and said that this was unfair. We were afraid to stand up for fear of having our grade suffer and we took advantage of the fact that we could essentially steal someone else's work in the place of our own. The Holocaust could happen again someday if we were put into a situation that made us desperate enough to blame all that was wrong with the world on one group of people and put their fates in the hands of someone else in order to save ourselves. "For God's sake, where is God?" (Wiesel 65). Some people may not believe in God or may believe in more than one higher power, I however, believe that God is everywhere. I believe that he did not intervene during this dark time because he already knows what is to come and if he were to try and change that, then he would be taking away man's right to free will. Some may argue that with everything already set in motion, that we do not truly have free will but rather the illusion of free will. "Here He is- He is hanging here on this gallows," (Wiesel 72). To many who were imprisoned at the concentration camps, God had become dead to them and they no longer had any faith. "Why should I bless him," (Wiesel 74). Eleiezer had lost his belief in God because he did not believe that He could be so cruel as to watch them be tortured and murdered. Really, God cannot interfere in the affairs of man, He must let us make our own choices, even if the outcome is not good, because then we can at least think that we have a choice and hopefully we can learn from it.
ReplyDeleteRebecca I agree that the Jews were used as a scapegoat for Germany's problems. Yes, the Germans were afraid to stand up for the Jews and the Jews themselves were afraid too. During the class activity on Friday no one stood up to say that being segregated by characteristic and being able to take credit for someone else's work was wrong, leading to regret. Yes many at the concentration camps lost their faith and believe in God. To be honest, I would too. If I was at the concentration camp, I would wonder to God why this is happening, why can't he stop it, why can't anybody stop it. I really like that you said, "Really, God cannot interfere in the affairs of man, he must let us make our own choices, even if the outcome is not good, because then we can at least think that we have a choice and hopefully we can learn from it." Since we are living, breathing humans, I think it's necessary to be able to make our own decisions and take responsibilities. We don't know if God can handle things for us, but even if he was able to, he can't do everything for us. We have to learn and the difficulty of that is that even though we learn, things do still repeat.
DeleteMan is naturally corrupt and can easily fall under the natural reactions and feelings of human nature. On Friday, we fell into the roles of the people who we look at and question of how someone could have not done something. Being in the role of a "straight-haried", I didn't necessarily feel subjected to the power of Ms. Camacho or "Hitler", I felt like I had power. She gave us the option to take someones poem, and gave us superiority over others. Once given power we as humans never want to have that taken away from us. The Germans were given power because they were "the superior race", and once given power we crave to have more and more so we push the boundaries to see how far we can go, overlooking and choosing to be ingorant in order to not have to face the reality. The Holocaust was able to occur because of the people who fall under the control of Hitler, people who don't have the self-control and willingness to stop and reflect because they are caught up in the moment of this is what is good for us and not what is good for EVERYONE. We naturally save ourselves when in the situation of helplessness, and yet not only were the Germans at fault, but neither did the countries do anything about what Hitler was doing towards the Jews. History did reapeat itself, by showing Anti-Semitism towards the Jews just as racism towards the blacks happened during the time of the Civil War. We look at that and say how could the people allow such torture, cruelty, injustice, and pain be inflicted upon such innocent people. Yet history repeated itself with Anti-Semitism toward the Jews and letting Hitler perform these actions upon the Jews without any questiong or stopping his actions. The people during the Civil War times were more concerned with the prosperity of their own lives, and to only do things for their benefit, and the Germans also during the Holocaust just went with Hitler because he was giving them what they wanted, and they did what they did and kept silent so they could just live their lives and so they could survive. The people did not learn. As for the injustices practiced upon the Jews and the provoking question of "Where is God?" the answer in still hazy and deabted to this day. In Night, Eliezer says, "I was the accuser, God the accused. My eyes had opened and I was alone, terribly alone in a world without God, withour man. Without love or mercy. I was nothing but ashes now, but I felt myself to be stronger than this Almighty to whom my life had been bound for so long" (Wiesel 68) after seeing all the atrocities committed on the Jews. People question how there could be a God who was conceived to be just, kind, loving, etc. who would let this happen. Although, my belief is that God let us (man) choose our own way of life, and what our course of action will be. Whether we choose to sin or not is up to us. He let's us make our own decision, but He tries to guide us toward doing the right thing. He gives us the control, so what we choose is what happens, and man being the corrupt people that we are, chose to let this happen. God did touch the hearts of some, such as those who would hide Jews in their homes, but most of the population was too concerned and selfish to focus on anyone but themselves. I belief there is a higher power who will help you and guide you if you let him, but if you (or the people) choose to be ignorant, then actions come with reactions, the Holocaust.
ReplyDeleteLast Friday our classroom was arranged in a way to demonstrate how the Jews felt when they were stripped from their human rights. Students were separated by characteristics we could not control, such as our height and if we have naturally straight or curly hair. Many students in the back of the room were angry, but however did not stand up to Ms. Camacho and object to how they were being treated. Hitler then took a stand and blamed it all on the Jews. Our class got to experience a similar situation, but instead of our lives being on the line, it was our grades. "For God's sake, where is God?" (Wiesel 65) There is no way to prove whether God exists or not. However when times turn dark we need to have hope and believe that it can't possibly stay like this forever. If students in the back of the classroom had enough courage and spoke up about it, it wouldn't have been the way it turned out to be, similar to if the Jews were to rebel and go against Hitler.
ReplyDeleteVery well thought of Marissa. I saw that we were being separated from the rest of the class but I noticed the people in the front didn't do anything. I know I didn't do anything because I was going to get a good grade and so I acted as a coward. maybe that was how the German people, the Jews, and the rest of the world felt. they were all cowards until they saw what was really happening to something they really loved, then people began to care. that's what I think happened and went down. could the holocaust have been avoided? I highly agree so
Delete“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” This simple statement has rang true multiple times throughout history, but no more so than it did during the Holocaust. It existed solely because, no one spoke up, and no one acted. There were multiple times where it someone could have stopped and attempted to fight the injustice. But it is because the Germans, the Allied Nations, and the rest of World, who were aware of the atrocities going on inside those camps, decided to remain silent that the Holocaust was able to be such a tragic success. Being of Jewish faith, the question that is running through everyone’s mind was, “Where is God?” (Wiesel 65). The highest power, capable of anything, just standing by his children underwent such Tragedies. Why did he allow it to happen? If everything happens for a reason, what reason could be justified of killing 11 million people? The only reason that comes to mind is a lesson. A lesson for future generations to not stand by when evil reveals itself. If that’s the case then the lesson has still not been learned. The Japanese being put away in internment camps even though they were born on US soil. Obviously, it is not the same severity by any means but it still wasn't right. But it happened anyways. If , “those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it,” (George Santayana) and we, not only the US but mankind as a whole, have still not learned from the past, then there is definitely the chance that another holocaust will occur. Hopefully, if and when it does, good people will not remain silent.
ReplyDeleteI Agree completely with you, the responsible people are those who knew about the things going on in these camps and didnt act, those people should have acted. Also we havent learned anything, we did the same thing to japanese people and nobody deserves that, especially after seeing what happened at concentration camps in europe.
DeleteWhat was the Holocaust? The Holocaust was a time period in which Jews were persecuted, stripped from everything they had, tortured, and killed. 6 million Jews were murdered and 1.5 million of them were innocent children. With so much death on could only say, "Where is God?"(Wiesel 65). Could God allow this? Maybe he let things happen for a reason. Maybe we should learn from these things that happened in history. I know I have learned, but there are those who do not learn from these occurrences. Like the 9-11 incident. A Muslim man decided to kill 2 thousand Americans. What have we learned? From the Sandy Hook shooting, what have we learned? We can't fully say we have learned because there will always be people who have impenetrable minds and will commit atrocities but the question still remains where is god? If he is real, why does he still let these things happen
ReplyDelete-Humberto Sandoval
Ok, if God let things happen for a reason, what do you was his reasoning for the Holocaust. If you think Holocaust was lesson, what was the actual lesson humans learned from that? And was lesson learnt to an extent that it would never be repeated again? Because I can find tons of examples of where we can see that clearly that the lesson was never learned. And I also remember that you said during the class discussion on Monday that things happen for a reason, and we learn from that. You used the example that because of World War 2, and what we learned from that, caused us not to have a World War 3, but my question is why did we have World War 2 if we supposedly learned from World War 1.
DeleteWe can't prove the existence of God, which leads us to simply fall back on, "everything happens for a reason." The reason obviously could not have been to learn a lesson, because we are in fact in a war right now. The United States isn't the good guy, we have committed many atrocities, too, along with many other countries. So, if the reason for the Holocaust was not to learn a lesson, then what is the real reason?
DeleteFirst of all, we did learn things from the 9/11 attack. Airport security was improved. As for the Sandy Hook shooting, you cannot say that we haven't learned anything, I mean, Ms. Camacho told us a plan for a potential shooting. How can that not be considered as learning something? Yes, Ms. Camacho making a plan is a relatively small effect, but, out of all of the teachers in the United States, surely, Ms. Camacho was not the only one. If "God" exists as a loving being, then yes, in light of the holocaust, 9/11, and the shooting, one must wonder, "Where is God?" Well, without disasters, how could we learn? Mistakes give us the opportunity to learn. The shooting showed us that we need to be more prepared so it would not happen again. From the Holocaust one can gather that we must speak up, and rise against events like it. How could you say that we have not learned? Thousands of students study the holocaust, and it happened over sixty years ago! However, I must agree that we have not learned fully. Those of us who believe that something is morally wrong must take a stand against it, and put our luxuries aside, for the greater good. That's the lesson that must be learned in order for the holocaust to have had a lasting part in the prevention of future genocides and horrendous crimes.
DeleteSo this is kind of late but I think that the Holocaust was able to exist because no one spoke up like Elie says in his acceptance speech "the world did know and remained silent"(Wiesel 118). Just like no one including myself did not speak up, maybe the event we had to go through on Thursday wasn't supposed to have anyone speak up or not, but either way no one did. We can use this an an example of how the Holocaust was able to occur. Hitler used his power and his great way with words to manipulate a whole country and then some. If anyone spoke against him they could have been killed,maybe that was the reason for the whole nation staying quiet. They knew what was going on, they knew they were doing something they shouldn't be doing. Assassination is a sin and yet they were religious people. It was inhumane, and just plain wrong. But they did it anyway. I guess it can be compared to a children that no matter how many times you tell them to stop they don't. But the Nazis and SS were not children, they understood if they were able to know how to kill people and how to work a gun then their mind should have been able to comprehend that what they were doing was wrong. And yet the most important factor was missing no one was telling them to stop, just the contrary. Even the German girls "allowed themselves to be kissed and tickled"(Wiesel 46) by these monsters these worthless human beings, if they can be called human beings. Even after WWI, even after all that killing the Holocaust still happened. Some say that shouldn't the world have learned from WWI that killing was bad, they should have learned, but WWI actually led to WWI. Not only was there conflicts left unsolved, but Germany's economy worsened. They found a way to blame someone else for the bad economy and put all the blame and hate on the Jews.Millions upon millions of people were killed. Men, women,even children were "thrown into the flames"(32). "Where is God?"(Wiesel 65) God is here, hiding. I can't prove that but I believe and I think that God is here, with us. I have been raised to believe in him and yet there we're times where I couldn't believe. God is powerful, caring, but He can also be hard to understand. Things happen for a reason, many others have used this line, and honestly this is my life motto. I believe that God makes things happen, even bad things for a reason, whether or not we know why those reasons are. Why did we wake up alive this morning? Who knows? Why did we have to grown up? Who knows? I think no one knows exactly why things happened, but God has a weird way of making things happen. We put an end to the Holocaust but things like this can and are still happening. This will continue to happen no matter how many lessons we have to go through because there will always be cruel, psychotic people in the world. Bad will always exist unless we learn how to overcome it, and how to speak up not only for ourselves, but for everyone else. Even the Pope believes in God and is said to be the closest person to God, when he is German, and he was a Nazi. Just how things happen for a reason, there was a reason as to why the Pope did not get to kill anyone, he injured his arm and could not shoot, but instead was put to write letters. Coincidence? I think not, but then again I'm not God. "We don't understand His replies. We cannot understand them" (Wiesel 5).
ReplyDelete- Janeth Bonilla
I agree with you Jackie ! The holacaust was due to fear of questionintthe leader and everyone was voiceless. And that is true everytime we see a leade we do as they say without saying Since we fear so much andwe are afraid to act history can easily repeat itself because no one dares to take charge and do something about the problem . And honestly I dont think humanity can learn because throught the years we seen history repeating maybe not as bad as the holocaust but the same idea.
ReplyDeleteWell written Isaac and you were right about the class being afraid to get into trouble. However, I don't believe anything good came from the Holocaust. If someone really has faith in God then they've had it before the Holocaust, not after. We can't have God solving our problems or standing up for us, we can stand up for ourselves.I wonder if the class would rebel against Ms. Camacho if we had another chance? Or would we just stay quiet and listen to whatever she says for a grade?
ReplyDeleteWOW! Some extremely thorough and well-thought out reflections here, you all! It seems there is a dilemma on the place religion and God has in our lives, as human beings. We find comfort in the idea or belief of a Higher Power, a deity that might, indeed, relieve our suffering as well as our responsibilities for the atrocities the human race begets on one another. In essence, we find ourselves wondering the proverbial question: Which came first? God, for man's sake, or man, for God's sake? Was religion created as a means of understanding and justifying our world, the known and unknown? Or was man created by God as a manifestation of the possibilities of love and evil, incarnate. It seems the jury is still out on this one...for so many of us.
ReplyDeleteIt is, therefore, difficult to argue a side without admitting to one basic fact: our belief system guides us in this ideology of God and who He is in our lives. We either "believe" in God and have faith in his omnipotence, or we don't believe in a God who controls the actions of men. Likewise, we either turn to God as an inspiration for better living, through love and compassion, or we turn to God as the Power who dictates the circumstances of all of our lives.
Your reflections and discourse are simply amazing to me...I have read each and every post and reply, and your thoughtful comments and sometimes difficult ideas you address are just nothing short of admirable and inspiring to me.
Yes, it's true. In the scenario of last Friday, in the smallest sense, I WAS playing the part of Hitler. On Tuesday, I will ask you what part YOU played in the scenario. Certainly something to think about...
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ReplyDeleteI really do agree with you Meli because who else decides for us, who makes the bad choices and chooses to harm people? We do.
ReplyDeleteI agree with jakie that humans dont instantly question authority, we usually jump into things and dont think of the negative possibilities that can occur. obviously an example was our classroom, no one questioned Camacho or decided to revolt together or stand up we simply "took it." Also, on the whole God thing, I dont believe the worl is all " puppies and rainbows because in order ti really get a morale we must hear it and be attentive and since humans are igonrant the best way to get the memo is by living it!
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