The Holocaust was a very horrible time in history that we can learn from. In this video you will hear various survivors talk about what they have experienced. The horrible event was proceeded by increasingly blatant displays of prejudice. Jewish people were not allowed on the sidewalk, Jewish stores and places of worship were vandalized and Jewish people had to wear a star to identify themselves as different from others or they may have been shot. So even if one wanted to hide their identity it would probably end badly.
One survivor tells how the kids he played with just one day before started throwing stones at him. He attributed it to the parental influence they had to show hatred. How can people be so cruel? Pride is the hidden root of evil. We can have ethnic pride that disregards the lives and concerns of those who are not like us. When we care more about people who look and act like us more than others you can be sure that the vile seeds that bloomed into death and despair for countless people are very much part of the heart. We should do everything we can to avoid watering these seeds of evil.
Prejudice is taught, sometimes it is so subtle we may not even notice it. At times it may be easy to notice when we generalize other groups negatively but sometimes prejudice isn’t as obvious as that. We may generalize certain groups more favorably than others. This is harder to notice or accept as an issue that needs to be changed because people can tell themselves that they are not thinking negatively of other people or being hateful, while liking other groups better. But viewing certain groups as more important than others even if you don’t think you hate those others ends in similarly as thinking negatively of certain people groups.
“My brothers, practice the faith of our Lord Yeshua, the glorious Messiah, without showing favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your synagogue wearing gold rings and fancy clothes, and also a poor man comes in dressed in rags. If you show more respect to the man wearing the fancy clothes and say to him, ‘Have this good seat here,’ while to the poor man you say, ‘You, stand over there,’ or, ‘Sit down on the floor by my feet,’ then aren’t you creating distinctions among yourselves, and haven’t you made yourselves into judges with evil motives?...If you truly attain the goal of Kingdom Torah, in conformity with the passage that says, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself,’ you are doing well.” James 2:1-8. Let’s pay attention and learn about the dangers of prejudice so we don’t repeat the attitudes that caused the Holocaust.
