Anti-Semitism in Nazi Germany and Austria exploded on the night of November 9, 1938. Zvi Bacharach, who was 10 years old at the time, recounts the nightmare experience on Kristallnacht:

“I remember my mother standing pale and crying . . . I remember her phoning her gentile [sic] friends—she had more gentile friends than Jewish friends—no answer. No one answered her.” (1)

That was more than eight decades ago.

The anniversary of the Kristallnacht—The Night of Broken Glass—is the commemoration of the rampage of death and destruction when coordinated mobs attacked their Jewish countrymen throughout Germany and Nazi-annexed Austria .

During the days of November 9 – 10, 1938:

• Ninety-one Jewish people were murdered.
• Thousands of private Jewish homes and more than 7,000 Jewish businesses were pillaged and destroyed.
• More than 260 synagogues were burned-out and the remains decimated.

The windows shattered by looting rioters left streets covered in broken glass. Hence the label, “night of broken glass.” Jewish citizenry was scapegoated with the violence that effectively released insurance companies from claims. At the same time, the Third Reich forced German Jews to pay for the damage through punitive fines.

In the aftermath, more than 30,000 Jewish men were rounded up and deported to Nazi concentration camps and death camps.

Adolf Hitler’s campaign of harassment went mainstream with Kristallnacht, the first state sanctioned violence, where paramilitary forces and civilians targeted the Jewish people while the government turned a blind eye.

Burning synagogue on Kristallnacht in Nazi-Germany, November 10, 1938_5x7

We must heed the warning. Kristallnacht was the catalyst that led to the systematic murder of 6 million Jewish people during the Nazi Holocaust.

We must never forget the grim truth about those dark days so that history will not be repeated. If, God forbid, our Jewish friends should ever call for help, we as biblically authentic Christians must be prepared and ready to act.

On the anniversary of Kristallnacht, renew your commitment to stand in solidarity with the Jewish community.

…

Olive Tree Alliance works to eliminate confusion about Israel and thus provides a biblical foundation for Christian solidarity with the Jewish community. We believe an educated understanding of the Bible and history compels Christians to stand with the Jewish community to counter all forms of anti-Semitism.

ENDNOTE:
1) Bacharach, Zvi, Yad Vashem website.

IMAGES:
1) Jewish businessmen of 3 District of Vienna were repeatedly forced in March and April, 1938, to rub sidewalks in front of numerous spectators. (Photo credit: [Public domain]/Wikimedia)
2) Jews forced to march with star on Kristallnacht. (Photo credit: [Public domain]/Wikimedia)
3) Destruction of the Synagogue in Bamburg during the Kristallnacht (1938). (Photo credit: [Public domain/Wikimedia)
4) Burning Eisenach Synagogue, November 1938 Pogroms. (Photo credit: By Center for Jewish History, NYC/[No restrictions]/Wikimedia)
5) Interior view of the destroyed Fasanenstrasse Synagogue, Berlin, burned on Kristallnacht; November Pogroms. (Photo credit: By Center for Jewish History, NYC/[Public domain]/Wikimedia)
6) Frankfurt am Main Synagogue burning during Kristallnacht. (Photo credit: By Center for Jewish History, NYC/[No restrictions/Public domain]/Wikimedia)
7) Ludwigsburg Synagogue; Burning on Kristallnacht; November Pogroms. (Photo credit: By Center for Jewish History, NYC/[No restrictions]/Wikimedia)
8) Synagogue of Siegen, Germany, in flames during Kristallnacht, November 9/10 1938. (Photo credit: [Public domain]/Wikimedia)
9) Wiesbaden Synagogue Burning; Kristallnacht Pogroms; November 9, 1938. (Photo credit: By Center for Jewish History, NYC/[No restrictions]/Wikimedia)
10) Interior of the Zerrennerstrasse synagogue in Pforzheim after its destruction on Kristallnacht, November 10, 1938. (Photo credit: By StadtArchiv Pforzheim (USHMM [1])/[Public domain]/Wikimedia)
11) Prayer books lie scattered on the floor of the choir loft in the Zerrennerstrasse synagogue, destroyed on Kristallnacht. (Photo credit: By StadtArchiv Pforzheim (USHMM [1])/[Public domain]/Wikimedia)
12) Burning synagogue on Kristallnacht in Nazi-Germany, November 10, 1938. (Photo credit:/[Public domain]/Wikimedia Cleaning the street after Kristallnacht. (Photo credit: [Public domain]/Wikimedia)
13) Cleaning the street after Kristallnacht. (Photo credit: [Public domain]/Wikimedia)
14) The day after Kristallnacht. German citizens look the other way on November 10 1938. What they see or don’t want to see are destroyed Jewish shops and houses. (Photo credit: [Public domain]/Wikimedia)
15) Workmen on the rubble of the destroyed synagogue; Chemnitz. (Photo credit: By Center for Jewish History, NYC/No restrictions/Wikimedia)

Copyright © 2018 Charles E. McCracken, commentary only. Repost/Reprint with permission. Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

© 2018 Charles E. McCracken, commentary only. Repost/Reprint with permission. Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

IMAGES:
1) Jewish businessmen of 3 District of Vienna were repeatedly forced in March and April, 1938, to rub sidewalks in front of numerous spectators. [Public domain/Wikimedia]
2) Jews forced to march with star on Kristallnacht. [Public domain/Wikimedia]
3) Destruction of the Synagogue in Bamburg during the Kristallnacht (1938). [Public domain/Wikimedia]
4) Burning Eisenach Synagogue, November 1938 Pogroms. [By Center for Jewish History, NYC/No restrictions/Wikimedia]
5) Interior view of the destroyed Fasanenstrasse Synagogue, Berlin, burned on Kristallnacht; November Pogroms. [By Center for Jewish History, NYC/Public domain/Wikimedia]
6) Frankfurt am Main Synagogue burning during Kristallnacht. [By Center for Jewish History, NYC/No restrictions/Public domain/Wikimedia]
7) Ludwigsburg Synagogue; Burning on Kristallnacht; November Pogroms. [By Center for Jewish History, NYC/No restrictions/Wikimedia]
8) Synagogue of Siegen, Germany, in flames during Kristallnacht (November 9/10 1938). [Public domain/Wikimedia]
9) Wiesbaden Synagogue Burning; Kristallnacht Pogroms; November 9, 1938. [By Center for Jewish History, NYC/No restrictions/Wikimedia]
10) Interior of the Zerrennerstrasse synagogue in Pforzheim after its destruction on Kristallnacht, November 10, 1938. [By StadtArchiv Pforzheim (USHMM [1]) Public domain/Wikimedia Commons]
11) Prayerbooks lie scattered on the floor of the choir loft in the Zerrennerstrasse synagogue, destroyed on Kristallnacht. [By StadtArchiv Pforzheim (USHMM [1]) Public domain/Wikimedia]
12) Burning synagogue on Kristallnacht in Nazi-Germany, November 10, 1938. [Public domain/Wikimedia]
13) Cleaning the street after Kristallnacht. [Public domain/Wikimedia]
14) The day after Kristallnacht. German citizens look the other way on November 10 1938. What they see or don’t want to see are destroyed Jewish shops and houses. [Public domain/Wikimedia]
15) Workmen on the rubble of the destroyed synagogue; Chemnitz. [By Center for Jewish History, NYC/No restrictions/Wikimedia]

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