Page 43 of The Righteous
THE GREAT SYNAGOGUE on Dohány Street was packed.
Standing room only. Word circulated quickly that Samu Stern, head of the newly formed Budapest Judenrat, would be addressing the congregation.
Supposedly, he was given detailed inside information concerning the rumors of a German takeover.
Benjamin, Theresa, and Julia arrived early.
Benjamin, because of his status at the synagogue, not to mention his charitable efforts, had permanently assigned seating in a forward row.
After a few opening remarks by the temple president, Rabbi Levy was introduced, and he stepped up on the bimah.
“Fellow congregants, these are uncertain times,” the rabbi said.
“In the middle of a worldwide war, one in which Hungary finds itself, though it had no aggressive aspirations, we now face peril from within our own borders, our very homeland. The peril comes not from the Russians, whose armies threaten us on our eastern border, but from our Axis partners, who encircle us and border us on all sides. And why do we face such peril? It is because there are some who condemn us for following our faith. Simply put, we are deprecated because we are Jewish. We do not threaten others, but apparently others feel threatened.”
A number of attendees voiced their agreement: “Why don’t they leave us alone?” “Why don’t the Germans get the hell out of Hungary!” Rejoinders came from numerous congregants, and they filled the room with angry tones.
Rabbi Levy held his hand up for quiet. “It is no secret that the German leadership has come into our country to regulate and control our social order and the privileges that we are entitled to enjoy as Hungarian citizens.”
Shouts agreeing with the rabbi’s description and expressing displeasure with the Germans filled the sanctuary.
Rabbi Levy held his hand up again. “You have all seen the flood of German soldiers on the streets of our town. Now, just recently, a very highly placed German officer, Obergruppenführer Adolf Eichmann, has arrived in Hungary to manage the flood of Germans. It is no one’s wish to let the situation spin out of control.
For that reason, Herr Eichmann has appointed a council that will act as a buffer—a middleman, if you will—to reason with and communicate between the Nazi leaders and our Jewish community.
Herr Eichmann has appointed members of our community to sit on the council.
Our own Samu Stern has been appointed as president of this council, which Eichmann calls the Judenrat . ”
“Why do we need a council?” someone shouted. “We do not have any difficulty governing ourselves. In fact, the Dohány Synagogue has resolved many a controversy between congregants.”
The rabbi nodded. “Times are different,” he replied.
“The synagogue has never been asked to resolve controversies with German leaders. I understand that is one of the functions of the newly formed Judenrat. Mr. Stern has asked that we come together today so that he can explain his role as president of the Judenrat, and he will explain its function. No matter whether you approve or disapprove of the creation of such a council, Mr. Stern’s intentions are to further peace. Please give him your kind attention.”
Samu Stern walked up to the platform to polite applause, as he was an elder of the congregation.
There were a few grumbles of “Nazi puppet,” “Betrayer,” and “Nazi mouthpiece.” Stern waited for the sanctuary to calm down.
Indeed, he was an older man, probably seventy as Benjamin had thought.
He was thin, well dressed in a dark suit with a white shirt and black tie.
He had sunken dark eyes and thick black eyebrows.
He comported himself with dignity. He exuded confidence as he stood and looked over the crowd.
“Why would he accept this position?” Theresa said quietly. “If he wanted a position of authority in the synagogue, I’m sure he would have been considered.”
Stern began, “I thank you all for coming here today and giving me the opportunity to explain the purpose of the newly formed council, known as the Judenrat. I know that many of you are critical of the role of the Judenrat. It has a German name and serves a German purpose. Many of you see it as a tool of the occupiers to control our community. I have heard some describe it as ‘playing ball with the Germans.’”
The remark brought on loud grumbles of “Yeah, that’s right. So why are you doing it? Playing ball with Eichmann the killer.”
Julia nodded to Theresa. “That’s exactly what he’s doing.”
“I can assure you that it is really quite the opposite,” Stern said.
“On the one hand, it is a vehicle for making our needs known to Regent Horthy and also to the German leaders. On the other hand, it is a forum for the respective governments to converse and make known their rules and regulations concerning our community. That way, we won’t run afoul of those regulations and end up in trouble.
And in the same manner, we can make our needs or displeasures known to the rulers.
Think of it as a balancing act. In this way, instead of posting bulletins on trees and signboards, the leaders’ rules and regulations can be explained to the Judenrat, and we can then pass them on to our community in a common-sense and logical way. ”
“Common sense? Who are you kidding? Logical way? Nazi collaborator,” barked many in the crowd.
Stern raised his hands and continued, “I was skeptical myself when I was approached by Obergruppenführer Eichmann, but I knew that opening the lines of communication is always necessary to prevent unjust treatment. I thought, What kind of a man would I be if I turned my back and let my people down right now when leadership is most needed? I must accept the burden of president of the council. I was promised a free hand on choosing members of the council. I chose Erno Peto and Karoly Wilhelm, whom many of you know. In fact, Karoly has a close personal connection to Regent Horthy, and he speaks to him often. I ask you, is that a bad thing?”
Many positive utterances were voiced, and an equal number of negative comments answered his rhetorical question.
“Following my appointment, I was privileged to meet with Obersturmbannführer Hermann Krumey,” Stern said.
“As you can see, I am being given free access to the German hierarchy. Herr Krumey told me that there will be new restrictions on the Jewish community from time to time but that there will be no need to fear deportation if there is a centralized Jewish leadership council guiding the community. So, I am sure you will all agree that there is a need for a Jewish council to protect us and save us from deportation, as has happened to Jewish communities in other countries.”
Julia leaned over and whispered to Benjamin, “They had a Judenrat in Poland and in the Netherlands. Those councils helped load Jews into boxcars to be taken to die. Don’t listen to him or a word he says.”
“Shh,” Benjamin said, but others heard her.
Loud gripes arose from the congregants. “What kind of restrictions?” a man yelled. “Why should we be restricted in our own country by a bunch of foreign Germans?”
Stern gently waved his hand for quiet. “Discrimination is present in almost every society. Restrictions are common in every government, and there have been restrictions on the Jewish community in Hungary for centuries. Anyone who knows the history of the Habsburg Empire knows there have been periods of very strict rules and restrictions on the Jewish community.”
“Oh, no,” said Theresa, standing up to speak.
“That’s wrong. The Habsburgs lifted the restrictions on Jewish society.
The Habsburgs were fair and treated us equally.
Did you know that Habsburg law prohibited antisemitism?
Well, it did. That law stayed in effect until the First World War, when the Habsburgs fell out of power in 1918.
History teaches us that it was the rulers that came after the Habsburgs who imposed cruel religious restrictions. ”
“Then I stand corrected,” said Stern modestly. “I am sorry. I meant to say that in history, there have been many rulers who have imposed unfair restrictions on the Jews. I suppose you might say that Jews have been subject to restrictions since the time of Moses.” He shrugged.
“Moses?” said Julia loudly. “He split the Red Sea and led his people to freedom, fleeing a violent dictator. Maybe that’s what we need. Someone to split the Black Sea and lead us to Palestine.”
People around her clapped and shouted, “Right!”
“We don’t need any more restrictions,” another man said. “We want freedom.”
People started to chant, “We want freedom!”
Stern took a deep breath. He was losing the crowd. Time to come to a conclusion.
“I am afraid we will not have a choice in this regard,” he said with an austere expression.
“As many of you know, Dome Sztójay has been appointed by the Nazi leaders as Hungary’s new prime minister to replace Miklós Kállay.
He will govern alongside Regent Miklós Horthy, who has returned from his meeting with Herr Hitler.
Sztójay’s new government has already passed a number of decrees restricting Jews.
They are the new laws, and we are required to obey them or be subject to punishment. ”
As he suspected, his last comment riled up the crowd. “What new laws?” several people shouted.
“I don’t have them all with me today, nor do I know them all yet, but I can tell you that according to recent decrees, all Jews living outside Budapest, regardless of gender and age, have to travel or be transported to a designated city.
They will not be permitted to live in undisciplined rural surroundings, out of the view and earshot of the rulers.
They will be gathered and reside in groups or developments, which we refer to as ghettos .
I am told that in that way, it is far easier for the Nazi government to govern us and to keep track of our activities and control the Jewish population in these uncertain times of war. ”
“We are not the enemy,” said many, including Julia and Theresa. Some dared to say, “The Nazis are our enemy.”
Stern shook his head. “I am afraid that talk like that will not help the situation; it will only bring about stricter laws. Talk like that reinforces the Germans’ belief that Jews are untrustworthy, and it reinforces their intent to corral us as dissidents.”
With that last remark, several stood and began to leave. Theresa and Julia stood as well, but Benjamin put his hand on Theresa’s shoulder and said, “Don’t be rude. Our family is well mannered. Let him finish, and then we will leave.”
Stern continued amid the dissension. “I am informed that new restrictions have already been enacted or will be enacted soon, restricting Jewish use of public transportation. I have no doubt that there will be restrictions on the use of your automobiles. I wouldn’t be surprised if telephone service was curtailed at specific hours, or entirely.
Finally, I believe, though it hasn’t happened yet, that an evening curfew will be imposed on Jewish citizens. ”
That brought about the loudest rejoinders.
To which Stern replied, “I am not the one responsible for these decrees, nor is the Judenrat. Don’t blame the messenger.
These are restrictions that will be imposed by our new rulers.
It is important that we keep the lines of communication open so that we can request that the restrictions be lifted.
That is why we have a Judenrat. Face it—there is a war going on, and we must follow the rules of our new rulers or we will be punished. ”
“Are you going to punish us?” shouted one person.
“Are you going to report us for breaking the rules?” said another. “How do they know who is breaking the rules?”
Stern shook his head. “How will they know? I can tell you this: Starting next Friday and every day thereafter, all persons defined as ‘Jews’ are obligated to wear a yellow star on their outer clothing. That covers anyone with Jewish blood: meaning at least one parent or grandparent, even if they don’t practice.
Those who have converted from Judaism to Christianity, or those who profess Christianity, are required to wear the star but are permitted to add a small white cross under the star. ”
With that last comment, the entire synagogue rose and started to clear out.
The comments were loud and angry. Out of respect for Benjamin, Theresa and Julia did not walk out until Samu Stern had walked down from the bimah.
On his way out, Stern was heard to say, “I am not to blame for the German rules. I did not make them. Just be mindful that disobedience could result in harsh punishment.”