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Warsaw Ghetto Uprising Essay

1451 Words6 Pages

American Jewish civil religion took a step backwards concerning the response to the Warsaw ghetto uprising because they reverted to being silent. While there were multiple calls for help, America did not respond. However, American Jews did not know the facts at the time and the media made it seem unimportant, so they should not be completely blamed for their lack of response. It is hard to compare this event to the others because American Jews did not know the facts, but they should have questioned it more when it was mentioned in the media because they were aware of what had been happening before. Until the 1940s, there were no common beliefs that united the American Jewish Community. With Hitler’s rise to power, American Jews had a greater …show more content…

We view the survivors today as being honorable which could relate to how we view soldiers today. Soldiers sacrifice their lives and we honor them. Similarly, survivors endured Nazism, and we honor them for their fight for life. Sympathy and guilt for the Jews also show civil religion. After the war, many people felt guilt and sympathy for the Jews because they realized what had actually happened during the war. American Jews felt even more guilty because they had survived when some of their brethren died. Also, this shows the impact of the Holocaust on American culture through remembrance. Focusing on the present, we can see how remembrance has shaped American civil …show more content…

We can see how the guilt of Americans led to a greater awareness among American Jews, which helped them understand themselves today. This new understanding reshapes their civil religion because they have a new perspective on life. During the Holocaust, America’s civil religion was different because they were not fully aware of the extent of the Holocaust. Now that Americans know the truth about the Holocaust, their civil religion has changed. One could suggest that American Jews felt guilty because they knew that they should have helped but went against their civil religion and remained silent. Now, American Jews want to make sure that it will not happen

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