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Maxwell commemorates the Holocaust

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Alexa Culbert
  • 42nd Air Base Wing Public Affairs
MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. --  Maxwell Airmen gathered to honor Holocaust victims during the annual Holocaust Days of Remembrance Commemoration ceremony, April 14, 2015, at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama.

The event commemorated the 70th anniversary of World War II and remembered the estimated 15 million lives lost to the Nazi regimen.

To pay respect to Holocaust victims, Rabbi Scott Kramer of the Agudath Israel Etz Ahayem Synagogue read out load the passage "We Begin-With Silence" by Rabbi Bernhard Rosenberg, and Chap. (Maj.) Travis Yelton, installation chaplain, followed with an Invocation.

Rabbi Elliot Stevens, guest speaker and spiritual leader of Temple Beth Or, the oldest Jewish congregation in Montgomery, explained why it was important to never forget the events of World War II. He described the Holocaust as a very daunting and overwhelming event that is somehow already receding into ancient history.

"For all of us, the imperative 'to never forget,' rings with a special urgency," said Stevens.  "Most of the world has already forgotten, many in our world today never knew.  Not to mention the millions in our world who are quite certain that the Holocaust never took place at all and the whole story is a fraud."

He questioned the arguments of others who say that the Holocaust is nothing out of the ordinary when comparing history and suffering.

"The Holocaust was the only example in human history, as a state, whose explicit policy was to exterminate an entire people wherever they lived, as if they were vermin, and how close they came to succeeding," he said. "Despite the torrent of new research, some of the most fundamental questions raised by the Holocaust have yet to be answered. We know the 'what happened,' the mechanics of how it happened, we even know something of the context, but the answer to the ultimate question of why, that question still eludes us."

With everything now known about the Holocaust and the crimes committed against humanity, Stevens answers the question, "Will this ever happen again?"

"I don't think there is any question, it is happening again," said Stevens.  "It is happening in the realms of ISIS. It's happening in Africa, where genocide is national policy. It's happening as we witness world leaders holding important meetings and forums and making fine statements and resolutions, but not doing nearly enough. If the truth is not known, if the memory becomes distant, if we just gather annually and recite, 'never again,' without doing much about it, how confident can we be that Hitler will not one day have his prosperous victory?"

During closing remarks, Col. Andrea Tullos, 42nd Air Base Wing commander, reminded Airmen that their duty goes further than just speaking up when they see injustice.

"Most of our young Airmen will never know a Holocaust survivor.  I remind those of us who wear the uniform, we all took an oath to serve and defend our U.S. Constitution, a constitution founded on freedom, and within the preamble of that constitution, it very clearly articulates that it is designed to establish justice, promote the general welfare and secure the blessing of liberty. It's our responsibility not to just simply speak, but when called upon, to act," Tullos said.