Cultural Namesakes

Tags

diaspora, German Jews, Judaism

Berlin city girl

Lately my writing career has been crawling along at the same glacial pace as life in a small town like Bozeman. Wish I had gotten started on this vocation a little earlier in life. Our daughter Olivia just had her first publication at age 13. Our experiences in Berlin nurtured her creative potential as they did mine. You can read her story about a typical day in her twelve-year-old life here: Just Your Average Day in Berlin. I giggled through much of her story and I hope you will too.

Olivia shares my love of the written word, both through reading and writing. Her brother Avery Erwin inherited many special qualities from his Papa Erv (see Namesakes).  Through genetics and cultural heritage, we pass down bits and pieces of ourselves to the next generation. And that is the theme of Deutsche Welle’s new multimedia series Traces of German-Jewish Heritage. Filmed in ten different countries, this project documents the past and present of German Jewish culture. The stories from the United States include a film about our family which you can access here: http://www.dw.de/top-stories/usa/s-31860.

Ute Schaeffer, Deutsche Welle’s editor-in-chief, had this to say about their German Jewish culture project: “We want to show Germany as a modern and open country, but also as a society which recognizes and knows the value of its cultural and historical roots.” In an age of often shallow journalism, I’m impressed by Deutsche Welle’s expansive and well-researched effort to document the cultural history of German Jews. The living reminders of German Jewish history around the globe are something to celebrate during the holiday season.

New Experiences, Old Traditions

Tags

Berlin, German Jews, Jewish Sabbath, Judaism, Pestalozzistrasse Synagogue

Shortly after we seated ourselves in the women’s section of the sanctuary, my daughter whispered to me that she felt she didn’t fit in here.  By the time we left, she was eager to return.  It was our first time attending Shabbat services at the Pestalozzistrasse Synagogue, which follows a musical tradition dating back to the mid-1800s in which the cantor is accompanied by organ music and a choir.  As the sounds of the organ reverberated throughout the room, both Olivia and I felt a bit like we were part of a Christian rather than a Jewish service.  The entire service was sung and the Hebrew melodies, by German composer Louis Lewandowski (1821 – 1894), were unlike anything we had heard at other synagogues in Berlin.  Beautiful, yes, but so unfamiliar as to make me feel like an outsider too.

Sitting apart from the boys in our family also made the sabbath experience unique for us.  We are a rather non-traditional Jewish family that generally avoids rituals that treat men and women differently.  But Pestalozzistrasse calls itself a “liberal” synagogue, and although the men and women sit separately, the sanctuary is completely open so we could smile and make eye contact with my husband and sons.  I loved sitting next to my daughter while surrounded by lots of Jewish ladies in interesting outfits.  We often choose girls’ activities to do on our own so in a way this was just another chance for some quality girl time.  Still, making our own choice to be separate is better than having someone else make that choice for us.

What I most appreciate is the range of opportunities to experience being Jewish in Berlin.  We’ve attended four of the city’s numerous congregations since we moved here and each has offered up its own evidence of the vitality of Jewish life in Germany today. Even though we didn’t feel quite at home at Pestalozzistrasse, the music was moving and inspirational and touched our spirits on a cold winter’s sabbath night in Berlin.

Choosing our Rites of Passage

Tags

American Jews, Bar Mitzvah, Berlin, German citizenship, German Jews, Judaism

A stroll through the Britzer Gardens in southern Berlin was the aesthetic highlight of a weekend filled with bar mitzvah tasks, household chores, and the usual mishaps and disputes between the kids.  With over 200 types of dahlias in full bloom, we were treated to a spectacular show of color that soothed our jangled nerves.  I think we can now handle the home stretch of bar mitzvah planning and clothes shopping without a full family meltdown.

Avery's bar mitzvah kippah

Avery will become a bar mitzvah in less than three weeks and I feel a sense of pride and wonder that he is on the threshold of such a significant event.  As a “son of the commandments” Avery will be well prepared to lead a Jewish life and to make responsible adult choices.  By choosing to have his bar mitzvah in Berlin, Avery will help a new generation of our family take its place in Germany’s growing Jewish community (see Becoming a Bar Mitzvah in Berlin’s Jewish Orphanage).  His bar mitzvah, on the anniversary of my father’s, will forge a link to the past and lead our family on a new path to the future.  Coming at the same time as the approval of our German citizenship, I feel a greater sense of comfort as a resident of the country that my parents were forced to flee.

I’ve always been a little jealous of people who have had a bar or bat mitzvah, mostly because of their ability to read Hebrew and to accurately recite the prayers that sound so beautiful and that I still struggle with.  I envy their participation in a rite of passage that I never went through.  Maybe I am not religious because I just don’t know how to be religious, was never properly initiated into my own religion, and still feel somewhat like an outsider when I sit with my community in a synagogue.  Getting older only increases my sense of discomfort (I should know this stuff by now!).

Perhaps I will be inspired by my son and decide to have my own bat miztvah. Perhaps not.  At least I will feel comfortable choosing to have this rite of passage either in the U.S. or Germany. And I will admire my son for the courage he’s shown in making his own choices.

Becoming a Bar Mitzvah in Berlin’s Jewish Orphanage

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Bar Mitzvah, Berlin, German Jews, Judaism, Juedisches Waisenhaus

Ohel Hachidusch, the Jewish congregation we attend in Berlin, is a very small congregation that meets in a pleasant church in our neighborhood.  After choosing a bar mitzvah date for our son Avery we were surprised to discover that the church would not be available on that day.  This planning malfunction turned out to be a true blessing in disguise when Cantor Jalda Rebling (Avery’s bar mitzvah teacher) suggested we have the bar mitzvah at the Juedisches Waisenhaus Berlin (former Jewish Orphanage of Berlin).

I cannot imagine a more auspicious venue for a bar mitzvah than a historic building devoted to the welfare of Jewish children. Built in 1912/13, the orphanage operated until 1940. After Kristallnacht many of the children were brought to safety via Kindertransport. The Nazis closed the building in 1942 and deported all remaining occupants to concentration camps. As far as I can tell from what I have read in German, the building languished for years, but was eventually restored and finally reopened in 2001. 

The Juedisches Waisenhaus today has a library and an elementary school in addition to the beautifully restored prayer hall.  Avery’s bar mitzvah in October will be the first to take place in the Waisenhaus since it reopened.

A Stone for Meta

Tags

Altwiedermus, Bar Mitzvah, German Jews, Hessen Jews, Holocaust, Judaism, stolpersteine

My Great-Aunt Meta Adler

We know almost nothing about her and that will never change. But she will be remembered. We must rely on our imaginations to fill in the enormous gaps about her life in Germany before the “final solution” became her fate. And we can imagine her new life in America, if only the U.S. government had approved her application to emigrate with the rest of my father’s family.

What we do know is that she was an unmarried Jewish woman who worked as a maid and was too shy or scared to give satisfactory answers to the questions that determined eligibility for emigration to the U.S.  According to my Aunt Ellen, my grandmother was forced to send Meta back to Frankfurt after the rest of the family was granted permission to emigrate in 1938.  At the age of 44 Meta returned to Frankfurt without any personal resources. She spent another four years there, was eventually forced into a Judenhaus, and then deported in May 1942. We have tried without success to find out where she was deported to and her date of death.

Later this year we will place a stolperstein (brass stumbling stone) in Frankfurt for Meta. This stone, placed at the site of Meta’s last freely chosen residence, will join the more than 25,000 others throughout Europe (see Stolpersteine: Stones to Remember). Pedestrians who tread on Meta’s stone will have the opportunity to reflect on another Holocaust victim.  Meta’s stone will also represent the 13 Jews of Altwiedermus and my paternal ancestors whose lives were obliterated by the Nazis. Our son Avery, who will have his bar mitzvah in Berlin this October, will raise the 95 euros for Meta’s memorial stone as his bar mitzvah project.

Stolpersteine…….Stones to Remember

Tags

Bar Mitzvah, Berlin, German Jews, Germany, Holocaust, Judaism, stolpersteine

stolpersteine near our apartment

The rich cultural attractions of Jewish life in Berlin are so plentiful that it is easy to initially overlook one small but remarkable feature of the urban landscape: stolpersteine. Berlin is one of hundreds of European communities where pedestrians can tread across stolpersteine, brass stumbling stones that are designed to remember individual victims of the Holocaust.  The thousands of cobblestone memorials throughout Germany and Europe were designed by artist Gunter Demnig who conceived the project in 1993.  Demnig’s 4 inch memorials are a powerful  contrast to Berlin’s vast and imposing Holocaust Memorial which purposely omits the names of Holocaust victims.

stolperstein for Salomon Schlome

Each stolperstein contains just enough information about the victim to unleash our imagination about the life that was lost: a name, birth date, and the date and location of deportation and death if it is available.  The stones are generally placed in front of the last known freely chosen residence of the victim. While Demnig’s intent is not to place 6 million stones throughout Europe, there is a concerted effort to memorialize homosexuals, Gypsies, and political victims of the Holocaust, as well as Jews.

As our family has gradually become attuned to the presence of the stolpersteine, we’ve begun to think about taking part in this international effort to remember. It is time for Avery to choose a humanitarian project to undertake for his bar mitzvah and this is one option that he is seriously considering. The time, effort, and research involved in adding one stone to the thousands already in place might touch his life more deeply than a film, book, or museum exhibit could.

The stolpersteine have not been placed without controversy over impacts on property values and businesses, and some Jews have questioned whether stepping on the names of the victims is an appropriate way to remember them. Individual communities have used the democratic process to determine whether the stones should have a place in the streets of their cities and towns. There are now more than 25,000 stolpersteine on ground once dominated by the Nazis.  Perhaps our family will add one more.

stolperstein for Paula Guttman

stolperstein for Elly Schlome

The Not So Ugly Menorah

Tags

American Jews, Chanukah, Germany, Judaism, Menorahs

  

One of our favorite Chanukah stories is The Ugly Menorah, about a little girl who spends Chanukah with her widowed grandmother and feels that the grandmother’s menorah is rather ugly.  The ugly menorah was made by Rachel’s grandfather from bits of scrap that he found on the street when he was too poor to buy a beautiful one.  Eventually the magic and beauty of “the ugly menorah” come alive after Rachel’s grandmother explains the history behind the menorah to her.

Back in Bozeman we have a very beautiful bronze menorah that belonged to my grandmother.  We didn’t bring it with us to Berlin so we decided to make a new menorah this year.  I originally thought we would make something plain and simple like “the ugly menorah” but our family creation turned out to be quite pleasing to the eye. Designed by Olivia and crafted by all of us with Fimo clay, our new menorah is simple but vibrant.  The magic of the Chanukah lights will be even more special this year as the family comes together around our new home-made menorah.

Peace in the House

Tags

American Jews, Berlin, Germany, Jewish Sabbath, Judaism

Life has been as good as it gets but moments of stress do erupt at regular intervals in our apartment.  An argument over a book, annoying chatter from our most talkative child (guess who?), and yet another spousal miscommunication are just some of the ongoing challenges in our daily routine.  Any night can end up with everyone grumping off into their little sector of private space, not to emerge until the next morning offers a fresh start at domestic tranquility. The Jewish sabbath has always had special meaning for our family because it offers us the possibility of transcending our daily struggles and coming together in a moment of peace at the end of the week.

Last Friday we planned to attend the Reform synagogue’s evening service but did not make it.  This would have required some fairly complicated logistics after a very long day and week and we all seemed to lack the energy. We often celebrate the sabbath at  home, but this time we enhanced our usual ritual with new elements chosen by each of us. Avery chose one of the prayers he is studying for his bar mitzvah and I chose the kiddush (blessing over the wine, in this case a French pinot noir!), the longest of the three shabbat blessings and one that I have never learned.

Since Reform Judaism originated in Germany, what better place to learn about the rituals of Reform worship than in our apartment in Berlin. I still plan to attend Reform services, but the biggest blessing of the past week was to have my family gathered around the table with me in the spirit of  shabbat and for some brief moments of peace in the house.

Tumbalalayke!

Tags

American Jews, Berlin, Germany, Israel, Judaism

                     

Tumbala, tumbala, tumbalalayke

Tumbala, tumbala, tumbalalayke

Tumbalalayke spil, balalayke

Tumbalalayke freylekh zol zayn

 

 

Listening to an authentic Berlin Klezmer Group perform songs in Yiddish at an Israeli street festival today was my first exposure to the Jewish cultural life of Berlin.  The street festival, called Shuk Ha’ Carmel after Tel Aviv’s largest market, was part of the Jewish Culture Days celebration being held in Berlin from Aug. 26th to Sept. 5th. Amidst the rich aromas of fish and falafel, the wide variety of produce and spices, the colorful crafts and Judaica, and of course all those happy Jews, my greatest pleasure was watching my daughter join in the Israeli dancing.  As she matched her steps to those in her circle of dancers I was glad for all those dancing lessons she received at Hebrew School back in Bozeman!

I came to Berlin as a German American Jew with so many questions and desires.  I hope to fill in some of the gaps from the past that I’ve wondered about and to research, experience, and possibly connect with a part of the Jewish life of modern-day Germany.  Our family has attended our first service with Ohel Hachidusch, a  multi-denominational Jewish Renewal congregation, where we received a warm welcome.  There are 10 other synagogues in Berlin, and as long as you don’t mind the inconvenience of having your purse searched and your body scanned, you can visit any of them.

At the same time, I am awaiting news on my application for German citizenship which I am eligible for because my parents were displaced by the Holocaust.  My mother is about to receive her second payment as a result of the Holocaust Victim Assets Litigation that has led to the distribution of funds from Swiss bank accounts that were seized by the Nazis. My amazing dad pursued every possible avenue of restitution that was available to German Jews who survived the Holocaust and I know he would be pleased that some of his painstaking efforts have come to fruition.

So there is much to explore, but also much to enjoy. With Rosh Hashanah just around the corner, I think some research into the Jewish bakeries and delis of Berlin is next on the agenda……

Leaving soon for Berlin……….

Tags

American Jews, Berlin, Germany, Judaism

Today is June 28th, one month before our departure to Berlin. As a German American Jew returning to the birthplace of my parents, there are many topics and issues I hope to explore through this blog. What will it be like to live as a Jewish family in Germany, to help my son prepare for his bar mitzvah, and to teach my children about their German Jewish heritage?  My husband Brian will be teaching at the John F. Kennedy School of Berlin and I will be taking time off from teaching at Montana State University.  Brian and I have both completed our applications for German citizenship under a German law that applies to individuals whose families were displaced by the Holocaust (Article 116 par. 2 of the Basic Law). By reclaiming our German citizenship we will come “full circle” as the descendants of relatives who fled Germany in the late 1930s.