Becoming an Upstander

Remembering, writing, and speaking the truth about antisemitism and hatred in all its forms

Greetings friends, brothers, and sisters,

My heart is quite full.

I’ve been challenged with the decision of what to share with you this week. In this season, with my book release, there’s so much I want to communicate. Please understand if I feel the need to write to you a bit more often in the next couple of months.

You all know by now that I have written and am in the midst of launching a novel that tells a true family story from the Holocaust. Writing the book has taught me so much about that terrible time, and has me very stirred to promote positive change in how people view the Holocaust, Jewish people, and the rising scourge of antisemitism around the world.

Since I committed to this project in 2024, I have been amazed at the people God has sent my way, the serendipity in the creative and production processes, and the growth opportunities it has afforded me. The LORD has surely smiled upon it.

A couple of months ago, my dear friend Jan introduced me to Rozalie Jerome. Rozalie founded the Holocaust Remembrance Association with a mission to publicly condemn antisemitism in all its forms, to foster reconciliation between Jews, Christians, and other groups, and to educate people with the truth about the Holocaust.

Stated concisely on HRA’s website, their core mission is “to sensitize hearts to the issues of the Holocaust and modern antisemitism through education, healing, and reconciliation,” and their core vision is “to end antisemitism and hatred of the Jewish people.”

At the end of our first phone conversation, Rozalie invited me to join her tour to Israel in May and serve as her worship leader. I was, of course, very excited and honored to be asked, and agreed to go. Unfortunately, the trip was cancelled a few weeks later because of the war with Iran.

But all was not lost. Instead of going to Israel, I went last week to Houston to attend the organization’s Upstanders Arise gala, and spent the rest of the weekend getting to know Rozalie and others involved in this important work. I visited the Holocaust Garden of Hope, a beautiful and moving tribute to victims and survivors. If you are in the Kingwood area, I strongly encourage you to walk through it.

The weekend opened my eyes, inspired my mind, and convicted my heart.

At the gala, I was surrounded by a very diverse group of “Upstanders.” What is an upstander?

I learned that when harm and injustice occur toward an individual or group, there are four categories of people involved.

· Victims--those being persecuted or harmed.

· Perpetrators--those who inflict the harm or collaborate with those who do.

· Bystanders--those who witness the harm and do nothing about it.

· Upstanders--those who intervene to help, rescue, speak up, defend, or advocate for victims.

During the Holocaust, the Jews were the primary victims, though Hitler’s hateful madness swept up several other groups who also became his victims: Roma gypsies, Jehovah’s Witnesses, disabled persons, and political dissenters.

In Germany, for a variety of reasons, most non-Jewish German people were either perpetrators or bystanders. They either aligned themselves with the Reich’s policies and actions toward victims, or they watched the atrocities and did nothing and said nothing to oppose them.

Some, like the character Klaus in my book, had good hearts and good intentions toward their Jewish friends, but were paralyzed with fear for their own families’ safety if they did anything conspicuous to help Jews.

In other countries, including the United States, there was a majority bystander attitude as ordinary citizens slowly realized Hitler’s intentions. Jews seeking refuge were turned away or placed on hopelessly long lists of asylum-seekers.

One tragic example was when the ship St. Louis arrived in Cuba, carrying hundreds of Jewish refugees from Europe, and the ship was turned away. Shortly after, they were also turned away by the U.S. and Canada. Most of those Jews were returned to Europe and massacred.

President Roosevelt and his administration largely remained bystanders until the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Finally, our government was activated to declare war against Japan, Germany, and the other Axis powers.

But a small percentage of citizens from many nations were upstanders. They hid Jews, transported them to safety, funded their escape, or risked their lives by speaking out. Some bravely joined the resistance, committing covert operations to sabotage German plans, equipment, and infrastructure.

Those who seek to understand the overwhelming horror and impact of this time in history typically come to see that people everywhere are capable of the kind of hatred that drove Hitler’s genocide against the Jews.

In my book, one of my characters, having escaped Nazi Germany, was living in India in 1947. He experienced the intense hatred and violence between Hindus and Muslims that erupted after the British left.

He could escape Hitler, but he couldn’t escape the hatred that Hitler embodied.

Humanity is broken and capable of evil on a large scale. This means that if we want to be upstanders, we must be sensitized to the encroachment of evil in its early stages. When we see it, we must speak up against it, regardless of the identity of the victims or perpetrators.

Elie Wiesel, the concentration camp survivor who wrote about his immeasurable loss and trauma in the book Night, wrote,

“I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.”

He understood, better than most, the role of the upstander.

I will leave it there for now. In writing and publishing my book, I have prayed that it would be a contribution to truth-telling and upstanding. That it will open doors for me to have meaningful conversations about the spiritual sickness of antisemitism and other prejudices.

I covet your prayers in that regard—that I may communicate in a clear, calm, determined, and wise way about these difficult topics, and that some hearts will be changed.