Europe’s rabbis appalled by massacre of civilians in Ukraine

Soon after the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, the European Rabbinical Conference appointed Chief Rabbi Michael Schudrich of Poland to coordinate its refugee assistance. In an interview with Deutsche Welle, the 56-year-old accuses Russia of wanting to “destroy” Ukraine.

DW: Rabbi Schudrich, since the attack on Ukraine began, you and your communities have been committed to helping refugees. What moves you? Is there a scene that stays?

Schudrich: That has nothing to do with all the hardships and all the horror. Whenever I helped at the Ukrainian border, I always had a bag of lollipops with me. It’s just plain lollipops. But I wanted to give a little sign to the children who had been away for days and hadn’t slept, who couldn’t cry anymore. And what touched me incredibly: every time, really every time, when I gave a child a lollipop, the mother said to him: Please thank you! And I got a thank you. They have lost everything, they are fleeing for their lives… and the mothers want their child to say thank you properly.

They coordinate the European Rabbinical Conference (CER) assistance to Jewish refugees from Ukraine…

It’s about helping Jewish refugees, but we also feel responsible for non-Jewish refugees. With us in Poland and our work in the Jewish community, I often experience this very concretely: if someone asks us for help, we help. The majority of those who come forward and need support are Jewish. But others are also reporting. And we help them in the same way. Now is not the time to differentiate.

Above all, what can you do?

It’s about so much. There are still people who have little more than what fits in a pocket. They need quarters and a bed, clothing and medicine, food, psychological and legal support to be sought, the children should be educated in some way. Maybe people need a job.

And so many people here in Poland are involved in this commitment. That’s extremely impressive. Of course, that doesn’t stop the war. But we can provide people with the essentials.

Do you also help people in Ukraine?

Yes. Not us on the part of the Polish Jewish community, but there is a Jewish charity that feeds 30,000 people every day. As a congregation, we help as best we can those who come and who have almost nothing left.

You are currently meeting in Munich with rabbis from all over Europe. Are all the Jewish communities of the continent committed to helping?

Not all, but many, very many. And one thing is clear: we are all together. Everyone wants the refugees to be helped. Refugee aid is refugee aid, it’s not a political statement.

And do the rabbis express themselves in political statements?

Some of us also publicly evaluate the Russian attack. I say frankly: This is aggression that cannot be justified by anything. It’s not just about war and violence, it’s about destruction, about crime. They show Putin’s immorality. Not all rabbis say that out loud. But there is certainly no difference of opinion on this issue, no factions between us.

Is it about the annihilation of Ukraine?

After all, this is not a war – in war, attacks are directed against military installations. I compare Russia’s actions with those of (Islamist Palestinian organization, ed.) Hamas. Hamas says during attacks that it is killing soldiers and that it is at war. But they very consciously murder children, women, civilians. All of this isn’t war, it’s massacre, it’s just immoral. But ultimately, Hamas is destroying its own society, Palestinian society. The Israelis will survive.

When the invasion began on February 24th, did you know how dramatic it would be?

Actually yes. With a specific moment. You know: I am an orthodox rabbi. Shabbat and Shabbat rest are sacred to us Jews. Just before the start of the first Shabbat after the war began, the chief rabbi of Ukraine, also an Orthodox, an old friend, called me and said, “Mike, please don’t turn off your smartphone on Shabbat. It might be dramatic…” I did never left my smartphone on until this Shabbat. At that moment it was clear to me: Now it’s serious.

Thousands of Jewish survivors of the Shoah lived in Ukraine before the war…

From an early stage, Germany and Israel took admirable care of these elderly people, whose existence is now threatened for the second time. These countries also take in the Shoah survivors who were able to flee and have no other destination.

And there are also particularly committed helpers who are needed there. A few weeks ago I was involved in the rescue by the French operation “Sauveteurs sans frontières”. Otherwise they help with tsunamis or earthquakes and risk their own lives. Now they had taken an elderly couple, 92 and 93 years old, across the border to Poland in an ambulance. Two lovely people. The two wanted to go to Israel. But then you realized: the passports of the two have expired. And although you can enter Ukraine with a passport that is no longer valid, you cannot officially leave Poland.

I set a lot of wheels in motion until we had valid passports within two days. But it’s not just the dramatic fate of old people. We took care of the onward journey of a young woman. She was eight months pregnant, and she knew her husband was staying in Ukraine, badly wounded. Weeks later we got a photo from Israel, the mother with the newborn. There are many stories that cannot be forgotten.

Are there still Shoah survivors in Ukraine, in eastern Ukraine, in Kharkiv or Odessa?

Yes, you have to assume that. Not everyone wanted to leave their apartment, their little house. And not all are transportable.

Rabbi Michael Schudrich (56) has been Chief Rabbi of Poland since 2004. A few days after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the European Rabbinical Conference (CER) appointed him coordinator for rescue and relief efforts for refugees from Ukraine.

Interview: Christoph Strack