Germany the Jews and Israel

Germany, the Jews and Israel: An Evolving Exhibition.
A number of significant milestones relating to German history are currently being commemorated around the world including 100 years since the outbreak of World War I; 75 years since the outbreak of World War II and 70 years since its conclusion; 25 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall; and 50 years since the beginning of diplomatic relations between Israel and Germany.

The period between 1914 and 1989 saw Germany in its vicissitudes. World War I ended in massive defeat and hyperinflation, though it also precipitated the rise of the first true democracy in German history and the “Golden Age” of the 1920s, shortly followed by the Nazis’ rise to power, the Nuremberg Laws, Kristallnacht, and the Holocaust. The defeat of the Nazis, in turn, led to the partition of Germany and its ultimate reunification at the end of the Cold War. The reparations agreements between Israel and Germany and the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries are both significant historical events in and of themselves.

Twentieth-century German and Jewish histories are closely intertwined in a complex relationship. Jews historically played an active role as part of the German nation. They were active in politics and economics, played a seminal role in culture, and were victims of the darkest chapters in German history. It is not at all surprising that in existing historiography, there is a strong interest in the “German-Jewish symbiosis” and its failure. Today, years later, the general population in Israel has taken a renewed interest in German history and culture. Israeli tourism to Germany, and mainly to Berlin, is a well-known phenomenon, but it is also only one expression of this renewed interest, and of a re-examination of this complex history at the dawn of the 21st century.

Why Did Hitler Want a Jewish Delegation at the 1936 Nazi Olympics?

The 1936 Olympics in Berlin were an international event which Hitler used as an awesome spectacle. He wanted to show off Aryan Germany rising from the ashes, with its crowds giving the Nazi salute and shouting “sieg heil”. Yet still, Jewish athletes participated in competitions, and a delegation was even invited from Mandatory Palestine, which would be allowed to march under the Jewish flag. How did the Nazis attempt to legitimize the 1936 Olympics? What did the Germans really want? And how was the Nazi invitation received back home in the Land of Israel?

When the Nazis Stole Lea Goldberg’s Doctoral Thesis

What did the famous Israeli poet Lea Goldberg have to do with medieval translations of the Torah? Why did her doctoral thesis focus on this subject? And how did it fall into Nazi hands before eventually ending up at the National Library of Israel?

Prayer’s Light in Wartime’s Darkness

Since the horrific events of October 7 and the subsequent war, a large chorus of voices have turned to the heavens, hoping to deal with their pain and confusion by praying to a higher power. This has been a typical Jewish response to war since biblical times, and continues into the modern age. Let’s explore some of these powerful wartime prayers, and find out where they truly come from.

Jerusalem: City of Lepers?

For thousands of years, leprosy was one of the world’s most feared diseases | Jerusalem’s “Hansen House” is known as the city’s legendary leper asylum, but a look back through time reveals a longstanding relationship between the city and the illness | On Jerusalem: city of holiness and leprosy

What’s It Like Being a Nazi Hunter? The Files of Tuviah Friedman

Tuviah Friedman never forgot nor did he forgive. He dedicated his life to finding and capturing fugitive Nazis, as part of the effort to bring them to trial for their crimes. He was the first to obtain credible information that placed Adolf Eichmann in Argentina. Looking through his archive files preserved at the National Library of Israel offers a glimpse into the day-to-day work of a Nazi hunter…

The Holy Land “in Natural Color”: German Postcards From 1932

Less than a year before the Nazis came to power, a collection of postcards featuring holy sites and the developing Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel was published in Munich…

Maya the Bee in the Service of Germany’s Soldiers

The beloved children’s book about the brave little bee who saves her beehive became one of the most popular books among German soldiers during the First World War. What led them to carry this book about the adventures of a small bee with them onto the battlefield? Does it contain hints of the devious ideology that would cause global devastation only a few decades later?