I am currently the president of the Ridgefield Clergy Association and we are holding an interfaith service today in commemoration of Yom HaShoah. Since it occurred to me that my blog readers might not know what that was, I asked one of our local rabbi’s to write up a description to educate you. You can read that below:
“Commemoration of Yom HaShoah (Holocaust observance) matters because it forces Jews and Christians alike to confront what happens when hatred is allowed to grow unchecked and when human being stop seeing one another as bearers of dignity. At its core, the day is a commitment: the memory of the six million will not fade, and the moral lessons of their destruction will not be ignored.
For a modern audience, the significance begins with truth. As survivors age and denial spreads online, Yom HaShoah anchors our understanding in lived testimony. It reminds communities that the Holocaust was not an abstract tragedy but a human-made catastrophe built from prejudice, political extremism, and indifference. Jews observe the day as an act of collective mourning and identity, affirming continuity after an attempt to erase them. Christians observe it as a moment of moral reckoning, acknowledging that centuries of Christian antisemitism helped create the conditions in which genocide became possible.
The day also speaks directly to the present. Rising antisemitism, conspiracy theories, and dehumanizing rhetoric make Yom HaShoah more than a memorial; it becomes a warning. The Holocaust did not begin with gas chambers but with words, stereotypes, and laws that normalized exclusion. Remembering this equips both faith communities to recognize early signs of hatred in their own societies.
Finally, Yom HaShoah calls Jews and Christians into shared responsibility. The observance becomes a bridge: to protect vulnerable communities, to defend truth, and to insist that human life is sacred. Observing the day is not only about the past; it is a pledge about the future we choose to build in our community.”
by Rabbi Haddon
