Eighty years after the end of the Second World War, there are fewer and fewer eyewitnesses who can give firsthand accounts. But the stories from this time must be told and the memories passed on to children and grandchildren – so that "Never again" does not remain just an empty phrase.
By Dana Nowak
Many families still have memories of the war years. This is also true for the family of Gerhard Heesen, a friend of our work. We visited the 89-year-old in southern Germany and recorded events from his family history. Because even today, we need people who courageously take a stand, in their communities and with the means at their disposal. Only in this way can a repetition of history be prevented.
"We harm ourselves if we do not bless Israel."
Those who bless Israel should be blessed – Gerhard Heesen inherited this belief from his parents. The 89-year-old is convinced: “We harm ourselves most when we don't bless Israel; then things go downhill for us as a country. We don't have to support everything Israel does, but we are called to bless Israel. Israel is hated by the whole world; we must not join in this hatred.”
Gerhard's parents witnessed firsthand the consequences of hatred against the Jewish people during the Nazi era. His father, Rudolf Heesen, a Protestant theologian, ran a bookstore in Korbach, Hesse, in the early 1930s. At the time, he was one of the largest Protestant mail-order booksellers in the country. As early as 1929, he had spoken out against National Socialism in speeches and writings, denouncing it as an "anti-Christian and destructive movement." An obituary published in 1964 by the "Wartburg Cartel" (WK), an association of Protestant student fraternities, states of Rudolf Heesen: "His fiery protests against the anti-Semitism led to a boycott by the Nazi Party and thus to the loss of his livelihood."
"Off to Heesen, knock down his shop!"
His son Gerhard recounts an incident from his father's records: On a November day in 1934, a 16-year-old offered him a postcard for sale. It depicted a straw doll wearing a Star of David, which had been hung from a tree.
“Aren’t you ashamed of yourself for publicly inciting the murder of Jews in such a way? Where were you when our (Jewish) neighbor Mosheim earned the Iron Cross in the trenches and suffered a serious lung wound? You were still in diapers then!” According to private records, Stormtrooper Otto Emde witnessed the conversation. He reported the incident at an NSDAP meeting that same evening. “Then they shouted, ‘Go to Heesen’s, smash up his shop!’” Gerhard recounts. But his family was warned and fled to Leipzig.
In the Saxon town, the Heesens started anew. The father founded a "specialist bookstore for Protestant theology" and began publishing the "Protestant Picture Sheets" for children's church services. He also secretly hired a Jewish employee. For security reasons, however, he did not record the employee's name or any other information.
Because of his advocacy for Jewish citizens and the Confessing Church, Rudolf Heesen once again faced arrest. He escaped this by volunteering for military service in an internment camp for political prisoners. Until then, he had been exempt from military service due to a lung condition. The bookstore was closed. The family hid their Jewish employee in a library room in their house. "But in 1943, when I was six years old, an incendiary bomb hit our house and it burned down. We lost everything. We never saw the Jew again," Gerhard recounts.
Later, the family received a letter from Jerusalem. Their Jewish employee had survived and sent a thank-you letter to the Heesen family through the Red Cross. But this letter was lost, and with it, the contact. "Our father traveled a lot after the war and unfortunately didn't establish any contact in Jerusalem. That was a big mistake," Gerhard continued.
A letter dated December 15, 1947, reveals how important it was to Rudolf Heesen to resume the dissemination of the Christian message after the war and to promote it with all his might: “(…) even the pre-war output would not suffice to alleviate the spiritual starvation of our congregations, which has existed since the prohibition of the production of Protestant literature on July 1, 1940, and is one of the reasons why our people are increasingly ensnared by nihilism and materialism. However, the tasks at hand are so urgent that I can no longer resist resuming my ministry of spiritual care, even with the extremely limited resources that remain to us.”
"Without God, it will be dark."
Eighty years after the end of the war, Gerhard Heesen is deeply concerned when he looks at Germany: “Once again, there is open hatred of Jews. That's how it started back then, too. People, stand up! Stop it before it starts! I am old, I can no longer actively participate in public life, I can't go to any demonstrations. But I can tell our story and call on everyone to speak out: don't be silent when Jews in Germany have to fear for their safety because they are Jewish. Without God, it will be dark. God have mercy! Shalom!”
This article first appeared in our newspaper "Israelaktuell," issue 140. You can order the newspaper here . We would also be happy to send you several copies for distribution.
