Remembrance evening in Eschwege: Remembering friendship and loss

Remembrance evening in Eschwege: Remembering friendship and loss

The Night of Culture in Eschwege, which took place on November 11, 2025, had the moving motto “Friendship” and attracted numerous visitors to the former synagogue on the Schulberg. An impressive memorial evening addressed closeness, loss and responsibility in connection with the pogrom night of 1938, which brought a dark turning point in history. How HNA reports, the retired teacher Anna-Maria Zimmer and the committed tenth grader Mara Dierks organized the memorial hour and shared their knowledge about the Jewish history of Eschwege.

In the midst of klezmer music, performed by Lutz Fußangel, it was vividly illustrated how friendships broke down because of origins. Zimmer, who interviewed numerous contemporary witnesses and evaluated valuable sources, presented the shocking reality that children and adults were separated because of their origins. At the same time, the courageous people who provided human assistance in times of great danger were remembered.

A look into the past

Dierks, who also works to examine her homeland's Jewish history, is part of a series of activities that help raise awareness of the past. “It is important that we deal with history,” she emphasizes. After the war, the topic of helping Jewish friends often remained unspoken for a long time, often out of fear of being met with a lack of understanding. Zimmer had already organized a meeting for former Jewish citizens and their descendants in Eschwege in 1989, which helped to revive old friendships.

In his welcoming remarks, Matthias Beck, representative of the New Apostolic Church, emphasized the immense importance of friendship that endures over the years. Particularly impressive was the opportunity to use virtual reality glasses to experience the interior of the synagogue before its destruction in 1938. This innovative idea was supported by the Association of Friends of Jewish Life and ensured a lively and tangible connection to history.

Active remembrance work in Torgau

A look at Torgau shows how important it is to remember the pogroms of 1938 in other cities. On November 9, 2024, citizens are invited to clean the stumbling blocks of the victims of the National Socialist dictatorship. This campaign is intended not only to make the fate of those affected visible again, but also to actively encourage the community to remember. On the night of November 9th to 10th, 1938, synagogues and Jewish institutions there also burned, which is considered to be the beginning of systematic persecution. In Torgau, the past in which many Jewish families were expelled is also actively remembered.

In summary, it can be said that the memorial evening in Eschwege and the actions in Torgau are significant steps towards maintaining awareness of the horrors of the past. “History doesn’t go away as long as people turn to it,” one of the participants summed it up aptly. Continuing such remembrance work is essential in order not to forget the lessons of the past.