by Sara Bernardo

Created on: October 01, 2008

Religion plays a part in the lives of most of the world's population. The same was certainly true, if not more so, for the European Jewish community in the 1930's and 40's. While it is true that Hitler and the Third Reich were vehemently anti-Jewish, much of this prejudice was not directed at their faith but at their culture. Hitler believed that Jews as a whole were literally subhuman and were bent upon world domination and the destruction of all non-Jewish society. Anti-Semitism in regions such as heavily Catholic Poland, however, was mainly directed at the religious aspect of Jewish life rather than the cultural one.

As there are many different sects of Judaism, there are many different perspectives of the Jewish religious experience. Whether or not a person subscribes to extremely conservative or liberal Judaism, one's perception of the doctrines and history of Jewish life is grounded around the Torah and the Talmud, the cornerstones of the Jewish faith. For those who survived Auschwitz and the Holocaust itself, Judaism represented both a saving grace and a burdensome weight.
Both men and women wrote extensively about religion in their memoirs, often focusing on either an extreme lack of faith or a reaffirmed acceptance of Judaism. Nearly every survivor who has spoken out since their time in Auschwitz has mentioned the importance of religion in one form or another; while some discuss God as being a driving force behind their survival, some others discuss God as a force that abandoned them during their internment.
Religion is also frequently mentioned in terms of specific actions and events embodying godlike characteristics such as grace, mercy, or evil. The camp itself is incessantly referred to as Hell but a majority of those who have gone on to publish memoirs. In this way, religion plays a significant role in individual portrayals of the people, events, and places surrounding them. This can be understood in that religion played a dominating part in the lives of most Jews who would see the inside of the camp; familiarity with religious terminology can account for the frequent use of theistic terminology.

Dr. Gisella Perl is one particular Auschwitz survivor who, while not directly relating her own religious viewpoints, uses frequent religious language in her description of the events going on around her. The words "miracle", "mercy", and "Hell" are common in her memoir as she relays the tragic stories of the women she lived amongst while imprisoned.

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