Israeli President Isaac Herzog gifted a Babylonian Talmud that survived the Holocaust to Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center, on Wednesday
The Talmud, a Pesachim Tractate, was printed before the Holocaust and survived book burnings and other atrocities, eventually finding itself in the hands of Rabbi Yitzhak Isaac Halevi Herzog, grandfather of the current President of Israel Isaac Herzog.
Almost 80 years later, the Herzog family presented this sacred Jewish text to Yad Vashem, where it will find its place among other revered artifacts.
The Talmud’s story of survival
Found among many other religious artifacts in the Bürgerbräukeller Beer Hall in Munich in 1945, the copy of the Talmud was said by Yad Vashem to testify to the enduring struggle of the Jewish people to preserve their traditions, even amidst the darkest of times.
In 1946, Eliyahu Dobkin entrusted this Talmud book to Rabbi Yitzhak Halevi Herzog, who was the Chief Ashkenazic Rabbi of Eretz Israel and a prominent religious and spiritual leader during the British Mandate of Palestine.
Rabbi Herzog’s attempts to save European Jewry
During the Holocaust, Rabbi Herzog acted to try and help rescue Jews in Europe. In 1946, Herzog traveled to Europe, where he returned orphaned children hidden in monasteries and homes of non-Jews during the war. During these journeys, Rabbi Herzog met with many survivors to convince them to emigrate to the British Mandate.
This volume of Talmud was passed from Rabbi Halevi Herzog to his son, the sixth President of Israel, Haim Herzog, and his wife, Ora. Later, the Talmud was passed on to later generations of the family, who decided that Yad Vashem was the proper place for the book's safekeeping.
The Herzog Family gathered at Yad Vashem for Wednesday's unique event.
President Herzog spoke at the occasion, stating, "The Tractate's journey embodies, in many ways, the story of a family, my family, but above all, it tells the story of a nation and the story of a people. A people who rose from ashes and built a home. Not just any home, but one with strong roots that run deeper than any disaster and whose branches, though well-known, continue to grow, bear fruit, and climb ever higher. This is a story of destruction and rebirth, mourning and rebuilding, darkness and light, redemption and freedom. A true and deep story that embodies the sentiment that the 'spirit of Israel never deceives.'"
On this occasion, Yad Vashem Chairman Dani Dayan remarked, "By including this rare artifact in the Holocaust History Museum at Yad Vashem, we can illuminate the vibrant tapestry of Jewish life in pre-Holocaust Europe and the subsequent horrors.
“The survival of this volume of ancient teachings amidst the devastation of the Holocaust holds profound significance. Its unveiling, just before Jews around the world gather at their Seder tables to recount the exodus from Egypt and our emergence as a nation, is especially poignant. As we fulfill the timeless commandment to remember the past, we affirm the enduring perseverance of the Jewish people throughout the ages, as the Haggadah states, 'each generation they stand up to destroy us'. Despite countless challenges, the Jewish people have endured. I am grateful to the President and his family for entrusting this item to Yad Vashem, allowing its significance to be shared with all the people of Israel."