The Origins of Yom HaShoah

Learners can study original sources about the lengthy debate over how Israel should mark the devastation of the Holocaust. The e-book shows the ultimate decision to place Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Memorial Day, between Passover, the time when the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising began, and the back-to-back observances of Yom HaZikaron and Yom HaAtzmaut. The book is set up as a case study of how a diverse, democratic society deals with tragedy with religious obligations. It can be used as a complete unit and includes questions that can prompt essays or class discussions.

The inclusion of other dates for Holocaust commemorations, timed to the liberation of Auschwitz in 1945 and Kristallnacht in 1938, also provides opportunities for discussion.

The unit concludes with a prompt for writing a letter to the editor about the importance of Yom HaShoah.