Righteous among the Nations

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This article discusses the title in relation to the Holocaust. See Virtuous pagan for the theological concept and righteous gentile for the concept in historical Judaism.

Righteous among the Nations
Main article The Holocaust Rescuers assisting Jews Righteousness Seven Laws of Noah Yad Vashem
Famous individuals
Damaskinos · Ho Lutz · Schindler Sendler · Wallenberg
Nations and groups
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Righteous among the Nations (Hebrew: חסידי אומות העולם‎, Chassidey Umot HaOlam, more literally: righteous men of the world's nations, also translated as "Righteous Gentiles") is used by the State of Israel to describe non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to save Jews from extermination by the Nazis.

The term originates with the concept of righteous gentiles, a term used in Judaism to refer to non-Jews who abide by the Seven Laws of Noah.

Contents 1 Bestowing 2 Righteous Among the Nations by country and ethnic origin as of January 1, 2008 3 See also 4 Notes 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Bestowing

When Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority, was established in 1953 by the Knesset, one of its tasks was to commemorate the "Righteous among the Nations". The Righteous were defined as non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust. Since 1963, a commission headed by a justice of the Supreme Court of Israel has been charged with the duty of awarding the honorary title "Righteous among the Nations." The commission is guided in its work by certain criteria and meticulously studies all documentation, including evidence by survivors and other eyewitnesses; evaluates the historical circumstances and the element of risk to the rescuer; and then decides if the case accords with the criteria.

To be recognized as "Righteous", a person has to fulfill several criteria:^[1]

• only a Jewish party can put a nomination forward;
• helping a family member or Jewish convert to Christianity does not count;
• the assistance has to be repeated and/or substantial; and
• the assistance has to be given without any financial gain expected in return (although covering normal expenses such as rent or food are acceptable).

A person who is recognized as "Righteous among the Nations" for having taken risks to help Jews during the Holocaust is awarded a medal in his name, a certificate of honor, and the privilege of having the name added to those on the Wall of Honor in the Garden of the Righteous at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem. (The last is in lieu of a tree planting, which was discontinued for lack of space.) The awards are distributed to the rescuers or their next-of-kin during ceremonies in Israel, or in their countries of residence through the offices of Israel's diplomatic representatives. These ceremonies are attended by local government representatives and are given wide media coverage.

The Yad Vashem Law also authorizes Yad Vashem "to confer honorary citizenship upon the Righteous among the Nations, and if they have passed away, the commemorative citizenship of the State of Israel, in recognition of their actions." Anyone who has been recognized as Righteous among the Nations is entitled to apply to Yad Vashem for the certificate. If the Righteous among the Nations is no longer alive, their next of kin is entitled to request that commemorative citizenship be conferred on the Righteous among the Nations who has died. Recipients who choose to live in the state of Israel are entitled to a pension equal to the average national wage and free health care, as well as assistance with housing and nursing care.

As of 1 January 2009, 22,765^[2] men and women from 45 countries^[3] have been recognized as Righteous among the Nations, representing over 10,000 authenticated rescue stories. Yad Vashem's policy is to pursue the program for as long as petitions for this title are received and are supported by solid evidence that meets the criteria.

[edit] Righteous Among the Nations by country and ethnic origin as of January 1, 2008

These figures are not necessarily an indication of the actual number of Jews saved in each country, but reflect material on rescue operations made available to Yad Vashem. See List of Righteous among the Nations by country for names of individuals.

Country of origin	Awards	Notes
Poland	6,135	In German-occupied Poland, all household members were punished by death if a Jew was found concealed in their home or property. Death was a punishment for providing any aid to a Jew, including giving bread or water to passing Jews. This was the most severe law enforced by the German Nazis in occupied Europe.[4][5] See Polish Righteous among the Nations
Netherlands	4,947	Includes two persons originally from Indonesia residing in the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, people hiding Jews would usually be punished by either being sent to concentration camps or by being shot (usually after a "trial").
France	2,991	In January 2007, French President Jacques Chirac and other dignitaries honored France's Righteous among the Nations in a ceremony at the Panthéon, Paris. The Legion of Honor was awarded to 160 French Righteous among the Nations for their efforts saving French Jews during World War II.[6]
Ukraine	2,246
Belgium	1,476	Including Queen Elisabeth of the Belgians, née Duchess in Bavaria.
Lithuania	761
Hungary	703
Belarus	587
Slovakia	478
Germany	455	Including Oskar Schindler, the businessman who saved over a thousand Jews by employing them in his factory; and Hans and Sophie Scholl, sibling members of the White Rose resistance movement; Captain Gustav Schroeder who commanded the "Voyage of the Damned"; and German army officer Wilm Hosenfeld.
Italy	442	Including Laura and Constantino Bulgari[7] , Lorenzo Perrone, [8] and Giorgio Perlasca
Greece	279	Including Archbishop Damaskinos of Athens and Princess Alice of Battenberg.
Serbia	127
Russia	124
Czech Republic	118
Croatia	106	See Croatian Righteous Among the Nations
Latvia	111
Austria	85	Irene Harand
Moldova	73
Albania	63	Toptani, Atif & Ganimet
Romania	54	Including Prince Constantin Karadja, credited by Yad Vashem with saving over 51,000 Jews.[9]
Norway	42	See Norwegian Righteous among the Nations
Switzerland	44	Includes Carl Lutz, who helped save tens of thousands of Hungarian Jews.
Bosnia	35	Bosnia only; the source does not count Herzegovina
Denmark	22	As per their request, members of the Danish Underground who participated in the rescue of the Danish Jews are listed as one group.
Bulgaria	18	Dimitar Peshev
United Kingdom	14	This list includes Major Frank Foley, but excludes Sir Nicholas Winton, as he is of Jewish parentage
Republic of Macedonia	10
Armenia	10
Sweden	9	Including Raoul Wallenberg, Per Anger and Valdemar Langlet
Slovenia	6
Spain	4	Angel Sanz Briz, José Santaella, Carme Santaella and Eduardo Propper de Callejón.
Estonia	3	Uku Masing and Eha Masing, Polina Lentsman
United States	3	Varian Fry, Martha Sharp, and Waitstill Sharp
Ireland	3	Hugh O'Flaherty
China, Republic of	2	Pan Jun Shun and Feng-Shan Ho
Brazil	2	Luiz Martins de Souza Dantas and Aracy de Carvalho Guimarães Rosa.
Chile	2	María Edwards
Turkey	1	Selâhattin Ülkümen
Japan	1	Chiune Sugihara (provided approximately 3,400 transit visas to Jews in need).[10]
Luxembourg	1	Victor Bodson, (former Justice Minister and Chairman of the Luxembourg House of Representatives; saved approximately 100 Jews)
Portugal	1	Aristides de Sousa Mendes, issued thousands of visas in order to allow 30,000 people to escape the Nazis.
Georgia	1	Sergei Metreveli
Total	22,211	As of[update] January 1, 2008[11]

[edit] See also

• Category:Righteous Among the Nations
• Seven Laws of Noah, a list of seven moral imperatives which, according to the Talmud, were given by God to Noah as a binding set of laws for all mankind
• Zegota Council to Aid the Jews in occupied Poland
• List of people who helped Jews during the Holocaust
• Ger tzedek
• Ger Toshav
• Noahide Laws
• Virtuous pagan
• List of Righteous among the Nations by country

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

• The Heart Has Reasons: Holocaust Rescuers and Their Stories of Courage, Mark Klempner, ISBN 0-8298-1699-2, The Pilgrim Press
• Righteous Gentiles of the Holocaust: Genocide and Moral Obligation, David P. Gushee, ISBN 1-55778-821-9, Paragon House Publishers
• The Lexicon of the Righteous Among the Nations, Yad Vashem, Jerusalem. (volumes: Poland, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Europe I, Europe II)
• To Save a Life: Stories of Holocaust Rescue, Land-Weber, Ellen, ISBN 0-252-02515-6, University of Illinois Press
• The Seven Laws of Noah, Lichtenstein, Aaron, New York: The Rabbi Jacob Joseph School Press, 1981.
• The Image of the Non-Jew in Judaism, Novak, David, ISBN 0-88946-975-X, New York and Toronto: Edwin Mellen Press, 1983.
• The Path of the Righteous: Gentile Rescuers of Jews During the Holocaust, Paldiel, Mordecai, ISBN 0-88125-376-6, KTAV Publishing House, Inc.
• Among the Righteous: Lost Stories from the Holocaust's Long Reach into Arab Lands, Robert Satloff, Washington Institute for Near East Policy, (PublicAffairs, 2006) ISBN 1586483994
• When Light Pierced the Darkness: Christian Rescue of Jews in Nazi-Occupied Poland, Tec, Nechama, ISBN 0-19-505194-7, Oxford University Press
• Zegota: The Council to Aid Jews in Occupied Poland 1942-1945, Tomaszewski, Irene & Werblowski, Tecia, ISBN 1-896881-15-7, Price-Patterson
• Tolerance in Judaism: The Medieval and Modern Sources, Zuesse, Evan M., In: The Encyclopaedia of Judaism, edited by J. Neusner, A. Avery-Peck, and W.S. Green, Second Edition, ISBN 90-04-14787-X, Leiden: Brill, 2005, Vol. IV: 2688-2713
• When Courage Was Stronger Than Fear: Remarkable Stories of Christians Who Saved Jews from the Holocaust by Peter Hellman. 2nd edition, ISBN 1-56924-663-7, Marlowe & Companym, 1999

[edit] External links

• The Righteous Among the Nations at Yad Vashem
• Heroes and Heroines of the Holocaust at Holocaust Survivors' Network
• Holocaust Rescuers Bibliography
• Saving Jews: Polish Righteous
• Photo gallery on righteous gentiles during the Holocaust at Simon Wiesenthal Center
• Rescuers at Jewish Virtual Library
• Holocaust Memorial Budapest, testimony from the family Jakobovics in 1947
• Articles about Righteous Among the Nations
• Witness: "Karoly Szabo played a determining role among Wallenberg's supporters"
• The Jewish Foundation for the Righteous
• Auschwitz: Inside the Nazi State
• Site commemorating Poles who gave their lives to save Jews
• Gardens of the Righteous Worldwide Committee
• Essay: "Paying the ultimate price." Irena Steinfeldt. The Jerusalem Post, April 14, 2009.
• Films, Videos, and DVDs about Righteous Among the Nations