Celebrating Rosh Hashanah in a Concentration Camp | Esther Jungreis | USC Shoah Foundation

“What do you do with one prayer book when you have an entire camp [of Jews]?”

To honor the beginning of Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year), we share the full testimony of Jewish Holocaust survivor, Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis.

In her riveting interview, Esther explains how the prisoners of Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp collected enough cigarettes to trade for a shofar (an instrument made from a cleaned-out ram’s horn, used in Jewish synagogue services on the High Holidays). She remembers her joy upon hearing the shofar blowing, as she and the other prisoners attempted to celebrate the holy occasion.

Other terms to know:

“The Bracha” refers to a blessing, or the acknowledgement of “God’s goodness.”

“The Machzor” refers to the High Holy Day prayer book.

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