Breaking Down Barriers

The Holocaust: Reflection Essay

2009-04-27T08:42:00.000-05:00

Time to Dust the Blog

2009-04-17T09:29:00.003-05:00

Well, the ol' blog has been gathering dust as of late. I know everyone is working on new things, and I want to invite all to take a gander at what the Miller students have been doing since our discussion of Night. Once again, I want to say the student work done during our collaboration still amazes me. I am proud to have been a part of it. Miller students have been creating digital multigenre projects. To get a look follow the link.

Miller Student Projects

Genocide

2009-01-15T10:00:00.002-06:00

Learning about the Rwanda Genocide was very interesting to me. It made me realize how sheltered I am from many harsh realities, I didn't even know that genocide was still occuring in the world today. The movie Hotel Rwanda was really an eye opener. I never imagined that something like that could of happened only 15 years ago. Hutus running around with machetes hacking up every innocent Tutsi they saw, Tutsis being forced out of their homes and put into the streets filled with flying bullets and slashing machetes. Hutus were trying to kill off all of the Tutsis. They started to target the children so they could kill off the next generation of Tutsis. Everything I learned about the Rwanda genocide was shocking and sick. All of the madness and killing seemed almost surreal. How could anybody be so heartless and cruel. How could someone be so brutal towards innocent children? Then I realized It was a modern day holocaust. The Rwanda Genocide was no different than the Nazis targeting the Jews. The sad thing about the Rwanda genocide was that Tutsis and Hutus that were married were ripped apart. Families, homes and lives were ruined by the modern day holocaust.

2009-01-13T09:37:00.006-06:00

In the movie Hotel Rwanda the Rwanda was genocide against the Hutu and the Tutsi. The Hutu killed all of the Tutsi they could. They killed millions of Tutsi during this genocide. Another genocide like this was the Holocaust. During the Holocaust the Nazi’s killed millions of Jews. This was close to Rwanda because millions of people died for no reason really. In both genocides there were one big group that were targeted. In Rwanda there were one big group that killed this was the Hutu, they killed the Tutsi. This is like the Holocaust because there were one big group that killed the Jews this was the Nazi’s.

Tutsi and Hutu people

2009-01-13T09:16:00.002-06:00

Rwanda Genocide is mass killing of different groups that other people think that they are taking over like how the Jews were murdered by the Germans because they were different. The Hutu people went to the Tutsi homes and killed them with machetes and called them cockroaches. When two people from both the Tutsi and the Hutu were together it sometimes cause problems because of them fighting and with all the murdering. They were burning down the houses and shooting them out on the streets. The Hutu's thought that the Tutsi were trying to be higher power than them so they had to kill them to keep their power.

2009-01-13T09:14:00.003-06:00

I thought the Rwanda genocide was very interesting. The Movie Hotel Rwanda was also full of great helpful information. I thought it was kind of confusing and hard to follow at some parts. I do not get how they could really tell the difference between one another. I know there where different body traits and different features but they did not look to different from each other.

Genocide

2009-01-13T09:13:00.023-06:00

The movie Hotel Rawanda was based on a genocide between the Hutus and the Tutsis. The Hutus were the ones who killed the Tutsis. It all started because the Tutsis were blamed for the killing of the Hutu president. which they really didn't kill him they just blamed it on them so they had an excuse to kill the Tutsis. Going through what the Tutsis had to go through would just be horrible I could not go through that, being killed for no reason and cant do anything about it.
The Rawanda genocide was allot like the Holocaust but allot different to. It was a killing of an entire population but they were killed in different ways. The Jews were killed in camps and the tutsis were killed with machutes on the streets and left to die.

Genocide and Holocaust

2009-01-13T09:13:00.021-06:00

The Rwanda Genocide was a killing of the Tutsi by the Hutus. We as a class watched the movie Hotel Rwanda, and it showed how the Hutus rose up and started to kill off all of the Tutsis. What struck me the most was probably how the Hutus used machetes to kill the Tutsis off so barberically. It just struck me in aw. The difference between the Rwanda Genocide and the Holocaust is that the Holocaust was organized. It had people in power and people who had jobs, and also it was undercover. The Rwanda Genocide was open and everyone around the world saw what was happening.

actions, human or beast?

2009-01-13T09:13:00.018-06:00

The Rwandan Genocide was a horrible atrocity, but we all know that. the Hutu were just killing randomly, more times than people know the Hutu had to look at id to know for sure if they were killing a Tutsi. It also compares to the holocaust because of the rapid extermination of a single type of people. The Hutu wanted a reason to kill the "cockroaches" so they killed their own Hutu president. And then the had the audacity to blame it on the Tutsi. All the movie did for me was really show me how the genocide hurt so many lives and just really explained how violent the Hutu were in their way of murder. They couldn't even kill them in a regular way, they used machetes........now how does that make a person feel, to know that humanity-the superior race mind you-can succumb to such...i don't even know a word to explain how it was.

Past and Present

2009-01-13T09:13:00.012-06:00

After reading and watching videos on the Rwanda Genocide so many tutsi's were murderd by the hutu's. The main weapon used by the hutu's to kill the tutsi's was the machete. All of this reminded me about what the nazi's did to the Jews. Everyone said after the holocaust "never again" will something like that happen but it is now it happened in the 90's with Rwanda and also right now in Darfur. I couldn't believe what the jews had to go through in the holocaust and now seeing what has happened in Rwanda and what is happing in Darfur right now is very similar.

Hotel Rwanda and Genocide...

2009-01-13T09:12:00.003-06:00

Before watching the movie, I knew very little about the Rwandan genocide. I knew that it involved the Hutus and the Tutsis. What I gathered from the movie was that the genocide in Rwanda was more in the open. In the Holocaust the Nazis tried to hide what they were doing. The Hutus broadcasted it over the radio. The choice of weapon wasn’t exactly what I expected. Instead of using guns, they used machetes. And they called the Tutsis cockroaches. It seems that the Hutus were ruthless and careless, while the Nazis appeared to show some, although very little, mercy. This movie for some reason did not evoke the same emotions in me as the Holocaust; I wasn’t sad or angry. But I did recognize the feeling of being helpless, useless. In all, it was a good movie. I learned more than I expected and saw more than I expected.

Chopping off Heads Picture wouldnt work

2009-01-13T09:10:00.007-06:00

Watching this movie me gave a background on the genocide occurring in Rwanda. It was something I was familiar to, the mass killings of an inferior race. This movie stressed what it was like just to try and live another day. Almost all genocides are the same in that way that you have to do whatever you can, especially communicate, just to live. One major point that stuck out for me was that Hutu's killed the Tutsi's with machetes. How could you chop somebodies head off even if you were forced too. Watching these movies is tough. Mass killings is something that doesn't catch my attention. Something we can all learn from these movies is to never let it happen again.
-Kyle

Rwandan Genocide & Hotel Rwanda

2009-01-13T09:10:00.005-06:00

The Rwandan Genocide was a mass killing of Tutsis. In Hotel Rwanda they showed a realistic view of what happened in Rwanda. The Hutus were the ones killing the Tutsis. The Hutus, if you think of social classes, were beneath the Tutsis. The Tutsis were more educated and had more political power. That soon changed over night. The Hutus broke out and started killing the Tutsis. What stuck out in my the most was how they killed and how they talked about them. The "cockroaches" were killed mainly by machetes. If they got away the Hutus had "marked" them for life. The Hutus also went after children because they wanted to take out the Tutsis future. Comparing it to the Holocaust, the Tutsis weren't tortured in camps like Jews were but by down grading and killing them you can say it was the same... a genocide.

Rwandan Inspire

2009-01-13T09:09:00.016-06:00

Rwanda, before our class learned about it, I had no clue that it took place. When I saw what happened my heart ached. It hurt to know that men, women, and children were being murdered and there was close to no one to help. The United Nations were there but they didn’t really do any good because they didn’t shoot. So there basically was no one to help the Tutsi’s. One part in the movie really hit me was when a camera man got a story and very graphic footage on the murder that the Hutu’s were committing. One of the Hutus that helped the Tutsis (Paul) thought that it was great news, that after people saw what was happening people would help. There was hope. The news man said no, people will watch this while they are eating their supper and say wow that’s terrible, and then go on eating. They wont do anything to stop it. Its sick that innocent people were getting murdered and people just sat back and watched. The people tried to help couldn’t save them, because the weapons weren’t there and the chances for winning were low.
Rwanda and Holocaust were similar in some ways. A mass race was being killed. The problem was is that there were very few people who helped the Tutsis and the Africans, the Jews were helped in a little more ways then the Africans were. A man in the movie said something that really hit me in a way I never expected. He said they wont help you, your black worse than that you dirt, you’re an African. Those words are harsh but the problem was that it was true. It seemed as though people thought that since they were Africans they didn’t matter. They weren’t any different then the Hutus except that they were lighter skinned, taller and had more knowledge of things. That would be like us being if you are white you were a “Tutsi” tanner “Hutu”. The thing is many of the people could have been twins, but they were labeled. Over all it was very sad to watch people kill people with no sympathy, but with laughs. Instead of tears satisfaction. Instead of children, death, escapes none, help nowhere.

Genocide...

2009-01-13T09:09:00.015-06:00

"Hotel Rwanda" was a movie showing the tragic happenings that occurred during the Genocide in Rwanda. The Hutu's were killing the innocent Tutsi's. They didn't kill them with guns, they killed them by machetes. They were burning down the houses and beating people on the streets. There were hundreds beyond hundreds of people walking down the streets just trying to find a safe place to stay. Paul had to give the Hutu's everything he had just to save his family and friends. There was an estimated six hundred people staying at the hotel just so they could be safe, but what they didn't know was that they Hutu's would soon come for them also. Paul kept them safe for a while by bribing the Hutu's with money and alcohol, but he couldn't do it much longer because he was running out of supplies. One part that bothered me was when the Hutu's kept calling the Tutsi's "cockroaches". They weren't even doing anything wrong and they were being treated so badly. The Rwandan Genocide was in a way the same as the Holocaust. They were both simply a mass killing of the lower class. Also in Rwanda these people weren't put into concentration camps unlike the people in the Holocaust, but were still treated badly.

-Shelby E.

Hotel Rwanda & The Holocaust

2009-01-13T09:09:00.008-06:00

What is genocide? Genocide is a term referring to violent crimes committed against groups with the intent to destroy the existence of the group. Which happened in the movie "Hotel Rwanda" as of the whole Holocaust. Innocent people were killed for no reason during both these times. Help didn't come during either events. No one stood up to the monsters that went around killing. I honestly think that people just kill others for fun. Which scares me to death because you never know if it will happen here or not. Who cares what other peoples backgrounds are like. In the eyes of God we are all brothers and sisters and should treat each other that way. But of coarse, people just have to kill others for their believes and what not.

Rwandan genocide

2009-01-13T09:08:00.004-06:00

In the movie hotel Rwanda it explains a lot of what happend during the Rwandan genocide. Most of which i didn't know like how the tutsi peaple were concidered the higher class of the two ,the tutsi's and the hutu's. the whole reasoning for the Rwandan genocide was that the tutsi rebels killed the hutu president. and in return the hutus think that they should start a genocide and exterminating the tutsis. killing any tutsi they came across even women and children. at the hotel there was over a thousand tutsi and hutu refuges looking for safty. with the UN and part of the hutu army protecting them. the hutu' s favorite way to kill them was with a machete. And in relation to the holocaust they were a lot alike a group of people that thought that they were better than any other so they decide they need to exterminate them.

Similarities

2009-01-12T11:20:00.010-06:00

The Holocaust and the Rwanda Genocide are similar and yet very different. But first I am going to explain some of the similarities. During the Holocaust the German Nazi's wanted to kill the Jews because of what they believed in. But yet at the same time in Rwanda the Hutu's wanted to kill the Tutsi's for basically the same thing. But in all actuality I think they are basically the same thing because in both they risked their lives and in both the Holocaust and the Rwandan Genocide several thousand people got killed .

"Hotel Rwanda".. and the Holocaust.

2009-01-12T10:34:00.006-06:00

The movie "Hotel Rwanda" depicts the Rwandan Genocide. The Hutus are tired of being ruled by the Tutsis, who are the minority group. So the Hutus form a militia, and basically start killing off as many Tutsis as possible. The Hutus who are against this and the Tutsis who are still alive try to hide from the militia in one of the biggest and nicest four-star hotels there. They are eventually found and some are killed, but the manager of the hotel managed to bribe the Hutu militia with alcohol and money in exchange for a few more days of their lives until the united kingdom comes to help. With the U.N.'s help and the rebels that are against the militia's help, the Rwanda refugees at the hotel get transported to an actual refugee camp protected by the U.N. This genocide is much like the Holocaust mainly because of the fact that they were both genocide, but the Rwanda Genocide and the Holocaust are very different mainly because of the difference of the number of casualties; with Rwanda losing around one million, and Germany losing around eleven million.

reflecting!!

2009-01-05T17:48:00.002-06:00

To be honest the whole blobbing process at first was a little weird. As the process went on blogging got easier. Next year and for years after you should keep this up. I think it helps with different kinds of writting and helps people express their true feelings and back their opinions. That was my a favorite part of blogging, being able to have your own side in the matter. Also being able to give your thoughts while getting opinions from every side of the issue. All in all blogging is a good experience.

The way I am

2009-01-05T09:46:00.004-06:00

To be honest when our teacher told us about what we were going to be doing i thought it was stupid. I was already taking a holocaust class so why did i need to read books and do assignments in this class. But now this is over i realized i learned from this class and even though i hate reading i did not really mind reading "The Wave and some of the "Night"

Since we got to blog with kids from other school it made it interesting. We got to voice our opinions and be able to tell why we feel that way. Even when people disagreed because they didn't feel the same way we did. Some times it got out of hand and we took it to far but for the most part it was a good experience about the real world and how people do have different ways of thinking and feeling.

past and present

2009-01-05T09:35:00.001-06:00

I believe the last semester was an…. exploration, an exploration into the minds and souls of the holocaust survivors. We, in the last 18 weeks, dove head first into heaven, hell and everywhere in between, from arguments to agreements, faith to no faith, god or no god, we have all done the best we could to understand the heinous crimes committed by the Nazi party, even though we may never know the full truth, we can at least say we gave it a try. That to me is all that matters. Most people don’t know much about the holocaust or what the word even means, and that is a very bad thing, I can’t remember who said this but “to learn from the past is to know that the mistake will not be made again”…now think about that, we learned that it is easy to get caught up in things such as in everyday culture: such as the wave and armed with that information we can insure the safety of perhaps millions of lives.

Blogger

2009-01-05T09:24:00.002-06:00

This last semester we started the blog. At first I didn't think that I was going to like it but after I realized there was no homework if we do it it wasn't so bad. Thats not the only reason I liked it though i liked getting into arguments with people and then resolving them, also after doing the blog I learned allot about who other people are and how they react in an argument. I didn't just learn about other people though, the blog also taught me many things about myself.
Blogger was good and bad. I think it was more good than it was bad, it was good because it was a different way of learning. We got more out of doing it on the blogger because it made us think a little more and we had more fun doing it rather than sitting in class writing papers and listing to lectures. The only reason that i can think that it was bad was because it brought the bad side out in most people. To wrap the whole thing up my opinion is that the blogger was good.

2009-01-05T09:23:00.003-06:00

So, This was a pretty fun semester. When I first found out about what we were going to be doing, My first thought was, great this will be as lame as it could get. As time went on it didn't turn out so bad. It was very intense at time hearing different peoples views on The Holocaust. When we first started this I didn't care for the idea because I didn't think i would be interested in The Holocaust, But it was a very interesting and I learned of new stuff about it. And to share ideas with each other in groups made it that much more of a learning experience. Over all I thought it was a lot of fun and it was better than doing homework everyday.

-Wade Taylor

my thoughts

2009-01-05T09:22:00.003-06:00

The whole blogger experience was good and bad. It was a good experience because we got a chance see what students in a different state thought of what we were all learning about. which really it was pretty much the the same thoughts threw out all of us. it did seem like we had gotten twice as much work done in a shorter period of time, it was faster than doing normal school work. i thought it was going to bad and really boring but I guess it really wasn't a bad experience but it wasn't always the most enjoyable thing to do.

blogger response

2009-01-05T09:20:00.008-06:00

I really liked using blogger because it was very helpful to me to get some feedback on what my group or what I post on the blog. Getting feedback I think was really important because it helps you become a better writer and some people need that feedback. I really liked getting the feed back because I knew what I had to fix if I needed to fix anything. I really also giving feedback because I think that if no one were to give feedback on other people’s work then they would think that they couldn't make their work any better. So I think that blogger.com has really helped me because I can make improvements on my work as long as I have feedback on my work. Some people may criticize you for your work but you have to learn to ignore that or to change what you have written in a post. I think getting feedback for other students your age is a great thing to do.

Jackie Grady McCool Junction

2009-01-05T09:20:00.005-06:00

I think the book night was a good book to start with blogger. I enjoyed the groups decision but didn't like the assignments that went along with them. I also enjoyed learning more about the Holocaust. We learn more and more each year and gets more interesting every year. I like how we got to comment other groups post, even though we couldn't say some things that we wanted to. Over all I think that blogger was a good experince. There were both positive and negative experiences. We had some easy assignments and some hard ones but I think blogger was fun to learn how to operate it.

Blogger:The Good & The Bad

2009-01-05T09:19:00.015-06:00

My thoughts on the blogger and what my experience were, are all good. I like the blogger because it was easy to talk about subjects and get down to the point. When you talk about subjects in person, like in a class room, they change according to how peoples reactions are. But on blogger, its more like you state you opinion with out changing it to what other people would like it to be said. Everyone can put what they really think without the influence of other people. So I think it is better this way. So in the end, I had a good experience with blogger, and I would like to continue with this.

Response To The Blog

2009-01-05T09:19:00.013-06:00

I have to admit that I really didn't like blogging at first. It was hard for me to blog because I don't do it very often. For me it was a pain trying to put how I felt about the situations into words. I have so many mixed feelings about the Holocaust. I was scared to know what others would think of my opinion. After awhile I started to like it. I liked the input everyone would give. And I liked the fact that you could get a different look to everything. And if you didn't agree, you could have a debate. I liked hearing everyone's opinion. I started to really like it because we were interacting with others that we have never met before. Instead of our classmates that we know and have heard their opinions like one hundred times before, we got a new view. Many different opinions from people we have never met. It was a really fun way to learn. I would suggest that this continues because I think that others will benefit from it and really enjoy it like I have. It was also a great experience to open the mind and except others opinion and learn how to, even if you don't agree, respect their opinion. It was really hard to try to comment on someone's post that you didn't agree with. You didn't want to start a fight so you had to think hard about what and how you wanted to put your opinion into words. Which for me that is a good way to improve your writing. Overall, I think that the blog has been a great experience and I really liked hearing everyone's opinions and advice that they have given. It takes courage to express your opinion.
Andrea Root

Blogging...

2009-01-05T09:19:00.008-06:00

This whole blogging experience has been pretty interesting. I didn't expect to enjoy it so much. I learned a great deal more than I thought there was to learn. There were some things that didn't make sense to me, but then again I think there were things that no one understood. And there were countless things that made me angry, but still learning them was well worth my while and if I had the option of doing it over again I know I would.
The books we read were also really interesting. I am not the reading type but I did like the books. Night was probably one of the most difficult things I have had to read. It was just so different reading someone's actual account of what happened. The Wave was really good too. And the fact that its based on true events makes it that much more intriguing. Who would have thought you could recreate what Nazi Germany was like in an ordinary high school? I was seriously speechless at the end of the book. It was that good.
In all, I think that what I have learned in the past semester will stay with me. Not many people get to have this kind of experience in a school setting, but it made learning about the Holocaust interesting. It wasn't like every other time we have had to learn about it. I started out thinking, "Oh great, here we go again." But then it was something completely different from what I had expected. So, I guess you could say that I really did enjoy the semester.

The good and bad of the blog

2009-01-05T09:18:00.010-06:00

When we first started the blog I didn’t really know what to think. It was different for me to have other students from a different school out of state comment on how I did and try to help me do better in my work. I started to understand how it works better as we got more into the blog and interacting with other students. When we started going more into writing responses or other assignments, I started to like it. It helped me to be able to say how I felt about the topic so I wasn’t scared to say how I felt. I learned many different facts when we read our books or looked up interesting information on the Internet about the topic. There were some parts of the blog I didn't like. Sometimes I didn't like how people commented and I know we all have our own opinions about a topic but sometimes it puts me down. I soon to like the blog more as we go on and I think that it would help me later on with my writing.

Reflect

2009-01-05T09:18:00.009-06:00

The blogger was definitely interesting, and never dull. I liked doing the responses to the questions, because we were answering questions to history. I mean we weren’t there in that place but the book gave us a feel of the pain they went through. The blogger gave me an outlook on the holocaust. You got to write what you felt and you got to look at other peoples’ post who maybe made the situation more clear. It was fun being in groups, because then you can have a bunch of different opinions. Like say there could be people that have a very strong faith in God and maybe a couple that don’t, that would make the post very interesting. I like how you could put down what you felt and either people liked it or they didn’t. It really showed opinions. Sometimes it made it a little tense though.
Dislikes. I really didn’t have that much against it, but sometimes I felt when there was a real powerful question people didn’t answer the question to the fullest. Also when people did write good posts sometimes groups would kind of shoot posts down. Not all of the time, but I must say we were all very head strong. I didn’t like the tension that I felt that was going on sometimes between groups. It made me a little intimidated to write some things that I felt because I felt that I would get rejected. I’m a person that doesn’t like criticism I know it had to be done, but I can be very sensitive in that subject J.
Otherwise the blogger was okay. I mean you got to see very many sides of opinions that definitely weren’t pointed out before, but sometimes opinions are opinions and we all seemed to forget that a little when people wrote what they felt.

*Lindee Jackson

The Blogger Experience.

2009-01-05T09:17:00.014-06:00

My Blogger experience was... eh, o.k. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't the most... exciting. It was better than most of the stuff that we could be doing, like writing essays or doing grammar assignments. I also liked the fact that we were collaborating with a school in a different state, which is cool. I was hoping to get to know the people from the other school a little more, get to see how different they are from us, but I didn't really get the chance to. I did like the actual thought of blogging at school, since most blogs aren't allowed in school (i.e. myspace, facebook, etc.). All in all it was o.k. for those reasons, but other than that it's just blah.

Blogger Experience!

2009-01-05T09:17:00.011-06:00

To me the blogger was a fun and great experience! Talking with others about the assignments and then going onto the blogger and stating our opinion was fun. You learn more about the people in your group and others backgrounds, like where they came from and what they believe in. I learned more about the Holocaust in the past semester than I ever knew and the book Night really helped! If I didn't quite understand something that went on in the book, my group was there for me to explain in a little better. Then when we went and posted our response to everything, we got even more people helping us out, stating their own opinions and what not. Which usually opened my eyes up even more and I tried to understand where they are coming from. Some of the posts became a bit harsh, it seemed like another war had started. But that is the whole reason for this blogger., learning and discussing about assignments. So to me this blogger was a great experience and I learned for it! Now, when someone doesn't agree with me, I take their opinion in and think things over ans see that they are right as will in some other ways!

McCool Jct. Post
By Jackie M.

Blogging...

2009-01-05T09:17:00.008-06:00

I admit at first I didn't really like the blog at all, but once we got going with it, it was something that seemed easy and fun but didn't turn out to be what I thought it would be. I think the blog has helped me understand more about The Holocaust and genocide. By interacting with students from a different state gave me a different outlook on what we were doing. We talked about so many different ideas from the book Night to the happenings in the Holocaust. It helped me learn so much more about the history behind the Holocaust that I never knew before. But there were times I had mixed feelings about the blogger. I liked interacting with students from a different state because they have different opinions and ideas, but at times i just didn't like it at all. Sometimes the assignments seemed so easy, but yet they were so hard for me to write up. Also some people would almost get competitive while they were giving each other comments. I mean there's nothing really wrong with that but its your own opinion don't be so harsh about every little thing said. Everyone has a right to voice their own opinions and sometimes it almost felt you couldn't or people would comment you badly. I'm not trying to pick out the people who might have done that, but thats just how I felt. That's their opinion so they can state it to, but maybe not so meanly. Over all blogger seemed to be an interesting learning experience in my eyes.

-->Shelby E.

2009-01-05T09:16:00.002-06:00

Learning to do the blog was a new experience for me. I wasn't sure what to think of it. I thought it might be tough to start a conversation with a person miles away from me who was reading the same book but we did. It was a new way of learning that I could adapt to. Overall, I liked being able to communicate with people far away from me. If I wanted to defend my point and start a cyber fight, I could. If I were to grade this new experience from one to ten, I would give it a seven. I would say to continue doing the blog just because it's a new way of learning. The End.
-Kyle

My Experience on Blogger

2009-01-05T09:15:00.004-06:00

I had a very good experience on Blogger. I think that being able to interact with other students and your own classmates is a positive thing. Other people's criticism helps me to improve as a writer and expand my horizons. Being able to post our own thoughts and feelings on various subjects was also a good experience. Discussing touchy subjects such as genocide, idealism, and religion was really amazing. I never had been part of such a deep conversation. Talking about faith, religion and death was almost overwhelming at first but once I got used to it, it was a really mind blowing thing to talk to others about such sacred subjects. On blogger everybody's opinion is stated loud and clear. Sometimes in the classroom certain people get overpowered in discussions and some people have strong opinions that they aren't afraid to state. On Blogger that doesn't happen. There's something about typing words instead of saying them that gives people the courage to say what they feel, so everybody's voice is heard. Being able to log on and post or comment at home was also very useful. Overall Blogger was a good experience that I believe was worth my time and effort.

Bloging: the Good, the Bad, and the Wordy

2009-01-01T17:08:00.005-06:00

I have to admit that when we were first given this blogging assignment I had not the slighest clue as to what blogging really was. And after I learned exactly what our assignment was about, I was absolutely certain that I would hate it. I was sure of this not only because of my hatred of computers ( a hatred that is recipricated on the part of the computers as proved by the many papers, applications, and variious other items that have disapeared into thin air right after I had saved them), but also because of the darkness of the topic we were to discuss and the conflict that was sure to arrise due to the nature of that said topic. I am a very opinionated person, but I do prefer to usualy keep my opinions to myself and avoid conflict whenever possibe. So the very idea of blogging did not appeal to me at all in the begining.
Over time, however, I surprisingy came to somewhat enjoy it. I found that I relish in having an opportunity to express my views on a subject, and see how others view it when we are all almost equally knowledgable of that subject. The posts were usually quite meaningful and heartfelt, and the debates were heated and, in my opinion, did not seem to get out of hand. I also came to realize even more the importance of studying the Holocaust, not only to hopefully ensure that history is not allowed to repeat itself , but also as a way of honoring those who had to go through the horrors of the Holocaust whether they be living or dead.
Still, even though I recognize the importance of being knowledgable of and discussing the Holocaust, I wish we would move on and cover something new. I do not like dwelling on something so depressing, nor do I like feeling so strongly about something that I can no longer do anything about. As far as actually reading the book, Night, I felt that it allowed us to get a better view of how the Holocaust effected a single idividual, that it was well written, and that, overall, it was a good book. However, I would not have read it if not instructed to do so because, as I said, I do not like to dwell on things that are so sad and depressing.
Overall my expirience with this blooging asignment was a much better than I had anticipated. I have learned a lot. Not only about blogging itself but also about the Holocaust as a whole, Elie's plight, and how different people view different things. And, Mr. Neuberger, I too, like this a heck of a lot better than that horrible research paper. :)

-Shelby Smith

Reflection

2008-12-19T09:06:00.002-06:00

In my opinion the blogging assignments have been pretty fun, but i'm not sure how helpful it will be to us for college next year. As far as how much we learned on the subject, The Holocaust, was great. I learned so much more about it and now i have a little better understanding of how much really took place back in that day. It is a very interesting topic. Blogging does help me to write better because i am able to express my words and opinions but in a good way because you make us write with proper grammar. When blogging we have to write alot so i do think that it helps us in our writing, and to find better ways to express ourselves in a respectful way.

I think that blogging could be a good thing, but in small proportions. As a senior, I feel that I need to know more about writing papers than blogging for when I go on to college. I don't think that just throwing a research paper on us will prepare us either. I think that we need to break it down and learn the fundamentals of a paper, rather than just writing one. Again, I did like blogging, I thought it was fun and helpful to be able to work with other students my age and write back in forth our opinions and have discussions between us.

Reflectionnnnnn :D

2008-12-19T08:48:00.004-06:00

Well. My opinion on this whole blogging ordeal was half and half. I enjoyed the whole topic of the blogging. The Holocaust interests me in good ways. But, i don't think that blogging will help us in the near future of college. I think that as Juniors this would of been a good activity for them at that age. But, as Seniors (i know people will hate this when i say this) i think we need to do more on how to write papers, and techniques of writing. I also think that we didn't get to express our feelings as we wanted to. You would get us in trouble for saying things that weren't even "hurtful," whenever they could say rude things and we couldn't even defend ourselves without you yelling at us, or you deleting one of our comments. But other than that, I didn't mind it. It was fun

Like or Dislike!

2008-12-19T08:33:00.002-06:00

At the begining of the semester i didnt really likr the blogging. As time went on however, I started to like it. The holocaust topic is what kept me interested. The discussion were very opinonated and strongly supported. I think being able to say what I think, but also knowing what others thought and felt was the best part. This project not only helped us learn about a very important history event, but also helped show what these people had to go through this trying times. All in all i liked the blogging I think that you should continue this next year and years to come.

Thoughts on Blogging:)

2008-12-19T08:32:00.011-06:00

I've never been on a blog before so this one was an interesting one to start with. First off, I would like to say that I really did like reading the book Night, and I learned a lot from it. I never could imagine just how horrible the conditions of the Holocaust were and reading the book gave me a better idea of it. I also liked reading the thoughts and ideas in other peoples posts and learning how much different people are. I enjoyed being able to comment and express my opinions on what others had said. I liked how some of the topics were deeper than others so they required more thought and feeling in the answers. What was hard about commenting on the posts was trying to come up different, non-fluff comments for posts that pretty much said the same things. Also, it was hard to write what I wanted without getting in trouble for being to mean. I'm very opinionated so it was tough writing what I thought without being to critical. What I did not like about this blog was that sometimes we were not allowed to write what we really wanted, which I do not think is right since this is a blog and half the time we were asked for our opinions. Sometimes we were criticized for being to mean or blunt which I do not think we should have been because we were just saying our opinions. I liked blogging better than doing a research paper. Overall there were more likes than dislikes, so it was a pretty good experience.

Melanie Atwell

This Blog Experience

2008-12-19T08:32:00.009-06:00

This blogging experience has taught me more things about myself than anything else. I learned, for me, it is easier to criticise other people than to build them up. I realized it is easier to be a jerk than to be nice on a deep level. I would rather give fluff answers than really get into a deep conversation when I disagree with the other person. On a different note, I learned how to blog since I never have blogged before. I also gained more knowledge about the Holocaust overall. This blog helped me see how other people veiw the Holocaust in a different light. I must say I would rather do blogs than write research papers. This was easier to go on and come up with new ideas than to sit down and write a couple page research paper. In the beginning, I would have never said this. I had a deep hatred of computers but now Im ok with them.

Semester Reflection

2008-12-19T08:32:00.006-06:00

This project we were doing this semester was actually pretty interesting. The reason I say this is because I learned a lot about the Holocaust that I didn't know from before. After reading the Book "Night" and answering some of the questions that were asked got me thinking about a lot of things involving forgiveness, and faith among other things. It made me realize that if you have faith or even if you don't that forgiveness is one of the key things in life. I say this because people should forgive one another so that the world isn't a dark selfish chaotic place, that if you forgive someone you'll be able to live through life better and not as a dark shell.
I liked the way Mr.Neuburger had us do our assignments, I really like the blog ideas and interacting with other schools and getting a different point of view of things. It is always good to get a different point of view on things that way you can compare and work discussions that may arise.
Though the only thing I don't like about this is that you had to comment on every little thing. It got annoying after a while. Besides that I didn't think there was anything wrong with this project.

2008-12-19T08:31:00.010-06:00

In the course of the past few weeks we have been blogging on several topics of the Holocaust. During this time my knowledge over the vastness of this topic ranging from forgiveness through putting God on Trial has grown. When we all first started this project my knowledge of this era in our history was very little but has grown over the projects. I have enjoyed blogging with my classmates and by myself, it has helped me to communicate better with my classmates in writing and expressing what is on my mind. When i first started blogging it was hard for me to start off with topics, but as we worked together my we became more open to each other and it helped alot that we all had the same views about our faith and the way we all wrote.

At the beginning of the year we all started out writing research papers, I'm glad that we are not working on them now. This blogging has helped out a lot by giving me practice in starting out on a random subject and writing a full paragraph on that topic. Overall i have enjoyed this experience with my classmates and another school. It helped show me all of the different views of this world.

My Final Post!

2008-12-19T08:31:00.009-06:00

By doing this blog I learned that I can be a good writer. I have never done a blog before so I learned a lot about it by going through this experience. Also I guess I can be a blunt person some times. It taught me how you communicate better with people through writing where you do not come off as rude or mean. I really like how we got to comment on other people's blog, it showed me the areas I need to work on.

What I liked was reading the book, Night, it made you really think about the Holocaust did to people. I did not like having to write the research paper at the beginning of the year. We had just got back to school so I was not ready for that. It was to demanding of you to make us do that at a early stage of school. But I did learn a lot more imformation about the Holocaust that I did not already know. It really prepared me for the upcoming blog. The whole blog experience was alright. I did not really like how we could not put our true feelings on the comments. Even though they would have been really mean. It was weird at first having to do the blog, but it got more normal during the end. Commenting was really what I did not like having to do. It was hard to find things to talk about on them that were not "fluffy". Other than that I thought that this was a fun experience and enjoyed it.

Blogging Reflection

2008-12-19T08:31:00.007-06:00

I have learned an incredible amount through this blogging experience. I really did not have any prior knowledge of the Holocaust. The blogging experience has been great for me in both learning and working with others. It is been very helpful in letting me work with others and getting others input which has helped me to broaden my perspective.

However, I think we should have spent more time working on research papers and writing in M.L.A. style. We should work on researching and writing for a paper more often in my opinion.

Overall, this was a good thing for us to do because we were still writing and getting critiqued on our writing. It helped us because we got more than one person's point of view on our posts which brought up more things for us to work on. This will help me to form into a better writer in the future.

-Tyler Abma

Work and Play all Darn Day

2008-12-19T08:30:00.021-06:00

Learning about the Holocaust brought many feelings to me that were both positive and negative at times. Reading and studying about how people were affected and all of the torture and loss of the Holocaust definitely brought a sad negative feeling, but it is important to learn what happened in the past so it can be prevented in the future, and the souls of the past can be fondly remembered. My research paper that I wrote over the Holocaust was based around Dr. Mengele and his medical experiments at Auschwitz. I was horrified at the level of cruelty Dr. Mengele went to, and mostly towards children. I learned so many things, not necessarily that I wanted to know, but it is important to know. The blogging experience has been completely positive! Of course there was a bit of disagreement between my College English class and the McCool class, but everyone has their own opinion and I think we did a good job respecting that. Commenting on posts has given everyone constructive criticism and its an awesome way for us to be able to have the chance to understand how others view and interpret our writing so that we can practice and get better, because nobody is perfect. We also had many chances to show our creativity while showing how much we learned. An example of this would be the powerpoint we created and presented to the class. I like powerpoints because they are easy and you can throw your own personal style and fun in there with colors and patterns! So overall this has been a positive and fun experience and I'm going to miss it in a way after I graduate.

Opinion on first semester

2008-12-19T08:30:00.019-06:00

I have learned many things this semester and enjoyed much of it, but I am not sure how the Holocaust is going to help me later on if I decide to go to college. I know that the Holocaust may have just been something Mr.N wanted us to learn about but also use our English skills within all of the projects. I did not enjoy although I did learn a lot from the research paper we did at the beginning of the year. I do think that we had to write the paper a bit soon and we should have learned more about the Holocaust before writing it, for the reason that we could have put a lot more detail into the paper and would not have just tried to force things into it. I did not like reading the book "Night." I am not a big reader I know it may help us but I personally think that reading is something you should do on your own time. The last thing we have done is this blog. I really enjoyed it, and I wish we could do more things like this in all of our classes, this has probably been one of the funnest things we have done in English. I really liked talking to people outside of our class and hearing all of there opinions. I though it was cool being able to comment on other peoples post letting them know my opinion and hearing what there responses to that were. Overall I think this English class has helped me out a lot and has prepared me for college.

Some Sort of Reflection

2008-12-19T08:30:00.017-06:00

Studying the Holocaust in depth, as we did this semester, was kind of difficult. It is hard to learn about something so horrific. I always thought I had a good grasp on what happened, but I can't tell you how many times my jaw dropped this semester, or a tear escaped from my eye in class. The real stories of the people who went through that make it so much more real. You learn that this mass killing happened, but when you think about how we live now you kind of imagine some villain in a movie or some horror novel. Its hard to grasp that it really happened and not more than eighty years ago. I have grandparents that saw the holocaust, that are still alive today. How can something so horrible have happened so recently in history? I'd like to think I'm a part of a people that has good buried deep down, no matter how messed up their exterior is. The fact of the matter is that the Nazis cannot have good anywhere in their sadistic souls so it makes me question the people I live around. More than anything this experience has opened my eyes to see that if you are in the dark about your history, your future can seem blurry. You should learn from the mistakes of the past and know when to fight your fight.

Blogging was a great experience. This is actually not my first experience with blogging, I blog in another one of your classes and I have blogged online for a few years. I really liked that there was not really any actual pencil/pen work to do in the class, because I can type so much faster than I write!! Its a lot easier to go back and edit your work and keep everything organized when you never have to wonder what something said or think you lost it. It was also a lot easier than I would have imagined to team up with another class and do collaborations. I liked how that went, but I think that in the future we should get web cams so that instead of always doing our ideas against theirs, we could do mixed groups and really get diverse ideas and conversations going. It would be really cool to talk with these people, and actually hear their voice. I am very opinionated and this experience was one of the few times in school where people asked me, "How do YOU feel about that?" Putting your thoughts and ideas out there is an awesome thing. When someone would comment me, I thought to myself that its an amazing thing when people can connect and understand each other. Whether we all agreed or not this experience not only taught me about our past, but also how to work with people from all walks of life.

Reflection

2008-12-19T08:30:00.014-06:00

This experience throughout the semester has been amazing. I was never really interested in the Holocaust, until this class. I learned so much about the holocaust and now i know how important it was. I had actually read the book "night" once before this class and didn't really like it, never really understood it. Mr. N helped me with that, this blogging helped a lot also. I had know idea how to blog, i didn't even know what blogging was until this class lol.. I got to other students from somewhere else, there was a lot of criticizing but you learn how other people think and how they feel on the matter also. It is nice to have people you agree, and also people that you can argue your point with. It is amazing how you get to have your own opionion on everything. All and All i love this semester it was a wonderful experience that i would like to have in more classes.

Thank you Mr. Sir------Ashley

What was the question again?

2008-12-19T08:29:00.004-06:00

My view over this semesters assignments and activities is positive. Going over the Holocaust was a good thing for myself and many of my other classmates. The blogging taught me a lot about being nice to other people no matter how many grammatical errors they make, and with that, how to look over the errors and into the content of what is being said. The thing which touched my heart and I learned so much from was the video clip of the man on the train. This man had driven the cattle trains so often he knew exactly how to control the train so it would stop right in front of the Auschwitz sign. The only thing I would change would be the research paper. It was excruciating, especially when they had to be done the first week of school. It nearly killed us all. Although I did not like to do this paper I did learn a lot researching about it that I had never before known about the Holocaust. When we shared our power points as a class I had a greater opportunity to learn what others had learned and to expand my knowledge of this topic.
Love, Jordan Byrum

Reflection

2008-12-19T08:28:00.008-06:00

The blogging experience has been different, but interesting. At first I did not like blogging, at all. Once we got further into the assignments, blogging became more interesting. I really liked the heated discussions, and even was interested to hear the different opinions of the other kids. Even though I, as well as others, got kind of defensive of our opinions, it was what made the whole experience interesting. The specific assignments brought up alot of interesting topics like forgiveness and faith, and really made you have to think for yourself. And I really enjoyed actually having to think seriously about things that actually mattered. I have also learned alot about the Holocaust from the different perspectives of Holocaust survivors. I do wish we could do more writing assignments though. It seems to me that with the commenting our writing isn't focused on as much. I know that when I go to college next year I want to be confident of my writing techniques. With the commenting and group posts, (even though we are graded on it) we don't really get any feedback on if what we are writing is correct.

Reflection on Blogging.

2008-12-19T08:28:00.004-06:00

First of all, I want to note that throughout this blogging experience I have learned many things. When we first started this study of the Holocaust, I had little knowledge, but now I feel I learned quite a bit of new information. But.... there is always a but, sometimes I wonder how this is going to benefit me. I often find myself wondering how this is going to help me in college. When usually hear about a College English class, that first thing that comes to mind is research papers. This is not saying I want to write a paper, its saying that I need to learn all of the in's and outs of writing them. But to finish this post out on a positive note I want to emphasize that I have learned a lot of new information throughout this experience, in which if I was not blogging I may not of had the chance to do.

Unlocking the Past in Poland

2008-12-08T21:06:00.004-06:00

Erin Einhorn (pictured) traveled to Poland to visit with the person who hid Einhorn's mother during the Holocaust. I just thought if you have time you might want to listen. It's about twenty minutes long but fascinating.

To Forgive or Not Forgive?

2008-12-08T09:11:00.007-06:00

Elie should forgive the Nazis. He already has gone through hell and had so much hate towards the Nazis build up in his soul. It would be like a great weight lifted off his chest if he forgives those horrible people. The Nazis don't deserve to be forgiven by any means, they killed his whole family and Elie even had to watch his own Father slowly die. Because he went through such a horrific event and had to endure so much pain and suffering he needs to start over fresh and forgive. It's not like he has to be friends with the Nazis but he should be able to look into their eyes and say, "I forgive you." You destroyed my life, you killed my family, you took my home away from me but I want to forgive you so I can move on with my life, because this heart full of raw hatred is weighing me down." If Elie was able to do this and truly forgive them, he could leave the pain and hate behind which would enable him to prosper and progress with his life.

- Matthew 18:21-35
Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?"
Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

2008-12-05T13:54:00.002-06:00

Should Elie Wiesel forgive the Nazis, or should Elie hold a grudge and keep the pain they caused in side? What is the best way to go on with life after a tragic incident like the Holocaust? Especially when you were one of the victim’s that lived through this horrific event. I believe there is room for forgiveness, but you will always remember what they did. There for how they treated you is always going to play a big role on how you would like to treat or think of them. And even if you have forgiven them you will always have hatred towards them. Also, it would take more than a day or two, to forgive them, but I think it is possible and should be done. Whether you are a Christian or believe in other faiths or none it all, I was raised Christian and taught to forgive others for there trespasses. There for I think that should go for everyone whether Christian or not, it is the polite thing to do and it will show who is the bigger man by forgiveness.

No Forgiveness

2008-12-05T10:00:00.002-06:00

Should Elie forgive? There are many outputs on if the Jews should have forgiven the Nazis for what they did to them during the Holocaust. My thought on whether they should forgive them or not no, I don’t think that they should. What I would do in if I was in that situation, I probably would not forgive them for what they did. How could you? Here you have a group of people who have taken away a couple years of your life, starve you, humiliate you, and treat you like dirt till you didn’t believe that you were human any more. I know that I wouldn’t be able to forgive anyone for taking away a couple years of my life where I could make a difference in the world, just to have me stay in a concentration camp and rot away like an old piece of meat. I especially couldn’t forgive the Nazis if they would of taken away all of my family members away from me, and then I would not know what of happened to them, and would never see them again. So should Elie forgive the Nazis for what they did to him, and to the rest of his family and the rest of the Jews, I don’t think so.
Alex Siebert

Forgive?

2008-12-05T09:33:00.004-06:00

After the holocaust the Jew’s had to decide weather to forgive the Nazi’s or not forgive them at all. Elie shouldn’t forgive the Nazi of the crime they have committed. (at least in my opinion it’s a crime) The Nazi’s killed his mom, his sister and his dad, I know if they killed my family I could never forgive them, a matter how much they begged me to forgive them. While he was at the camps he had to work long hours with out no pay if he stopped he could face the chance of the Nazi’s killing him. He had to watch not only his family die but other Jews die for no reason. Many people would forgive the Nazi’s but I don’t know how they could. The Nazi’s put the Jews through so much and killed million’s of Jews for no reason, he had to live through the pain, the suffering. Then having to watch the Nazi's kill his parents. This is why I couldn’t forgive the Nazi’s, Hitler or the people know days that don’t even believed that this has happened.

Elie should not forgive

2008-12-05T09:29:00.002-06:00

Brady West

I wouldn’t approach the subject of forgiveness. Ellie shouldn’t forgive, If some were to treat me that way and lock me in a concentration camp I don’t know if I could ever bring myself to forgive any of the Nazis. The Nazis striped him of his dignity stole his faith and basically took his life for the time he was in the concentration camps. If some one took me away from my family and sent us to separate concentration camps I could never forgive anybody. If you were to think about his whole situation and what happened to him over the time period. He was taken from his home striped of his clothes and property, thrown into a room to get his head shaved basically getting dehumanized. They took his name and gave him a number. And weather or he can forgive god. Well I think I would be able to do that god had nothing to do with what the Nazis were thinking and what they did.

Forgive?

2008-12-05T09:22:00.004-06:00

PICTURE YET TO COME...HAVING TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES!

Should Jews forgive the Nazis for what they did or they should they not. Elie Wiesel as well as the Jews faced death during the holocaust witch is something that would be very difficult to face. He should not forgive the Nazis for all of the killings of there family’s, also the Nazis killed his mom and his father and his sister. If a group of people or other wise known as the Nazis killed your family it would just ruin your life and you would have to live with your family dead for the rest of your life. For him being a young age having to live with no family for the rest of his life would be something hard to forgive. What the Nazis did to the Jews was terrible they treated them like dirt and they pretty much brought them to hell and very few got out alive. If you put your self in their shoes and went through what they did and they killed your family would you forgive them?

As We Forgive Those who Tresspass Against Us

2008-12-05T09:19:00.016-06:00

The men that took his everything , his all, his life. Should he forgive the man that took his identity, tore out his heart of faith, vanished his life and family? A person can’t hold onto hate forever, it eats away the good, the part of life that ticks. So, yes he should forgive that man that let his faith burn, his family die, his heart left empty. Forgiveness is hard to give out, but time doesn’t last forever, you only get one chance to live, so forgive. Yes I feel that he should forgive the Nazis, but not only them, maybe that anger that stole his faith, that soup that never filled, or his heart that seemed he could not love, he needed to forgive himself. To meet the men face to face that took everything he had may make him feel like his heart can no longer beat or his voice would not speak, but maybe to forgive those men would let life tick and his heart beat. Life may hate them, but his heart should forgive them. All lives will go on, but forgiveness will live on for those that go on.

How?

2008-12-05T09:19:00.013-06:00

Should Ellie Forgive the Nazi’s for what they had done? There are two kinds of forgiveness; there is forgiveness from god and forgiveness from human. Ellie should forgive the Nazi’s for what they did. When you do not forgive someone for what they have done you live with all that hate in your life. If Ellie would choose to not forgive them he would go though being angry and not enjoying the rest of his life that he has left. The reason why he should is so he does not live with the hate of the Nazi’s forever and is able to spend the rest of his life with happy thoughts and remembering the good things in life. If he doesn’t forgive no matter what good things or events come up he will still have a lot of anger and stress and he has already gone though enough of that in his life. It will not be easy for him to forgive but in order for the remaining part of his life to be happy and joyful without remembering what he had gone though and getting upset and mad about it throughout the rest of his life. Elie should forgive the Nazi’s so he can move on with the rest of his life.
-Michael

Won't Forgive or Forget

2008-12-05T09:19:00.006-06:00

Elie should not forgive the Nazis for the pain and suffering they put him and the Jews through. To forgive somebody of something is to accept their apology for something they have done and the killing of nearly six million people would be very difficult to look past. The Nazis took away nearly four years of his life as well as his family, the most valuable object in his life and that’s something you can’t get back. How can you forgive somebody for that? Taking a life can never be forgiven, unless it was unintentional. A person cannot be duplicated. The only piece that’s left of the family is the ashes and the memories made before the Holocaust started. You may get your house and valuables back but never again will you have your family and friends in your life. Family means way to much to give them and up and some of the survivors would say, “You don’t know what you got till its gone.”
-Kyle

Forgiveness

2008-12-05T09:16:00.003-06:00

Elie should forgive because everyone will eventually forgive some of the people who had done some terrible things to the people or did something that had changed their life. If people did not forgive then there would be a bunch of hate in the world today. If there were to be a bunch of hate then nobody would like anyone or anything that they do. But forgiveness has a whole different perspective on how people look at the world as far as forgiving someone for doing something and everyone has room for forgiveness in their hearts but some choose not to take advantage of that room and use it for what they are supposed to be using it for. The room in your heart for forgiveness is there but some people choose not to use it. When people choose not to use forgiveness then it’s their own fault that they don’t forgive anyone in the world. So Elie should forgive people that has done anything bad to him and his family even though he may not like them. If Elie does not forgive anyone then he will not be able to forgive at all. But anyone can forgive and forget what people do.

How do you forgive that???

2008-12-05T09:14:00.004-06:00

If I say that Elie should forgive the Nazis, I would get complaints from people who think it would be wrong to forgive such heinous, ruthless acts. If I say he should not, I would still get complaints from people who say it would be wrong not to and you are just harboring angry feelings from the past. You could kind of say it is a double-edged sword. If he forgives, then he lets down all the victims and he gives up everything people everywhere have fought against and he is no longer an advocate for his people. If he does not forgive, in a sense he is no better than the rest. Elie should not forgive. The Nazis do not deserve forgiveness. After everything that they put millions of Jews and countless others through, they are not deserving of one man's kindness and compassion. They do not deserve to be forgiven by a man who lost his whole family, most of his childhood, and his dignity because one person wanted a "superior race."

Forgiving is Life

2008-12-05T09:05:00.005-06:00

Elie went through "hell" in his passed experience in the Holocaust, should he forgive was and still is the real question. In my opinion, yes it was a horrible event that made history, but I think he should forgive what happened. To me, God would want everyone to be happy, although it was a bad time and there are second chances that should be given in the world out there. What the Nazis did to millions of people was wrong in every way, but it is all over with and we can only learn from the past. If you think about the Holocaust and learn about every event that took place in it and open your eyes a bit, you would realize that it could happen to anybody, at anytime, at anyplace. I believe that Elie should forgive what happened, he made it through the nightmare he never dreamed of and is now telling his stories to billions of people. He is changing the lives of many humans and we learn from it all. I know I have. So to complete this post I do believe that Elie should forgive what happened to him, it can happen to anyone!

McCool Student
Jackie M.

2008-12-05T09:04:00.023-06:00

NO!!!!! There is no way I believe that Elie should forgive those ruthless Nazis. Personally I believe that they should have the chance to show the Nazis what it was like. To go through the same horrable events, the torture, and the living hell they all had to face. I don't even understand the want to forgive anybody for the haneous crimes comitted against the Jews. I'm sorry Elie but I can't see it. I can understand the "go along to get along" but there has to be a line drawn somewhere. The fact that the Nazis didnt even try to apologize in any way is just stupid, their "better than everybody" mentality kept them from showing the slightest bit of weakness. True it might not have worked but it would at least showed they gave a crap. I wasn't there but I still say no way to any kind of forgiveness to any one of the Nazis.

He Should Forgive.

2008-12-05T09:04:00.022-06:00

I think that Elie should forgive the Nazis, even though they did unspeakable acts to him and millions of other people. Hitler is the one who started the whole Holocaust with one single idea, and he is the one who should be blamed for the whole thing. Yes, Hitler had an army to back him up, but a lot of the people in that army were too scared of him to stand up for the Jews if they even wanted to. So even if those people did do awful crimes to the Jews under Hitler’s orders, they have a reason as to why they did those things if in fact they weren’t for Hitler. Fear can make people do crazy things, and that is what a lot of people did under Hitler’s rule. Not only did the Germans who did not agree with Hitler do what Hitler asked, but a lot of Jews even gave up their religion just for a chance to stay alive. The Nazis were not the only guilty ones.

Forgive or not forgive?

2008-12-05T09:04:00.018-06:00

How would you feel if you were in Elie’s position at the time of the Holocaust? Elie shouldn’t forgive them because after what they did to them and how they treated them was just horrible. When they were there at the camps they faced some of the hardest torture and death related kills that would end their lives. He would be feeling like he was just another person that was hoping not to be killed and living there day by day was the worst there was at the time. Everyday he could only hope that he would be going home instead of getting killed. The torture that he had gone through and killed him inside and he could never have that feeling that he had before when he had been taken there. If you were in Elie’s shoes what would you be feeling like or have to face when he did while he was there? Would you ever forgive someone who would do that kind of pain to you? He has the right now to forgive them for what he faced and I know if I was him I wouldn't forgive them just because what was going on there.

Nikki W.

2008-12-05T09:02:00.002-06:00

The burning of hatred eats away inside of you, so as hard as it seems Elie needs to forgive the Nazis, the ones who killed like there was no need for any prisoners to live. Without forgiving others you hold on to the past, the guilt of not finding a solution to end the past. You are holding on to the whole past, the anger, the pain, the suffering, you are completely living in that past, making yourself have no future. Forgiving the ones who caused so much hurt, pain, sorrow, and suffering is hard to do. You have to be the one to relieve yourself from everything so you can live your life the way you want it. You must never let go of yourself. Keep the memories, even the painful ones, forgiving the Nazis from the pain and sorrow won’t solve every painful memory, but you can keep those as motivation or you can choose to forget the bad ones and not look back. Forgiving others is one of the hardest challenges that you will face, choosing to face the pain and not let the past from hell keep you from living your life is the greatest challenge of all.
Andrea Root

Forgive?

2008-12-05T09:00:00.004-06:00

Elie in his heart should forgive but never forget, because if he dwells on it life will become harder and harder. He was going through what people would call "hell on earth" for such a long period of time that in his mind he is probably doesn't want to forgive the Nazis for the pain and suffering he experienced. You have to understand in Elies eyes you can't hold on to something so hurtful forever. He will never forget the time he and his family were separated or when he was beaten and tortured, but in time he will forgive them for what happened to him. Some people would ask, "Why would he forgive the Nazis?" The answer is really you don't want to sit around day to day thinking about all that has happened, at some point in Elies life he realizes its time to let go and you can't be mad at them forever. I understand it would be hard to forgive the people that hurt you, but would it be harder to not forgive and sit there everyday remembering what you went through? Forgiveness is hard, it takes so much from a person to gather the strength to forgive someone. In the end forgiving would make life easier, never forget, but forgive.

Shelby E.

Foregiveness is the Key

2008-12-03T09:53:00.014-06:00

Forgiveness is one of the most complex concepts to consider in this situation. On one hand forgiveness seems necessary for one to have a healthy outlook on life. To deny forgiveness and bottle up hatred can lead to depression and one being perpetually stuck in the events of the past. To forgive is to allow the individual to grow as a person, to move on. On the other hand, it would be extremely difficult to forgive those who were personally responsible for all the tragedy and hardships in one’s life, especially in Elie’s case. However, I do believe that Elie should forgive the Nazis, even though they definitely do not deserve it. Yes, what happened to him, and millions of others, was terrible, tragic, and should never have been allowed to happen in the first place, but it happened in the past and cannot be changed now. By forgiving those who have hurt him he can achieve closure, and move on with his life. Forgiveness is the key to unlocking happiness.

Shelby Smith

Forgiveness

2008-12-03T09:53:00.012-06:00

After the Holocaust, each of the few survivors of Nazi atrocities had to figure how to move on with their life. Furthermore, each survivor had to confront whether they should forgive or not forgive their persecutors. In your life things may happen that you are not able to let go, but if nobody forgave people for the wrongful thing they did than there would be so much hate and anger in this world. Forgiveness is not forgetting, you do not have to forget what that person has done it would make you feel a lot better in the end if you did. Forgiveness is a decision to let go of all the thoughts of revenge that you may have picked up on throughout your life. Forgiveness can reduce anger and hurt, which could help you live freer and happier in the life that you are living right now in the present. In my opinion it would be hard to be able to forgive the Nazi’s, but a lot of people have a stronger will and are able to forgive a lot easier than others could.

“Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future. ~Paul Boese”

Ashley~~~Ashtard

2008-12-03T09:53:00.005-06:00

Elie should not forgive the Nazis because they ruined his life and put his life through hell. Elie should not forgive the Nazis because they killed his mom, sisters, and his uncle. Not only did he have to deal with his family being killed, but he also had to witness many people around him being killed. In addition, he had to work a ton and was a slave. After being put through all of that, I do not see how anyone could forgive that. It is unforgivable. Elie should be disgusted with the Nazis and at the time should have been thinking about getting back at them. He should want to kill every single Nazi after having to deal with them taking him out of his home, taking him to a camp, and witnessing everything that he did. The question should not be if Elie should forgive the Nazis, it should be if Elie should have gotten back at the Nazis. He may be able to forgive the people that did all of these horrible things and that is understandable but there is no way I would forgive there actions.

Forgive But Do Not Forget

2008-12-03T09:46:00.002-06:00

Saying the word forgiveness can be an easy thing to say, but in reality when you are faced with having to forgive someone the action seems harder to do. Elie should follow the word of God, overcome the hatred in his heart, and find strength inside himself and his faith to forgive the Nazis. The only way Elie will ever live in happiness again is to forgive, but he should never forget since the Holocaust will always be a part of his life. The Nazis did do terrible things to the Jewish people, they killed five million of their people and tortured many others, and unfortunately overcoming this is a hard thing to do. However, to stop being a victim Elie needs to forgive. Elie is a survivor, he needs let go of the hurtful strings by telling people his story, this way he can take a step toward forgiveness. Forgiveness can be a long process when people have done horrific things to you; however, some people need to go through this process in order to achieve inner peace. Elie needs to forgive, but not forget.

To forgive

2008-12-03T09:43:00.002-06:00

A major contribution to trying to get over being a victim of the Holocaust is forgiveness; you have the choice to forgive or to have an everlasting hatred toward them, in most religions forgiveness the best possible way to feel a peace in life. Some religions indicate such as the Jews believe there are two types of forgiveness. There is human forgiveness, which is between the transgressions of man and man, and that God cannot forgive the transgressions Gods forgiveness between God and man that humans cannot forgive the transgressions. Over a short period, it would be hard to forgive any one whose pure hatred ruined millions of lives for generations to come, but over time, most would realize if they did not forgive the Nazis they could go on living there lives with that huge blackness in there life. Most would say in life forgiveness is everything and without it, there would be emptiness in life. Everyone should forgive one another for any wrong doing that might in some way ruined there lives, no matter on how hard it would be for them. Elie should forgive the Nazis.

Forgiveness

2008-12-03T09:40:00.002-06:00

God says, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” It would be very hard for one to forgive someone who has done so much wrong and heaped so much suffering on them. We, as readers about the Holocaust who were not actually there, cannot see the full picture of what all took place in that time period. It is hard to say Jews should forgive just because we cannot fully understand what they went through. Most people believe in order to forgive, the wrongdoer should ask for forgiveness, but if one had any little faith at all, they would know that God’s will is to forgive everyone so we can get away from our misery and not have to dwell on the past because God does not want to see any of his children suffer. It is important that we forgive so that one can move on with their life and have a chance for a happier future. Elie should forgive because God says that everyone should forgive everyone, no matter the circumstances, and so he can find a peace and happiness in his heart.

Forgiveness

2008-12-03T09:36:00.000-06:00

Without forgiveness, there is no happiness. A person who does not forgive could continue on with their life, move on to different things, and think that they are happy, but in their heart there would always be a place of bitterness, grief, and anger; they would never truly be happy. Yes, Elie should forgive the Nazis, even though they probably do not deserve it. It is easily understandable why no one would want to forgive them, considering all the impossibly horrible things they did to innocent people. However, what is done is done, no one can go back and change what happened, and it can not be undone. Harboring anger and unforgiveness for something that can not be changed only continues to destroy a person from the inside out. The only way to stop the destruction and to heal the wound is to grant forgiveness. It is not our place to hold on to things and to judge those who have wronged us, the Lord is the one who judges and avenges the wrongs against us. Let go and let God.

Reason for forgiveness

2008-12-03T09:34:00.005-06:00

All people should have forgiveness. None of us should carry around a burden of hatred and regret that will eat away at us on the inside turning ourselves into cold dark shells. Many people believe that you should not forgive somebody that is unrepentant. Those who choose not to forgive condemn themselves with a life of hatred. More hatred and regret comes out from living life in darkness, once you hold on to that hatred devastating effects come from that as a repercussion; you begin to feel angrier and you take it out on everything in your way for absolutely no reason. Without forgiveness there cannot be any happiness, without happiness there is no real reason for life. Elie should forgive the Nazis, what happened in the past happened and no one can change it; no one should dwell and linger in the past for it causes more darkness. To move on and forgive the Nazis, Elie would regain happiness and live life easier not full of all the darkness that comes from not forgiving them. All people should forgive others whether or not they deserve it; no one wants to live life as an empty shell. No one wants to live through life without happiness. With forgiveness comes happiness; with happiness comes peace and tranquility along with serenity.

Forgiveness = Happiness

2008-12-03T09:33:00.003-06:00

One major theme of the Holocaust deals with the topic of forgiveness and raises the basic questions of whether or not to forgive the Nazis for their terrible acts of persecution. There are many different opinions that arise when people hear this question, and in a personal opinion, my belief is that OVER TIME the Jewish people almost have to forgive the Nazi people for there terrible acts. After enduring such acts and being a survivor of this terrible tragedy, living a life full of hatred afterwards would be a miserable life to have. There will be people who will not forgive the Nazi people what so ever, and will have an everlasting hatred towards the Nazi race, but by keeping this burning hatred, those people’s lives are ruined. Those people that do not release this anger and frustration are bothered for the rest of their lives. It would be absurd to think that a Jewish person could quickly forgive the Nazis, but overtime, working through all the grief and pain eventually, to be happy, they would have to release the anger and forgive the Nazi race. The Bible says it best, you must forgive people who have done you wrong, it may be very hard but you must do so.

Forgiveness

2008-12-03T09:29:00.009-06:00

Elie should forgive those who have persecuted him, although they treated him in the worst ways because everyone deserves second chances no matter how badly they have sinned. If everyone can repent and get forgiveness from God, then everyone should be able to obtain forgiveness from human beings because no sin is greater than another sin. On the other hand, some sins deserve more punishment then others do, it takes longer to forgive people who have sinned in such ways. Those who have persecuted him have been punished for their actions and now deserve forgiveness from him. It would make his life much easier and it would rid his mind of bottled up anger. If he were to go on with his life and never forgive them, he would live with regret and always feel anger towards them when it’s not healthy to hold grudges, especially in this situation. Elie really needs to get in sync with his spiritual side, he needs to get closer with God and let Him help him through this because it would really relieve him of any stress. Forgiveness is a difficult thing and forgetting is close to impossible, but the world needs forgiveness.

Forgiveness

2008-12-03T09:29:00.007-06:00

Forgiveness is essential for humans to live in peace with one another. I believe Elie should forgive because without forgiveness, the world is nothing. By not forgiving others for the wrongs they have done you, can be a way of dwelling in the past, but forgiveness is the first step in moving on from whatever you have gone through. This process is not an easy thing to do and cannot be achieved instantly, especially for those who are survivors of the Holocaust. The things survivors of the Holocaust went through were horrific, and understandably, it would be exceedingly difficult to forgive the Nazis for all the deaths they caused. However, the only possible way for them to leave the Holocaust behind and move on with their lives would be to forgive and forget. God has a reason for all things that occur and He had a reason for the Holocaust. As humans, we may never understand the purpose of it, but we must forgive one another or the consequences will be forever living in the past.

Forgiveness

2008-12-03T09:29:00.006-06:00

Elie in my opinion should forgive the wrong doings of his Nazi persecutors. Forgiveness is an important role in life for people to be able to have peace and harmony in the world. However, Elie should give forgiveness because God says that all people should forgive everyone. I know that with this circumstance it would be hard to trust in God, but no matter the problem Elie should trust, forgive, and be able to move on with his life. If he does not forgive and continues to dwell in the past Elie is never going to be content with life. Forgiveness is just part of every day, without it there is never going to be anything to anybody’s life and no one would ever be happy or content with themselves or anyone else. In time, people will just have to face that God will do everything for a reason whether we like it or not. We may never understand why the hurting happens but have to trust that it is the right thing for the time and just learn to forgive and trust that in time all will be well.

The Hardest Thing To Do

2008-12-03T09:27:00.003-06:00

I always say, forgiveness is something that is not for the faint of heart. The truth is that forgiveness is harder than harboring hatred, it is harder than pushing the pain deep inside and burying it, and it is impossible to live without. What the Nazis did is unquestionably evil and wrong, but at the same time by wishing death and pain a thousand times worse upon them, does that make us any better? It does not. The strongest people are people that have lived through pain and let it go. The ultimate pain, to me, would be watching your entire people die and knowing that it is coming for you too. It was a hard fact to face, but it was the reality of the situation. By letting hatred for those who have done you wrong fester inside of your soul, you are letting evil into the most intimate and precious places of yourself. By letting hatred be the root of your existence, you have let the “bad guy” win. To forgive is the hardest thing to do, but to hate is to lose your purpose and your life. We must always forgive, but not forget, no matter how hard it may be because without forgiveness we have become the thing we hate.

-Erika-

Forgiveness

2008-12-03T09:18:00.002-06:00

Forgiveness
In the All About God website, they define forgiveness as “giving up my right to hurt you, for hurting me.” I do believe that Elie should forgive the Nazis because many people that were there killing them weren’t doing it because they wanted to, they were doing it because many of them may have wanted to save their own lives. If Elie had the choice to kill or be killed I am quite positive he would have done the same thing that had done. Although he, his family, and friends were treated in the worst way possible, forgiving them could maybe make her life easier. Elie and many others may emotionally and spiritually be set free by just forgiving the punishers that have destroyed their lives and have forever given them permanent nightmares. It may take them much time to forgive the punishers and holding in the pain could make everything worse, but by forgiving they could help release much of the pain inside of themselves. Even though the hurt and pain will always be with them, forgiveness is the key to unlocking the door to a peaceful existence.

http://www.allaboutgod.com/

Forgiveness and the Future

2008-12-03T09:16:00.002-06:00

Elie should approach forgiveness of the Nazis thinking of his future state of mind and well-being because forgiveness, one of the toughest choices man must deal with, plays a big role in mental health later in life. Since the Jewish population does not believe God can forgive transgressions between man and man, Elie should forgive everyone who had a hand in the Holocaust, as he himself can only forgive. Forgiveness, the key to future sanity and well-being, will allow Elie to get over his past and become a stable, productive person in society. Elie needs to let go of the past because it cannot be changed in any way; what happened can no longer be taken away. If Elie will not let go of the past, he will never embrace his future; his past will haunt his life, thoughts, and dreams throughout the rest of his life. In addition, Elie cannot hope to receive forgiveness in future situations if he cannot give forgiveness in the present. It would be hypocritical to think one should be forgiven after constantly refusing to forgive another. In conclusion, with his future in mind, Elie should forgive those who have trespassed him so he can be happy in the rest of his life.

Forgiveness bringing Peace of Mind

2008-12-03T09:07:00.003-06:00

When it comes to the act of forgiveness you have to put your feelings and past behind you. Forgiving is important because it helps yourself and others move on from whatever situation that has intruded in your life where people may do you wrong, in this case being the Holocaust. Everyone makes mistakes, that is part of being human and no matter how horrible the situation a person has the right to be forgiven at least once. The right thing to do is a different opinion among most people. Everyone has a right to an opinion and relying forgiveness on opinions does not make sense. Once you forgive someone for their actions they can go on living their life and fixing what they did and you can go on living peacefully. If a person asks your forgiveness then they are sorry for their actions and they have courage enough to admit that they have done wrong. Although not all who ask for forgiveness should be forgiven, there are some who only ask forgiveness for their own well being, but they will never change their ways. There will always be different opinions on whether or not to forgive another person but most will find it in their hearts to forgive.

The path to FORGIVENESS is not always the easiest one to take.

2008-12-03T09:05:00.004-06:00

When asked about the topic of forgiveness one must understand that it is not always so easy to forgive as it should be; especially, if they have been betrayed by their own human race. In the case of Elie Wiesel, he should not forgive the horrible acts done to him even though some might say forgiveness is the path to inner peace. Elie should never have to forgive the people who took everything from him; his pride, health, even his family, all of which gone in the end without even a single ‘sorry’ by one of the Nazis. In the Jewish religion, since God has no say in whether man can forgive man, Elie has no duty to forgive the Nazis. It has no impact on Gods decision to let him into Heaven or not, so as long as he stayed a good Jew he would still be able to get a free pass into Heaven. In conclusion Elie should not be judged if he decides not to forgive those people, but should be accepted as someone who could not find enough strength to forgive and forget.

In the Search of Happiness

2008-12-02T10:52:00.001-06:00

In order to gain closure and move on from an incident causing much pain and heartache such as the Holocaust, one must find the strength to forgive the people who commit such horrible acts. Survivors unable to let the pain go and forgive will physically live on, but mentally and spiritually they will never be alive again. To be a true survivor, one must be able to live a happy life after a terrible event and can only begin to live again once they have achieved peace in their heart and in their soul. A survivor of the Holocaust must fully accept what happened to them and their loved ones in order to begin the process of forgiveness needed to achieve peace within their hearts. Other survivors, like Elie, need to find the strength to confront this inner turmoil. The strength to confront inner turmoil comes from realizing the only way to free oneself of it is to not forget but forgive the tormentors. Forgiving people who have done horrible things to you and ones you love is on of the hardest things you must do, but you have to do it to attain true happiness.

Culminating Assignment

2008-12-01T05:56:00.002-06:00

In the light of the Holocaust, the topic of forgiveness might stir some rousing discussion. Wiesel ends Night with his rescue and never addresses the topic of forgiveness until later writings. However, another Holocaust survivor, Simon Wiesenthal, dedicates his entire novel Sunflower to the topic. When Mrs. Bethune and I heard two survivor testimonies this last summer, we were given the chance to ask questions after the speakers had finished. Both speakers were asked if they had been able to forgive those who had persecuted them and both gave diametrically opposing answers. When asked if she had been able to forgive the Nazis, one survivor without hesitation retorted, “Never!” The other survivor described how he went through a “process” of forgiveness. For our culminating discussion of Wiesel’s Night, each of you will examine your personal views on the subject of forgiveness. As you tackle the subject, it is important to understand the Jewish perspective on forgiveness. Jews believe there are two types of forgiveness. There is God’s forgiveness and human forgiveness. Humans cannot forgive transgressions between man and God, and God cannot forgive transgressions between man and man.
For the culminating assignment, you will be composing an essay. The essay will be composed with the following guidelines:
• One paragraph
• 166 – 216 words
• No more than nine sentences
For your topic you should assume the position of Elie Wiesel and determine how you would approach the subject of forgiveness. How would you approach the subject of forgiveness if you were in Wiesel's shoes?Create your topic/thesis statement around one of the following:
Elie should forgive.
Elie should not forgive.
The body of your essay should describe how and/or why.
POST ON THE BLOG
Good luck!

Jews and Gentiles

2008-11-25T09:34:00.002-06:00

How did the Nazis determine if someone was Jewish?
They would look back at people’s histories and see if their ancestors were Jews and even if their great grandfather were a Jew they would still consider them a Jew by relation. Also, the German soldiers would walk into the synagogues and demand the membership list from the rabbi. (wiki.answers.com)

If a Christian says they are not a Christian, are they still a Christian?
If a Christian denies being a Christian are they still a Christian? If they deny being a Christian it’s like they’re denying God. And if your denying God your not a true Christian. And you can believe in something else that isn’t God, so therefore you would not be a Christian. But that does not make you a bad person.

If a Gentile marries a Jew it doesn’t make the Gentile a Jew unless they decide to convert to a Jew?
Just being married to someone doesn’t mean you must have the same faith. Many people choose to convert to their spouse’s religion but some stick to their own faith. (wiki.answers.com)

-Natasha A., Wade T., Seyd P., Donnie P., Shelby R.

Which were you?

2008-11-24T09:37:00.002-06:00

1. How did the Nazis determine if someone was Jewish?
A. Well you could walk in to any community and tell if it was a Jewish community. Then they could also look at records. And also last names can tell if the person was of which race, sometimes.
2. If a Christian says they are not a Christian, are they still a Christian?
A. Yes and no. It all depends on how you say if you’re not a Christian or not. If you say you’re not a Christian just to cover up so you won’t get yourself in trouble, then yes you are still a Christian. But if you strongly believe that your not a Christian, and you don’t believe in any of the religion, then you are not a Christian.
3. If a Jewish woman marries a Gentile, is the man considered Jewish?
A. It depends on how the marriage goes. He could become a Jew if he wanted to, or it could be the other way around. He could have her become a Gentile instead of a Jew, but it still the fact that she was a Jew, and during the Holocaust, there were many who didn’t even know that they were Jewish till the Nazis showed up at the front door and took them away. So to answer this last question, it could go either way, it all depends on the agreements in the marriage.
McCool Group
Alex Siebert, all alone.......

Us

2008-11-24T09:33:00.001-06:00

Race or Religion?

2008-11-24T09:19:00.009-06:00

Jews were determined by their backgrounds. They were traced all the way back to their grand parents and great grand parents. They were required to hand in paper work when the Nazis came to each town. They had to prove they were Aryan all the way back to 1750. It was said that later on the Jews were determined by their isolation in the ghettos.
It depends, if you say they you not a Christian there has to be a reason to why they would say something like that. Anyone can say they are or their not a Christian. Only God really knows if that person is truly a Christian or not. Being a Christian is your choice and your choice only. In our eyes to be Christian you should believe in God and practice the faith. The "Torah" forbids a Jewish man to marry a Gentile woman, and if he does, his children will not be Jewish. If the women is Jewish and she marries a Gentile man her children with be Jewish. Some of the survivors probably didn't even have homes to go back to anymore. Some might have went back but all of them didn't. In a way it probably did help them get stronger. After everything they were put through wouldn't that make you stronger as a person? We think if we were in their shoes it would be very hard to get over what we went through, but in the end you realize you made it and that has to make you a little bit stronger.

Resources:

http://www.holocaust-history.org/questions/definition.shtml

http://christianpolitics.today.com/2008/10/30/anyone-can-say-they-are-a-christian/

http://www.beingjewish.com/identity/whoisajew.html

McCool Group- Shelby E., Nikki W., Scott B., Mike M.

Once a Jew...

2008-11-24T09:16:00.005-06:00

Once someone in your family was a Jew, even if you didn’t believe, you were still a Jew. They also were prejudice, if you didn’t have blond hair and blue eyes they usually thought that you were Jewish. Abandoned, even if say your Jewish religion was abandoned, say your parents were Jewish, but you didn’t want to, well when it came down to it you were still considered a Jew. Even if you didn’t breath the Jewish life, breath the faith they did, you still lived with the Jewish life. You couldn’t run away from it, you couldn’t hide from it, if one of your parents were a Jew, you were one to. So to determine if they were a Jew, if your parents lived the religion or if your grandparents followed it, they put you as a Jew, they put you down as different.
To say that you aren’t a Christian, is to be scared of his power. If you were once a Christian and then when life is down we kind of just kick him to the curb. He never gives up on us, so why should we have room to? We think that if you were a Christian and then you give up, then it’s kind of a no. If you don’t want God in your life then you deny him. They abandoned him, even though he still accepts them, they gave up, why wait? Once faith is abandoned, life is done, there’s no one to praise no one to thank. So are you still a Christian if you don’t believe?
The torah forbids a Jewish woman to marry a gentile man, but if they do if they have children they are still Jewish. Now if a man marries a gentile woman and they have children they will not be Jewish.
Survivors, when life ends from a sight of hell, life stays in shock. It became a blur. Many of the survivors were homeless, wondering of where to go. They didn’t want to return to that part of home where families were taken property was lost and life ended. Who would want to return to the start of death?
Home, when home is where life ended, they didn’t want to return. It was what was left of a terrible memory. They didn’t want to return to where life was taken over by men who saw themselves as God, where hell became visible, where children were dogs. Where reality didn’t seem real, where it was so real that they could touch it. They didn’t want to touch that part of death anymore though, who would want to return to their grave that took everything?
The international community opened their arms to those children who didn’t want to look at soup, didn’t want to breath death anymore. They took in the Jews like orphans, they cared. In a way it was like a hug from God saying, that he cares and he always will.
McCool Group: Andrea, Lindee, Kyle, Brady

Resources: http://www.beingjewish.com

How did the Nazis determine if Someone is Jewish?

2008-11-21T10:18:00.004-06:00

As I read the posts from this morning, I see that the answer to the question of how the Nazis determined if someone was Jewish still eludes those who have tried to figure out the answer. It is a difficult question, but rather than having everyone continue to wrestle with the question, I am linking you to a source that accurately describes German law during the time of the Third Reich. Use this article to guide your group discussions.
The Concept "Jew" in Nazi German "Race" Legislation

answers to questions

2008-11-21T09:25:00.003-06:00

One way the Nazis determined if you were a Jew is if people had brown hair and brown eyes and where they lived. If they lived in a Jewish community then they where considered a Jew. Also, by their background like if they where born a Jew or had Jewish ancestors. If they converted to the Jewish religion they where taken to be a Jew.

No, because you can choose to be a Christian or not. It isn't something your born into like being a Jew or Catholic.

No he is not because the Torah says the only way the man can become Jewish is if he converts, he cannot marry a Jewish woman to become Jewish.
(http://www.beingjewish.com/)

Some Holocaust survivors returned home and others did not. Some didn't even have a home to go to anymore. Many Jews went to "Displaced Persons Camps" which became their new home. Also, many Jews moved to Great Britain, France, Canada, and America to start a new beginning. The international community helped them by opening their borders and allowing them to move to their country. (http://night2007.wikispaces.com/Aftermath+of+the+Holocaust?f=print

By:E-Dizzle, Chop Suey, and Ray-D-Ation, Ashtard

Home

2008-11-21T08:43:00.005-06:00

1. The Nazis determined whether or not a person was a Jew by official documents such as passports and other government issuances stating their race. Also, there were many all-Jewish communities in Poland and Germany.

2. Christianity is a religion, not a race. Someone who says they are not a Christian means that they are not a Christian. Christianity is strictly a religion, and those people who are Christians would never deny it.

3. If a Jewish woman marries a Gentile, the man wouldn't necessarily be a Jew. We think that the man would still be whatever he was before. Just because someone marries into a Jewish family doesn't mean that person has to share the same beliefs.

After the Holocaust, some of the survivors went home. Others probably tried to make a new life for themselves in other places. The Jews wouldn't have much left from their lives before the Holocaust. It would be really hard to go back to the same life, and bring back memories of how their lives used to be.

By: Elizabeth, Sam, Samantha, Taylor

A Fresh Start

2008-11-21T08:40:00.005-06:00

How did the Nazis determine if someone was Jewish?

Some of the Nazi leaders went to the Rabbi of the synagogues and told them to give them a list of all Jewish people who attended the temple.

If a Christian says they are not a Christian, are they still a Christian?

Through our groups faith we believe that if a Christian was to denounce Christ like that then they never were truly a Christian. For if you have true faith then through any circumstances you will be comfortable to say that you are a Chrsitian. For no Christian should fear anything including death as the Bible states.

If a Jewish woman marries a Gentile, is the man considered Jewish?

The man is not considered Jewish, if he is a Gentile that is married to a Jewish woman. However the children they have would be considered Jewish according to the Torah. The Torah states that the original and current Jewish definition of a born Jew is someone whose mother is Jewish. If a Jewish man marries a Gentile woman then the children born to them are not considered Jewish.

What happened to the survivors of the Holocaust? Did they return home? Why or why not? How did the international community help them?

They did not return to their previous home because most likely their home was inhabited by someone else. They currently had no home. For some Jews it was just to much to go back home. For most of them they just wanted a fresh start. They allowed them to immigrate to different countries.

A Big Thanks to All of Our Sources:

wiki.answers.com/Q/How_did_the_Nazis_know_if_you_were_Jewish

beingjewish.com/identity/whoisajew.html

NIV Study Bible/ And Coach Stokes for letting us borrow it.

Blog posted by: Tyler Abma, Ryan Morris, Jared Andrews, and Josh