Draft of a reflection on 'The Jews of Silence'

This letter, dated May 10, 1983, is addressed to 'Dear Friend,' identified in the text as Elie. The author discusses the 'psychological cost' of testimonies from the Ringelblum Archive losing their emotional depth, particularly the 'dirge sing-song' inherent in Yiddish expressions. The letter emphasizes the critical need to restore this 'lost dimension' to the originals, comparing it to a scribe restoring the splendor of charred Torah letters. The author appeals to Elie to lead this 'operative venture,' viewing it as a shared 'historic mission' to reinvest emotional pulse into the Ringelblum archival materials.

A letter from Rabbi Rafi Feuerstein to Mr. Wiesel, informing him of the passing of his father, Professor Reuven Feuerstein, on April 29, 2014. The letter highlights the similarities between Mr. Wiesel and Professor Feuerstein, both being Romanian Jews who survived the Holocaust and dedicated their lives to humanistic endeavors, touching thousands of people. Rabbi Feuerstein requests Mr. Wiesel to be the keynote speaker at his father's memorial service, which is planned for May 27th or 29th in Jerusalem, shortly before Shavuot and following the Shloshim period. The Feuerstein Institute offers to cover all travel and accommodation costs. The letter emphasizes the desire to honor Professor Feuerstein's life and work, recognizing him as a "giant of wisdom" and an embodiment of 'Tselem Elokim' (The Image of God).

This document is a two-day program (November 3-4, 2013) for a conference titled "Projet Colloque Elie WIESEL: 'De la France aux Etats-Unis: les stratégies du survivant'". The event was held at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and focused on the work of Elie Wiesel. The program lists Cyril Aslanov and Michaël de Saint-Cheron as conference directors, and details the schedule of sessions, including chairs and speakers. Presentations cover various aspects of Wiesel's oeuvre, such as translation of "Un di velt hot geshvign" to "La Nuit", biblical and Hasidic celebration, his dialogue with Mauriac and Lustiger, the question of Christianizing the Holocaust, "Les juifs du silence", and the function of insanity in his novels. Contributors include academics from institutions like Bar Ilan, Trinity University, Paris 7 – D. Diderot, and Universität Basel.

This document is a prologue by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Elie Wiesel, titled "To Our Children," extracted from his keynote address delivered on May 28, 1984, at the First International Conference of Children of Holocaust Survivors in New York City. The excerpts are published in the 2015 book "God, Faith and Identity from the Ashes," edited by Menachem Z. Rosensaft. Wiesel addresses the post-Holocaust generations, particularly the children of survivors, reflecting on the challenges of memory and conscience after the Holocaust. He draws parallels to the Talmudic legend of Rabbi Shimon ben Yohai and his son Rabbi Eleazar, who emerged from a cave to an unchanged world, to illustrate the disbelief and anger felt by survivors. Wiesel acknowledges the healing power of the younger generation's anger and their commitment to carrying forward the message of history and identity. He emphasizes the shared responsibility to learn from suffering, prevent its recurrence, and maintain the continuity of Jewish memory and identity, transforming pain into a commitment to heal the world.

In this interview with Der Spiegel, Elie Wiesel reflects on his experiences during the Holocaust and his views on post-war Germany and Israel. He expresses concern over Germany's initial forgetfulness of Kristallnacht during its 1990 unification celebrations but is pleased with the current sensitivity of German youth and Germany's consistent support for Israel. Wiesel discusses the concept of collective guilt, emphasizing individual responsibility over intergenerational blame. He recounts his early life in Sighet (then part of Hungary, now Romania), his deportation to Auschwitz in May 1944, and the separation from his family, detailing the inhumane conditions in Auschwitz, Birkenau, and Monowitz-Buna. He shares his father's suffering and death in Buchenwald, and his own struggle with faith and humanity following the atrocities, stating that his passion for study helped him maintain sanity. Wiesel describes the death march to Gleiwitz, the liberation of Buchenwald, and his subsequent career as a writer and activist. He stresses his role as a witness to the Holocaust and the importance of testimonies in preserving its memory, while expressing skepticism about docudramas that might distort the truth of such sensitive events.