Jewish Polish current events
Encyclopedia
1989-present
With the fall of Communism in Poland, Jewish cultural, social, and religious life has been undergoing a revival. Many historical issues, especially related to World War II and the 1944-1989 period, suppressed by Communist censorship has been reevaluated and publicly discussed (see for example the Massacre in Jedwabne, the Koniuchy MassacreKoniuchy massacre
The Koniuchy massacre was a massacre of civilians carried out by a Soviet partisan unit along with a contingent of Jewish partisans under their command during the Second World War in the Polish village of Koniuchy on January 29, 1944.-Massacre:A small local self defence unit was created to defend...
, the Auschwitz cross
Auschwitz cross
The Auschwitz cross is a cross erected near the Auschwitz concentration camp. In 1979, the newly elected Polish Pope John Paul II said mass on the grounds of the Auschwitz II extermination camp to some 500,000 people. An 8.6 metre tall cross was erected there for the purpose, and removed after...
, and Polish-Jewish wartime relations in general).
Jewish religious life has been revived with the help of the Ronald Lauder
Ronald Lauder
Ronald Steven Lauder is a Jewish-American businessman, civic leader, philanthropist, and art collector. Forbes lists Lauder among the richest people of the world with an estimated net worth of $3.0 billion in 2007.-Life and career:...
Foundation, the Polish Jewish community employs two rabbis, operated a small network of Jewish schools and summer camps, and sustains several Jewish periodicals and book series events. In 1993 the Union of Jewish Religious Communities in Poland was established with the aim of organizing the religious and cultural life of the members of the communities in Poland.
Academic Jewish studies programs were established at Warsaw University and the Jagiellonian University
Jagiellonian University
The Jagiellonian University was established in 1364 by Casimir III the Great in Kazimierz . It is the oldest university in Poland, the second oldest university in Central Europe and one of the oldest universities in the world....
in Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
. Kraków became home to the Judaica Foundation http://www.judaica.pl/english/program_miesieczny.htm, which has sponsored a wide range of cultural and educational programs on Jewish themes for a predominantly Polish audience.
Poland was the first Communist Bloc country to recognize Israel again in 1986, and restored full relations in 1990. Government relations between Poland and Israel are steadily improving, resulting in the mutual visits of presidents and the ministers of foreign affairs. The Polish government will finance the construction of the Museum of the History of Polish Jews http://www.jewishmuseum.org.pl/start.html in Warsaw.
2000
In September 2000, dignitaries from Poland, Israel, the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and other countries (including Prince Hassan of Jordan) gathered in the city of Oświęcim
Oswiecim
Oświęcim is a town in the Lesser Poland province of southern Poland, situated west of Kraków, near the confluence of the rivers Vistula and Soła.- History :...
(the new Auschwitz camp) to commemorate the opening of the refurbished Chevra Lomdei Mishnayot synagogue and the Auschwitz Jewish Center
Auschwitz Jewish Center
The Oświęcim Synagogue, also called the Auschwitz Synagogue, is the only active synagogue in the town of Oświęcim, Poland. The formal as well as pre-war name of the synagogue is Khevre Loymdei Mishnayos...
. The synagogue, the sole synagogue in Oświęcim to survive World War II and an adjacent Jewish cultural and educational center, provide visitors a place to pray and to learn about the active pre–World War II Jewish community that existed in Oświęcim. The synagogue was the first communal property in the country to be returned to the Jewish community under the 1997 law allowing for restitution of Jewish communal property.
2001
In April 2001, during the 13th March of the LivingMarch of the Living
The March of the Living, is an annual educational program which brings students from around the world to Poland, where they explore the remnants of the Holocaust...
from Auschwitz to Birkenau to honor victims of the Holocaust, several hundred citizens joined 2,000 marchers from Israel and other countries. Government officials participating in the march included Members of Parliament, the province's governor, and Oświęcim's mayor and city council chairman. Schoolchildren, boy scouts, the Polish-Israeli Friendship Society http://www.israel-kolobrzeg.republika.pl/, and the Polish Union of Jewish Students (PUSZ) also participated in the march. In May 2001, several hundred students from around the world marched through the town in The March of Remembrance and Hope.
2002
In April 2002, during the 14th March of the Living http://www.motl.org/ from Auschwitz to Birkenau to honor victims of the Holocaust, several hundred citizens joined 1,500 marchers from Israel and other countries.Latest Jewish population estimates
In 2000, PolandPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
's Jewish population was estimated to have risen to somewhere between 30,000 and 55,000—mostly living in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, Wrocław, Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, and Bielsko-Biała
Bielsko-Biała
-Economy and Industry:Nowadays Bielsko-Biała is one of the best-developed parts of Poland. It was ranked 2nd best city for business in that country by Forbes. About 5% of people are unemployed . Bielsko-Biała is famous for its textile, machine-building, and especially automotive industry...
. With Poland joining the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
, a number of Israeli Jews are emigrating to Poland.
See also
- Nozyk SynagogueNozyk SynagogueThe Nożyk Synagogue is the only surviving prewar Jewish house of prayer in Warsaw, Poland. It was erected prior to 1902 and was restored after World War II...
- Jewish Culture Festival
- Timeline of Jewish Polish history
- History of the Jews in PolandHistory of the Jews in PolandThe history of the Jews in Poland dates back over a millennium. For centuries, Poland was home to the largest and most significant Jewish community in the world. Poland was the centre of Jewish culture thanks to a long period of statutory religious tolerance and social autonomy. This ended with the...
- History of the Jews in pre-18th-century Poland
- History of the Jews in 18th-century Poland
- History of the Jews in 19th-century Poland
- History of the Jews in 20th-century Poland
- Festival of Jewish Culture in WarsawFestival of Jewish Culture in WarsawFestival of Jewish Culture in Warsaw - "Singer's Warsaw" is an annual celebration of Jewish culture that has been held in Warsaw since 2004.The Festival includes Jewish theater, music, films, exhibits and expositions. It attempts to recreate Jewish culture from the period of interwar Poland,...