Poland’s Chief Rabbi Awarded for Services to War Veterans

Jerusalem, 25 March, 2025 (TPS-IL) -- The Chief Rabbi of Poland, Michael Schudrich, was honored with the Decoration for Services to Veterans and Former Political Prisoners in Warsaw on Tuesday. The ceremony took place during a meeting in connection with the National Day of Remembrance of Poles Saving Jews under German Occupation.

“There are those who do not see the need to help others, there are those who see such a need. However, Mr. Michael Schudrich, not only sees it, but also practices, helps and – I am convinced – will continue to help everyone in need,” said Czesław Lewandowski, president of the Main Board of the Association of Veterans of the Republic of Poland and Former Political Prisoners (ZKRPiBWP), decorating the Chief Rabbi of Poland.

Lewandowski also cited the Chief Rabbi’s involvement in cooperation with the veteran community.

Thanking for the distinction, Rabbi Schudrich emphasized that helping those in need cannot take into account either their origin or religion. “When Russia attacked Ukraine three years ago, I was asked whether we should direct our help only to Ukrainian Jews or to a wider group. At that time, I replied that we help everyone, regardless of nationality and religion. This is what we teach,” he noted.

The ceremony took place during a meeting organized by ZKRPiBWP in connection with the celebration of the National Day of Remembrance of Poles Saving Jews under German occupation. The meeting was attended by Righteous Among the Nations medal recipients, representatives of the families of people who hid Jews during World War II and organizations commemorating the victims of the Holocaust, as well as Poles saving Jews from the Holocaust.

Lewandowski, opening the meeting, recalled that although the Germans punished hiding Jews in occupied Poland with death, there was a large group of Poles who helped their Jewish fellow citizens. “As long as they are remembered, they will live among us,” Lewandowski said.

Said Schudrich, “People often ask what kind of man God wanted to create when he was carrying out his work. Then I answer: look at the Righteous Among the Nations. When God created man, he wanted him to be just like the Righteous were and are.”

To date, the title of Righteous Among the Nations has been awarded to 28,486 people from 51 countries, including 7,280 Poles (as of January 1, 2023). Righteous Among the Nations are people of non-Jewish origin who, during World War II, selflessly risked their lives, freedom, or position to help Jews persecuted by Nazi Germany.

The National Day of Remembrance of Poles Saving Jews under German Occupation – at the initiative of President Andrzej Duda – was established by the parliament in 2018 as an expression of respect for all Polish citizens – regardless of nationality – who helped Jews subjected to genocidal extermination by German occupiers.

The choice of the date refers to the day on which the Germans murdered the Ulma family in Markowa (today’s Podkarpackie Voivodeship). On March 24, 1944, Józef Ulma, his pregnant wife Wiktoria, their six minor children, as well as eight Jews from the Didner, Grünfeld and Goldman families who were hidden by a Polish family, lost their lives.