Pesach

Customs

Since Yom HaSho’a is a quite recent event, there are very few customs that have taken root everywhere to commemorate this very sad day. In Israel a siren is sounded. In some communities there are touching memorial services, in which people sing songs recalling the Sho”a and read poems and personal accounts by people who lived through it. Sometimes survivors describe their experiences, while often people take turns reading the names of some of the victims. It is impossible to read all the names; there are so many that it would take years and years. It would be like reading the phone book dozens of times or naming all the people in your city or province. At most services, the people also recite the Yizkor prayer commemorating the dead, or the Kaddish. There may be slides or brief films, describing the events that took place, or simple artwork by children giving their own impressions of the Holocaust.

Only time will tell how Yom HaSho’a will be observed in the future. All that is certain is that it will be observed. As a great Jewish scholar and survivor of the Holocaust said: as Jews, we now have an additional commandment - Never Forget.