Part 24 (2/2)

The Law for the Protection of the Nation was created with the express purpose of limiting the Jewish minority; the main concept of the law is based on racialism.

At that time the Holy Synod informed the Government, that the principle of racialism cannot be justified from the point of view of the Christian doctrine, being contrary to the fundamental message of the Christian Church, in which all who believe in Jesus Christ are men and women of equal worth. 'There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus' (Gal. 3, 28).

The principle of racialism, according to which certain members of the community can be persecuted, restricted and deprived of their rights only because they belong to a certain race, in this case the Jewish race, cannot be justified from the standpoint of Christian ethics. Therefore the Church emphatically demands that the Law for the Protection of the Nation shall not be based mainly on the principles of racialism, but on those of spiritual wholeness and the protection of our people, so that it may safeguard them from those disintegrating influences which affect spiritual and religious values, and also from economic financial exploitation. <185> They did not listen to the voice of our Holy Synod. We now see, that the Law for the Protection of the Nation, nearly two years after its promulgation, instead of meeting its great task of safeguarding the Nation from damaging and disintegrating influences, and uniting its creative, healthy, spiritual and economic powers into a spiritual and moral unity, has turned into a means of restricting and persecuting the Jewish minority in our country.”

Christians of Jewish Origin

”Many times our Holy Synod has requested in writing the honourable Government, from the promulgation of the Law until to-day, to ease the restricting pa.s.sages of the Law against Christians of Jewish origin, and against the Jews in general.

Until now both the written requests and the interventions of the Holy Synod have remained unanswered.

Neither has any alleviation in the fate of the Jewish minority been granted.

The Christians of Jewish origin are still forced to wear the star with the six points, the symbol of the Jewish religion, and they pay taxes to the Jewish consistory; in fact this is a gross profanation of our holy Orthodox religion, in as much as they have been baptized and received into the Church, some of them long before there was any word at all about the Law for the Protection of the Nation. In spite of our repeated requests to exempt them - what insults they have to bear as Christians - there has been no alleviation whatsoever.”

The Jewish Minority

”Neither has there been any easing in the situation of the Jewish minority as a whole. Quite the contrary, restrictions are increasing daily. It has gone so far that these citizens of our country are deprived of the most elementary rights, and the Department for Jewish Affairs is free to do with them as it wishes; sending them to camps and deporting them from the country.

Our people, with soul and conscience, mind and conviction, cannot tolerate injustice, cruelty and violence against anybody. It cannot accept what is being done now to the Jewish minority. Its human and Christian conscience is perplexed.

The Holy Synod has also received requests from different quarters - from leading citizens who are outstanding Bulgarians, from well-known businessmen who love their fatherland, from Bulgarian mothers - to demand righteous and a humane treatment of the Jewish minority in the country. The Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Church cannot ignore its divine command and its holy duty.

It must, according to the teaching of the Gospel concerning love of one's neighbour, raise a compa.s.sionate and defending voice in aid of the suffering sand wronged people; it must beg, guide and convince, so that the measures in general against the Jews may cease or at least be eased.

G.o.d's law, which transcends all human laws, definitely obliges us not to be indifferent in the face of the sufferings of innocent people, of whatever race.

The majority of our people also place their relations.h.i.+p with the suffering Jewish minority on this biblical and humane foundation. <186> Understandably our Holy Synod, as we have already stressed in another letter to the honourable Government, does not deny the right of the Bulgarian authorities to preserve the security of the State and to take all steps to safeguard this security; to persecute, to restrict, to punish. But the Holy Synod is charged with the divine duty to remind the Government that these steps must be taken with justice and in a humane spirit, so that they may surely attain their aim and be effective and lasting for the protection of the State.

Until now, a historical line of justice and integrity has been the sure means for the protection of our people and our State. On these eternal foundations we also base our national and righteous demands, side along our hopes. The Bulgarian people as a whole has always, until now, been just and tolerant. Our nation, although it has suffered more than all the nations, does not love, nor tolerate, violence and cruelty We have this name and by it we are known amongst the other nations. We have realized our national aspirations, precisely because we knew they were just; and we wanted justice, both for ourselves and for others.

May we Bulgarians, who have longed so much for a fair and decent att.i.tude towards ourselves, now forsake our strongest weapon? The Bulgarian Orthodox Church fears that, if we destroy the eternal foundation - the right to live as free men and the divine commandment to be just - there no longer will be left to us, as a small people, any other strong support for our existence.

The Bulgarian State must, therefore, abide by these truths, and apply them to all its subjects, who are guiltless (except for the fact that they were born in Bulgaria, but not of Bulgarian parents). A divine command and divine justice cannot be disregarded.

The Holy Synod, meeting in the special session of April 2, of this year, has decided - after considering its deep concern for the honour and future of the Bulgarian people, and its responsibility before G.o.d - to inform you that the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, as a national and divine inst.i.tution, cannot agree to principles such as racialism, in which it is possible to foment hatred and to indulge in violence and cruelty. It cannot accept the principle that any race be deprived of the human right to live, since this right is in accordance with the fundamental principles of Christian religion and morality.

The Bulgarian Orthodox Church is of the opinion that she cannot deny help and protection to the persecuted and oppressed. If she were to refuse such help, she would be unfaithful to herself. In this case our Holy Church was asked for help, by the Jews as well as by Christian Bulgarians, in order to improve the fate of the Jews in general.

The Church does not deny and even especially stresses the duty and the right of the honourable Government to take the necessary steps to protect the people and the State from all dangers. However, she must stress the duty of the State to abide by the principles of justice and the Christian Gospel.”

Three Requests ”In consideration, therefore, the Holy Synod has decided to request you urgently: <187> 1. Not to deprive the Christians of Jewish origin and the Jews of our country in general of the elementary rights of human beings and of citizens; not to deprive them of the right to live in the country and of the possibility to work and to live as human beings.

2. The restricting decrees regarding the Jews must be both eased and not be enforced too strictly.

3. To cancel the unjustifiable obligation whereby Christians of Jewish origin wear both the Christian cross and the Jewish star, and whereby they pay taxes to the Jewish community.

The Bulgarian Church considers herself especially obliged to raise her voice for the protection of the Christians of Jewish origin, who have cut themselves off from the Jewish community and who have been received into the bosom of the Bulgarian Church.

She cannot accept that these Christians wear the symbol of the Jewish religion and that they pay taxes to the Jewish religious community, or that they be deported from their fatherland. In this case the Church cannot help but recall to mind the words of our Lord: 'and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again' (Matthew 7, 2), and with concern raise her voice in warning. We pray that G.o.d's blessing may be upon you, and fervently praying in the name of Jesus, we remain,...” [420]

Unfortunately, this Protest complained that ”Christians of Jewish origin are still forced to wear the star with the six points”, stating that ”this is a gross profanation of our holy Orthodox religion”. It also defended the Jews in general, stating that ”the principle of racialism cannot be justified from the point of view of the Christian doctrine, being contrary to the fundamental message of the Christian Church.”

However, much of the argumentation was still national, rather than religious.

Typical is the expression: ”The Holy Synod,... after considering its deep concern for the honour and future of the Bulgarian people, and its responsibility before G.o.d... (in that order!).

Absence of sound theology as regards the position of the Jewish people, combined with national considerations, is especially dangerous when one considers that (contrary to the case in Bulgaria) the national interest does not require to stand up for the persecuted Jews. <188>

After meetings had been held between the Metropolitan Stephan and Jewish businessmen, it was deemed essential to bring about a meeting between King Boris and the Holy Synod. However, the meeting did not take place immediately.

This moved the Metropolitan of Vidin, Neophyte, the Chairman of the Holy Synod, to appeal to members of his flock (and intentionally, wide publicity was given to this letter) expressing opposition to the anti-Jewish measures.

The Metropolitan Stephan, for his part, preached in the churches of Sofia, condemning the anti-Semitic policy of the Government and thus defending the Jews of his town.

”In that period, n.o.body in Bulgaria could compare with the higher clergy in courage. As a result of this outcry, the Government was compelled to arrange an audience between the King, the Cabinet and the higher clergy.

The meeting took place on April 15, 1943, in the royal palace in Sofia. King Boris, the Metropolitan Stephan, Neophyte, Kyril, the Prime Minister Filov and others partic.i.p.ated in the discussions in which the clergy defended the Jews with great courage.” [421]

In May, 1943, the Commissioner for Jewish Affairs, Belev, submitted to King Boris two alternate plans: one for the deportation of all Bulgarian Jews to Poland, the other for their evacuation to the country. The King chose the latter. The expulsion order was published on May 25. [422]

The Jews expelled from the cities were housed with Jewish families in the country and in schools. They were never deported from Bulgaria.

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