The minyan standing at the military cemetery in the Normandy region of France was excited. It was a chilling moment. The cross that stood over the grave of the Jewish soldier was lifted and a pillar with a Star of David at the top was placed in its place. The next Kaddish was recited with great excitement and with a sense of relief and joy.
Buried in this cemetery are thousands of American soldiers, who were among the 150,000 Allied soldiers who invaded Normandy in the Great Invasion, seventy-five years ago, a move that opened a second front in the war against Germany and marked the beginning of the end of Nazi Germany.
Exceptional approval from Washington
The modest ceremony concluded months of litigation with the US authorities, who at the time took ownership of the cemetery from France. It all began after a request from the soldier's Jewish family, who asked to replace the cross with a Jewish symbol. Officials at Yeshiva University and the American military rabbi, Yaakov Schechter, worked in Washington to promote the decision to grant the unusual permit.
Among the participants in the moving event was Rabbi Shmuel Levin, a Chabad emissary in the city of Caen, one of the most important cities in the Normandy region. When we spoke with him last week, the streets of his city were blocked, due to the ceremony marking the 75th anniversary of the invasion, with the participation of world leaders, including the president of the United States.
Mapping the Jewish Graves
Rabbi Levin, who brought the Jewish minyan with him, relates: "You stand there and feel shivering. I thought about the last minutes of the Jewish soldier. What he went through. One can only imagine what joy his soul has after the tombstone and the prayers are replaced."
There are about 30 cemeteries in the region of soldiers from various countries who fought the Nazis. "We conducted an accurate mapping of the Jews buried in those cemeteries," says Rabbi Levin. "There are 22 Jews in the British cemetery, 36 Jews in the Canadian cemetery, and 150 Jews in the American cemetery."
Chesed of Truth
As part of his activity with the Jewish tourists who come to the site, he takes them to the graves of the Jewish soldiers, where he says Kaddish and suggests that they put on tefillin in memory of the martyrs. To the women, his wife gives Shabbat candles. "Not long ago I brought dozens of children to recite Psalms on the graves of Jewish soldiers. It's a true kindness," he says.
According to him, he often sees distinctly Jewish names on graves marked with crosses. "There were Jewish soldiers who were afraid that they would fall into the hands of the Nazis and chose not to mention the fact of their Jewishness. We are working to locate their families, and if it turns out that the family is Jewish, we instruct the family members to take action to repair the tombstone. When I know of a Jewish soldier buried under a cross, it hurts me every time," says Rabbi Levin.
"The least we can do for them is to commemorate that they are Jews and to recite from time to time chapters of Psalms and Kaddish on their graves, for the elevation of their souls."
