81st anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz – a place of crime, but also of holiness

Karol Darmoros

The historian emphasizes that the former German Nazi extermination camp is a place that, besides the immense cruelty, also shows humanity’s extraordinary will to live. On the 81st anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the world observes the International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Auschwitz as a symbol

Auschwitz-Birkenau – the largest German Nazi concentration and extermination camp – remains one of the most important reference points for 20th-century memory. As Dr. Mateusz Szpytma emphasizes, the memory of Auschwitz is extremely important not only in Poland but also worldwide, especially in Jewish communities. “Primarily Jews were exterminated in the camp, but also Poles, Roma, and Soviet prisoners of war,” says the historian, adding that deportations covered almost all of occupied Europe, as well as countries that did not directly experience German terror.

Crime and Response

The Vice-President of the IPN draws attention to the special spiritual dimension of Auschwitz. “It is not only the site of the greatest known crime in world history, but it is also a place where many saints were born,” he says. He points to the testimony of faith and love given there by, among others, St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe and St. Edith Stein.

A Memento for Humanity

For Dr. Szpytma, Auschwitz also remains a warning of universal significance. “It is a memento that evil can be born in a place, in a country, that for centuries was one of the most important in culture,” he emphasizes. At the same time, he notes that in this history, one can see a response to evil in the form of good and heroism. The anniversary of the camp’s liberation reminds us that memory is not just a look into the past. As the Vice-President of the IPN points out, by learning the fates of prisoners who survived the Holocaust and passed through German camps, it is clear that their will to live is so great that “it overcomes even something like Auschwitz.”