There is in Israel today an organization called Yad Vashem. Its mission is to preserve the memory of those killed in the holocaust. Among its many projects, Yad Vashem has collected  stories of those non-Jewish people who risked their lives and the well-being of their families in the effort to rescue Jews from the Nazi authorities. These heroic people are referred to as the Righteous Among the Nations and to date there are about 18,000 men and women who have been given that title.

One such group of righteous people were the residents of Le Chambon, France. Organized by their pastor, Andre Trocme, the people of Le Chambon took in countless Jewish refugees from all over Europe. Pastor Trocme wrote in February, 1943:

“…in the course of the summer we have been able to help about sixty Jewish refugees in our own home; we have hidden them, fed them, plucked them out of deportation groups, and often we have taken them to a safe country You can imagine what struggles—with the authorities—what real dangers this means for us: threats of arrest, submitting to long interrogations…”

 Hanne Liebmann was one of those Jewish people who was saved by the good people of Le Chambon. She wrote:

“We came to Le Chambon, and we were received very wonderfully with a good meal, with stuff we hadn’t seen in a long, long time.. . . When the French came to round up Jewish people in August-September, 1942. we were hidden by farmers, they took care of us, they protected us. I don’t think any of them were ever reimbursed. And food actually was very tight….Le Chambon was a very poor farming village, nothing much grows; so whatever they had, they shared with us. And if you are a family with small children and you take in one or two more mouths to feed, it is a sacrifice. And they didn’t mind sacrificing, or even putting their lives at risk for us…”

 But why would these French Christian people give away their resources, share their scarce food, and defy the governmental authorities to do what they did? Magda Trocme, the pastor’s wife, explained why the people of her community risked their lives to protect the Jews:

“Those of us who received the first Jews did what we thought had to be done—nothing more complicated… How could we refuse them?… The issue was. Do you think we are all brothers or not? Do you think it is unjust to turn in the Jews or not? Then let us try to help!”

Andre Trocme, the pastor in Le Chambon, told the authorities when they came looking for the Jews, “We do not know what a Jew is. We know only men.”

And so the people of Le Chambon took a stand and saved some 5,000 lives. Their names now are inscribed alongside other heroic souls in the list of the Righteous Among the Nations.

POSTSCRIPT:

I told this story in a sermon preached in October, 2008. During the service I noticed a couple visiting our church for the first time. Seated near the front row, the couple seemed uncomfortable, especially during the sermon. When Communion was served, they did not participate. I wondered if I had somehow offended them.

After the service I greeted the couple at the door. I welcomed them and asked what brought them to our church that day. They told me that a close friend of theirs was in our bell choir which played at that service. They had come to hear her play. They had never heard a bell choir before.

Then the woman said:

“The service was very moving for us. You see, we are Jewish. When you told the story of Le Chambon we felt overwhelmed with emotion. You see, our family was one of those families that was saved by the people of Le Chambon.”

Coincidence?

Or “Godincidence?”