%PDF-1.7 1 0 obj << /Type /Catalog /Outlines 2 0 R /Pages 3 0 R >> endobj 2 0 obj << /Type /Outlines /Count 0 >> endobj 3 0 obj << /Type /Pages /Kids [6 0 R 20 0 R ] /Count 2 /Resources << /ProcSet 4 0 R /Font << /F1 8 0 R /F2 9 0 R /F3 10 0 R /F4 11 0 R /F5 12 0 R /F6 14 0 R >> /ExtGState << /GS1 15 0 R /GS2 16 0 R /GS3 17 0 R /GS4 18 0 R >> >> /MediaBox [0.000 0.000 612.000 792.000] >> endobj 4 0 obj [/PDF /Text ] endobj 5 0 obj << /Producer (dompdf 3.1.0 + CPDF) /CreationDate (D:20250904051918+00'00') /ModDate (D:20250904051918+00'00') >> endobj 6 0 obj << /Type /Page /MediaBox [0.000 0.000 612.000 792.000] /Parent 3 0 R /Contents 7 0 R >> endobj 7 0 obj << /Filter /FlateDecode /Length 1757 >> stream xWMs6W1Qi~K-I4ɤMkO{hzHM Q~F=-HEX<}XQ47lMMW?lnD>i%u$n&m{ݼ7+ʣ$N0=dI˶eW|Ce/x37bz-ùx*GsSv8J c5ru[)ﯬQZ^,~U nqq o=epl^]'X|V<]&Yl9 %%׭0GiG]*W.T(ܟ׃4kz'n ف+25^VF3ȚFOmj5sI;RC|^Di̿kGXA0WGNS%\xI6d86ipNf'(95Z=+],'EKC1P5as^v>g?ZDi F 188sflSj%N!*MX!/$O];aDJij,YFbףm2I]f:ųaUv!k75̩ ▄" Q7ʝX/$ #WΣ2!y  G(4-)q aXqZ AvKz  FF|xCAY? ]}++Sƈ$ѓo=&qcPuU 8lSz@ǐS l(bT9,VC) x|1>QwʶtũJtt4Ʈ=gƔ &m|| ؉3 @E!TFlpX` dp0Q9yR;_ב!e&qhQzÖPOx#Z.:ȥ,|Ǽo 1;峯g',}!=ij~n;aGؿ+! !N2i䬞~Ctsf%C>,Em~~r׼p/{߅Hjoٰ qFtzU`{5zlZ{5p +~Tdv *^sd=o,$)(C|Dw'G%$eHٞ%w;]]ʯX2ϗ[|?L=ن6;)6 pn,\ V3u19/Ϯt] 젌A4HdVA=Zk]4'h(M J.#5Q|Im5UoBjt4#%,B9xN϶n@:H1p\3:HX_F(NhFL{]Q#m}K3!Uա_?wd%:1[t^z@.;jCIi"2TZj'*e4`u㘏FVZ=Oͽci%<(?M-$6T 6,v/1xK b)˪',O2ctxsֆ:[h8eaS NW#rE4{1hOgC( E;Amu 2* v(  *N8 ^{9h!=r:rfdjk/@8+'o<$P&McE|A5T{f3*BCm&*ͣyWW/f"mGiģ,'Pl4,`s.`"?.8NUz?y endstream endobj 8 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F1 /BaseFont /Helvetica /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 9 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F2 /BaseFont /Times-Bold /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 10 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F3 /BaseFont /Times-Roman /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 11 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F4 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Bold /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 12 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F5 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Oblique /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 13 0 obj [6 0 R /Fit] endobj 14 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F6 /BaseFont /Times-Roman /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 15 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /CA 1 >> endobj 16 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /ca 1 >> endobj 17 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /CA 0.3 >> endobj 18 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /ca 0.3 >> endobj 19 0 obj [6 0 R /Fit] endobj 20 0 obj << /Type /Page /MediaBox [0.000 0.000 612.000 792.000] /Parent 3 0 R /Contents 21 0 R >> endobj 21 0 obj << /Filter /FlateDecode /Length 1174 >> stream xuVM6)MI,;]MM 1E-QaJTI* R$=EOQg5#я~us>5M4ǟy~u)4j9,OR:4D?yɁ|'QmQbX='i6=7ZMXי MCQ8o,?vRfjeB5>?/#4}lmE-#†im{ÖZQӓQT')K^}=7؋! g&r3!Gj!Q)`\b/>ʀ{37tL)v< /^ʝ{ת_vUPP37Pt|`zV@Kbd[Hw 9CUEJA*:DڇT6 A5Rk3Pf1C +-hpsǀX41b BBԜb6i5v2CphM%[q4+ee/`Yzl jG+2y537uHE?LG׵jUM'3f5 oIU(bcaf7U]ۘkG ; ʱ 43U+$87DkV Cheh+Lgż  @x4PN~5չSOd+wVTwO|4 ws|詵O!$rQ +>i\Y;#Rhj$|l I`/tZ$ewS  Iz rG~a(Ǐj"4/d#,r+? _V`(@iM̜e]_\y?gU_$ƶ*mlc[{z L˩mn}y *D_VfQ,8mM}m͛/x endstream endobj xref 0 22 0000000000 65535 f 0000000009 00000 n 0000000074 00000 n 0000000120 00000 n 0000000401 00000 n 0000000430 00000 n 0000000579 00000 n 0000000682 00000 n 0000002512 00000 n 0000002619 00000 n 0000002727 00000 n 0000002837 00000 n 0000002950 00000 n 0000003066 00000 n 0000003095 00000 n 0000003205 00000 n 0000003262 00000 n 0000003319 00000 n 0000003378 00000 n 0000003437 00000 n 0000003466 00000 n 0000003571 00000 n trailer << /Size 22 /Root 1 0 R /Info 5 0 R /ID[] >> startxref 4819 %%EOF The best and the worst | Caring Magazine
Read Caring Magazine Volume 29

Vol. #29

Hope in Action

Read Issue

Latest Impact StoriesView All

Popular Topics

PopularView All

The best and the worst

April 30, 2007
3 minute read
Total
0
Shares
0
0
0
Listen to this article

Sharper Focus

by Kelly Pontsler, Major – 

I have just returned from an extraordinary week in Poland. It was really great to catch up with colleagues and friends again, and see how God continues to lead the development of the Army’s work in that country. Two of our soldiers live in the town of Starachowice, which is situated about 80 miles from Warsaw. This return to Poland gave us an opportunity to make a brief visit to their community.

On the way, Colonel Vibeke Krommenhoek (team leader for Project Warsaw) arranged for us to visit the site of the Auschwitz concentration camp. Originally intended to be an extermination camp for Polish political prisoners, the Nazis seared its place into history by transforming it into a death camp for primarily Jewish people from all over Europe. It is estimated that at least 1.5 million people died in this camp.

The damp and gloom of the foggy day added to the historical ambience and hung heavily in the air as we entered the camp. The site is maintained as a state museum, in memory of those who lost their lives. Simple signs guided us through and indicated how each building had been used. The more we walked, the quieter we became.

Building 11 was known as the Death Block. It was a prison within a prison, and isolated from the rest of the camp. It stands adjacent to the Wall of Death, at which the SS (Nazi Schutzstaffel) shot thousands of prisoners. Cell 22 is in the basement, and contains four small cubicles barely large enough to hold four people standing together (about 3 feet by 3 feet). Prisoners undergoing special punishment were held here. Hours of forced labor were followed by hours of standing in these miniscule cells. There was no chance to rest or recover. Many dropped dead of sheer exhaustion.

As I stood in that room, I was completely speechless as I struggled to understand what could drive a person to inflict such agony on another person. And then my mind skipped back to an interview I heard a few weeks ago, with a group of ladies who had survived the atrocities in Rwanda.

When the fighting began, these women fled to the house of a local pastor to seek refuge. The only space he had to offer them was a small bathroom at the back of his house. Six women lived for many weeks in the cramped space, standing silently, as there was only room for two of them to sit at any one time. The pastor risked his life to offer these women a future, and his gesture saved their lives.

On the one hand, a small space reflecting the worst of what man can do to his fellow man; and on the other hand, a similar space representing the best of what a man can do for another. The thought took a split second to process, but will remain with me for a lifetime.
Growing up in the shadow of Auschwitz is difficult. Who would ever want to admit to being from such a place? Recognizing this, an essay competition was held some time ago, to encourage the local students to put into words
what it means to them. One young person wrote:
“…The past consists of many events, both good and bad ones, and in my opinion, we should be proud of the good and learn from the bad ones so as not to repeat the same mistakes twice…we should deepen our knowledge about the past, not only for ourselves but also for our children…” – Jadwiga Badura, student at Stanislaw Konarski Lyceum #1, OÊwi´cim (Auschwitz).

To say that I am grateful for the experience of that visit sounds enormously inappropriate. But I know that my knowledge and understanding about the past has deepened. May the Lord help me to use it well.

Download this page as a PDF

You May Also Like