Belgian Chareidi Representative Michel Freilich
In an in-depth interview held with HaRav Yitzchok Erenberg, one of the rabbonim in Germany and head of the Berlin Beis Din, we received a fascinating picture of what is going on in Germany and in Europe in general regarding Jewish-Moslem relations and of the development of the rise of fanatic rightist parties.
Rabbi Erenberg first related to the situation in Berlin: "It is very surprising that a large number of Jews voted for the extreme rightist party. The reason for this is that these parties are focusing on the Moslem issue. There is a great deal of disquiet about Moslems gaining control over Berlin, Germany and even Europe as a whole. There are entire neighborhoods in Berlin from which I would keep my distance. All the shops and signs there are only in Arabic."
The Rav continues with an anecdote: "A Syrian emigre who had been working for a German professor for several years, was asked by his boss why he didn't learn German. His amazing reply was: 'Just wait! In ten years, you [plural] will have to learn Arabic.' This expresses the general apprehension and fear prevalent here."
Rav Erenberg says that despite the apparent aversion of Jews to the extreme right which is associated with the Nazi party, "we will probably have no recourse but to join forces with the extreme Right in fighting Moslem control. We are suffering extensively here in Germany from this trend. I heard a politician on the radio claiming, 'We must acknowledge that Islam is part of Germany.' I wanted to say to him that before long, the opposite will be true: Germany will be part of Islam. And this phenomenon is prevalent throughout Europe, like a decline of a continent which was always Judeo-Christian in its population and through our stupidity, we opened the gates to Islam."
The question is if the extreme rightist parties constitute a threat to Jews. Rav Erenberg maintains that not at this stage. "They are actually very pro-Israel and pro-Jews, even more so than other parties. But in the long range, there is a threat. Nazis remain Nazis, no matter what. At the moment, however, there are no signs or sentiments [of this party] that are anti-Semitic."
The Rav, however, notes that anti-Semitism is certainly on the upswing throughout Europe and in Germany. "My office is swamped with requests for documents affirming Jewish descent in order for people to make aliya. The rich members of the community have been purchasing apartments in Israel. I personally have not encountered anti-Semitic acts except for one, with Moslems. Ever since then, I have been assigned a police bodyguard. But I do hear from many of my congregants that general relations have changed and that anti-Semitism is definitely on the upswing.
The Rav suggests that it were wise not to publicize every anti-Semitic act but, on the contrary, to encourage open relations and good propaganda such as inviting German students to visit our synagogues, to meet with a rabbi and to get to know live Judaism. "I even went as far as to suggest passing a law whereby students in elementary and high schools should be required to visit a synagogue at least once during their studies."
In summary, Rav Erenberg stresses again that "at the moment, there is no threat to Judaism in the rise of extreme rightist political parties. Their agenda is against Islam. Nor do I see any immediate danger to the existence of our kehillos — which are well supported through government budgets, and morally as well. The parties are very circumspect regarding Jews due to guilt feelings about the past. It would be very good if this trend and change in Europe would precisely be to the advantage of Judaism and Israel."
