Translated by Dough Groth


Invite you to a meeting

      IN THE DIRECTION 

OF RECONCILIATION         

Wilhelm Oder – SS Oberscharfurer in the Sipo and SD school in Rabka, a war criminal

 

Werner Oder – Son of Wihelm Oder and advocate for reconciliation between the perpetrators and victims of war crimes

Included in the meeting:

-multimedia presentation “The Dark Secrets of Villa Tereska”

-remarks by Werner Oder and his guest, Mark Goldfinger

-presentation of two historical displays made available by IPN

“Samaritan from Markowa” The Ulm family – Poles murdered for helping Jews

“The Righteous from the Nations of the World. Help for Jews from Polish people in Małopolska 1939-1945”

-showing of the film “Sunshine street” directed by Bronisława Dąbrowa-Kostka

Music group: Anna Dytko – keyboard, Daria Mamica – saxophone, Alina Jabłońska – violen

August 16, 2011 at 4 PM

Building I LO IM. E. Romera, Rabka Zdrój, John Paul II Street 41

Honorable Patron:
  

The Institute of National Remembrance

Rzeszów Branch Office
Kraków Branch Office


One of the basic principles of our world that all people recognize is balance. Balance between day and night, joy and sadness, life and death. We also have the understanding that all crime must be adequately punished. This basic understanding has often been ignored throughout man’s history. At the beginning of the twenty first century the wounds of WWII are still not healed. What took place then flies in the face of all moral principles. Those who were to bring the greatest destruction heard that the victors do not have to face justice and that there is not punishment adequate for the crimes that were committed. They had crossed all known barriers of terror and destruction. Even today many Nazi and Communist criminals have not yet been brought to justice. The guilty try to defend themselves by making the executioner equal with the victim, by minimizing the events, by escaping responsibility through a cover up of the facts.

A basic sense of decency, justice and righteousness is needed to break the curse of the circle of crime. To be able to build normal relationships between people again the past events need to be righteously judged and dealt with, events that are beyond our ability to understand. Werner Oder is one of those who are trying to deal with the unfinished business of the past. Where individuals and societies, as a whole, have tried to cover up or escape from the facts.

Pastor Werner Oder, the son of a former Nazi and war criminal Wilhelm Oder, carries the weight of his father’s guilt. Is he really an heir of his father’s guilt or another victim? His family relationships as well as the thoughtless justification of Nazism in Austria remind him that justice has not been done. He experienced, first hand, the evil that filled his father. Adolf Hitler was right (called by some “the genius of crime”) when he said that the perpetrators of the teachings of the Third Reich won’t be held fully responsible for their crimes. In any case, the moral balance must be restored, both consciously and subconsciously. Werner Oder wants to come to Rabka, the place of his father’s crimes, with a message of reconciliation.

“In the direction of reconciliation…” this is the title of the meeting to which Werner Oder wants to invite the people of Rabka. The meeting is being organized by the Cultural Avenue Association, the Rabka Baptist Church, a group of historians who are focusing on materials from WWII as well as the Rabka city counsel. The meeting will focus upon heading in the direction of reconciliation so that, when we reach the 70th anniversary of the end of the war crimes, we can open a new chapter in the relationships between the nations that were guilty and those that were victims. Time passes quickly and fewer and fewer people remain who were directly involved in these events but the thinking behind such a meeting shows that reconciliation is also needed for the following generations. Genuine reconciliation has to be based on truth about the past as well as wrong being brought to justice. Life must go on, freed from the evil that took such a terrible harvest at that time.

Jan Ceklarz
Cultural Avenue Association



                                                                                                                                 
foto Jan Ciepliński

The meeting was difficult to organize and, as time passed, more problems arose. At the beginning it seemed to us, the organizers, that its main message would be reconciliation in the context of the historical events. We were aware of how much it would mean to pastor Oder. Family heritage always has a huge effect on the course of our lives. Therefore pastor Oder’s attitude was very meaningful for us. Because a person is a spiritual being, he has to give expression to this through his actions. We use symbols to communicate the emotional and abstract areas of our thinking. We didn’t know what Werner Oder would want to say, but being aware of the events of his life (his family was also a victim of his father’s abuse) we didn’t expect the meeting to take the form of apologies. We assumed that Oder would focus on reminding us of the role of his country during the time of World War Two and of the heritage of Nazism that was never dealt with and of the world’s need to be free from such sinister ideology. And that’s what we heard.

The meeting caused lots of controversy both before and after in the form of personal conversation and in internet forums. The main criticism came in the form of questioning the reason for the meeting. Many asked why Oder is coming to Rabka and what does he want to say, since it wasn’t him that did the shooting and killing. Others said that it was probably about promoting his person and the Baptist church. Some emphasized that these actions are needed in Germany and Austria, where those groups of people should remember their own history and deal with it. One can only agree with the statement that Germans and Austrians need to remember the black period of their history and learn appropriate lessons for the future. I cannot really speak about the aims of the Rabka Baptist church, but they surely contributed a lot to organizing the meeting.

The emotions that were aroused by the meeting, as well as the many critical comments made show that the wounds of the Second World War are not yet healed. People have not forgotten the evil that was done. Questions about the relevance or need of such a meeting are really questions as to whether any meetings in the context of WWII are still needed at all. The meeting on August 16 answered those questions. The fact that more than 200 people showed up prove that such meetings are, in fact, relevant and needed. A large part of the audience were older people who were teenagers or children during WWII. It seems to me that they came because the crimes that were committed shouldn’t be forgotten and left undealt with. We need to give honor to the victims of these crimes, although the way of doing this is for each individual to decide. The historical setting of the meeting was important as the history of the SS school in “Tereska” and the events that took place there were remembered. Retired British police officer, Robert O’Neil, presented his book “The Rabka 4”, giving the account of four Nazi criminals who were active in Rabka. Werner Oder was surprised and pleased with the IPN exhibit highlighting the part many Poles played in rescuing Jews. His understanding of Polish-Jewish relationships was very stereotype. He said that anti-Semitism came to Poland together with Nazism and was re-enforced by the emptiness of communism. It was worthwhile discussing these things with him, so that he might better understand his own prejudices.

The main message of the meeting was; “In the direction of reconciliation…” This goal was realized. Werner spoke clearly about his father’s war crimes and the attitude of his family and country after the war. True reconciliation cannot be reached without a full disclosure of the truth. We should respect his attitude, knowing that he is an outcast in Austria as a result. Reconciliation requires at least two parties who want to relate to one another in peace in the future. Werner spoke about the continuing threat of Nazism or a similar totalitarianism. It can appear in various forms and always brings destruction. Werner’s life story illustrates what he said. Werner calls for an attitude of openness and mutual understanding, and, as his book is entitled, “Battling with the Demons of Nazism”.

Jan Ceklarz
Cultural Avenue Association


Part of the opening comments by Jan Ceklarz, president of Cultural Avenue Association at the meeting „In the Direction of Reconciliation”


...
Werner Oder asked the Rabka Baptist Church, here represented by Aleksander Matysiak, to organize a meeting and they asked us, Cultural Avenue Association, to help them. We couldn’t imagine speaking about the SS school in “Tereska” without the help of the group responsible for the History of Rabka blog. They have already done a very good treatment of the subject in the book The Dark Secrets of Villa Tereska. For this reason Grzegorz Moskal and Michał Rapta have also helped in the organization of the meeting. Werner Oder wanted to speak to the people of our city so it seemed logical for us to include the city officials in the meeting. The city counsel was very interested and helpful in organizing the meeting and it was good that Werner officially addressed the mayor of Rabka, Ewa Przybylo. Romer High School, where the meeting is now taking place, was also helpful in the organization. We are thankful for the help of the director, Marek Świder as well as Piotr Kolecki (the vice president of Cultural Avenue Association and professor at Romer High School) and many other people who they involved. Thank you to everyone. We also want to thank the music group; Anna Dydko, Daria Mamica, and Alina Jabłońska as well as the translator, Anna Mróz.

We are also very thankful to the Rzeszow and Krakow branches of The Institute of National Remembrance for providing exhibits, greetings to IPN representative, Mateusz Szpytma. The exhibits are large and heavy so we are thankful for help with transportation from the NZS 80 association and greet vice president Adam Kalita who is with us today. We also want to thank the BizBud company for help with the transportation
...

Photo ::: gallery


We prepare available IPN the big presentation of historical displays

“The Righteous from the Nations of the World. Help for Jews from Polish people in Małopolska 1939-1945”

 
More in  Gallery        


We recommend reading: 
:::>>
'My father the Nazi'     
(text sent by pastor Werner Oder )

 Herta Leithgob i Lisa Rodiger

:::>> Interview with Werner Oder 


Why did we (the Baptist Church in Rabka) invite Werner Oder to speak in Rabka?

The question has been raised; “Why did the Baptist Church of Rabka invite Werner Oder to speak to the people of Rabka? It is a good question to ask and we want to give a clear, honest answer.

We knew that Werner wanted to visit Rabka to have the opportunity to seek reconciliation with the people of Rabka for what his father did during WWII. We knew that this was extremely important to him and wanted to help make this possible.

We had another, even more important reason. We wanted the people of Rabka to think about the contrast between Werner and his father. His father came to Rabka as a man of death and destruction, Werner came as a man of peace and reconciliation. Why are they so different from each other? What makes the difference?

Werner himself has said that the difference began when he called out to God, as a young boy, for help. God began to change him from a person full of fear and hatred into a person full of courage and love for people, especially the Jews.

Werner and his dad are extreme examples of the difference Jesus Christ can make in someone’s life. He wants to do the same for each one of us. Maybe you aren’t a murderer like Werner’s dad was but we all have fallen short of God’s standards – we have all sinned. We all need to be transformed, as Werner was. Only God, through Jesus Christ, is able to do this.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2Cor.5:17)

 Dough Groth


Thank 

for help with organisation
of the meeting.