Press & Commentary
Bryan Mark Rigg, PhD.
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Press & Commentary |
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07/01/05 |
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Press Releases
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November 2004 - Yale Book Uncovers the Story of a Jewish Leader’s astonishing Rescue by a Nazi SoldierWhen Hitler invaded Warsaw, the Rebbe Joseph Schneersohn, leader of the Lubavitcher Jews, was among the hundreds of thousands of civilians trapped in the besieged city. Surrounded by death, fire, starvation, and brutality, plagued by ill health, and a target for the SS, the Rebbe seemed unlikely to survive. But Schneersohn did escape from Europe, even as millions perished, thanks to one of the most amazing rescues of World War II. Rescued from the Reich: How One of Hitler’s Soldiers Saved the Lubavitcher Rebbe, to be published in November by Yale University Press, uncovers the true story of the rescue and of the secret collaboration between American officials and German military intelligence that made it possible. Bryan Mark Rigg, author of the seminal book Hitler’s Jewish Soldiers, makes vivid the treacherous journey to safety, the heroism and the moral weaknesses of the participants, and the impact of the rescue on the Lubavitchers, on Jews in America and abroad, and on the course of the war. With nuance and power, Rigg introduces the reader to Ernst Bloch, the Nazi officer who tracked down the hidden Rebbe in Warsaw and risked all to lead him and his followers to safety. Disfigured by battle wounds suffered in World War I, Bloch was a decorated career soldier and brilliant spy whose service to the German military earned him Aryan status, despite his Jewish father. Fiercely loyal to Germany but privately skeptical of Hitler, Bloch intimidated SS guards, concealed his human cargo from the Gestapo, and even played the role of Nazi brutalizer during the perilous escape through occupied Poland and Nazi Germany to Latvia. Rigg’s heart-stopping account of near catastrophe makes real the peril both Bloch and Schneersohn faced. Drawing on interviews and documentary research, Rigg also gives the reader a powerful sense of the Rebbe himself—his faith, his ideas, his terrifying experiences before and during the war, and his priorities for the Lubavitchers after his rescue. Rigg’s portrait reveals a man of unshakable dedication to the practice of his faith and to the survival of his movement. Although he initially worked hard to rescue Jews in Europe, efforts that were largely unsuccessful, he ultimately focused on convincing all Jews that the Holocaust was God’s punishment for their sins and that they should change their ways and become more observant. He emphasized that in this cruel time of history, God was giving them the signs of Redemption and that Jews should prepare themselves for the Messiah. A number of influential Americans—Senators, administration officials, Justice Louis Brandeis—used their power to make the almost unthinkable rescue of the Lubavitcher Rebbe possible. And the Lubavitchers in America lobbied tirelessly for their leader’s rescue. Rigg examines the complicated reasons why so much effort was expended by American officials to save a few individuals while the administration ignored the plight of ordinary Jews trapped in Europe and failed to hear the pleas of their American loved ones. He explores the reasons the rescued Rebbe focused most of his energies on the spiritual well-being of his flock in America rather than taking radical political action to push the government toward more liberal immigration policies. (In the Rebbe’s view, only God could change a situation for the better and Jews needed to keep this in mind.) And Rigg shows how very difficult each and every rescue was in a world of anti-semitic immigration bureaucrats, reluctant politicians, and detached citizens. The harrowing story this book tells is a reflection of the complexity of history, of human identity, and of morality. Rescued from the Reich shows us that individuals often defy the monolithic categories of good and evil. As we strive to understand and learn from the great disaster of the Holocaust, this book reminds us of the ambiguity and unpredictability of all human interactions, and of the importance of individual action in human history. For more information or to arrange an interview with the author, please contact Liz Pelton, 410-467-0989, lizpelton @ aol.com. Rescued from the Reich
Independant
Reviews: “The pious will surely see in the Lubavitcher
Rebbe’s rescue the hand of God, and view the German emissaries who
rescued him, led by a man of mixed Jewish ancestry, as angels
masquerading as devils. But historian Bryan Rigg has a very different
story to tell. Part detective story, part mystery. It is a story
of diplomacy and intelligence work, suspicions and mortal danger,
soldiers and civilians mobilized to rescue one prominent Jew and his
family from the heart of German-occupied Warsaw in the midst of the
Holocaust.”
“A revealing look at the intricacies of
diplomatic maneuverings and the complex, sometimes contradictory
motivations of human actors. He treats American Jewry's failure to save
more of their European brethren with the same care he uses to outline
the cracks in the Nazi military machine that permitted men of conscience
to act righteously, albeit at great personal risk.”
“Rigg is a master story teller and he is able to
convey seamlessly the complexities involved in snatching the Rebbe from
the jaws of the Nazis. The most impressive aspect of this assiduously
researched book is the author's obvious commitment to documenting the
true facts of the rescue mission.”
“Rigg shows how political lobbying, bureaucratic
opportunism, and the vagaries of Nazi administrative and racial policies
enabled the Rebbe's rescue from wartime Poland. A bizarre story, well
told.”
“Well-researched, unfailingly interesting, and
lucidly written. It is remarkable that someone from outside Chabad has
been able to write an inside story of Lubavitch?and to do it so well.”
“Rigg's innovative research reveals astonishing
inconsistencies in the conduct of American foreign policy, deepens the
mysteries surrounding the incongruous behavior of Hitler's spymaster,
Admiral Wilhelm Canaris, and raises troubling questions about the
subsequent reluctance of Jewish organizations, most notably Schneersohn
and his Lubavitchers, to agitate for the rescue of their coreligionists
in Hitler's Europe.”
“A thrilling tale of the rescue of the
Lubavitcher Rebbe as told by a master historian, after many years of
great research. We all owe a debt of gratitude to Bryan Rigg for his
masterful telling of the rescue of the Lubavitcher Rebbe from Poland in
World War II.”
“In Rescued from the Reich, Professor Rigg
explains the miraculous rescue of one of the world's most dynamic and
influential rabbis. Combining historical analysis and investigative
journalism, Rigg explores the mechanics of the German, Russian, and
American political intrigue during World War II. The extent of
diplomacy, political machinations and cooperation between warring
nations during one of the most calamitous periods of history in order to
save the life of a rabbi is astounding.”
“A fascinating, well-researched book involving
Hasidic history and the Holocaust. Bryan Rigg brings to life an
important story of Jewish survival and rescue that has too long remained
obscure.”
“Rescued from the Reich is a first-rate piece of
detective work. Bryan Rigg recounts in vivid detail the moral complexity
of Rebbe Schneersohn's rescue from the Nazis. An excellent book.”
“A meticulously researched book….It delineates
the primary mission [Schneersohn] set for his followers to strengthen
Jewish observance in the US even while the Holocaust was raging in
Europe.”
“Without Bryan Rigg's unfailing perseverance the
entire story would have been lost.”
“A fascinating book which not only sheds light
on a chapter of Lubavitch Hasidism but also adds to our knowledge of the
tragic period of the Jewish people during the Holocaust. Professor Rigg
has proved again that he is an excellent historian and a skillful
writer.”
An interview with Bryan Mark Rigg: Q: What makes the story of Rebbe Schneersohn's rescue from Warsaw so extraordinary? A: This is a unique case in which the American government collaborated with the Nazis to rescue one of the most ultra-orthodox Jewish rabbis in the world at the time. This story is about how these unlikely bedfellows came together to save some Jewish lives at a very particular point early in the war. A few months later this rescue almost certainly could not have occurred.
Q: For many years, the Lubavitchers had heard stories that the Rebbe was rescued by a German Jew. How did you uncover the facts to prove that this was true? A: The Lubavitchers had believed that Ernst Bloch, the leader of the rescue mission, was a Jew concealing himself in a German military uniform, or better yet, an angel sent by God to rescue their leader. Even the few history books that mention Bloch reveal little about his background. Working with archives and a great many interviews with family members, I was able to uncover story of Bloch’s Jewish ancestry—which was known to his supervisors in the military, and which was almost certainly part of the reason he was chosen for this mission.
Q: In what ways does this story make us rethink conventional wisdom about the Holocaust? A: It complicates our understanding of the Holocaust, both in American and European history. The American government, which was painfully intransigent on immigration policy during this period, was able to assist in rescuing Jews from Hitler’s Europe when pressed hard enough. More importantly, perhaps, this story complicates our understanding of the Third Reich. Bloch was surrounded by men like himself—partially Jewish, but serving proudly in the German military. They were secular for the most part—in fact, Bloch had recently been officially “aryanized” by Hitler—but they were by no means antisemitic. One of the things I try to understand in this book is how morally and emotionally complicated military service must have been for men like Bloch.
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This site was last updated 07/01/05