An apocalyptical fall

The Fall of the Stars: From the Apocalypse to the Stigma of the Holocaust

In the Book of Revelation, the falling of the stars is a sign of cosmic disaster and divine judgment. "And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp" (Revelation 8:10). These apocalyptic images have been interpreted over the centuries as prefigurations of moral collapse and the humiliation of the innocent. Yet, in a troubling reading, the fallen stars become the supreme symbol of the suffering of Jews during World War II: the yellow star.

This emblem of hatred, sewn onto the chests of millions of people, was not a heavenly star, but an earthly one, imposed by men upon other men. Their fall was not cosmic, but a descent into the abyss of extermination camps. Each yellow star was a fallen star, a life burned in the ovens of history.

Today, the gestures of the descendants of those who wore the yellow star — survivors, children, or grandchildren — must be regarded with decency and understanding. It is abnormal for a person to leave prison or a monastery and be met with indifference or, worse, with the denial of the past. Discussions about "leaving prison" or "release from the monastery" become ridiculous when they are no longer connected to real suffering, but to sterile disputes over who has the right to speak in the name of the victims.

Christianity, wise as it is, has always spoken painful truths in parables. The parable of the fallen stars might sound like this: "A sower went out to sow stars in the sky, but the soldiers of darkness plucked them and sewed them onto the garments of the innocent." The interpretation of these parables does not belong to an immediate hierarchical "rule," but to the prolonged labor of theologians. Therefore, postponing any form of "church authority" over this meaning is not only prudent but necessary. Theologians must interpret in the silence of their studies, not in the clamor of pulpits.

The fall of the stars in Revelation is also the fall of the yellow stars. And the descendants of those who fell do not seek revenge, but decency. Anything else is a ridiculous discussion, which has no place in the paschal light of the Resurrection, but only in the shadow of parables not yet interpreted.

Signature : Signum L. O.-