President Donald Trump has again been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. Before discussing the merits of this I would like to comment on a previous nominee for that award.
Irena Sendler
Irena Sendler was born in 1910 and died in May 2008 (aged 98) in Warsaw, Poland. She was a Catholic social worker who was in charge of the Children’s Division of the Polish underground movement.
Along with ten of her compatriots she rescued some 2500 Jewish children from the Warsaw ghetto. They were extracted in various ways ranging from moving through sewers to carrying them out in boxes or suitcases. Each time there was great risk to Irena and her co-workers..
The Nazis caught and imprisoned Irena. In an effort to discover details of the underground they tortured her. However, she did not reveal any useful information and they sentenced her to death by firing squad. That never happened, as she was rescued by members of the underground movement.
Deuteronomy 31:6 – Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.
Irena recorded the names of all the kids smuggled out. She put the list in a glass jar that she buried in her backyard. After the war she located the few surviving parents and reunited them with their children. But most of the parents had not survived the holocaust. Therefore, many children were placed into foster family homes or adopted.
Awards
| 1965 | The World Holocaust Remembrance Centre in Jerusalem recognised Irena as Righteous Among the Nations. A tree was planted in her honour. |
| 2003 | Awarded the Jan Karski Award “For Courage and Heart” by the American Center of Polish Culture in Washington, D.C. |
| 2003 | Recognised by the President of Poland and awarded the Order of the White Eagle, Poland’s highest civilian decoration. |
| 2003 | Irena received a letter of recognition from Pope John Paul II |
| 2006 | The first Irena Sendler Award was given in Warsaw. The award “For Making the World Better” is presented to teachers who inspire their students to act with tolerance and respect for others, and who demonstrate and promote those values in their community. |
| 2007 | Irena was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, however was not awarded the prize. |
Israel honoured Irena by issue of a postage stamp with her image. In Poland many public places and schools bear her name. Also, she is depicted there on murals, coins and postage stamps.
In 2009 a movie, ‘The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler’ was released. Also, in 2010 a book titled ‘Life in a Jar: The Irena Sendler Project’ was printed.
Life in a Jar
The title ‘Life in a Jar’ stems from a project given to three students in a Kansas high school. They worked together on the project to investigate historic events that taught respect and tolerance. At that time very little was known about Irena Sendler anywhere in the world.
The students brought Irena’s story to the world by producing in 1999 a play called “Life in a Jar.’ This highlighted her bravery and commitment to others during the war. The play, performed around the world hundreds of times, is an attempt to “Repair the World.”
Psalm 34:14 – Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.
The project to ‘Repair the World’ has been continued to this day. One of the students, Megan Stewart-Felt, has acted as Irena Sendler in over 370 of the ‘Life in a Jar’ performances.
Megan was a project founder. She said, “My life has been forever touched by her testimony for good winning out over evil. Irena was more than a close friend, she was a role model for my life.”
Nazis during the war
After declaring a state of emergency the Nazis under Adolf Hitler took over the control of the government agencies. They abolished all other political parties. Also, they used extensive propaganda to generate public support. As a result a true dictatorship was established. Hitler was a saviour figure in the eyes of the German people.
Hitler had asserted that democracy was destroying Germany by pandering to special interest groups. He was a strong leader and was someone able to unite and strengthen Germany. This was needed, as financial difficulties were extreme at that time. The public hope placed on his leadership was only natural after the Great Depression of the 1930’s.
In the typical pattern of all dictatorial regimes a common “enemy” was identified to galvanise the society behind their fascistic leader. It was for this reason that Jewish people were vilified and blamed for all of the societies ills. The Nazi’s implemented their genocidal “Final Solution” to deal with this perceived problem. This culminated in the holocaust with the death of six million Jews. Many homosexuals, disabled people and political opponents met a similar fate.
Adolf Hitler
Hitler was a self-obsessed person who lacked empathy, was hypercritical and quick to anger. A psychoanalytical evaluation of him stated that he was neurotic with narcissistic personality disorder, strong sexual perversions and a messiah complex. Does that sound familiar?
He came to power by convincing the German people that only he could save them. He was a great orator who convinced the people that they were facing enemies within Germany. Due to his divisive speech he created an us versus them mentality. The Nazi Party that he led caused division in the community and sought to spread its area of influence. Like most dictators Hitler sought to take over adjoining countries starting with Poland in 1939.
Do the characteristics of Hitler and the Nazi Party bear any similarity to what is happening in America today?
Hitler was also nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. An anti-fascist member of the Swedish parliament had made the nomination. It was withdrawn, however, as it was not intended to be taken seriously.. Also, World War II had started with the German invasion of Poland. For that reason a peace prize was not awarded in 1939..
Do you feel that Hitler should have received a peace prize?
If that question could be asked of Irena Sendler I am sure that I know what her answer would be. After all, she had witnessed the inhumanity of Hitler’s vision and knew that it was not a peaceful experience.
A familiar story
Members of Donald Trump’s family reported that he had a copy of Hitler’s speeches by his bed. He has certainly in his speeches used similar rhetoric to Hitler. Also, he has praised Hitler and expressed the same Nazi ideology and policies.
The current government in the “United” States of America is exhibiting the same characteristics as the Nazis in 1939. Donald Trump, the President, has expressed a strong connection and appreciation of dictatorial leaders like Vladimir Putin of Russia, Kim Jong Un of North Korea, Xi Jinping of China and Viktor Orban of Hungary. Fascism, however, has no place in America.
I will give Trump the benefit of the doubt about his motives. I am sure that he would like to be recognised as one who brought long-term peace to the world. He certainly believes that he is the only person who has the wisdom and the capability to achieve that aim.
It would of course be great to see an end to the Russia-Ukraine War. However, by aligning himself with Putin, who is the aggressor in that war, Trump is in my view taking the wrong stance.
Vladimir Putin is not acting in a peaceful manner towards Ukraine. Although I believe it is important for both sides in any conflict to understand each other’s point of view it is clear enough that Russia caused the war to erupt. For that reason it is hard to take the view that the closely aligned Trump and Putin should be seen as peaceful.
Now ask yourself whether Donald Trump should be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Proverbs 26:12 – Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.
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