The Righteous Among Nations is an award conferred by Yad Vashem, Israel’s official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, on behalf of the State of Israel. The award is given to non-Jews for saving Jews during the Holocaust. Over 22,000 individuals from 44 countries have been recognized.
Righteous Among Nations Recognition Criteria
Many humane and decent people helped Jews during the Holocaust. These individuals acted out of their own deep humanity to aid fellow human beings despite the prevailing attitude towards Jews that ranged from indifference to virulent anti-Semitism. To determine which individuals are eligible from this group of benevolent non-Jews for special recognition as Righteous Among Nations, four specific criteria are used.
The first criteria for recognition as Righteous Among Nations is that an individual had to have been actively involved in saving one or more Jews from being persecuted by the Nazis and deported to concentration or death camps.
The second criteria for recognition is that the individual’s life, liberty, or position must have been in danger while he or she was attempting to save Jews. In other words, there must have been significant risk to the individual.
The third criteria for recognition is that the individual had to have acted out of an altruistic desire to help and protect Jews. An individual motivated by promise of monetary gain, a desire to convert a Jew to another religion, or the goal of adopting a Jewish child does not qualify for recognition.
The fourth criteria for recognition is that evidence to verify that the first three criteria for the special title Righteous Among Nations were met. This evidence could be in the form of testimony of Jews who were aided by the non-Jewish individual or documentation, such as diary entries or correspondence between individuals, that corroborates the circumstances.
An individual can be recognized as Righteous Among Nations while still living or after death.
Righteous Among Nations Award
An individual given the Righteous Among Nations title receives several honors. He or she is awarded a medal and certificate of honor, and his or her name is added to the Wall of Honor in the Garden of the Righteous at Yad Vashem, which is located in Jerusalem. The person is also given honorary Israeli citizenship.
State of Israel Recognizes Great Sacrifices of Non-Jews to Save Jews
The Righteous Among Nations recognition is the highest honor the State of Israel confers upon non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust. The title, which is given by the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, recognizes courageous non-Jewish individuals from around the world who acted out of an extraordinary sense of decency, morality, and humanity to save their fellow human beings, despite their differences in religion and culture, from the brutality of the Nazis during the Holocaust, the darkest chapter in Jewish history.
Source:
YadVashem.org, Yad Vashem
Aimee Larsen Stoddard - Aimee is a professional writer/editor. She has a BA in English and is currently completing an MS in Theology.
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