Iona University/HHREC Annual Kristallnacht Commemoration

On November 9th and 10th in 1938, the Nazi Party spread a wave of violence throughout Germany, parts of Austria which were annexed, and an area of Czechoslovakia known as Sudetenland. Known as pogroms, these anti-Jewish riots plundered Jewish-owned businesses, homes and synagogues. For the first time, the Nazi party arrested individuals solely based on their ethnicity. An estimated 30,000 male Jews were arrested in the aftermath.

HHREC offers a Kristallnacht Commemoration every year in conjunction with Iona University.

In 2023, we offered a live event at Iona University, as over 150 people attended the lecture We Remember: A Reflection on the Shoah, a letter issued by the Vatican 25 years ago. The discussion was led by Dr. Mary Boys, Skinner and McAlpin Professor of Practical Theology at Union Theological Seminary, and Dr. Shuly Rubin Schwartz, Chancellor of the Jewish Theological Seminary. This annual event presented by Iona University and HHREC highlights the work of Jewish and Catholic scholars in an effort to illuminate the broader history of Jewish-Catholic relations and topics that bear on the understanding between the two faiths.

Past HHREC/Iona College Kristallnacht Events

2023