Rabbi Aaron Milevsky
Chevron 1928 & Jerusalem 1979
As I type the word “Humanity” into the Google search box, I wonder what information sites and encyclopedias will be the first to appear, describing exactly what humanity is. It is not surprising that the first organization that appears on the list is “The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity”. The person who witnessed firsthand what can happen to humanity is on the forefront of the battle to return humanity to the planet. However, one’s definition of “Human” will characterize one’s attitude towards life and define what one considers right and wrong.
For a student of the Social Darwinist thought, for example, the broad definition of “Human” is not enough to prevent a superior race from exterminating the inferior one. French anthropologist Vacher Delafouge, addressing the thinking of natural law, wrote in the 1880s, “I am convinced that in the course of the next century millions of people will kill each other because of a one-degree difference in their skull-index.”[1]
On the other hand, one who believes in a Divine Being understands that human existence is not a coincidence. The believer in G-d recognizes that the complex physical creature known as man is imbued with a soul and, thus, with holiness. Humanity, for the believer, is the understanding that every single human being is significant to G-d and, as a result, must be important to man.
This paper will explore the journey of a group of people who were lucky enough to escape the inhumane world of the Nazi war machine. These people survived because of other humans, who gave all for what they understood to be right.
For the Jews of Europe, the notion of a pogrom or expulsion was nothing new. From the Crusades to the Cossacks and Bogdan Chmielnicki, the Jew accepted the fact that he is in exile, and that persecution is a part of life. The age of Enlightenment gave hope to some, but for those Jews who understood their role in the world, Europe would never be a true home for the wandering Jew.
When an anti-Semitic leader would come to power and terrorize the chosen people, the Jew would bring to mind the words he read at the Passover Seder; “In every generation there are individuals who want do destroy us, but the Blessed Be He saves us.” In other words, “And this, too, shall pass away.” Jewish leaders would always try to placate the anti-Semitic chief with the objective of minimizing the brunt of the decree. The approach of the Jew of Germany in 1933 was no different. The attitude of the majority of Jews did not change during the first three years of Nazi rule.[2] In fact, Yechiel Yaakov Weinberg, a leading Orthodox Rabbi in prewar Berlin, sent a personal letter to Hitler praising him for cracking down on the godless Communists.[3] However, some did sense that this new anti-Semitic wave was different. During April of 1933, Hillel Mannes, a graduate student in the University in Berlin, arrived one day and found a notice posted at the door of the registrar’s office: ”Dogs and Jews cannot register.” He immediately left Germany to Lithuania.
Mannes’ departure from Germany, to a country that was not under Nazi rule, indicates the mindset of the European Jews outside of Germany in the early years of Hitler’s reign. The common thought of the European Jew was, that although our Jewish brethren in Germany are going through a difficult period, we are safe. Few Jews outside of Germany felt an urgent need to depart from Europe. The sizable minority that emigrated in a wave of panic in 1933 was a limited German experience.[4]
One of the few exceptions to this general outlook was a Lithuanian Rabbi by the name of Aaron Milevsky, who sensed the dark clouds of Hitler spreading over the continent and left his pulpit in Alitus, Lithuania, to serve as a Rabbi in Montevideo, Uruguay.[5] As we shall see later, Milevsky played a key role in the relief provided to the European refugees that were detained in Shanghai during the war years.
The fate of the Eastern European Jews drastically changed with the invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939. By September 17, in accordance with the Molotov-Ribbentrop treaty, the Soviet army invaded Poland from the East.[6]
As Jews in the western part of Poland were learning first hand of the brutality of the SS, their brethren to the East were suffering under Soviet control. One of the first items on the Communist agenda was the shutting down of all Yeshivot. The students of the rabbinical seminaries were advised to leave. Vilna, which was, at the time, under independent Lithuanian control, became a center for many of the Yeshivot.[7] The Great torah luminary and leader of the Vilna community Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinski (1863-1940) advised everyone to leave eastern Poland immediately, even on the Jewish Sabbath, due to the concern that the border would soon be closed and it would be impossible to leave Russia.[8]
The Vilna community took on the enormous task of helping the refugees. As the conditions worsened, the community sought help from the United States. In addition to seeking out the financial assistance that was needed for day to day survival, relief organizations focused their attention on figuring out a way to get the Jews out of Lithuania. Although Lithuania was independent at that time, many believed that this was a temporary situation and that either Germany or Russia would soon invade.[9]
In the September edition of the American Jewish Orthodox monthly, “Hapardes”, we find the following urgent plea for the rescue of the Mirrer Yeshiva:
“The war that befell Poland in September 1939 struck also the great Torah centers of Poland. The Mirrer Yeshiva, with its more than 400 scholars was compelled to flee. But they stayed in Vilna only a short time. They felt that sooner or later, that country would come under the control of Soviet Russia, and they felt most certainly that they could not exist as a Yeshiva under the Soviets and it was decided to transfer the Yeshiva first to Japan and then to whence visas could be obtained.”
Clearly, the refugees and other Jews in Lithuania were in a desperate search for a way to get out. However, several requirements and, in most cases, obstacles prevented the majority of Jews from departing. The first requirement to begin the process of leaving Eastern Europe was an entry permit or Visa to another country. Unfortunately, with the quotas set in the United States, and the British limiting the number of Jews allowed into Palestine, very few, if any, options existed for the desperate Jews.
One of the options that eventually helped to save numerous refugees was the Curacao Visa. Nathan Gutwirth, a student of the Talmudic college of Telshe Lithuania, was a Dutch national. Gutwirth requested from the Dutch Ambassador in Riga to go to Curacao, which was part of the Dutch West Indies. When his friends in the Mirrer Yeshiva expressed their desire to utilize this exit route, Gutwirth appealed again to the Dutch Ambassador in Riga to stamp his friends’ passports with a visa to Curacao. The Ambassador explained that “No visa to Curacao was required but a landing permit could only be granted by the Governor of Curacao”. Gutwirth then asked to stamp his friends’ passport with only the first half of the phrase i.e. “No visa to Curacao was required”. The Ambassador, fully aware of this life saving device, authorized the Dutch Consul in Kovno, J. Zwareendjik, to do this for Gutwirth’s friends and soon the entire faculty and student body of the Mirrer Yeshiva obtained Curacao end visas.[10]
However, the Soviets would not grant any exit visas, even to those who were given end visas by the Ambassador. They insisted on seeing a document from a neighboring country that gave permission for the individual to travel through. Being that the Western front was at war, the only option was to travel east, via Japan. The Japanese knew that the Curacao end visas were worthless and, as a policy, would not grant transfer visas. [11] Fortunately an “angel of salvation” appeared and thousands of Jews were saved.
Senpo Sugihara, a Japanese diplomat, was sent to Kovno by the Japanese Ambassador to Berlin in order to ascertain more fully German moves on the Eastern front. Sugihara recognized the dire situation of the Jewish refugees, and his compassion for them made him issue Japanese transit visas, in direct violation of his orders from Tokyo. Sugihara continued to hand-write visas until September 4, when he had to leave his post before the consulate was closed. By that time he had granted over 3500 visas. He was still writing visas while in transit in a hotel and after boarding the train, throwing visas into the crowd of desperate refugees out the train's window even as the train pulled away.[12]
With Curacao end visas and Japanese transit visas in hand, the Mirrer Yeshiva refugees were granted permission from the Russians to leave Lithuania. After traveling for 11 days across Siberia, they reached Vladivostok, where they boarded a tramp steamer, which was overcrowded with 550 refugees. The group eventually arrived in Kobe, Japan.
Amidst the many challenges of visas, affidavits and the search for a new home, the Mirrer students were concerned with a rather interesting Halachic problem: Where is the Halachic International Date Line? A difference of opinion existed among Jewish scholars as to the proper location. According to some authorities, it was 180 degrees east of Jerusalem, and thus east of Japan. Others alleged that the line was to the West. Due to the severity of the issue, many observed the Jewish Sabbath for two days. However, this was not a practical solution for the Day of Atonement, when Jews are required to fast for a complete twenty-four hour period. Fasting for forty eight hours was not an option.[13]
The primary concern of the refugees was to find a country that would receive them at a time when more and more countries were tightening, rather than relaxing, their restrictions. To add to the existing sense of insecurity, there was a constant fear that the temporary visas would be denied extension. Luckily, a righteous gentile by the name of Setzuso Kotsuji was there to help.
Setzuso Kotsuji was born into an aristocratic Japanese family. His father, a prominent Shinto priest, descended from a long line of well known priests. At a young age, Setzuso visited an antique bookshop in which he discovered a Tanach, the Hebrew Bible, which had been translated into Japanese. In 1937, he published his first book in Japanese on Hebrew language and grammar. At that time, he also founded the Tanach and Hebrew Department at the Tokyo University. This department attracted many students. Quite rapidly, Professor Kotsuji gained acclaim in Japan as a scholar and thinker of repute. He was also highly esteemed in government circles, where he made many friends. He would subsequently utilize these connections to help the Jewish refugees. For purely humanitarian reasons, Professor Kotsuji became involved in the refugees' problems and made vigorous efforts to have their visas extended. To achieve this, he utilized his friendship with Japan's Foreign Affairs minister. As a result of Professor Kotsuji's intervention, the Japanese authorities agreed to extend the refugees' visas several times, letting them stay for eight months instead of the original two-week period.[14]
With no other country willing to take the Jews, there was one option left for the refugees: Shanghai. The choice of Shanghai as a potential haven was dictated not only by geographic proximity, but also by necessity. The international settlement of the city, which was governed by a municipal council made up of representatives of the foreign powers that had extraterritorial rights in the Chinese port, made Shanghai one of the only places in the world where Jews could still obtain entry. Moreover, there was an affluent and influential local Jewish community which could provide assistance in obtaining the necessary documents. While its resources had been strained by the recent influx of approximately 17 000 Jewish refugees from Central Europe, Shanghai still had various community leaders who were willing to help bring in additional refugees.[15]
Although Shanghai carried the reputation of being a “hellhole”, several Jewish organizations and individuals contacted Rabbi Mayer Ashkenazi, the spiritual leader of the local East European Jewish community in Shanghai, and enlisted his assistance to obtain entry permits.
Toward the end of March 1941, word was received in Japan that another group of Polish refugee rabbis and Yeshiva students were in extreme distress. They had arrived in Vladivostok on their way to Japan but had been detained by the Russians. The majority possessed end visas to Curacao. However, by that time, it was clear to the Japanese authorities that the people with Curacao visas were not headed for the West Indies. The Japanese, therefore, barred the entry of any refugees who did not posses valid end visas. The Russians, in the meantime, had informed the refugees in Vladivostok that they would not be allowed to remain there indefinitely.[16]
Among the refugees in Vladivostok was Hillel Mannes. Mannes, aware of the fact that Shanghai was the only option, sent an S.O.S cable to Shanghai for help. On March 24, 1941 he received the following reply: “Very difficult to obtain permits.” In his manuscript, Mannes writes, “Then I cabled Rabbi Ashkenazi, the Rov of Shanghai, and to his right-hand man, Yosef Tugenhaft, a talmid (rabbinical student) of my father, whose address he had given me. He asked Rabbi Ashkenazi to find some way to help us.”[17]
On April 7, 1941, Ashkenazi obtained the entry permits and cabled the information to Vladivostok. The only problem, which proved to be quite difficult, was transportation from Vladivostok to Shanghai. There were no direct sailings from Vladivostok to Shanghai scheduled for the next two months. The Russians, in the meantime, were adamant that a solution must be found and would not allow the refugees to remain in Vladivostok indefinitely.
Eventually the good news arrived. Mannes records that, “A cable came from Shanghai the seventh day of Pesach (Passover) that a coalboat would pass Vladivostok on its way to Shanghai and that we may board it on Mozoei Yom Tov (day after the holiday). Such stopovers happen once or twice a year. We said it was a Ness (miracle) at the right time. We had overstayed our welcome in Vladivostok. Can you imagine our emotions saying Hallel on Pesach! Our hearts were full with gratitude to Hashem for taking us out to Cheiruss (freedom).”[18] The group of 47 people left Vladivostok on May 1st 1941 on a boat called Artica, and arrived three days later in Shanghai.
Rabbi Ashkenazi and the local refugee leaders continued their efforts to obtain additional permits for the Mirrer group in Kobe and for the rabbis and Yeshiva students that still remained in Lithuania. Their campaign included negotiations with the local Japanese authorities and the Municipal Council of the International Settlement.
Unfortunately, the Shanghai permits rescue project did not succeed in saving the Jews trapped in Lithuania. However, it did lay the groundwork for the relocation of the refugee Torah scholars stranded in Japan to Shanghai, a step that ultimately helped ensure their survival.[19]
After their prolonged sojourn in Japan, approximately 900 Polish refugees finally arrived in Shanghai in the fall of 1941. The first project for the newly arrived group was the establishment of a separate relief organization. Financial aid was provided to all refugees by the Committee for the Assistance of European Jewish Refugees in Shanghai (CFA) with funds provided by overseas Jewish relief agencies, such as the Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) in the United States. The newcomers, who were temporarily housed in an old synagogue, experienced very difficult conditions and needed additional funding. They consequently established The Committee for Assistance of Jewish Refugees from Eastern Europe (Jewcom).[20]
The level of assistance that the refugees were receiving was not sufficient for the refugee scholars. In a telegram sent to Rabbi Silver of The Vaad Hahatzala in New York, Rabbi Chaim Schmulewicz, Dean of the Mirrer Yeshiva, wrote:
“Met Joint representatives here stressed need minimum budget for Rabbis Yeshivas housing feeding seven American dollars monthly because students must live separately cannot supplement income by working but reply unfavorable unless direct instructions from joint New York students now crowded temporarily on cement floor synagogue hundreds coming no residences situation tragical [sic] please induce joint meet our necessities immediately cost living up”.[21] This report of the situation in Shanghai set a major fundraising relief effort into motion. As a result the Vaad sent close to seven thousand dollars to the refugee scholars during the period prior to the outbreak of the war in the Pacific.
Throughout this period, the Vaad invested effort into arranging for the emigration of Torah scholars from Shanghai as it was obvious that Shanghai was hardly an ideal haven. However by the time all the necessary arrangements had been made for the Jewish refugee scholars to travel from Shanghai to Manila on December 11, 1941, the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor, and the trip had to be cancelled. The war in the Pacific put an end to whatever hopes there were for the emigration of the refugee scholars from the Far East, and they were forced to stay in Shanghai for the duration of the war.[22]
The outbreak of the war in the Pacific had a direct detrimental effect on the refugees in Shanghai. The Japanese occupation of American and British firms precipitated unemployment among the refugee workers. This condition aggravated the already overwhelming relief problem. The break in communication between Shanghai and the United States closed the export industry to the United States. However, the biggest problem for the refugees, and particularly the for the scholars, was the cessation of the incoming relief aid.[23] The United States State Department, under the “Trading with Enemy Act”, prohibited all communication and transition of monies to countries under enemy occupation. As a result, the JDC ceased to transmit funds and loan guarantee cables to Shanghai. Although a sympathetic U.S. Treasury Department official gave a “hint” to send cables through neutral countries, the JDC’s policy was based on the premise that, “We as an American organization cannot be involved in anything that has the remotest color of trading with the enemy.” This was a major blow for the Shanghai community that had been dependent on aid from the United States. Laura Margolies, the JDC representative in Shanghai, was in shock and dismay at the JDC’s refusal to continue its help for the refugees. Even the Japanese, who had given their permission for U.S. money to enter via the Red Cross, were dumbfounded when they heard of the denial.[24]
Rabbi Kalmanowitz, one of the most active members of the Vaad Hatzala in New York, realizing the urgency of the situation, continued his communication and transfer of money via neutral countries.
Amos Bunim, describing the activities of the Vaad during that critical period writes that, “The Vaad and the Joint differed on tactics as well. The Joint had a superb record of helping Jews, but steadfastly refused to circumvent any laws to do so, including the relatively minor one of sending illegal cables. The Vaad, on the hand, followed the Torah commandment that saving a life takes precedence over everything else, including the Torah’s own commandments and prohibitions. It hesitates to overlook rules, especially when Jewish lives were at stake.”[25] Bunim continues to describe the outlook of the Vaad, stating, “You work through government protocol. We do not. We bribe. We forge visas, and we have been doing it- anything to save our brothers.” [26]
Kalmanowitz and the Vaad continued with the illegal communication despite several warnings by the FBI of impending arrest.[27]
In order for the Vaad to continue its assistance for the refugees, a system was developed, in which Shanghai residents that had financial means would grant loans locally, with the guarantee that the Vaad would deposit equal amounts in U.S. bank accounts. However, reliable sources were needed in neutral countries to transfer the information.
A few weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Vaad had renewed communication with Shanghai via Rabbi Aaron Milevsky, the former Rabbi in Alitus, Lithuania, who was serving in Montevideo, Uruguay at the time. Milevsky began getting heavily involved with relief for the refugees while they were still in Vilna, and corresponded with Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinski in 1940. On January 1942, as Rabbi Milevsky was celebrating the birth of his son Uziel, a cable arrived from Kalmanowitz, stating that urgent action was needed.[28]
Although the communication channel had been firmly established, a means had to be found to conceal the true content of the messages since the context violated American regulations. A special code, based on the first chapter of Exodus, was devised. Each of the patriarch Jacob’s sons listed as having gone down to Egypt was given a numerical value in ascending order; Reuben, Shimon, Levi, Yehuda Issachar, Zevulun, Binyamin, Dan, Naftali, Gad and Asher. Reuben became the code for $100, and each name after that represented an additional $100. In addition, various terms such as “skins,” “bales” and “rabbis” were used to refer to money, and Hebrew words were often substituted for numbers.
Thus, for example, on January 16, 1942, Rabbi Chaim Shmulewitz, Dean of the Mirrer Yeshiva in Shanghai cabled Milevsky, instructing him to cable the following message to Rabbi Kalmanowitz in New York: “Ponevejskys Epsteins Shmoinogd visit Feldman 235 West 29.” The explanation of the message is as follows: David Ponevejsky, a resident of Shanghai, is willing to give the refugee Torah scholars eight thousand dollars (Shmona is the Hebrew word for the number eight) in return for the same amount which was raised in Chicago by Rabbi Efraim Epstein. In order for the transaction to be carried out, you are to give the said sum to Aaron Feldman whose address is 235 West 29th Street, New York City.
Confirmation of the transaction and instructions regarding the distribution of additional funds were contained in Rabbi Kalmanowitz’s reply, which was cabled by Rabbi Milevsky on January 22, 1942: “Aron well. Stop. Epstein regards everybody Stop. Also brothers Gud[sic] Reuben regards Mirsky Yisochor Kotler regards Kletzer Judah Grosovski regards Kamienietzky Shimon regards Telz Lubliner Beth Jacob Rabonim. Everybody Reuben regards Nawaredok Slonimer. All well cable health.”
The instructions from the Vaad were as follows:
The money has been deposited as per your request (“Aron well”). The $800 raised by Rabbi Epstein is to be distributed to all the refugee Torah scholars.” (Epstein regards everybody”). In addition, the following sums were raised on behalf of the various Yeshivot: $1100(Gud Reuben”) for the Mirrer Yeshiva(“Mirsky”); $500(“Yisochor) for the Kletzk Yeshiva(“Kotler regards Kletzker); $400(“Judah”) for the Kamenetz Yeshiva (“Grosovski regards Kamienietzky”); $200(“Shimon”) each for the students from Telz, Lublin, Beth Jacob girls’ School, as well as for rabbis; and $100(“Reuben”) for the Yeshivot Navardok and Slonim.
In this manner, tens of thousands of dollars were turned over to the rabbis and yeshiva students in Shanghai during the war. By the summer of 1942, $22,000 in relief had been arranged.[29]
Milevsky continued with this scheme despite pressure from the Uruguayan government and several visits by U.S. officials, who threatened that if the content of the enigmatic cables were not explained, Milevsky would be placed behind bars.[30]
However, a change had to be made in the communication channel when, on January 25, 1942, Uruguay broke diplomatic relations with Germany, Italy and Japan and subsequently declared war on Japan. Starting in the spring of 1942 all messages to and from Shanghai were transmitted by Milevsky via Argentina with the help of Rabbi Zev Hillel Klein, the leader of the Mizrachi community in Buenos Aires. Milevsky’s cables continued to assist in supporting the refugees in Shanghai throughout the duration of the war, until the refugees were finally able to depart in 1946.
Over a decade after this episode two sisters-in-law of Rabbi Milevsky were sitting at a restaurant in New York City. A stranger, who had been eavesdropping into their conversation, walked over to them and asked if they were the daughters of the old Mrs. Kolitz of Jerusalem. After the two women answered in the affirmative, the stranger asked about the wellbeing of every single family member and was quite familiar with all details of the extended family.
The sisters were dumbfounded with regard to how this total stranger knew so much of a family that was living in several different countries. After seeing their shocked response to his questions, the stranger explained to them that during World War II, he had worked for the U.S. government at the Office of the Censorship, an emergency wartime agency set up on December 19, 1941 to aid in the censorship of all communications coming into and going out of the United States. One of the agents, who had been reviewing the cables sent to and from Milevsky in Uruguay, became suspicious of the activity and reported it to his superior. His superior, the stranger in the restaurant, recognized that illegal activity was taking place. However, as a Jew, he understood that the cables contained no threat to the U.S., and that, based on the context, they must be providing some sort of assistance to rabbis in need. Consequently, he notified all agents that all Milevsky cables should come directly to his desk. As a result he was an “expert” on the personal life facts of the Milevsky family.[31]
The Milevsky communication channel was a vital part of the survival of the refugees in the foreign and difficult setting of Shanghai.
One of the European refugees that benefited from this support was Rabbi Hillel Mannes. At the time, Mannes’ family lived downstairs from Rabbi Chaim Schmulewicz, who was the Vaad contact in Shanghai. Mannes, who had gotten married and started a family after his arrival in Shanghai, received support through the Milevsky channel and became active in the Jewish education scene. His wife, Yenta, was also a teacher at the Beth Jacob school of Shanghai. On September 2, 1946, following the conclusion of the war and the birth of their second daughter, Chaya, the Mannes family left Shanghai with gratitude for having survived the turbulent times. They settled in Wickliffe, Ohio.[32]
The Holocaust, the darkest period in Jewish and world history, proved to what degree a human being can descend by means of a corrupt and vicious philosophy. On the other hand, people like Zwareendjik, Sugihara, Kotsuji, Ashkenazi, Kalmanowitz and Milevsky, are an inspiration to humanity for eternity. These few beacons of light in the time of darkness, who placed their life on the line for the sake of others, remind the world that a true “human” is one who sees the image of God in every person.
Judaism teaches that although reward for good deeds is given in the world to come, kindness and charity merit additional reward in this world.
On June 21, 1966, Rabbi Milevsky’s youngest son Uziel, ( born during the critical month of January 1942) married Chaya Mannes. Chaya was born in Shanghai after the war to Hillel and Yenta Mannes.
On the other hand, one who believes in a Divine Being understands that human existence is not a coincidence. The believer in G-d recognizes that the complex physical creature known as man is imbued with a soul and, thus, with holiness. Humanity, for the believer, is the understanding that every single human being is significant to G-d and, as a result, must be important to man.
This paper will explore the journey of a group of people who were lucky enough to escape the inhumane world of the Nazi war machine. These people survived because of other humans, who gave all for what they understood to be right.
For the Jews of Europe, the notion of a pogrom or expulsion was nothing new. From the Crusades to the Cossacks and Bogdan Chmielnicki, the Jew accepted the fact that he is in exile, and that persecution is a part of life. The age of Enlightenment gave hope to some, but for those Jews who understood their role in the world, Europe would never be a true home for the wandering Jew.
When an anti-Semitic leader would come to power and terrorize the chosen people, the Jew would bring to mind the words he read at the Passover Seder; “In every generation there are individuals who want do destroy us, but the Blessed Be He saves us.” In other words, “And this, too, shall pass away.” Jewish leaders would always try to placate the anti-Semitic chief with the objective of minimizing the brunt of the decree. The approach of the Jew of Germany in 1933 was no different. The attitude of the majority of Jews did not change during the first three years of Nazi rule.[2] In fact, Yechiel Yaakov Weinberg, a leading Orthodox Rabbi in prewar Berlin, sent a personal letter to Hitler praising him for cracking down on the godless Communists.[3] However, some did sense that this new anti-Semitic wave was different. During April of 1933, Hillel Mannes, a graduate student in the University in Berlin, arrived one day and found a notice posted at the door of the registrar’s office: ”Dogs and Jews cannot register.” He immediately left Germany to Lithuania.
Mannes’ departure from Germany, to a country that was not under Nazi rule, indicates the mindset of the European Jews outside of Germany in the early years of Hitler’s reign. The common thought of the European Jew was, that although our Jewish brethren in Germany are going through a difficult period, we are safe. Few Jews outside of Germany felt an urgent need to depart from Europe. The sizable minority that emigrated in a wave of panic in 1933 was a limited German experience.[4]
One of the few exceptions to this general outlook was a Lithuanian Rabbi by the name of Aaron Milevsky, who sensed the dark clouds of Hitler spreading over the continent and left his pulpit in Alitus, Lithuania, to serve as a Rabbi in Montevideo, Uruguay.[5] As we shall see later, Milevsky played a key role in the relief provided to the European refugees that were detained in Shanghai during the war years.
The fate of the Eastern European Jews drastically changed with the invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939. By September 17, in accordance with the Molotov-Ribbentrop treaty, the Soviet army invaded Poland from the East.[6]
As Jews in the western part of Poland were learning first hand of the brutality of the SS, their brethren to the East were suffering under Soviet control. One of the first items on the Communist agenda was the shutting down of all Yeshivot. The students of the rabbinical seminaries were advised to leave. Vilna, which was, at the time, under independent Lithuanian control, became a center for many of the Yeshivot.[7] The Great torah luminary and leader of the Vilna community Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinski (1863-1940) advised everyone to leave eastern Poland immediately, even on the Jewish Sabbath, due to the concern that the border would soon be closed and it would be impossible to leave Russia.[8]
The Vilna community took on the enormous task of helping the refugees. As the conditions worsened, the community sought help from the United States. In addition to seeking out the financial assistance that was needed for day to day survival, relief organizations focused their attention on figuring out a way to get the Jews out of Lithuania. Although Lithuania was independent at that time, many believed that this was a temporary situation and that either Germany or Russia would soon invade.[9]
In the September edition of the American Jewish Orthodox monthly, “Hapardes”, we find the following urgent plea for the rescue of the Mirrer Yeshiva:
“The war that befell Poland in September 1939 struck also the great Torah centers of Poland. The Mirrer Yeshiva, with its more than 400 scholars was compelled to flee. But they stayed in Vilna only a short time. They felt that sooner or later, that country would come under the control of Soviet Russia, and they felt most certainly that they could not exist as a Yeshiva under the Soviets and it was decided to transfer the Yeshiva first to Japan and then to whence visas could be obtained.”
Clearly, the refugees and other Jews in Lithuania were in a desperate search for a way to get out. However, several requirements and, in most cases, obstacles prevented the majority of Jews from departing. The first requirement to begin the process of leaving Eastern Europe was an entry permit or Visa to another country. Unfortunately, with the quotas set in the United States, and the British limiting the number of Jews allowed into Palestine, very few, if any, options existed for the desperate Jews.
One of the options that eventually helped to save numerous refugees was the Curacao Visa. Nathan Gutwirth, a student of the Talmudic college of Telshe Lithuania, was a Dutch national. Gutwirth requested from the Dutch Ambassador in Riga to go to Curacao, which was part of the Dutch West Indies. When his friends in the Mirrer Yeshiva expressed their desire to utilize this exit route, Gutwirth appealed again to the Dutch Ambassador in Riga to stamp his friends’ passports with a visa to Curacao. The Ambassador explained that “No visa to Curacao was required but a landing permit could only be granted by the Governor of Curacao”. Gutwirth then asked to stamp his friends’ passport with only the first half of the phrase i.e. “No visa to Curacao was required”. The Ambassador, fully aware of this life saving device, authorized the Dutch Consul in Kovno, J. Zwareendjik, to do this for Gutwirth’s friends and soon the entire faculty and student body of the Mirrer Yeshiva obtained Curacao end visas.[10]
However, the Soviets would not grant any exit visas, even to those who were given end visas by the Ambassador. They insisted on seeing a document from a neighboring country that gave permission for the individual to travel through. Being that the Western front was at war, the only option was to travel east, via Japan. The Japanese knew that the Curacao end visas were worthless and, as a policy, would not grant transfer visas. [11] Fortunately an “angel of salvation” appeared and thousands of Jews were saved.
Senpo Sugihara, a Japanese diplomat, was sent to Kovno by the Japanese Ambassador to Berlin in order to ascertain more fully German moves on the Eastern front. Sugihara recognized the dire situation of the Jewish refugees, and his compassion for them made him issue Japanese transit visas, in direct violation of his orders from Tokyo. Sugihara continued to hand-write visas until September 4, when he had to leave his post before the consulate was closed. By that time he had granted over 3500 visas. He was still writing visas while in transit in a hotel and after boarding the train, throwing visas into the crowd of desperate refugees out the train's window even as the train pulled away.[12]
With Curacao end visas and Japanese transit visas in hand, the Mirrer Yeshiva refugees were granted permission from the Russians to leave Lithuania. After traveling for 11 days across Siberia, they reached Vladivostok, where they boarded a tramp steamer, which was overcrowded with 550 refugees. The group eventually arrived in Kobe, Japan.
Amidst the many challenges of visas, affidavits and the search for a new home, the Mirrer students were concerned with a rather interesting Halachic problem: Where is the Halachic International Date Line? A difference of opinion existed among Jewish scholars as to the proper location. According to some authorities, it was 180 degrees east of Jerusalem, and thus east of Japan. Others alleged that the line was to the West. Due to the severity of the issue, many observed the Jewish Sabbath for two days. However, this was not a practical solution for the Day of Atonement, when Jews are required to fast for a complete twenty-four hour period. Fasting for forty eight hours was not an option.[13]
The primary concern of the refugees was to find a country that would receive them at a time when more and more countries were tightening, rather than relaxing, their restrictions. To add to the existing sense of insecurity, there was a constant fear that the temporary visas would be denied extension. Luckily, a righteous gentile by the name of Setzuso Kotsuji was there to help.
Setzuso Kotsuji was born into an aristocratic Japanese family. His father, a prominent Shinto priest, descended from a long line of well known priests. At a young age, Setzuso visited an antique bookshop in which he discovered a Tanach, the Hebrew Bible, which had been translated into Japanese. In 1937, he published his first book in Japanese on Hebrew language and grammar. At that time, he also founded the Tanach and Hebrew Department at the Tokyo University. This department attracted many students. Quite rapidly, Professor Kotsuji gained acclaim in Japan as a scholar and thinker of repute. He was also highly esteemed in government circles, where he made many friends. He would subsequently utilize these connections to help the Jewish refugees. For purely humanitarian reasons, Professor Kotsuji became involved in the refugees' problems and made vigorous efforts to have their visas extended. To achieve this, he utilized his friendship with Japan's Foreign Affairs minister. As a result of Professor Kotsuji's intervention, the Japanese authorities agreed to extend the refugees' visas several times, letting them stay for eight months instead of the original two-week period.[14]
With no other country willing to take the Jews, there was one option left for the refugees: Shanghai. The choice of Shanghai as a potential haven was dictated not only by geographic proximity, but also by necessity. The international settlement of the city, which was governed by a municipal council made up of representatives of the foreign powers that had extraterritorial rights in the Chinese port, made Shanghai one of the only places in the world where Jews could still obtain entry. Moreover, there was an affluent and influential local Jewish community which could provide assistance in obtaining the necessary documents. While its resources had been strained by the recent influx of approximately 17 000 Jewish refugees from Central Europe, Shanghai still had various community leaders who were willing to help bring in additional refugees.[15]
Although Shanghai carried the reputation of being a “hellhole”, several Jewish organizations and individuals contacted Rabbi Mayer Ashkenazi, the spiritual leader of the local East European Jewish community in Shanghai, and enlisted his assistance to obtain entry permits.
Toward the end of March 1941, word was received in Japan that another group of Polish refugee rabbis and Yeshiva students were in extreme distress. They had arrived in Vladivostok on their way to Japan but had been detained by the Russians. The majority possessed end visas to Curacao. However, by that time, it was clear to the Japanese authorities that the people with Curacao visas were not headed for the West Indies. The Japanese, therefore, barred the entry of any refugees who did not posses valid end visas. The Russians, in the meantime, had informed the refugees in Vladivostok that they would not be allowed to remain there indefinitely.[16]
Among the refugees in Vladivostok was Hillel Mannes. Mannes, aware of the fact that Shanghai was the only option, sent an S.O.S cable to Shanghai for help. On March 24, 1941 he received the following reply: “Very difficult to obtain permits.” In his manuscript, Mannes writes, “Then I cabled Rabbi Ashkenazi, the Rov of Shanghai, and to his right-hand man, Yosef Tugenhaft, a talmid (rabbinical student) of my father, whose address he had given me. He asked Rabbi Ashkenazi to find some way to help us.”[17]
On April 7, 1941, Ashkenazi obtained the entry permits and cabled the information to Vladivostok. The only problem, which proved to be quite difficult, was transportation from Vladivostok to Shanghai. There were no direct sailings from Vladivostok to Shanghai scheduled for the next two months. The Russians, in the meantime, were adamant that a solution must be found and would not allow the refugees to remain in Vladivostok indefinitely.
Eventually the good news arrived. Mannes records that, “A cable came from Shanghai the seventh day of Pesach (Passover) that a coalboat would pass Vladivostok on its way to Shanghai and that we may board it on Mozoei Yom Tov (day after the holiday). Such stopovers happen once or twice a year. We said it was a Ness (miracle) at the right time. We had overstayed our welcome in Vladivostok. Can you imagine our emotions saying Hallel on Pesach! Our hearts were full with gratitude to Hashem for taking us out to Cheiruss (freedom).”[18] The group of 47 people left Vladivostok on May 1st 1941 on a boat called Artica, and arrived three days later in Shanghai.
Rabbi Ashkenazi and the local refugee leaders continued their efforts to obtain additional permits for the Mirrer group in Kobe and for the rabbis and Yeshiva students that still remained in Lithuania. Their campaign included negotiations with the local Japanese authorities and the Municipal Council of the International Settlement.
Unfortunately, the Shanghai permits rescue project did not succeed in saving the Jews trapped in Lithuania. However, it did lay the groundwork for the relocation of the refugee Torah scholars stranded in Japan to Shanghai, a step that ultimately helped ensure their survival.[19]
After their prolonged sojourn in Japan, approximately 900 Polish refugees finally arrived in Shanghai in the fall of 1941. The first project for the newly arrived group was the establishment of a separate relief organization. Financial aid was provided to all refugees by the Committee for the Assistance of European Jewish Refugees in Shanghai (CFA) with funds provided by overseas Jewish relief agencies, such as the Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) in the United States. The newcomers, who were temporarily housed in an old synagogue, experienced very difficult conditions and needed additional funding. They consequently established The Committee for Assistance of Jewish Refugees from Eastern Europe (Jewcom).[20]
The level of assistance that the refugees were receiving was not sufficient for the refugee scholars. In a telegram sent to Rabbi Silver of The Vaad Hahatzala in New York, Rabbi Chaim Schmulewicz, Dean of the Mirrer Yeshiva, wrote:
“Met Joint representatives here stressed need minimum budget for Rabbis Yeshivas housing feeding seven American dollars monthly because students must live separately cannot supplement income by working but reply unfavorable unless direct instructions from joint New York students now crowded temporarily on cement floor synagogue hundreds coming no residences situation tragical [sic] please induce joint meet our necessities immediately cost living up”.[21] This report of the situation in Shanghai set a major fundraising relief effort into motion. As a result the Vaad sent close to seven thousand dollars to the refugee scholars during the period prior to the outbreak of the war in the Pacific.
Throughout this period, the Vaad invested effort into arranging for the emigration of Torah scholars from Shanghai as it was obvious that Shanghai was hardly an ideal haven. However by the time all the necessary arrangements had been made for the Jewish refugee scholars to travel from Shanghai to Manila on December 11, 1941, the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor, and the trip had to be cancelled. The war in the Pacific put an end to whatever hopes there were for the emigration of the refugee scholars from the Far East, and they were forced to stay in Shanghai for the duration of the war.[22]
The outbreak of the war in the Pacific had a direct detrimental effect on the refugees in Shanghai. The Japanese occupation of American and British firms precipitated unemployment among the refugee workers. This condition aggravated the already overwhelming relief problem. The break in communication between Shanghai and the United States closed the export industry to the United States. However, the biggest problem for the refugees, and particularly the for the scholars, was the cessation of the incoming relief aid.[23] The United States State Department, under the “Trading with Enemy Act”, prohibited all communication and transition of monies to countries under enemy occupation. As a result, the JDC ceased to transmit funds and loan guarantee cables to Shanghai. Although a sympathetic U.S. Treasury Department official gave a “hint” to send cables through neutral countries, the JDC’s policy was based on the premise that, “We as an American organization cannot be involved in anything that has the remotest color of trading with the enemy.” This was a major blow for the Shanghai community that had been dependent on aid from the United States. Laura Margolies, the JDC representative in Shanghai, was in shock and dismay at the JDC’s refusal to continue its help for the refugees. Even the Japanese, who had given their permission for U.S. money to enter via the Red Cross, were dumbfounded when they heard of the denial.[24]
Rabbi Kalmanowitz, one of the most active members of the Vaad Hatzala in New York, realizing the urgency of the situation, continued his communication and transfer of money via neutral countries.
Amos Bunim, describing the activities of the Vaad during that critical period writes that, “The Vaad and the Joint differed on tactics as well. The Joint had a superb record of helping Jews, but steadfastly refused to circumvent any laws to do so, including the relatively minor one of sending illegal cables. The Vaad, on the hand, followed the Torah commandment that saving a life takes precedence over everything else, including the Torah’s own commandments and prohibitions. It hesitates to overlook rules, especially when Jewish lives were at stake.”[25] Bunim continues to describe the outlook of the Vaad, stating, “You work through government protocol. We do not. We bribe. We forge visas, and we have been doing it- anything to save our brothers.” [26]
Kalmanowitz and the Vaad continued with the illegal communication despite several warnings by the FBI of impending arrest.[27]
In order for the Vaad to continue its assistance for the refugees, a system was developed, in which Shanghai residents that had financial means would grant loans locally, with the guarantee that the Vaad would deposit equal amounts in U.S. bank accounts. However, reliable sources were needed in neutral countries to transfer the information.
A few weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Vaad had renewed communication with Shanghai via Rabbi Aaron Milevsky, the former Rabbi in Alitus, Lithuania, who was serving in Montevideo, Uruguay at the time. Milevsky began getting heavily involved with relief for the refugees while they were still in Vilna, and corresponded with Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinski in 1940. On January 1942, as Rabbi Milevsky was celebrating the birth of his son Uziel, a cable arrived from Kalmanowitz, stating that urgent action was needed.[28]
Although the communication channel had been firmly established, a means had to be found to conceal the true content of the messages since the context violated American regulations. A special code, based on the first chapter of Exodus, was devised. Each of the patriarch Jacob’s sons listed as having gone down to Egypt was given a numerical value in ascending order; Reuben, Shimon, Levi, Yehuda Issachar, Zevulun, Binyamin, Dan, Naftali, Gad and Asher. Reuben became the code for $100, and each name after that represented an additional $100. In addition, various terms such as “skins,” “bales” and “rabbis” were used to refer to money, and Hebrew words were often substituted for numbers.
Thus, for example, on January 16, 1942, Rabbi Chaim Shmulewitz, Dean of the Mirrer Yeshiva in Shanghai cabled Milevsky, instructing him to cable the following message to Rabbi Kalmanowitz in New York: “Ponevejskys Epsteins Shmoinogd visit Feldman 235 West 29.” The explanation of the message is as follows: David Ponevejsky, a resident of Shanghai, is willing to give the refugee Torah scholars eight thousand dollars (Shmona is the Hebrew word for the number eight) in return for the same amount which was raised in Chicago by Rabbi Efraim Epstein. In order for the transaction to be carried out, you are to give the said sum to Aaron Feldman whose address is 235 West 29th Street, New York City.
Confirmation of the transaction and instructions regarding the distribution of additional funds were contained in Rabbi Kalmanowitz’s reply, which was cabled by Rabbi Milevsky on January 22, 1942: “Aron well. Stop. Epstein regards everybody Stop. Also brothers Gud[sic] Reuben regards Mirsky Yisochor Kotler regards Kletzer Judah Grosovski regards Kamienietzky Shimon regards Telz Lubliner Beth Jacob Rabonim. Everybody Reuben regards Nawaredok Slonimer. All well cable health.”
The instructions from the Vaad were as follows:
The money has been deposited as per your request (“Aron well”). The $800 raised by Rabbi Epstein is to be distributed to all the refugee Torah scholars.” (Epstein regards everybody”). In addition, the following sums were raised on behalf of the various Yeshivot: $1100(Gud Reuben”) for the Mirrer Yeshiva(“Mirsky”); $500(“Yisochor) for the Kletzk Yeshiva(“Kotler regards Kletzker); $400(“Judah”) for the Kamenetz Yeshiva (“Grosovski regards Kamienietzky”); $200(“Shimon”) each for the students from Telz, Lublin, Beth Jacob girls’ School, as well as for rabbis; and $100(“Reuben”) for the Yeshivot Navardok and Slonim.
In this manner, tens of thousands of dollars were turned over to the rabbis and yeshiva students in Shanghai during the war. By the summer of 1942, $22,000 in relief had been arranged.[29]
Milevsky continued with this scheme despite pressure from the Uruguayan government and several visits by U.S. officials, who threatened that if the content of the enigmatic cables were not explained, Milevsky would be placed behind bars.[30]
However, a change had to be made in the communication channel when, on January 25, 1942, Uruguay broke diplomatic relations with Germany, Italy and Japan and subsequently declared war on Japan. Starting in the spring of 1942 all messages to and from Shanghai were transmitted by Milevsky via Argentina with the help of Rabbi Zev Hillel Klein, the leader of the Mizrachi community in Buenos Aires. Milevsky’s cables continued to assist in supporting the refugees in Shanghai throughout the duration of the war, until the refugees were finally able to depart in 1946.
Over a decade after this episode two sisters-in-law of Rabbi Milevsky were sitting at a restaurant in New York City. A stranger, who had been eavesdropping into their conversation, walked over to them and asked if they were the daughters of the old Mrs. Kolitz of Jerusalem. After the two women answered in the affirmative, the stranger asked about the wellbeing of every single family member and was quite familiar with all details of the extended family.
The sisters were dumbfounded with regard to how this total stranger knew so much of a family that was living in several different countries. After seeing their shocked response to his questions, the stranger explained to them that during World War II, he had worked for the U.S. government at the Office of the Censorship, an emergency wartime agency set up on December 19, 1941 to aid in the censorship of all communications coming into and going out of the United States. One of the agents, who had been reviewing the cables sent to and from Milevsky in Uruguay, became suspicious of the activity and reported it to his superior. His superior, the stranger in the restaurant, recognized that illegal activity was taking place. However, as a Jew, he understood that the cables contained no threat to the U.S., and that, based on the context, they must be providing some sort of assistance to rabbis in need. Consequently, he notified all agents that all Milevsky cables should come directly to his desk. As a result he was an “expert” on the personal life facts of the Milevsky family.[31]
The Milevsky communication channel was a vital part of the survival of the refugees in the foreign and difficult setting of Shanghai.
One of the European refugees that benefited from this support was Rabbi Hillel Mannes. At the time, Mannes’ family lived downstairs from Rabbi Chaim Schmulewicz, who was the Vaad contact in Shanghai. Mannes, who had gotten married and started a family after his arrival in Shanghai, received support through the Milevsky channel and became active in the Jewish education scene. His wife, Yenta, was also a teacher at the Beth Jacob school of Shanghai. On September 2, 1946, following the conclusion of the war and the birth of their second daughter, Chaya, the Mannes family left Shanghai with gratitude for having survived the turbulent times. They settled in Wickliffe, Ohio.[32]
The Holocaust, the darkest period in Jewish and world history, proved to what degree a human being can descend by means of a corrupt and vicious philosophy. On the other hand, people like Zwareendjik, Sugihara, Kotsuji, Ashkenazi, Kalmanowitz and Milevsky, are an inspiration to humanity for eternity. These few beacons of light in the time of darkness, who placed their life on the line for the sake of others, remind the world that a true “human” is one who sees the image of God in every person.
Judaism teaches that although reward for good deeds is given in the world to come, kindness and charity merit additional reward in this world.
On June 21, 1966, Rabbi Milevsky’s youngest son Uziel, ( born during the critical month of January 1942) married Chaya Mannes. Chaya was born in Shanghai after the war to Hillel and Yenta Mannes.
[1] Bauer Y., History of the Holocaust (New York, 1982) p.42.
[2] Bauer, p.113.
[3] Shapiro M. B., Between the Yeshiva World and Modern Orthodoxy (Oxford, 1999) Letter is published as appendix.
[4] Bauer, History of the Holocaust p.114
[5] Bornstein, A., Yeshivat Mir (Hebrew) (Jerusalem, 1999) p. 285.
[6] Bauer, 139.
[7] Bunim, A. A Fire in His Soul: Irving M. Bunim and His Impact on American Orthodox Jewry. (New York, 1989) p.72.
[8] Mannes, H. “From Schwabach to Vladivostock.” A 19 page unpublished manuscript of the author’s memoirs. (Lakewood, 1996) p.
10.
[9] Bunim, 74.
[10] Kranzler, D. Japanese Nazis & Jews: The Jewish Refugee Community of Shanghai 1938-1945. (New York, 1976) p. 312.
[11] Mannes, 11.
[12] Kranzler, Japanese Nazis & Jews, p.313.
[13]Kranzler, Japanese Nazis & Jews, p. 321.
[14] Kranzler, Japanese Nazis & Jews, p. 323 (In 1959, the 60-year-old Professor Setzuso Kotsuji was warmly welcomed to the Jewish
faith by his friends from the Mirer and named Avraham ben Avraham Kotsuji.)
[15] Zuroff, E. The response of Orthodox Jewry in the United States to the Holocaust: the activities of the Vaad ha-Hatzala Rescue
Committee, 1939-1945. (New York, 2000) p.146.
[16] Zuroff, 150.
[17] Mannes, 18.
[18] Mannes, 18.
[19] Zuroff, 163.
[20] Zuroff, 192.
[21] Pardes, S. “Pidyon Shvuim.” Hapardes. September 1941, p.3
[22] Zuroff, 194.
[23] Kranzler, Japanese Nazis & Jews, p. 456
[24] Kranzler, Japanese Nazis & Jews, p. 462
[25] Bunim, 72.
[26] Bunim, 122.
[27] Kranzler, Japanese Nazis & Jews, p. 472
[28] Zuroff, 211.
[29] Zuroff, 194.
[30] Bornstein, 285.
[31] Bornstein, 294.
[32] Goldbart, K. “Beth Yaakov School Shanghai.” The Jewish Press: April 6, 1990.
Rabbi Hillel MannesToronto 1994
