TALK OF GREENWOOD
Dr. Jerry Goodwin
Carol Rittner, Ph.D., a Catholic nun with the Religious Sisters of Mercy, is the guest speaker for the 2025 Interfaith Holocaust Commemoration at Temple Israel, 2004 E. 22nd St., on April 24. Photo Provided.
The Tulsa Council for Holocaust Education invites the public to the 27th Annual YomHaShoah: An Interfaith Holocaust Commemoration on April 24 at 7 p.m. at Temple Israel, 2004 E. 22nd Pl.
Featured speaker Carol Rittner, Ph.D., a Catholic nun with the Religious Sisters of Mercy, will address “Lessons From the Holocaust: Protecting Each Other in Perilous Times.” The commemoration is free and recommended for ages 12 and older. Registration is required.
It is estimated that out of nine million Jews under Nazi domination, tens of thousands were rescued during the Holocaust by non-Jewish people. Many rescuers acted out of a sense of altruism. Some acted out of deeply held religious beliefs or moral codes, while others acted in the spur of the moment.
A distinguished professor of Holocaust and genocide studies emerita, and Dr. Marsha Raticoff Grossman professor of Holocaust studies emerita at Stockton University of New Jersey, Rittner has dedicated her life to her Christian faith and to understanding the circumstances that allowed the Holocaust and other genocides to occur.
Since retiring from Stockton University in 2015, Rittner has taught several online graduate courses for Stockton’s M.A. program in Holocaust and genocide studies.
She is the editor or co-editor of numerous books on the subject, including “The Courage to Care: Rescuers of Jews During the Holocaust” and “Different Voices: Women and the Holocaust.”
Her newest title, “Stress Test: The Israel-Hamas War and Christian-Jewish Relations,” co-edited by John K. Roth, will be released in early 2025.
The commemoration will also include music selections embracing and reflecting the theme of the commemoration, performed by Lyndon Meyer, principal pianist for the Tulsa Opera. In addition, the commemoration will feature an exhibit of the winning entries from the 2025 Yom HaShoah Art Contest created by Oklahoma students of the Holocaust, a candle-lighting ceremony honoring protectors, victims, and survivors of the Holocaust, and a selection of Holocaust resources available for checkout from the Tulsa City-County Library.
The Holocaust Commemoration is presented by the Tulsa Council for Holocaust Education of the Jewish Federation of Tulsa in partnership with the Tulsa City-County Library, The Sherwin Miller Museum of Jewish Art, Congregation B’nai Emunah, and Temple Israel.
For more information about Ritter, visit https://carolrittner.com.
Visit www.jewishtulsa.org/yomhashoah2025 to register for the commemoration or contact Sofia Thornblad at curator@jewishmuseum.net for more details.
