Agents of the Gestapo, secret State police, were stationed before synagogues to guard against anti-Jewish provocations as celebration of Passover began Monday night.
Gestapo agents also stood guard within the synagogues, to listen to the sermons which were devoted to a comparison of the exodus from Egypt more than three thousand years ago with the present exodus from Germany.
Heinrich Stahl, president of the Jewish Community of Berlin, issued a proclamation appealing for unity among Jewish leaders.
“We cannot imagine,” he declared, “that the children of Israel were divided on the Egypt exodus, because they would never have reached liberty.”
The appeal, issued on the eve of Passover, was spurred by disputes current between Zionist and non-Zionist leaders of the Jewish Community.
A record number of community Seders were given for professionals and others who have been ousted from their positions by the Nuremberg laws.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.