What is the definition of 'martyrdom'?

"He was one of them! He had seen his mother, a beloved little sister, and most of his family, except his father and two other sisters, disappear in a furnace fueled by living creatures. As for his father, the boy had to witness his martyrdom day after day and, finally, his agony and death" (Wiesel).

What does 'passivity' refer to?

"The fate of the Jews of the small town in Transylvania called Sighet; their blindness as they confronted a destiny from which they would have still had time to flee; the inconceivable passivity with which they surrendered to it, deaf to the warnings and pleas of a witness" (Wiesel).

What is the meaning of 'abomination'?

"Have we ever considered the consequence of a less visible, less striking abomination, yet the worst of all, for those of us who have faith: the death of God in the soul of a child who suddenly faces absolute evil?" (Wiesel).

What is 'Beadle'?

"They called him Moishe the Beadle , as if his entire life he had never had a surname" (3).

What is a 'surname'?

"They called him Moishe the Beadle , as if his entire life he had never had a surname" (3).

What does 'penury' mean?

He was poor and lived in utter penury . As a rule, our townspeople, while they did help the needy, did not particularly like them. Moishe the Beadle was the exception" (3).

What is a 'waif'?

Physically, he was as awkward as a clown. His waiflike shyness made people smile. As for me, I liked his wide, dreamy eyes, gazing off into the distance" (3).

What is 'Kabbalah'?

"One day I asked my father to find me a master who could guide me in my studies of Kabbalah" (4).

What is 'mysticism'?

"You are too young for that. Maimonides tells us that one must be thirty before venturing into the world of mysticism, a world fraught with peril. First you must study the basic subjects, those you are able to comprehend" (4).

What is a 'synagogue'?

"We spoke that way almost every evening, remaining in the synagogue long after all the faithful had gone, sitting in the semidarkness where only a few half-burnt candles provided a flickering light" (5).

What is 'Zionism'?

"And thus my elders concerned themselves with all manner of things—strategy, diplomacy, politics, and Zionism—but not with their own fate." (8).

What is 'Judaism'?

What is 'expulsion / expelled'?

"AND THEN, one day all foreign Jews were expelled from Sighet. And Moishe the Beadle was a foreigner" (6).

What is a 'rabbi'?

"The synagogues were no longer open. People gathered in private homes: no need to provoke the Germans. Almost every rabbi's home became a house of prayer (10).

What is an 'edict'?

"But new edicts were already being issued. We no longer had the right to frequent restaurants or cafes, to travel by rail, to attend synagogue, to be on the streets after six o'clock in the evening. Then came the ghettos" (11).

What is a 'ghetto'?

"TWO GHETTOS were created in Sighet. A large one in the center of town occupied four streets, and another smaller one extended over several alleyways on the outskirts of town. ... the windows facing the street outside the ghetto had to be sealed" (11).