The Holocaust's repercussions leave few traditions, institutions, or governments untouched and unscathed. Christian churches of all denominations are obliged to examine and bear consciously the burdens of Holocaust history. At least they must do so if they are to have much credibility after the Holocaust. On the whole, the Christian community's response in those dark times--which was perhaps an inevitable result of Christianity's centuries-old anti-Jewish tradition--was less than sterling. Yes, a Christian minority protested and resisted what the Nazis were doing, but even their defiance was rarely practiced explicitly on behalf of beleaguered Jews. Some Christians rescued Jews, but not enough of them to eliminate the shame that sensitive Christians feel when they recognize what could and should have been done but was not.

The Holocaust's aftershocks place challenging opportunities before Christian churches, as well as difficult questions. How will the churches confront their Holocaust history? How will encounters with that history affect what they say and do, especially as the Holocaust recedes further into the past, where its chances of being forgotten are bound to increase? In particular, there are questions about what the churches should say and do--or not say and not do--to help ensure that the Holocaust is remembered and never rationalized or minimalized.