Statement From the Editors

Summary

In our statement introducing the first issue of our journal we gave our reasons for choosing the title POLIN. As we explained then, it is the Hebrew word for Poland and suggests to those knowledgeable in Jewish culture that mixture of affectionate and yet wary feelings that characterizes the long and complex relationship of the Jews to Poland and the Polish people. We commented then on the growing desire of both Poles and Jews to investigate their common past. To Poles this was the product, above all, of a desire to know more of the history of a people who for nearly a millenium lived in close proximity to them and whose evolution constituted an integral part of the development of the Polish lands. To Jews, the investigation of their Polish roots fulfilled a widelyfelt desire to preserve the memory of a world from which so large a part of them are descended and from which Jewish civilization derives so many of the vital springs of its being. Our aim was thus to investigate both the relationship of Poles and Jews as well as the internal evolution of Jewish life. We are convinced that the response to the journal and the large amount of material for future issues which it has elicited have confirmed our belief in the vital significance of the tasks we have set ourselves.

In our introductory statement, we also wrote that ‘our aim is to preserve and enlarge our collective memory, to investigate all aspects of our common past. We believe that there should be no taboo subjects and no topics which are too sensitive to be discussed. Our columns are open to all those of goodwill.’ We hope that we have lived up to this bold ambition both in our first volume and in this issue. In Volume 1 we printed an article by Rafael Sharf, ‘In Anger and In Sorrow.’ in which he reflected on the complex nature of the Polish-Jewish relationship. This article was one of the spurs which impelled Jan Blonski to write in Tygodnik Powszechny ‘The Poor Poles look at the Ghetto’ which we reprint in this issue. We believe that the dialogue which has developed between Jews and Poles and between Poles and Poles on this topic has been both fruitful and necessary and we will do all we can to ensure that it continues.