Elie Wiesel – A Powerful Voice
Wiesel was born in Romania in 1928. When he was 15 years old, he was deported with his family. He survived the Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps . He wrote about his war experiences in dozens of books, including the well-known trilogy Night – Dawn – Day. Wiesel also made himself known as a human rights activist. In 1986 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
10 quotes from Wiesel that are characteristic of his work and person.
I will never forget that first night in the camp, the night that turned my whole life into one long night. (Night, 1960)
I was a body. Maybe even less than that: a hungry stomach. Only the stomach was aware of the passing of time. (Night, 1960)
I pray to the God within me that He will give me the strength to ask Him the right questions. (Night, 1960)
I have sworn never to remain silent wherever and whenever people suffer and are humiliated. We always have to take sides. Impartiality only helps the oppressor, never the victim. (Speech on acceptance of Nobel Prize, 1986)
No race is superior, no religion is inferior. (Para Magazine, 1992)
I said to myself, God knows what he’s doing. But now the limit has been reached. That is why I have decided to say to him: It is enough. ( Legends , 1968)
No human being is illegal. (Speech on acceptance of Nobel Prize, 1986)
Because I survived, I felt it was my duty to give meaning to my life, to justify every moment of it. ( Why I Write , 1978)
Forgetting the dead is the same as killing them a second time. (Night, 1960)
I believe in God despite God. I believe in humanity, despite humanity. I believe in the future, despite the past.
Source: Kerknet.be
