BEATIFICATION
OF THE ULMA FAMILY
Some twenty Jewish families lived in Markowa before the war. In 1942, most were deported and murdered in the Belzec extermination camp or shot on the spot. From August 1942 onwards, "hunts" were conducted for those in hiding who sought shelter in the forests and fields and with inhabitants of the surrounding villages, although they were rarely successful. In Markowa, a dozen Jews survived the war with the help of several Polish families. Wiktoria and Józef Ulma took the largest group under their roof, hiding eight Jewish acquaintances for over a year: Saul Goldman and his sons: Mechel, Joachim and Moses, as well as Gołda Grünfeld and Lea Didner and her daughter Reszla. However, they were denounced - most likely by Włodzimierz Lesia, a blue police constable from Łańcut. On 24 March 1944, German gendarmes entered their farm, murdering first the hiding Jews and then the entire Ulma family - Wiktoria and Józef and their seven children.
On Sunday, 10 September, the Catholic Church beatified the Ulma family, establishing them as a model for all believers. “There is a vital element in this story. It is the value of welcoming a fellow person and extending hospitality. Regardless of whether one is a Christian or not. Irrespective of what religious “creed” one professes. The Pope speaks repeatedly about receiving refugees. He recently reiterated that the Mediterranean Sea has become a huge graveyard for refugees. The example of this family illustrates the value of welcoming and showing hospitality to others. [...] The parable of the Good Samaritan is an example. It is not a meeting of two compatriots or followers of the same religion; the Samaritan and the abandoned man did not believe in God in the same way," said Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, who led the beatification Mass.
The final phase of the ceremony was held at the village of Jagiełła - Niechciałki, which houses the War Cemetery of Victims of Hitlerism 1939-1945. It is the burial place of the Didner, Goldman and Grünfeld families, sheltered by the Ulma family. The president and his wife placed a red and white wreath in front of the matzeva.
The Warsaw Ghetto Museum was represented at the ceremony by Director Albert Stankowski.
The ceremony was attended by the Chief Rabbi of Poland, Michael Schudrich. During an interview with KAI, he said: "This is a significant step for the Church - to show the faithful how they should act, and not only in times of the Holocaust, not only against anti-Semitism but in all conditions, for all people, regardless of their origin or nationality - man has a duty to save others. [...] This is why the Ulma family and many other families in Poland and throughout Europe are our guides. They are our mentors. We don't live in such extreme times, but that doesn't mean we don't have moral dilemmas and challenges. The Ulma family sets the example of how to live".
On 13 September 1995, the Yad Vashem Institute in Jerusalem posthumously honoured Józef and Wiktoria Ulma with the title Righteous Among the Nations.
Józef and Wiktoria Ulma hid eight Jews during the occupation: Saul Goldman and his sons Baruch, Mechel, Joachim and Moses, as well as Gołda Grünfeld and Lea Didner and her daughter Reszla. Following a denunciation on 24 March 1944, all those in hiding and the entire Ulma family were murdered. They were beatified by the Catholic Church on Sunday, 10 September 2023.
Warsaw Ghetto Museum
Victoria Ulma with her children
Digital Collection of the Museum of Poles Saving Jews During World War II in Markowa