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A8 WORLD NEWS
Wednesday 22 January 2020

German court may

reject appeal to

remove anti-Semitic relic

By KIRSTEN GRIESHABER about anti-Semitism in Ger-
and KERSTIN SOPKE many. In May, a court ruled
NAUMBURG, Germany (AP) against plaintiff Michael
— A court in eastern Ger- Duellmann, who wants the
many indicated Tuesday relief to be taken off the
that it will likely reject a church and put in the near-
Jewish man's bid to force by Luther House museum.
the removal of an ugly Judges in Dessau rejected
remnant of centuries of an- arguments that he has a
ti-Semitism from a church right to have the sculpture
where Martin Luther once removed because it for-
preached. mally constitutes slander
The Naumburg court's sen- and the parish is legally re-
ate said, at a hearing, that sponsible.
"it will maybe reject the The relief "is a terrible fal-
appeal," court spokesman sification of Judaism ... a
Henning Haberland told re- defamation of and insult
porters. to the Jewish people," Du-
"The senate could not fol- ellmann says, arguing that
low the plaintiff's opinion it has "a terrible effect up to
In this Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2020 photo the so-called “Judensau,” or “Jew pig,” sculpture is displayed
on the facade of the Stadtkirche (Town Church) in Wittenberg, Germany. that the defamatory sculp- this day."
Associated Press ture can be seen as an When the church was ren-
expression of disregard in ovated in the early 1980s,
its current presentation," the parish decided to leave
Haberland said. the sandstone sculpture in
The verdict will be an- place, and it was also re-
nounced on February 4. stored. In 1988, a memorial
The so-called "Judensau," was built on the ground un-
or "Jew pig," sculpture on derneath it, referring to the
the Town Church in Witten- persecution of Jews and
berg dates back to around the killing of 6 million in the
1300. It is perhaps the Nazi Holocaust.
best-known of more than Pastor Johannes Block from
20 such anti-Semitic relics the Town Church says the
from the Middle Ages that church also considers the
still adorn churches across sculpture unacceptably in-
Germany and elsewhere in sulting. However, he argues
Europe. it "no longer speaks for itself
Located 4 meters (13 feet) as a solitary piece, but is
above the ground on a embedded in a culture of
corner of the church, it remembrance" thanks to
depicts Jews suckling on the memorial.
the teats of a sow, while a "We don't want to hide or
rabbi lifts the animal's tail. abolish history, but take the
In 1570, after the Protestant path of reconciliation with
Reformation, an inscription and through history," he
referring to an anti-Jewish says.
tract by Luther was added. In Berlin, the federal com-
Judaism considers pigs im- missioner for Jewish life in
pure and no one disputes Germany told reporters he
that the sculpture is deliber- favored putting the relief
ately offensive. But there is down into a museum.
strong disagreement about "This would be a good con-
what to do with the relief. tribution by the church to
Tuesday's hearing was the overcome anti-Semitism,"
second round in the legal Felix Klein told report-
dispute, which comes at a ers ahead of the court
time of mounting concern hearing.q