Charles Causey has written a gripping, sobering account of the horrors of the Nazi regime at the Treblinka extermination camp. This is not an easy book to read, yet it is powerful and important.
Currently a chaplain in the U.S. military, Charles has served in the army for thirty years. As a graduate of the U.S. Army War College, where he was awarded a master of strategic studies degree, as a recipient of the Bronze Star medal, and as a student of history and the author of several books, Chaplain Causey is uniquely poised to tell this story with deep insights from a variety of perspectives. His writing is informed both by his military training as well as his insight into the human condition.
I met Chaplain Causey during my thirty-eight years of service as a chaplain in the U.S. Army Reserve. I had the honor of serving as the first female rabbi in the U.S. military, and Charles supported my work every step of the way. His professionalism and collegiality were, and are, legendary in the Chaplain Corps. In his various roles, he has gained unique insight into human behavior, which he brings to bear in drawing the characters in Trains to Treblinka.
The boldness of the human spirit, the depths of evil of which we are capable, the will to survive, and the ability to retain a sense of humanity when all around people are losing theirs—these themes come alive in his writing. Chaplain Causey does not shirk from describing the incredible depravity of the guards at the extermination camp. It is painful, gruesome—to read of the cruelty of those who killed for sport, including ripping infants from their mothers’ loving arms. Yet we cannot ignore or deny history. Charles honors the memory of those who were lost by recording their story. He reminds us that our character is the sum of the choices we make, and that in every situation we have a choice as to how we respond.
Some of the Nazi victims succumbed to despair. Others plotted insurrection and escape, against impossible odds, demonstrating heroic courage in the face of tortuously inhuman conditions. Their story is captivating. Their perseverance and bravery are inspirations, and we owe a debt of gratitude to Charles Causey for giving voice to their story.
We live at a time when there are those who deny that the Holocaust occurred. As a rabbi and Jewish leader, I am profoundly grateful to Chaplain Causey for honoring the souls of the almost one million who perished at the Treblinka extermination camp.
Rabbi Bonnie Koppell
CH (COL) USAR, Retired
Phoenix, AZ