The exhibition “The Operation That Killed a City” has opened at the Catholic University of Lublin (KUL) Library. Through photographs and documents from Norbert Podleśny’s collection, the exhibition tells the story of Lublin and its Jewish community in the shadow of the Holocaust.
“We are witnessing a historic event. For the first time, a private collector and a state institution have come together to organize such a unique exhibition. These photographs have never been publicly displayed before,” said Fr. Dr. Paweł Rytel-Adrianik, director of the Heschel Center for Catholic-Jewish Relations and head of the Polish section of Vatican media.
The event gathered numerous guests, including city representatives, members of the Jewish Community, cultural institutions, and university staff. Representing the KUL rector, Fr. Prof. Piotr Wiśniewski, Vice-Rector for Mission Affairs, emphasized that as Lublin’s oldest university, KUL must share the city’s history with younger generations. “It would be valuable to present this collection to young people and students at Lublin’s schools. The exhibition and the accompanying film are moving; they depict a city that once thrived but was deeply scarred by the German occupation,” he stated.
Prof. Maciej Münnich, the rector’s plenipotentiary for Catholic-Jewish relations, reminded attendees that before the war, Jews made up 30% of Lublin’s population. “Świętoduska, Kowalska, Lubartowska, Szeroka—the Jewish quarter around the castle, old Wieniawa. This is where Jews lived. Today, we are bringing these places back into focus,” he said.
Symcha Keller, a representative of the Jewish Community in Lublin and a cantor, emphasized the importance of remembering the past to safeguard the present and future. “May war never again touch us or our children. I learned from the witnesses of this history—from Jews in the ghetto, those who were driven out, dragged along death marches,” he recalled.
The experts guiding visitors through Norbert Podleśny’s collection included Dr. Hab. Ewa Rzeczkowska, Prof. Maciej Münnich from the KUL Institute of History, Prof. Adam Kopciowski, head of the Department of Jewish Culture and History at Maria Curie-Skłodowska University, and Marcin Fedorowicz from the “Grodzka Gate – NN Theatre” Center.
“The Operation That Killed a City” is a collaborative project between the KUL Heschel Center, the University Library, and the Academy of Modern Media and Communication. Damian Bieniek from the Academy created a film as part of the initiative. The exhibition curator is Jadwiga Jaźwierska from the University Library.
March 16, 2025, marked the 83rd anniversary of the start of Operation Reinhard, carried out under German occupation, which included the liquidation of the Lublin Ghetto. This date is particularly significant in the history of the KUL Library, which has been located at 27 Fryderyk Chopin Street since 1949. During World War II, the building was occupied by the German Nazis and used as a warehouse for Operation Reinhard.
Initially designed in 1937 for the Catholic Action movement, the building became a storage site for property looted from Jews during the German occupation. After the war, it was transferred for use by the Catholic University of Lublin by the then-Bishop of Lublin, Fr. Stefan Wyszyński. Another site linked to this criminal enterprise was the former Stefan Batory Gymnasium, now KUL Collegium Iuridicum, at 1 Spokojna Street, where the Heschel Center is housed today.
Given the historical significance of these locations, some exhibition panels have been placed in Collegium Iuridicum. The exhibition will be open to visitors until April 17.
The organizers thank the State Museum at Majdanek for its cooperation and for providing photographs.