Bau, Artist at War: A captivating story of self-sacrifice for strangers

I am not a big fan of films. Give me a sports event or a good TV show, and I am happy. But from the moment I saw the previews for Bau, Artist at War, I found myself intrigued. Actually, I was more than intrigued. I was moved to tears by the teaser and the description that said, in part, that the film is based on the true story of Joseph Bau, “a gifted artist and master forger” held in a Nazi concentration camp and who “risked his life to save others, using his talent to create false documents that helped fellow prisoners escape certain death.”

And from the moment I pressed play, I was riveted.

I had never heard of Joseph Bau. Those who are very familiar with Schindler’s List may recognize the name, as his secret wedding in the Płaszów concentration camp was depicted in the movie. But through Bau, Artist at War, the world will now know the story of a man who risked everything to save others.

It’s a truly inspirational story that will leave you wondering what you can do to help protect those in your homes and communities. If Joseph could go to these great lengths, surely there’s something we all can do to protect the vulnerable.

And as I watched this film, I was deeply moved by the compassion and love exhibited by Joseph, Rebecca Tannenbaum (the woman he married), and the other Nazi resisters. In the darkest of times, when faced with one of the greatest evils imaginable, they risked their lives to save the lives of people they didn’t even know.

A master forger

By the time that Joseph and his parents were captured by the Nazis in 1943 and sent to Płaszów, Joseph, who held a degree from the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków, with a specialty in Gothic lettering, had already been a part of the resistance. He used his art skills to become a master forger, creating fake passports so that Jews could escape Poland and reach safety.

Soon after Joseph arrived at the camp, the commandant learned that he was an artist and skilled in cartography. He put Joseph to work making maps and signs for the Nazis.

Through this position, Joseph met other members of the resistance who had already created an elaborate method of producing forged passports and adding as many names as possible to Oskar Schindler’s list of people who could be sent to his factory instead of the gas chambers.

I won’t give any more spoilers except to say that Joseph made it out alive and saved nearly 1,000 people, with Rebecca saving many as well. On his deathbed, a nurse asked him how he found the strength to survive the concentration camp, and he responded, “It’s not about strength, it’s all about love.”

And love for his fellow prisoners shone through in all that he and the resisters did. Before her capture, Rebecca had been a nurse, and she used those skills to tend to the women in her bunk lovingly. Joseph’s charming rapport and his way of talking with people gave them hope even when they faced beatings, saw their family members murdered, and had no idea if they were living their last day.

Joseph and Rebecca would never have thought that they would find love in a concentration camp, but they did. And as we know about our God, He can use anything for good, even something as evil as the Holocaust.

The Nazis attempted to strip the dignity of the Jews. They treated them like animals; they beat and starved them; they experimented on them. And they killed them. But they didn’t realize that, while you can ignore someone’s dignity, you cannot actually take it away.

A timely example

Bau, Artist at War transports us back to a horrific time when one group of “mighty” people vowed to eradicate those they deemed unworthy. As disturbing as this is, we need movies like Bau to illustrate the resilience of the human spirit, to speak to the truth that every person has value, and to teach us how to be brave and to stand up to forces of evil.

In one particularly poignant line in the film, Joseph says about the Nazis, “Fear is their greatest weapon. It is the first weapon we need to take from them.”

Fear is a weapon used frequently in our day. We live in dark days, and we see a slaughter of innocents very similar to the Holocaust. Abortion, euthanasia, and other threats to life can leave us feeling hopeless and broken. And just as the Nazis tried to instill fear in those they intimidated and killed, so the culture of death today does as well. Assassinations, violence in the streets, school shootings, random attacks and threats, and even angry words are meant to make the good and the righteous cower in fear.

But God wants us to trust in Him and to only fear hurting Him. In the book of Deuteronomy, Moses says, “Be strong and steadfast; have no fear or dread of them, for it is the Lord, your God, who marches with you; he will never fail you or forsake you.”

When we let our love of God lead our actions and allow Him to use us to fight the evil around us, we will overcome fear. And we will gain the strength to do what is right and good in the eyes of the Lord, just as Joseph Bau did all those years ago.

Bau, Artist at War speaks boldly to the heart, causing it to not only cry out in pain at the injustice done to millions of Jews but to weep with joy at Joseph Bau’s incredible bravery, resilience, and love for his fellow human beings when thrust into the most horrific of circumstances. The film opens in theaters this weekend, and I urge you to see it, not only to learn about an important time in world history but to find inspiration in the story of Joseph and Rebecca, who loved their fellow human beings enough to risk their own lives for them. Their sacrificial love should serve as encouragement as we face the darkness of today.