Still on the subject of Jewishness, I recall my mother telling of her experience in occupied Denmark during the war. Being on the right side of the racial tracks, Danes had a relatively easy time of it under the Germans. There were relatively few food shortages during the war - my mother maintained that the situation was far worse in England after the war. Her abiding memory is of German troops in Copenhagen on R&R, all carrying food parcels to take home to the family! Another powerful impression is of how, at the liberation, Danish girls who had had German boyfriends, had their heads shaved as an act of public humiliation and revenge. I'm pleased to be able to say that Mum did not hold with that at all.
However, I am most proud of her modest, but real contribution to the success of the Danish resistance in spiriting away Denmark's Jews to Sweden, just before the Gestapo was able to round them all up.
It must have been in 1944, so she'd have been 20, working in a hairdressing salon in the centre of town. Living in the flat upstairs from her work was a Jewish family by the name of Nathan. One day a member of the resistance came round telling them to get out as quickly as possible. My mother helped them down with their luggage as they were rushed away in the nick of time.
Not long after the Gestapo arrived at the salon, asking after the people upstairs. "Nathan? Nathan? No Nathan," said the girls playing dumb. "There's a Nielsen, I think..." But by that time, of course, the name-plate on the door had been changed!
Perhaps not heroism of epic proportions, but a contribution to that sum total of human decency which is of far greater import to civilization than any dogma or political programme.