In Jewish culture, we believe that only very few, the most virtuous of all, have the distinction of passing through the “gateway to the Lord” while still in this world. Similarly, very few endangered their lives in order to save persecuted Jews during the Holocaust.

The ten Boom family — Corrie, her father Casper, and her sister Elisabeth — are certainly deserving of this privilege. In their honor, a tree was planted in Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem, when they were recognized as Righteous Among the Nations. This is why I’m very happy that the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C., has created a special exhibit this summer to honor Corrie ten Boom.