5 Powerful Life Lessons from "The Happiest Man on Earth"

A look at life from a Holocaust survivor.

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One of the books I got for Christmas was “The Happiest Man on Earth” by Eddie Jaku.

Eddie Jaku faced some of the very worst circumstances and endured some of the worst behavior of humanity as a Jew during World War II. He survived the Holocaust, and his book is about what he faced - and how he found the will to survive.

I’ve picked out five powerful lessons that stood out the most to me and connected those lessons to principles in Scripture.

Lesson #1 - Fear Can Make People Do Terrible Things.

Eddie described the “Night of Broken Glass” in November 1938 as a time when people he’d grown up with destroyed his family’s property and threw many Jewish people - including young children - into the freezing cold river.

Then, these people he’d known his entire life stood on the bank, spitting at them and calling on the police to “shoot them.”

Eddie looked back on this moment and noted how many of the German people thought they were doing the right thing - what needed to be done. Even those who knew the Jews weren’t their enemy did nothing to stop the mob.

If enough people had stood up then…and said, “Enough! What are you doing? What is wrong with you?” then the course of history would have been different. But they did not. They were scared. They were weak. And their weakness allowed them to be manipulated into hatred. - Eddie Jaku, The Happiest Man on Earth, 26

It reminded me of how Paul encouraged Timothy not to be afraid and to be willing to share in Paul’s sufferings for the gospel (2 Timothy 1:7-8).

A “spirit of fear” does not come from God. And if we are afraid to stand for the truth of the gospel, it won’t be long until we abandon the Lord and His people (2 Timothy 4:16-17).

Lesson #2 - A Little Kindness Goes a Long Way.

Later, while Eddie was trying to evade capture by the Germans, he traveled with other refugees through South France. He walked the back roads of France for two and a half months trying to avoid the Nazi soldiers and SS officers.

And it was during these difficult days that the French people in these little villages extended kindness to Eddie - despite Nazi soldiers spreading throughout the country.

It was often still dark when I started walking, but the villagers would see me and call out in French, “Have you eaten? Are you hungry?” And they would invite me in to share their breakfast. There were people who had very little themselves, poor farmers who were already suffering from the hardships of the war, but they were willing to share everything they had with me, a stranger - and a Jew. They knew they were risking their lives helping me, and still they did it. - Eddie Jaku, The Happiest Man on Earth, 50

Paul reminded Christians that we are to be “clothed” with kindness (Colossians 3:12). The love that Christians must have is “kind” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7).

Lesson #3 - Hug Your Family.

In a genuinely heart-breaking chapter, Eddie tells how he found out that his mother and father were dead after he had been separated from them.

Two days later, I asked an SS officer where my father had gone. He took me by the arm and led me maybe 50 metres between the barracks and said, “You see the smoke over there? That’s where your father went. And your mother. To the gas chambers and crematorium.” - Eddie Jaku, The Happiest Man on Earth, 70

He had been separated from his father. He did not get a chance to say goodbye to his mother. Eddie urged everyone who can to tell your mother and your family how much you love them. Tell them while you can for those who wish they could but cannot.

God’s picture for marriage and then family is one of mutual love (Ephesians 5:22-6:4). Christians are called the “beloved children of God” (1 John 3:1-2).

What a blessing it is that in Jesus Christ, we have hope of being reunited with our loved ones forever (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).

Lesson #4 - Find a Friend Who Refuses to Let You Go.

Eddie attributed his survival in Auschwitz to his close friend Kurt.

We looked after each other. When one of us was injured or too sick to work, the other would find food and help the other. We kept each other alive. The average survival time of a prisoner in Auschwitz was seven months. Without Kurt, I wouldn’t have made it half that far. - Eddie Jaku, The Happiest Man on Earth, 82

Eddie described how some people chose to take their own lives by walking up to the electrified barbed-wire fence that surrounded Auschwitz. They preferred to end their own lives rather than continue to suffer at the hands of the Nazis.

Eddie often would say to Kurt, “Let’s go to the wire.” But, “He would not let me go to the wire,” Eddie wrote.

Solomon wrote about the blessing of a friend who sticks closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24). Sometimes, we sing a song called “What a Friend We Have in Jesus.” You truly have a treasure when you have a friend who won’t let you go through the difficult days alone.

Lesson #5 - “Shared Sorrow is Half Sorrow; Shared Pleasure is Double Pleasure.”

In 2011, Eddie helped establish a group where survivors of the Holocaust could meet and share their experiences with one another. This group gave the survivors a place where they finally felt like they could tell their stories - because they were with people who truly understood their pain.

Eddie referred to a saying that “shared sorrow is half sorrow; shared pleasure is double pleasure.” He emphasized the importance of sharing these experiences with others so that they weren’t kept inside, allowing bitterness to smolder.

His words reminded me of what Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome:

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. (Romans 12:14-15)

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If you’re interested in getting “The Happiest Man on Earth,” I’ve included this link for your convenience.

I may earn a commission through the Amazon Affiliate Program if you choose to buy it using the link above. There’s no pressure for you to buy - I have to mention this for legal purposes.