On the 22th of August 2020, the President of the University of Salzburg, Prof. Dr. Hendrik Lehnert, together with representatives of the State of Austria, the province Salzburg, the archdiocese of Salzburg, the arch-abbey of St Peter and the Jewish community of Salzburg presented the newly established Marko Feingold Visiting Professorship to the press and the larger audience. The first incoming visiting professor is expected to join the university in the spring of 2021.
President Lehnert of the University of Salzburg emphasized that this project was the result of an impressive collaboration between all parties involved and was proud to dedicate the visiting professorship to the memory of Marko Feingold, who died in 2019 at the remarkable age of 106. The Marko Feingold Visiting Professorship is dedicated to the study of the sources and development of anti-Semitism and anti-Judaism in Antiquity.
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The incoming visiting professor will not only be an expert in Jewish sources but will also be knowledgeable about Jewish praxis. He or she will be well connected with European, Israeli and American universities and is expected to play an active role in Jewish-Christian dialogue. The incoming visiting professor will also be fluent in Biblical Hebrew as well as competent in German, English and other appropriate languages. It is expected that the visiting professor will be present in Salzburg for periods up to one academic year.
Visiting Professors
President Lehnert elaborated that during the next five years, at least five visiting professors will continue the legacy of Marko Feingold, who after the holocaust dedicated himself not only to elaborating on the horrors of the war, but also to bringing people together and seeking to educate youngsters towards a better future. The visiting professors will give public and academic lectures, contribute to workshops and seminars and will actively engage with students of all subjects and fields. The visiting professor will also play an active role in the Jewish life of Salzburg and its community.  
Symbolic Acts are not Sufficient!
Symbolic Acts are not sufficient, says Ms Klambauer, representative of the Salzburg Province. Ms Klambauer emphasized that Marko Feingold continuously sought to keep the Jewish heritage and Jewish life alive in Salzburg. The Province of Salzburg explained that the plans to honour Marko Feingold were already made in the last years of his life and that the realisation of the visiting professorship will help to bolster the research dedicated to the sources of anti-Judaism and anti-Semitism. Ms Klambauer was happy to note that “the humble but steadfast passion of Marko Feingold to deepen scholarly research, as well as his ongoing dialogue with all interested parties will be continued with the Marko Feingold visiting professorship.”
Education and Enlightenment against Anti-Semitism and Anti-Judaism
Austrian Minister for the European Union Relations and Constitution, Ms Karoline Edtstadler, recalled the work undertaken by Marko Feingold and especially his ongoing presentations to and conversations with the youngsters of Salzburg about the dark chapter of the history and what was done to the Jewish population of Europe. She strongly reminded everyone that only through education and enlightenment can true progress be made and anti-Semitism and anti-Judaism be fought.
“We must not forget,” said Ms Hanna Feingold, the widow of Marko Feingold.
Ms Hanna Feingold expressed her thanks to all the involved parties for establishing the visiting professorship, especially “Prof. Dr. Renate Egger-Wenzel, who already in 2017, when Austria celebrated its 100th anniversary, Israel its 70th anniversary and Marko his 105th birthday, suggested the establishment of a visiting professorship” then in honour of, now in memory of her husband, Marko Feingold. Ms Feingold emphasized: “For over 70 years, my husband spoke with school-children and university students about his survival of four concentration camps during six years and how this should never ever happen again.” She also recalled how happy her husband was when school children attending his information sessions conveyed greetings from their parents, who like them had listened to him in earlier years.
Never Bitter, Always Reminding
The archbishop of Salzburg, Dr Franz Lackner spoke about his encounters with Marko Feingold, whom he called his elder brother. Similarly, Dr Korbinian Birnbauer, the arch-abbot of St Peter happily agreed to contribute to the visiting professorship. He wishes to remember Marko Feingold as a person with clear thoughts, unfathomable patience and fine humour which turned every conversation into a happy moment. He added that Marko Feingold’s way of saying things were a blessing to the people in Salzburg and beyond.
A Life Like no Other
Marko Feingold was born on May 28, 1913 in Neusohl (nowadays Banska Bystrica in Slovakia) and grew up in Vienna (Leopoldstadt). In 1939, the Gestapo arrested him in Prague and was a prisoner until the American soldiers liberated him in April 1945. He survived the following concentration camps: Auschwitz, Neuengamme near Hamburg, Dachau and Buchenwald, which, according to him, was only possible through a series of miracles. After being liberated and on his way to Vienna, he was stopped at the demarcation line at the Enns and was refused entry to the Russian zone. He then decided to turn to Salzburg, and started to help Jewish, especially Eastern-European refugees in their escape over the Alps to the then British Palestine. From 1948 to 1977 he ran a fashion retail shop in Salzburg. From 1978 he was president of the Jewish community of Salzburg. He received the golden cross of the State of Austria, the golden medal of the Province of Salzburg, as well as the golden ring of the University of Salzburg.