The Friedensmal (monument) site can also be understood as a free space, where the positive search for one’s own identity can take place. This is about finding peace with the own identity. That means, that the theme is also the cultural and spiritual uprooting in our time. For many people, it is growing increasingly more difficult to find footing in “the outside”. What is merely an ideological construct and does it hold any truth? Inside the Friedensmal one can see the Tree of Life in the form of a relief. It is a view “from above”, a bird’s eye perspective. It means to look at oneself in an own inner experience: Who am I? – The roots of the tree point towards Jerusalem. This is a representation of a deep root in our western culture, which is currently cut off to a certain extent by inner fences. The so-called Third Reich did most damage to this root.

From a social point of view, this project is a signpost towards a healthy cultural identity, which can be found in the “beautiful, true, and good”. It is the product of a lengthy cultural history, which was founded in the Christian religion and into which the Enlightenment and Humanism worked. It resulted in a cultural efflorescence. A culture of the uprooted cannot stand. Similar to a tree, which needs its roots to extend towards the skies, humans need to be rooted in their origins and culture to reach over fences and beyond borders to communicate with their neighbors. This would bring peace and make our world richer in culture, while also leading to a true appreciation of others, instead of mere tolerance.

A healing of a culture can only happen as a process that quietly takes place from the inside of the single person. Then a society heals from the bottom-up, from civil society. This is absolutely not “less important”. Therefore, the monument has a quiet and introspective form, a return to nature instead of a bombastic and apparently important site. The monument is located in Bensheim-Hochstädten, close to Frankfurt on Main, and it is the result of a private initiative and voluntary efforts that date back to 1998. This is also a sign that citizens assume responsibility within the democratic society and protect it. Peace and freedom must be protected by citizens who bear responsibility for this. From this basis, the uprooting of culture can be overcome.