October 3, 1943
On Sunday, October 3, 1943, Pastor Hans Kjeldgaard Jensen, serving at Gilleleje Lutheran Church, read a letter from the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark’s bishops to his congregation exhorting them to act on the government’s call to protect Jewish fellow-citizens from Nazi persecution. He emphasized that Jesus was a Jew and that Christians had a duty to obey God rather than unjust human orders. Over 1,300 Jews who had gathered in Gilleleje were then hidden in homes, barns, and shops, as preparations began for their evacuation to neutral Sweden by local fishermen and resistance members.
 
The letter itself declared:
“Wherever Jews are persecuted because of their religion or race, it is the duty of the Christian Church to protest… We shall fight for the cause that our Jewish brothers and sisters may preserve the same freedom which we ourselves treasure more highly than life itself… race and religion can never justify that a person be deprived of his rights, freedom or property.”

Following the reading, Gilleleje’s residents sprang into action. On October 5, 1943, the town began to shelter over 500 additional Jewish refugees. Many were hidden in Pastor Jensen’s church. However, a tip to the Gestapo led to a raid on the church loft and parish hall—about 80–100 Jews were arrested and sent to Horserød Prison and then Theresienstadt, except for one boy who hid in the belfry. Despite this tragic setback, the town continued arranging boats and eventually succeeded in safely ferrying the remaining refugees to Sweden.

In all, Denmark’s resistance efforts—sparked in part by that October 3 letter—helped nearly 95% of Danish Jews survive the Holocaust, the highest survival rate among Nazi-occupied countries. Pastor Jensen’s reading of the bishops’ letter marked a pivotal moment when faith led directly to courageous, sacrificial action in defense of justice and neighbor love.