Beautiful Souls by Eyal Press, Chapter 1: Disobeying the Law

Eyal Press begins his book with a story of an unlikely law breaker, the Commander of the State Police in St. Gallen, Switzerland. Paul Gruninger was, by all accounts, a good and faithful civil servant for many years; a family man; a man that could be trusted with the law and order of his community. Yet, Paul Gruninger was indicted and convicted of breaking the very laws he was entrusted to uphold…how could this have happened? The simple answer is that there is no simple answer, especially in the difficult and dark days of the spreading horror of World War II in Europe. After experiencing an overwhelming influx of Jewish refugees throughout the 1930’s, Switzerland decided that there was no more room within its borders and after August 19, 1938, immigration for any reason was denied. Gruninger, serving on the border of Austria and familiar with the horrors that were present in that border country, could not bring himself to follow this new immigration law. He regularly accepted new immigrants fleeing Austria and falsely dated their paperwork with dates prior to August 19. His life-saving but law breaking activities were eventually discovered and he was promptly removed from his position and discredited for the remainder of his life. His actions may have saved countless lives, but he dramatically changed his life and the fortunes of his family. Why did the Commander of the State Police break the law?

Many of Paul Gruninger’s contemporaries, faced with the same dilemma, successfully enforced the immigration laws of Switzerland during the tumultuous days of the 1930’s. However, a key difference was that Gruninger was regularly in contact with the desperate people fleeing Austria. He did not distance himself in an office, far removed from those in need. His personal experience transformed his understanding of the situation and directly influenced how he would live out his already deeply held principles. The last statement is very important and foundational to understanding Paul Gruninger and to understanding Eyal Press’ first chapter: personal experience is transformative and the resultant transformation is lived-out through beliefs that are deeply held. Gruninger’s deeply held belief was this: “he held an unshakable conviction that Switzerland was the enlightened nation it claimed to be, a sanctuary whose citizens had always extended a welcoming hand to castoffs from more troubled lands.” (Beautiful Souls, p. 34) Gruninger may have understood he was breaking the law of the day, but he was courageously upholding the principles of  Switzerland as he had come to know them throughout his life. The impact of personal experience is further detailed by Eyal Press by relating the results of psychological experiments of group and individual behaviors. The results point to the importance of personal experience and the transformations that occur from these experiences. Paul Gruninger’s experiences with the desperate people fleeing Austria moved him and transformed him so deeply that when he was asked why he risked everything to help these strangers he replied, “I could do nothing else.” (p. 28)

Questions for reflection:

• Consider some important and deeply held personal beliefs; how have you come to know and understand these in your life.
• Compare times in your life, both before and after personal experiences, and consider how your understanding and/or life has been transformed by these moments.