Kai Höss: My grandfather, the Commandant of Auschwitz episode artwork

EPISODE · Nov 7, 2025 · 26 MIN

Kai Höss: My grandfather, the Commandant of Auschwitz

from The Documentary Podcast · host BBC World Service

In a cinema in south-west Germany an audience is gathered to watch an Oscar winning film, Zone of Interest, about the life of Rudolf Höss, Commandant of Auschwitz. Those present comprise Jewish people from around the world, and the special guest is Rudolf’s grandson. The topic was rarely visited during Kai's childhood. It was only after a school history lesson that Kai began to comprehend Rudolf’s role as head of the largest mass murder site in history. Reporter Shiroma Silva travels to his home in Germany to question Kai on his personal struggle. She tracks Kai’s outlook today through Christianity, in which he uses his past to look forward and understand the particular place of Jewish people in the Bible. He questions how antisemitism thrived in Christian societies and his grandfather’s early life in a devout Catholic family. This episode of The Documentary, comes to you from Heart and Soul, exploring personal approaches to spirituality from around the world

In a cinema in south-west Germany an audience is gathered to watch an Oscar winning film, Zone of Interest, about the life of Rudolf Höss, Commandant of Auschwitz. Those present comprise Jewish people from around the world, and the special guest is Rudolf’s grandson. The topic was rarely visited during Kai's childhood. It was only after a school history lesson that Kai began to comprehend Rudolf’s role as head of the largest mass murder site in history. Reporter Shiroma Silva travels to his home in Germany to question Kai on his personal struggle. She tracks Kai’s outlook today through Christianity, in which he uses his past to look forward and understand the particular place of Jewish people in the Bible. He questions how antisemitism thrived in Christian societies and his grandfather’s early life in a devout Catholic family. This episode of The Documentary, comes to you from Heart and Soul, exploring personal approaches to spirituality from around the world

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Kai Höss: My grandfather, the Commandant of Auschwitz

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In a cinema in south-west Germany an audience is gathered to watch an Oscar winning film, Zone of Interest, about the life of Rudolf Höss, Commandant of Auschwitz. Those present comprise Jewish people from around the world, and the special guest is...

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