‘Make Germany Great Again’: How the German People Reacted to Nazisim by Andrew Sangster

Author:Andrew Sangster
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: HISTORY / Wars & Conflicts / World War II / European Theater
Publisher: Pen and Sword Military
Published: 2025-01-02T00:00:00+00:00

It was of little surprise that ‘BA’ received a custodial sentence, and the same event happened elsewhere across Germany. It did not take long for the anti- Church elements of Nazism to become obvious, and by 1937 Pope Pius XI was equally aware. He wrote an encyclical entitled Mit Brennender Sorge (With burning Anxiety), and it was sent to all clergy and German congregations. He expressed concern about the harassment the German Church, once enlightened by St Boniface, was now suffering, and pinpointing the immoral singling out of race and attitudes contrary to God’s order of things. It was in spirit the same as a Lutheran document (to be noted later) known as the Barmen Declaration, challenging the views and attitudes of National Socialism. There were elements in both the Lutheran and Catholic Churches, which appreciated the Nazi promises and some who welcomed the regime. The Nazis, as was their purpose, made every effort to control the churches while aware of some of the public’s religious sensitivities. A Concordat with Rome and appointing a Reich Bishop for the Lutherans had been mere side-shows to quieten criticism, by trying to keep the public onside in taking total control. In his diary Ulrich von Hassell ( July 1941) mentioned Bishop Heckel, who had once been a willing collaborator with the Nazis to bridge the gap between the church and the new regime, but he had explained to Hassell he had found out that he had been wrong, and discovered evidence that the Party had every intention of destroying the Church which ‘took its orders from an Asiatic ( Jesus Christ) which was unsuitable for a German’.21

As noted in Chapter One there had been considerable hostility against Catholics in Germany after the Reformation, as had happened in Britain, but it lasted much longer within Germany. By tradition, the Protestants had tended to dominate, especially in Prussia and many were nationalistically inclined and had supported Hitler in his rise to power. Overall, it has been worked out that out of the 17,000 Lutheran pastors in Germany only some 50 received serious prison sentences.22 Many more Catholic clergy were sent to concentration camps, and many were killed, more than a third of their number. The parish clergy only had to say something slightly against the regime and they could be reported. When Polish industrial slave labour appeared in his parish a Catholic priest, Chaplain Seitz, told the children not to be rude to these men, and his mother took the Poles home for a coffee.23 They were placing their religion above politics and Gestapo interrogation followed, with even Himmler taking a personal interest and Father Seitz was placed in ‘protective custody’, which for many must have been a warning that German Christianity was in serious danger.

The Catholic hierarchy did not suffer the same consequences as their clergy, only one bishop was expelled from his diocese, and one sentenced to long imprisonment for opposing the regime.24 The Catholic hierarchy could not have been unaware of the relentless persecution of the Jews and many others, but also against their own institution.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.