Religion And The Third Reich Essay, Research Paper
Religion in Germany has always had a different character from the rest of Europe. Due to the fragmented nature of the German landscape before its unification, Germany has a unique balance between Catholic and Protestant forces. Lutheranism, coming as it did from Germany, is a major force in German religion and the German identity. The teachings of Luther, and the peculiar national identity that those teachings, in part, inspired the mindset which allowed the Third Reich to flourish in Germany. The impact of the reformation, the peculiarities of a state-supported religion, and other factors in the history of the German church gave religion in Germany its unique tone and impact.
Luther taught Germans that governance by secular authorities was necessary, and was created by the will of God for the implementation of law and order. Luther believed that the order provided by a strong government was necessary to the spread of Christianity, for without such order anarchy would prevail, preventing the methodical spread of Christian ideals. Thus, he taught that the duty of individual Christians was to serve the state as it required, and to regard his service as a form of worshipping his Maker (Craig 84). This belief integrated itself well with the philosophies of Hegel & Fichte, who also argued for the necessity of the state imposing itself upon the individual, becoming part of the German ideal of subservience to the state, and eventually fostering the mindset that embraced the fascism of the Nazi Party and Hitler. Luther himself argued against the revolts spurred by his teachings, seeing their failure as a judgment from God (Craig 84). Calvinist forces in Brandenberg-Prussia served to reinforce these beliefs, bringing with the merger of the Calvinist and Lutheran Churches a new belief in the science of government and a new fervor for the principle of active support and subservience to the state.
The Catholic Church suffered waning influence and shrinking congregations due to the growth of the Protestant movements. The reforms instituted by the Council of Trent and the successes of its supporters in the 30 Years War managed to secure the Catholic Church s place in Germany, returning many territories and petty states to it (Craig 91). Catholics, however, still remained a minority in Germany. In order to protect their interests in political spheres, Catholic leaders formed the Center Party, which had a strong part in German politics until it was dissolved by the Nazi party in 1933. Ironically, however, it was the Center party that steered the course of German politics towards the Nazis, making alliances with the right that helped to secure power for Adolf Hitler. It was the Center Party s vote in the end which passed the act giving Hitler dictatorial powers (Craig 96). This led directly to the dissolution of the Center party, as Hitler and the Vatican agreed to remove the clergy from political life in exchange for the continued independence of Catholic schools and organizations, which itself proved fleeting as Hitler violated the agreement (Craig 96).
In its first years, the Third Reich tried to unify the Protestant Churches under one national Protestant Church. The German Christians were a small and obscure group at the beginning of the Nazi regime, but managed to parley themselves into Hitler s choice for a unified Protestant Church (Locke 99). This church endorsed the Nazi Party and their ideas on the Aryan Race and the German nation, arguing for a Protestant Church to be built on these principles, unifying the disparate Protestant faiths of Germany (Locke 43). This movement was successful in unseating most of the leadership of the Protestant Church, with some exceptions, but soon met a strengthening opposition, which culminated in an assembly at Barmen attended by representatives of 19 United, Reformed and Lutheran churches. Its purpose was stated in the introduction to the Barmen Declaration:
In opposition to attempts to establish the unity of the German Evangelical Church by means of false doctrine, by the use of force and insincere practices, the Confessional Synod insists that the unity of the Evangelical churches in Germany can come only from the Word of God in faith through the Holy Spirit (Locke 60).
The Barmen Declaration spoke out against many basic tenets of Nazism, disputing the idea that the State could become the single and totalitarian order of human life, that the Church could allow itself to serve any human desires, purposes, and plans, that the Church could rework its teachings to fit prevailing ideological and political convictions and denounced anti-Semitism (Locke 5). This Declaration initially prompted an increase in violence against pastors and congregations, but eventually forced an end to the Nazi attempt to unify the German Protestant Churches (Craig 97). The Declaration served also as one of the only contrary voices to arise from within Germany in the period before the outbreak of war.
For the most part the churches, both Protestant and Catholic, remained silent on the matter of the persecution of the Jews, a lack of action which haunts them to this day. The protests that arose from them did not generally enter the political sphere, but remained about the Nazi attempts to control the Churches. As Karl Barth said, the churches remained “silent on the action against the Jews, on the treatment of political opponents, on the suppression of the freedom of the press in the new Germany, and on so much else against which the Old Testament prophets would certainly have spoken out”(Craig 97). This is not to say there was complete silence, a notable exception being the Barmen Declaration, but on the part of the Churches there was no strong and unified voice rising in opposition to Hitler and his policies. In the Protestant Church, Luther’s teachings on the importance of the state caused a silence on the part of Protestant officials. This, of course, did not mean that there was no resistance on the part of the Churches, but it was not an official resistance, but simply the efforts of individual priests or pastors. Those pastors who chose to actively denounce the Nazis and their campaign against the Jewish people from their pulpits usually found themselves in prison or dead. Thus, a resistance formed in secret and actively participated in resisting the Nazi regime. After the war, however, a growing shame for their silent resistance came upon the Churches, and it was the leaders of the Confessing Church who said in 1945, “We accuse ourselves that we did not witness more courageously, pray more faithfully, believe more joyously, love more ardently.”(Craig 98)
Religion played a major part in the development of the Third Reich, but not necessarily directly. It was the unfortunate right wing tendencies of the Catholic Center Party which helped to bring the Third Reich into power, but, more than that, Lutheranism influenced the prevailing German ideology, creating a mindset which provided a fertile ground for the fascist Nazi principles. Along with the principles of Hegel, Lutheranism taught that the state was supreme and that men should dedicate their lives to serving the state. The Churches also showed a regrettable reluctance to denounce Nazi political ideas, preferring to stay within the religious sphere. The Churches shaped the course of the creation of the Third Reich, and did little to fight the Frankenstein’s monster that they helped to create.
Works Cited
Locke, Hubert G. (Ed), The Church Confronts the Nazis : Barmen Then and Now, Edwin Mellen Press, New York: 1984
Craig, Gordon A., The Germans, Meridian, New York: 1982