Nazi Conspiracy & Aggression Among the reasons cited for this action were the following:
"The whole behavior of the Guild of the Virgin Mary had
therefore to be objected to from various points of
view. It could be repeatedly observed that the Guild
engaged in purely worldly affairs, such as community
games, and then in the holding of 'Social Evenings'.
"This proves incontestably that the Guild of the Virgin
Mary was active to a very great degree in a manner
unecclesiastical and therefore worldly. By so doing it
has left the sphere of its proper religious task and
entered a sphere of activity to which it has no
statutory right. The organization has therefore to be
dissolved and forbidden." (1481-PS)
According to the report of a Security Police "church
specialist" attached to the State Police Office at Aachen,
the following points were made by a lecturer at a conference
of Security Police and Security Service church intelligence
investigators in Berlin, on 22 September 1941:
"Retreats, recreational organizations, etc., may now be forbidden on ground of industrial war-needs, whereas formerly only a worldly activity could be given as a basis.
"Youth camps, recreational camps are to be forbidden on principle, church organizations in the evening may be pre vented on grounds of the blackout regulations.
"Processions, pilgrimages abroad are to be forbidden by
reason of the over-burdened transport conditions. For
local events too technical traffic troubles and the
danger of air attack may serve as grounds for their
prohibition. (One Referent forbade a procession, on the
grounds of it wearing out shoe leather)." (1815-PS)
(g) The Nazi conspirators suppressed religious education. In
a speech on 7 March 1937, Rosenberg stated:
"The education of youth can only be carried out by
those who have rescued Germany from disaster. It is
therefore
[Page 274]
impossible to demand one Fuehrer, one Reich and one
firmly united people as long as education is carried
out by forces which are mutually exclusive to each
other." (2351-PS)
In a speech at Fulda, 27 November 1937 Reich Minister for
Church Affairs Hans Kerrl stated:
"We cannot recognize that the Church has a right to
insure that the individual should be educated in all
respects in the way in which it holds to be right; but
we must leave it to the National Socialist State to
educate the child in the way it regards as right." (252-PS)
In January 1939, Bormann, acting as Deputy of the Fuehrer,
informed the Minister of Education, that the Party was
taking the position that theological inquiry was not as
valuable as the general fields of knowledge in the
universities and that suppression of Theological Faculties
in the universities was to be undertaken at once. He pointed
out that the Concordat with the Vatican placed certain
limitations on such a program, but that in the light of the general change of
circumstances, particularly the compulsory military service
and the execution of the four-year plan, the question of
manpower made certain reorganizations, economies and
simplification necessary. Therefore, Theological Faculties
were to be restricted insofar as they could not
be wholly suppressed. He instructed that the churches were
not to be informed of this development and no public
announcement was to be made. Any complaints, if they were to
be replied to at all, should be answered with a statement
that these measures are being executed in a general plan of
reorganization and that similar things are happening to
other faculties. He concludes with the statement that the
professorial chairs vacated by the above program are to be
turned over to the newly created fields of inquiry, such as
Racial Research. (116-PS)
A plan for the reduction of Theological Faculties was
submitted by the Reich Minister for Science, Education and
Training in April 1939 to Bormann, who forwarded it to
Rosenberg for consideration and action. The plan called for
shifting, combining and eliminating Theological
Faculties in various schools and universities throughout the
Reich, with the following results:
"To recapitulate this plan would include the complete
closing of Theological Faculties at Innsbruck, Salzburg
and Munich, the transfer of the faculty of Graz to
Vienna and the vanishing of four Catholic faculties.
"a. Closing of three Catholic Theological Faculties or
Higher Schools and of four Evangelic Faculties in the
winter semester 1939/40.
[Page 275]
"b. Closing of one further Catholic and of three-
further Evangelic Faculties in the near future." (122-PS)
In a secret decree of the Party Chancellery, signed by
Bormann, and distributed to all Gauleiters on 7 June 1941,
the following statement concerning religious education was
made:
"No human being would know anything of Christianity if
it had not been drilled into him in his childhood by
pastors. The so-called dear God in no wise gives
knowledge of his existence to young people in advance,
but in an astonishing manner in spite of his
omnipotence leaves this to the efforts of the pastors.
If therefore in the future our youth learns nothing
more of this Christianity, whose doctrines are far
below ours, Christianity will disappear by itself." (D-75)
(2) Supplementary evidence of acts of oppression within
Germany. In laying the groundwork for their attempted
subversion of the Church, the Nazi conspirators resorted to
assurances of peaceful intentions. Thus Hitler, in his
address to the Reichstag on 23 March 1933 declared:
"While the government is determined to carry through
the political and moral purging of our public life, it
is creating and insuring prerequisites for a truly
religious life. The government sees in both Christian
confessions the factors most important for the
maintenance of our Folkdom. It will respect agreements
concluded between them and the states. However, it
expects that its work will meet with a similar
appreciation. The government will treat all other
denominations with equal objective justice. However, it
can never condone that belonging to a certain
denomination or to a certain race might be regarded as
a license to commit or tolerate crimes. The Government
will devote its care to the sincere living together of Church and State." (3387-PS)
(a) Against the Evangelical Churches. The Nazi conspirators,
upon their accession to power, passed a number of laws,
under innocent-sounding titles, designed to reduce the
Evangelical Churches to the status of an obedient instrument
of Nazi policy. The following are illustrative:
[Page 276]
Document Number Date Reichsgesetzblatt Title and Gist of Law
Page
------------------------------------------------------------
3433-PS 14.7.33 I.471 Gesetz ueher die Verfassun
der Deutschen Evanelischen
Kirche (Law concerning the
Constitution of the German
Evangelical Church),
establishing among other
things the new post of Reich
Bishop. [Signed by]
Hitler, Frick.
3434-PS 26.6.35 I.774 Gesetz ueer das
BesGhlussverfahren in
Rechtsaneleenheite der
Evanelisschen Kirche (Law
concerning procedure for
decisions in legal affairs of
the Evangelical Church),
giving the Reich Ministry of
the Interior sole authority to
determine the validity of
measures taken in the Churches
since 1 May 1933, when raised
in a civil lawsuit. [Signed by]
Hitler, Frick.
3435-PS 3.7.35 I.851 Erste Verordnung zur Durchfuehrung
des Gesetzes ueber das
Reschluss-verfahren in
Rechtsanelegenheiten der
Evanelischen Kirche (First
Ordinance for Execution of the
Law concerning procedure for
decisions in legal affairs of the
Evangelical Church), setting up
detailed organization and
procedures under the law of 21
June 1935. [Signed by] Frick.
3466-PS 16.7.35 I.1029 Erlass ueber die Zusammen
fassung der Zustaendiykeiten des
Reichs und Preussens in
Kirchenaneleenheiten (Decree to
unite the competences of Reich and
Prussia in Church affairs)
transferring to Kerrl, Minister
without Portfolio, the church
affairs previously handled by
Reich and Prussian Ministers of
the Interior and of Science,
Education, and Training.
[Signed by] Hitler, Rust, Koerner.
[Page 277]
3436-PS 24.9.35 I.1178 Gesetz zur Sicherun der Deutschen
Evangelischen Kirche (Law for the
Safeguarding of the German
Evangelical Church) empowering the
Reich Minister of Church Affairs
(Kerrl) to issue Ordinances with
binding legal force. [Signed by]
Hitler, Frick.
3437-PS 2.12.35 I.1370 Fuenfte Verordnung Zur Durchfuehrun
des Gesetzes zur Siherun der
Deutschen Evanelischen Kirche
(Fifth decree for execution of the
law for the Safeguarding of the
German Evangelical Church)
prohibiting the churches from
filling their pastorates, ordaining
ministers, visitation, publishing of
banns, and collecting dues and
assessments. [Signed by] Kerrl.
3439-PS 25.6.37 I.697 Fuenfzehnte Verordnun zur
Durchfuehrun des Gesetzes zur
Sicherung der Deutschen
Evanyelischen Kirche (Fifteenth
decree for the Execution of the
Law for Security of the German
Evangelical Church) establishing
in the Reich Ministry for Church
Affairs a Finance Department, to
supervise administration of the
church property budget, tax
assessment, and use of budget
funds. [Signed by] Kerrl.
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Volume
I Chapter VII
Means Used by the Nazi Conspiractors in Gaining Control of the German State
(Part 33 of 55)