Association of Contemporary Church Historians

 

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

 

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

 

Newsletter- July 2000- Vol.VI, no. 7-8 

Dear Friends,
I trust that all of you in the northern hemisphere are enjoying sunshine and
warm weather, and possibly a chance to relax with a good book on your
holidays. Here are a few to choose from for those who can’t tear themselves
away, or find detective stories intensely boring by comparison to church
history!

Contents:
1) KZG Conference 2000
2) Book reviews: a) Barnett, Bystanders
b) Furuya, Japanese Theology
c) Garrard-Burnett, Protestantism in Guatemala
3) Conference Report: Religion and the Cold War
4) Film Review: Bonhoeffer: Agent of Grace.

1) This year’s meeting of the Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte fraternity will take
place from 21st to 24th September in Strasbourg, France under the leadership
of Professor Frederic Hartweg. The theme is “Kirche/Religion –
Staat/Gesellschaft. Deutschland – Frankreich. Antagonismen und Annaehrung im
19 und 20 Jahrhundert.” Enquiries should be directed to dpal@umb.u-strasb.fr
The most recent issue of the journal Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte, Vol 12, no.
2, 1999 is devoted to the theme ‘Europabilder der Kirchen in der
Nachkriegszeit”. This contains the papers given at the 1998 KZG conference
in Sweden, and has a number of interesting articles on the period
immediately following the second world war, including analyses of the
policies of the major international church bodies such as the Vatican, the
Lutheran World Federation and the World Council of Churches. This issue also
includes a 100-page bibliography of recent books in our field.

2) Book reviews:
a) Victoria Barnett, Bystanders. Conscience and Complicity during the
Holocaust.
Westport, Conn/London: Greenwood Press, 1999 185pp
Some years ago Victoria Barnett wrote “For the Soul of the People” which was
based on interviews with surviving members of the Confessing Church, that
section of the German Evangelical Church which had resolutely combated the
heresies and distortions of their pro-Nazi opponents, the so-called ‘German
Christians’. She had obviously expected that such staunch defenders of
theological orthodoxy would also have mobilized their forces to protest the
Nazis’ criminal actions, especially the persecution of the Jews. But to her
dismay, most of her interviewees had remained passively silent, as
bystanders.
This disappointment prompted her to undertake a more thorough examination of
the role of bystanders in general during the tragic events of the Holocaust.
She asks all the right questions about the context, not only in Germany but
throughout Nazi-occupied Europe, as well as about the motives, in so far as
they are ascertainable, and also about the ethical and theological issues
which conditioned the bystanders’ behaviour, and which she believes are not
so different today. Clearly her hope is to show how the ethical response of
caring for the welfare of one’s neighbours is essential if we are to avoid a
repetition of the Holocaust in the future.
Nazi Germany sought to impose its totalitarian will on all the population.
Yet, even in such a dictatorship, we can find instances of independent
thought and action. So the frequently-used claim that bystanders were
powerless or intimidated into silence has to be examined closely lest it be
just a convenient excuse for moral failure. How many of those bystanders
were in fact in sympathy with the Nazis’ criminal policies, even if they
were not directly involved? Or to what extent did they “redefine” their
ethical systems in order to view the persecution of the Jews as a “good”? Or
can their individual behaviour be seen as the logical result of the
abdication of free will and the glorification of an immoral state?
So too the institutional responses to Nazi crimes were frequently ambivalent
by supporting state policies and carrying out state orders, by facilitating
complicity and blocking effective resistance by individuals. Certainly, even
in the churches, the few who sought to express dissent or to show solidarity
with the victims, were evidently discouraged by the readiness of the church
leaders to side silently with state authority. On the international level,
efforts to rescue Jews from the Nazi clutches were frequently hampered by
bureaucratic short-sightedness, institutional policies, or indifference,
which were all a form of bystanders. So too was the widespread denial that
it was possible to do anything to stop what was happening. In the absence of
any overarching international institution, or more importantly of any
universally-held sense of moral obligation, the saving of Jewish lives never
gained the priority which we now think it should have had.
Of course, as Barnett skillfully points out, evaluation of the bystanders
‘conduct has to be set in its wider context. She rightly rejects simplistic
interpretations claiming that there were really no bystanders since all
Germans were “eliminationist antisemites”. On the other side, she admits
that it is impossible to calculate the extent to which the widespread
antisemitism of the day, and not only in Germany, may have impeded more
humane responses to the Jewish plight. Equally she is ready to grant that,
because of the incremental nature of the Nazi onslaught and the total
secrecy of the mass murder programme, the later claim by many Germans that
they had known nothing, cannot be dismissed as a self-serving alibi. Yet, as
Pastor Hermann Maas of Heidelberg pertinently asked: “Was not what we did
see and hear quite enough?”
The real question about bystanders in a totalitarian society is to determine
where coercion began and free will ended. Certainly we can not ignore the
ominous effect of incessant propaganda and the climate of mutual suspicion
which led to so many denunciations to the Gestapo of anyone expressing
sympathy for the Jews. Many church people, especially in the Confessing
Church, withdrew into a private sphere, creating islands of non-conformity,
in order to survive physically and psychologically, which indeed was a form
of inner resistance. But such “internal emigration” ran the danger that it
severed any signs of solidarity with the victims. And as Raul Hilberg
pointed out, such abstention could block any sense that the plight of the
Jews was linked to the bystanders’ own.
And yet, there were those who rose above this indifference and took active
steps to rescue or assist Jews. Barnett analyzes what she calls acts of
disruptive empathy, such as happened in the French village of Le Chambon
under the charismatic leadership of the pastor, Andre Trocme. Here was a
deliberate process of active resistance based on religious ethical
assumptions, drawn from the villagers’ Hugenot roots. These men and women
could no longer be bystanders, but were impelled by their moral insights to
do what was needed to save Jews. They knew that, in Christian as well as
Jewish tradition, welcoming the stranger is a metaphor for welcoming God.
And the consequences of compassion and charity connected everyone involved
in a new way and thus altered the very dynamics of society. Le Chambon’s
goodness, their ethical connectedness, stands as a prize example of how the
demonic forces of genocide, of Holocaust, can be confronted.
Victoria Barnett’s penetrating examination of individual and collective
behaviour in the face of monstrous evil will be certain to provoke
considerable reflection and debate. We can be grateful to her for raising
these issues so clearly and coherently. JSC

b) Yasuo Furuya (editor & translator), A History of Japanese Theology (Grand
Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1997), vi+161 pp.
Although there have been several studies of Japanese theology by
westerners, this is the first to have been written by Japanese theologians
themselves. The editor, who teaches at the International Christian
University (ICU) in Tokyo, has divided the history into four periods –The
First Generation, by Akio Dohi; the Second Generation (1907-1945), by Toshio
Sato; The Third Generation (1945-1970), by Seiichi Yagi, and Theology After
1970 , by Masaya Odagaki–each survey written by recognized theologians who
themselves appear within the history. Dr. Furuya contributes an
Introduction and Epilogue which set the context for the studies. A
bibliography and index complete the work.
Each section traces the development of Japanese theology from dependence
on western sources to greater freedom to deal with the indigenous
environment of thought. The first generation, just emerged from a
background of Shinto-Buddhism-Confucianism, made varying accommodations
between their new-found faith and the old traditions. The second generation
began a long process of dependence on German academic theology, though the
Presbyterian Uemura also encouraged his disciples to study British and Scots
like Forsyth and Mackintosh. Social Christianity arose around the middle of
this period in reaction to the individualism of the evangelical churches and
the philosophical trend taken by academic theology. Independent of the
American Social Gospel, its roots were in the student movement and sympathy
with Toyohiko Kagawa’s work with labour and the poor. Kagawa’s concept of
“redemptive love” represented a key element in the exposition of this
theology. In the thirties, however, leaders of the movement like Enkichi
Kan made a sudden switch to German dialectical theology with studies of
Brunner and Barth.
One reason for the switch, proposed by Sao, was that dialectical
theology was perceived to be “deeper” than Social Christianity. The
perception that Christian theology was not as “deep”–read “hard to
understand”–as Buddhism has plagued the history of Japanese theology down
to this day. Another reason heard during my work with students in the
sixties was that the adherents of Social Christianity were unable to stand
the growing pressure of militarism at the time and interpreted Bath’s
theology (wrongly, as it turned out: p. 124) to release them from a social
activism that had become unbearable.
‘Japanese Theology’ represents another accommodation with nationalism.
With its roots in the thought of first-generation Christian leaders like
Banjo Ebbing, this type sought to deal with the clash between State Shinto,
the Emperor-cult, and Christianity. According to the Anglican theologian
Osaka Tusked (omitted in this survey), Japanese Theology distinguished
between ‘reverence’ for the great heroes of Japan exalted in State Shinto
and ‘faith’ in the Christian God and Jesus Christ. Thus attendance at a
Shinto Shrine represented, not worship but an expression of loyalty. This
type of thinking allowed leaders of the United Church of Christ in Japan to
travel in China to defend the right of the Imperial forces to invade China.
Yogi’s survey of the Third Generation was of special interest, taking
contextual factors more seriously and written from a standpoint of personal
involvement. That is not to say that it was easier to read. Perhaps
because the author teaches philosophy of religion, the approach is basically
philosophical. Because this generation marks what Yogi and others call “the
liberation from the Barthian captivity,” attention has been transferred from
Karl Bath’s “deepness” to the even denser thought of Buddhist philosophers
like the Zen thinker, Quitter Noshed. Translation into English poses
problems here. What for instance does Nishida’s key term, “the Identity of
the Absolute Contradiction,” mean for someone not already acquainted with
the Japanese vocabulary? Yet it is fascinating to see Japanese Christian
theologians turning from European models to their own cultural heritage to
construct a theology that they hope will be more intelligible to their
compatriots. In initiating a dialogue with Zen Buddhist scholars in
particular, the third generation attempts to under-stand the nature of
Christ in terms of enlightenment and Buddha-hood.
Some theologians of this generation, however, saw this process as
verging on pluralism, endangering the claim of Christianity to absoluteness.
So they attempted to express their faith in a way that would be
understandable in Japan yet would guard that claim. In this category comes
the well-known Pain of God Theology of Kazoh Kitamori, as well as other
less famous examples like Yoshio Noro’s existential theology.
If the third generation had concentrated on Christology, theology after
1970 is mainly concerned with reflection on the nature of God. Dialogue
with Buddhism continued, but was more concerned with fundamental problems
such as dualism of subject and object, the relation between Christian belief
in God’s transcendence and absolute otherness, and the Buddhist doctrine of
‘samsara’ (nothingness). These philosophical discussions paralleled the
social unrest among students that began in the late sixties and continued
into the early seventies. Theologians were divided by this turmoil. One of
them, Kenos Tagawa, lost his job for siding with the students at ICU, where
Furuya sat on the governing body which expelled him.
Nevertheless, little attempt is made in this study to trace the
relation between social context and theological development. A theme that
runs throughout–from Ebina at the beginning to attempts to restore the
official status of Shinto in the present–is the problem of Christianity’s
stand in relation to Shinto veneration of the emperor and the authoritarian
paternalism that governs the whole of Japanese society. Although the
problem is raised in the Epilogue, its relation as the context for
theological development is never explicitly discussed. There is a certain
sense that little connection exists between the arcane discussions of the
theologians–many of them graduates of the elite Imperial University of
Tokyo–and what is going on at the grass roots in the churches. Even though
theologians may have been liberated from their German captivity, the rather
Germanic tendency to concentrate on academic theology remains. Figures like
Kagawa, who wrote from his slum experience, or Tomura and others, who have
been active in the popular struggle against the emperor-cult, are hardly
mentioned. And feminist theology does not even appear.
Another shortcoming relates to the overwhelming concentration on
Protestant theology. The editor justifies this choice by arguing the
missionaries dominate Roman catholic education until recently, so that few
indigenous theologians were produced [pp. 7-8]. The review does cover three
Roman Catholics, all of them interesting figures, but Anglican and Orthodox
are virtually neglected. One wonders if an examination of sacramental and
liturgical practices among these three groups might not have revealed some
movement toward indigenisation that could have proved profitable.
On the whole, however, this is an interesting and important book. It
raises the hope that works by the theologians covered might be translated
in the future, particularly around the Buddhist-Christian dialogue.
Cyril Powles, Vancouver

c) Virginia Garrard-Burnett, Protestantism in Guatemala. Living in New
Jerusalem
Austin: University of Texas Press, 1998 248pp
Guatemala, indeed most of Latin America, was on the margin of the Protestant
missionary expansion of the early twentieth century. This area had none of
the romantic appeal of saving China’s millions, of following David
Livingstone through the jungles of Africa, or facing the risks of cannibals
in the South Pacific. As a result missionaries were few in number, and
resources spread very thinly. Yet only a century later, Guatemala has the
remarkable character of being at least one-third Protestant, of whom over
80% are Pentecostals or charismatics. Virginia Garret-Burnett’s historical
study is a thoughtful explanation of how this development took place, based
on an exhaustive coverage of the sources, both Spanish and English, as well
as interviews and correspondence with some of the more prominent
participants. But she fails to take seriously enough the main division
between the indigenous population and the “Ladinos”, i.e. those who speak
Spanish, adhere to “western” culture and participate in the political
processes of the country. This division is not an ethnic one, but is vital
since the two groups have increasingly little to bind them together. It
would seem that the main groups interested in Protestantism come from the
Ladino community, but that generalizations, especially on political
sentiments and sympathies, are difficult to establish with certainty.
In the early years, the Protestant missionary presence was almost
exclusively USA-based. These men and women brought with them the cultural
imperialist baggage of the time, equating “progress” with the adoption of
American religious, political and cultural ideas. Their appeal was primarily
directed against the indigenous Catholicism which they steadfastly saw as
responsible for Guatemala’s backwardness, as well as for the downtrodden
condition of the majority Mayan population.
By the 1920s, however, some Protestants began to see that their aims might
be better achieved by encouraging native ministries in their own languages.
Hence an enormous effort was put into producing suitable orthographies and
literatures for a basically illiterate population. But this meant the
necessary encouragement of local leadership, which in turn often led to
conflicts between the foreign missionary and his indigenous parishioners for
national or cultural reasons, Lacking any strong doctrinal control or
resources, these mission churches were highly susceptible to schism, and
hence the growth of independent churches, often tiny in size but locally
based and vibrant in character.
Protestants had at first been favoured by the strongly anti-Catholic Liberal
governments, culminating in the near-Marxist regime of Jacobo Arbenz, who
was finally overthrown by the US Marines in 1954. The subsequent
anti-American sentiments led to checks on US-supported activities, even
though many of the younger missionaries were in favour of Arbenz’ radical
social programmes.
By contrast, the subsequent regimes of military authoritarianism led to
decades of civil violence, street murders and mass intimidation, prompting
the rise of a guerilla movement, and consequent scorched earth tactics in
waves of repression. The destabilization of the traditional society and the
visible disintegration of the Catholic church provided a new opportunity for
Protestant growth, especially where these new churches could stress their
anti-communism and hence receive support from sympathizers in the United
States. In this sense Guatemala benefited from the effects of China and
Cuba. But Garrard-Burnett attributes this Protestant growth, and especially
the advance of Pentecostalism, to the effects of the political struggle with
its enormous casualties. These forms of Protestantism offered an apocalyptic
explanation of the miseries so many Guatemalans were suffering, but at the
same time an ecstatic and emotional outlet for their feelings, linked to
hope for a better future. Furthermore, she suggests, Pentecostalism’s
emphasis on the gift of the Holy Spirit, the spontaneous worship services,
and the enthusiastic speaking in tongues, i.e. in their own native
languages, rather than in the Latin or Spanish of Catholic rituals, had a
special resonance for the native Indian peoples.
This growth was indeed astonishing, and seems to have been only stimulated
by the catastrophic earthquake of 1976. By the 1980s there were 10,000
Protestant churches, divided into over 300 separate denominations, mostly in
unaffiliated sects headed by pastors whose essential qualification was
divine revelation. The appeal of such churches was, and is, that members
feel they give structure to what would otherwise be a chaotic and evil
world, rendering a larger meaning and cosmic plan from nearly
incomprehensible terror. They also provided the hope for vindication,
justice and empowerment for the many poor and oppressed.
Such groups were encouraged by the short-lived but vivid Presidency of Rios
Montt in 1982-3, the first acknowledged born-again Christian Pentecostal to
achieve power. He did not last long, and the results were ambiguous, since
his troops still continued their oppressive campaigns against guerillas in
the remoter countryside and the attendant forcible pacification of the
inhabitants. But the disruptions imposed on traditional Mayan society opened
the way for new churches to spring up. In the Pentecostal assemblies, the
war’s victims found solace through miraculous healings, ecstatic trances and
glossolalia. They also offered the displaced peasant a chance to improve his
or her lot by taking the Pentecostal path “from a dirt floor to heaven”. But
above all Protestant congregations offered a new community and a new
identity in place of one now vanished or no longer available.
Nevertheless Guatemala remains a fragile and broken society, under constant
threat of social unrest and horrendous economic disparities. Pentecostal or
neo-Pentecostal churches attempt to fill a spiritual void. The paradox is
that, for the Mayan inhabitants, both Catholicism and Protestantism are
foreign imports. But just as a syncretistic Mayan Catholicism emerged,
perhaps the same will be true for the already flexible Pentecostals. Perhaps
here can be found a new moral basis for the regeneration of society,
overcoming the dreadful legacy of violence and repression with a new
spirit-filled and innovative religious movement.
Virginia Garrard-Burnett teaches at the Institute of Latin American Studies,
University of Texas, Austin.
JSC

3) Religion and the Cold War Conference
Natalie Watson reports on a conference held in London in April, which can be
seen as a start of an international group of historians interested in the
field of Religion and the Cold War. This showed that the varying
interpretations of the Cold War are by no means finished, and that the
significance of religion, and Christianity in particular, needs much more
further work. The conference was organized by Dr Dianne Kirby (University of
Ulster) and the Institute of British History, and attended by scholars from
Britain, Germany, North America and Finland. Prof Aila Lauha from Helsinki
has launched her own project on this topic at Helsinki and is working with a
number of other European universities. The topic includes a revision of
historians’ attitudes, as was made clear by Prof Hartmut Lehmann (Max-Planck
Institut fuer Geschichte, Goettingen) in a most interesting paper on the
official interpretation of Luther and Thomas Muntzer in the former German
Democratic Republic. Similarly, disparate views on the Russian Church were
expressed. “The situation of the Russian Orthodox Church has worsened in
recent years rather than improving”. This was the view of a veteran of the
struggle against the Soviet regime, Fr. Georgii Edelstein, a Russian
Orthodox priest from Kostrama. The Russian Orthodox Church, Fr. Edelstein
claimed, is still run by a hierarchy appointed by the state authorities. The
Moscow Patriarchate, which has always been part of the Soviet state, should
be treated with some suspicion. He called for repentance by the church
leaders, and for the work of such bodies as Keston College, Oxford (the
leading centre for research on East European churches during the Soviet era)
to continue.
Further information can be obtained from the mailing list
cold-war-rel@mailbase.ac.uk

4) Film Review: Bonhoeffer: Agent of Grace

Bonhoeffer: Agent of Grace

This production of NFP teleart GmbH and Co.KG in co-production with
Norflicks
Production Ltd. (in association with Chum City Television, Oregon Public
Broadcasting, Ostdeutscher Rundfunk Brandenburg, Studio Babelsberg
Independents GmbH, and Wisconsin Public Television) is a ninety-minute
dramatization of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s final years, 1939-45. Bonhoeffer:
Agent of Grace (BAOG) was first shown in Germany, and then aired over PBS
stations in the United States on June 14. (A premier showing was held for
members of the press and selected guests, in New York City on May 17.)
Advance publicity included the honor of ‘Best Film’ it received at the Monte
Carlo Television Festival 2000.

I believe it is important to preface a review of this sort with two
precautions. First, any dramatization attempting to convey the ‘essence’ of
such a complex and dynamic figure as Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in only ninety
minutes, will rarely satisfy those persons who are well-acquainted with and
already committed to a particular view of this figure’s ‘essence.’ Second,
while a critical review aims to make judgment on the effectiveness of a
production in the interest of truth, it is the case that every production
takes on a life of its own, and one only hopes that viewers are motivated to
further, more in-depth inquiry. These precautions are stated to express the
need for serious critique as well as genuine humility.

Initially, one is struck cinematographically – while viewing BAOG – with the
realization that we live in a post-Schindlerian age. Without the finances of
Hollywood and the theatrical resources symbolized in the name Spielberg,
anyone would be hard-pressed to create an engaging work in this area.
Further, the choice of color photography instead of black and white in BAOG
has serious drawbacks; an earlier documentary on Dietrich Bonhoeffer
entitled
Memories and Perspectives, (Trinity Films, Minneapolis) filmed in black and
white, like Schindler’s List, remains a classic, in part, because something
of the ‘essence’ was captured by the use of black and white film. This
choice
of medium, while not changing the content of the presentation, clearly
affects the viewing.

One could fault BAOG for straying too far from the facts of Bonhoeffer’s
biography, which were either distorted or omitted, details that are
important
for authenticity. For example, the exaggerated importance of Bonhoeffer’s
fiancé, Maria von Wedemeyer, an overemphasis on the interrogations by
Manfred
Roeder, the obvious absence of Bonhoeffer’s intellectual, spiritual, and
emotional conversation partner, Eberhard Bethge, or the final scene of his
life at Flossenburg when two primary conspirators, murdered with Bonhoeffer
on April 9, were not shown, but omitted; all these are instances of altering

the facts, but for what purpose? Director Eric Till writes: “I didn’t get
any resistance (to changing certain details in the story) . . .You can get
bogged down by the truth of it all. At the same time, one is most anxious
not to in anyway distort the essence of the real story itself.” Putting
aside now the concern about any distortion or omission of details that could
reduce the film’s authenticity, I wish to take issue with Till’s
understanding of Bonhoeffer’s ‘essence.’

After experiencing a preview of BAOG on May 17 in New York City and
following
the PBS showing on June 14, I attempted to be attentive to viewers’
impressions of the film’s essence, as well as hear views of the persona they
experienced in the character of Bonhoeffer, played by Ulrich Tukur. Further,
I wondered what was perceived as the motivating force, the faith orientation
of this ‘agent of grace?’ I consistently heard three impressions, which
followed each viewing, (Bonhoeffer’s) courage, righteousness, and resolve.
>From those viewers I encountered, these qualities were seen as the ‘essence’
of Bonhoeffer’s life and the importance of his witness.

First, the real Bonhoeffer was intensely aware of his own tristitia, his own
weakness and temptation to compromise. In contrast to any personal courage,
any strength he employed for responsible action was understood to be that
received solely from the presence of God in Jesus Christ. Bonhoeffer would
resist any description of himself that emphasized his own courage.

Second, the real Bonhoeffer revolted against any notion of his – or
Germany’s
– righteousness during this time. He often spoke of Germany’s historic
guilt, of which he was an heir and participant and for which redemptive
suffering would be required. Quite the opposite of his own righteousness
regarding involvement in this justifiable deed of tyrannicide, was
Bonhoeffer’s self-conscious guilt for an apparently necessary – yet
thoroughly sinful – act against God’s command. Christ’s righteousness and
call to discipleship were the foundation and motivation for the being and
behavior of this ‘agent of grace.’ Bonhoeffer would resist any description
of himself that emphasized his own righteousness.

Third, the real Bonhoeffer struggled until the very end with the irony and
ambiguity of his involvement with the conspirators plotting Hitler’s
assassination. Questions, fears, and uncertainly were often his companions,
not so much answers, confidence, certainty, and resolve. While he lived –
and wrote about – the necessity to “step out and act” responsibly, one ought
not think of this as a sort of un-dialectical resolve in his personality.

My critical concern in Till’s rendition of Bonhoeffer is that the perceived
‘essence’ of his life and witness seems to be that of heroism, a descriptive
image Bonhoeffer would have vehemently opposed. His faith and actions were
grounded in the gratitude of a fragile, sinful, child of God whose weakness
was bolstered by God’s courage, whose self-centeredness was reoriented by
Christ’s righteousness, and whose hesitancy and faltering judgment was only
redeemed by the Spirit’s resolve.

In summary, Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s real ‘essence’ must always be understood
in
the light of what God was doing, through Christ, through the Church, for
humanity, for the future. Hopefully, persons viewing Bonhoeffer: Agent of
Grace will be stirred to look further and dig deeper. We must attempt to
insure – like the figure of John the Baptist in the Isenheim altarpiece by
Grunewald who is pointing to the Christ – that the life and sacrifice of
Dietrich Bonhoeffer points to Jesus Christ and not to Bonhoeffer. He would
have it no other way.
John Matthews, Afton, Minnesota, editor Newsletter, International Bonhoeffer
Society, English lanaguage section
The most recent Newsletter no.73 (June 2000) of the International Bonhoeffer
Society, English Language Section is devoted to the memory of Eberhard
Bethge, and prints a translation of the sermon and tributes paid at his
funeral in March.

With every best wish to you all,
John Conway
jconway@interchange.ub.ca

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

Newsletter- June 2000- Vol.VI, no. 6

 Newsletter – Vol VI, no 6 – June 2000

Dear Friends
The flood of new books and articles in our area of study seems never ending,
and the task of making a selection for review is correspondingly
challenging. I trust however that you continue to find the coverage broad
enough to interest most of you some of the time!
The next issue will be a double Summer Newsletter for both July and August,
which will be sent to you in the third week of July.

Contents:
1) Obituary: Joachim Mehlhausen
2) Karl Barth Prize awarded to South African academic
3) Forthcoming conference: German Studies Association
4) Book Reviews:

a) G.Lewy, The Nazi Persecution of the Gypsies
b) A.Vuletic, Christen juedischer Herkunft
c) J.D.Thiesen, Mennonite & Nazi?
d) F.Ludwig, Church and State in Tanzania

5) New articles –

M.Lindsay, Karl Barth’s dialectics,
J.Pollard, The Vatican and the Wall St. crash
S.P.Ramet, Religion and Politics in Germany
J.Alwell, Religious liberty in Sweden

1) It is with great regret that we learn of the death on April 3rd of
Professor Joachim Mehlhausen, Faculty of Protestant Theology, Tuebingen, the
former chairman of the Evangelische Arbeitsgemeinschaft fur kirchliche
Zeitgeschichte, after a lengthy illness. He was de facto the successor to
Klaus Scholder in Tuebingen, and gave leadership to his church’s efforts to
encourage a knowledge of the denomination’s past. His successor is to be
chosen at the next meeting of the Arbeitsgemeinschaft at Magdeburg in June.
In the meanwhile, a retired Oberkirchenrat, Prof Harald Schultze of
Magdeburg has been nominated as vice-chairman, and also chair of the special
commission dealing with the history of the Protestant churches in the
divided Germany, i.e. between 1945 and 1990.

2) Congratulations to our fellow List-member, John de Gruchy of the
Department of Religious Studies in the University of Cape Town,, who has
been awarded the prestigious Karl Barth Prize for the year 2000. It will be
presented to him at a ceremony in Berlin in August.
Professor de Gruchy, a minister of the United Congregational Church of
Southern Africa, is world renowned for his studies on the Swiss theologian
Karl Barth, as well as on Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Both were noted for their
opposition to the Nazi regime in Germany, which they comprehensively
critiqued on theological grounds.
Among Professor de Gruchy’s unique contribution to theological scholarship
has been his work which drew parallels between the apartheid ideology in
South Africa and the Nazi doctrines, He applied Barth and Bonhoeffer’s
critique of Fascism to the ‘false theology’ of apartheid, and his work was
instrumental in leading the World Alliance of Reformed Churches to declare
apartheid a ‘theological heresy’ in 1982, putting pressure on all the South
African family of Reformed churches to renounce apartheid.
The Karl Barth Prize was instituted by the German Evangelical Church in 1986
to mark the centenary of Barth’s birth. Among previous winners have been the
theologians Hans Kung and Eberhard Jungel. (Source: Worldwide Faith News)

3) German Studies Association conference, Houston,Texas, October 6th-8th
2000
The following sessions of interest to our readers are announced in the
provisional programme:
Friday October 6th, 8.30 a.m., Session 2: Hitler’s Pope? Image, Imagination
and Pope Pius XII.
Cornwell and Pius XII: what the author got right, Richard Rubenstein
Sicilian Vespers Revisited, Michael Phayer
Reflections on Pius XII and the Third Reich, Hannah Decker,
Commentator, Frank Nicosia
Friday, October 6th 8.30 a.m. Session 8: The Protestant Church and the Cold
War
1945-1990
The World Council of Churches, the German churches and the Cold War, Armin
Boyens
American Protestantism and the German churches during the Cold War, Gerhard
Besier
The Christian Peace Conference and the World Council of Churches, Gerhard
Lindemann
Commentator, Robert Ericksen
Saturday, October 7th 1.45 p.m. Session 106
The Index of Forbidden books and Catholic Nationalism in Wilhelmine Germany,
Jeff Zalar, Washington.
Sunday, October 8th, 8.30 a..m. Session 133: Divergent Problems of Mischehen
and Mischlinge under National Socialism 1933-45
Victor Klemperer’s Diary of an intermarried Jew, Nathan Stolzfus
Regional aspects of persecution among Mischlinge, James Tent
Umgangsstrategien sogenannter juedischer Mischlinge mit der NS-Verfolgung,
Beate Meyer
Commentator, Doris Bergen

4) Book reviews:
a) Guenter Lewy, The Persecution of the Gypsies. Oxford: O.U.P. 2000, 360pp
Thirty five years ago Guenter Lewy wrote the first account in English of the
Catholic Church in Nazi Germany, challenging many of the apologetic alibis
about its role during that fateful time. He now has produced an equally
significant study of the Nazi persecution of the gypsies, again, apart from
one short and unimpressive study, the first academic treatment in English.
This topic has waited all these years for a suitable analysis for various
reasons. In the first place, unlike other victims of the Nazis, such a the
Jews, the gypsies do not maintain a literate culture. Their historical
memory is largely oral. They are strangers to the political advantages to be
gained as former victims of a barbaric regime. They suspect any outsiders
who seek to probe their experiences.
As a consequence this work has been largely compiled on the basis of the
official records of the time, and concentrates therefore more on the
perpetrators of this persecution rather than on the victims. It is one of
the strengths of Prof. Lewy’s account that he reinforces the view taken in
other studies of Nazi persecution that there was no prearranged or
systematic plan, but rather a plethora of competing strategies, which were
then steadily radicalized by being played off against each other.
Lewy points out that the Nazis inherited a widespread social antipathy to
the approximately 25,000 gypsies known to be in Germany. Their policy at
first was prompted by pressure from below, at the local level, leading to an
intensification of the measures for control already initiated during the
Weimar Republic. In the second phase, beginning in 1937, gypsies were caught
up in the programme of crime prevention that led to “preventive police
custody” served in concentration camps. The third phase was instituted by
Himmler in late 1938 using racial criteria to brand some gypsies as a danger
to the nation. At the outbreak of the war, itinerancy was forbidden,
compulsory labour was imposed, but gypsies were not allowed to enlist or
remain in the armed forces, and continued to be treated as social outcasts.
But Lewy makes the point that Hitler appears not to have been involved at
any time, and the evidence does not exist that the gypsies were
systematically targeted for destruction as a blanket category. Indeed, to
the contrary, “pure” gypsies were valued as examples of racially significant
types, and hence were not subject to sterilization or deportation. Much more
dangerous were those who had attempted to integrate, and thus could be
considered as “polluters”of the German “blood”.
As a result of this categorization, large numbers of gypsies were forcibly
imprisoned and/or “resettled” in the east, where their casualties resulted
in many deaths. But even Himmler’s notorious order of December 1942 to send
more than 13,000 gypsy men, women and children to Auschwitz was not just
part of a larger plan to destroy the whole gypsy race, since numerous
exemptions were given. Those dispatched eastwards were selected basically as
social misfits rather than on racial grounds. Lewy suggests that the
subsequent mass murder of these Auschwitz gypsies in the spring of 1944,
after being held there for 18 months, was probably due to the need for more
temporary space for Hungarian Jews.
No exact statistics are on record as to how many gypsies lived under Nazi
control, nor how many were so horrendously and deliberately murdered. So it
is impossible to estimate the proportion of their losses. In Lewy’s view
these mass murders do not add up to genocide, but are shocking enough. While
no direct orders can be traced for any general gypsy extermination, it is
more likely that such executions were based on the belief that the gypsies
constituted an inferior people whose lives were fully dispensable. Other
scholars however point out that the mass involuntary sterilization of
gypsies in 1943 and 1944 can be considered as an act of genocide, as a
deliberate act of preventing the future contamination of German “blood”.
In Lewy’s view, it is not helpful to try and equate the sufferings of the
gypsies with those of the Jews. He points to the continued squabbles which
have arisen over whether or not to include Sinti and Roma in the
U.S.Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington. There were in fact significant
differences in Nazi policy, but the victimization of the gypsies did not,
alas, end with the overthrow of Hitler and his gang. Rather the distrust and
hostility exploited by the Nazis are still evident today. What is not
evident is any sign that the churches sought or seek to combat such
stigmatization. JSC

b) Aleksandar-Sasa Vuletic, Christen juedischer Herkunft im Dritten Reich.
Verfolgung und organisierte Selbsthilfe 1933-1939 (Veroffentlichung d. Inst.
f.Europaische Geschichte Mainz, Abteilung Universalgeschichte Bd 169) Mainz:
Verlag Philipp von Zabern 1999, 308pp
The story of those Christians who were of Jewish or partly Jewish origin in
Germany during the Nazi era has only been touched on up to now. In the more
general accounts, their fate is discussed in the context of the ideological
debate within the Nazi hierarchy of how they should be treated, or of the
theological debate in the churches as to whether they really belonged. After
the war, the survivors themselves were only too eager to forget their
degrading classification as “non-aryans” or “Mischlinge”, and preferred to
be seen as fully Christian as everyone else. For their part, church
historians were embarrassed by the dismal lack of support given by their
leaders to these unfortunate members of their own church, so kept silent.
And, in any case, the largest body of documentation only became available
after the fall of the German Democratic Republic. So it is good that
Aleksandar-Sas Vuletic now gives us this full study, which is published by
the prestigious Institute for European History in Mainz.
Basically this work is an account of the short-lived Reich Association for
“non-aryan” Christians, later called the Paulus Bund. But first the author
has to tackle the problematical issues of numbers and nomenclature. No one
knew, or knows, for certain how many Christians of Jewish or partly Jewish
descent were in Germany in 1933, and estimates ranged from 2 million
downwards. Nor was it known how many subsequently emigrated. Equally
confusing was the plethora of overlapping but all pejorative adjectives such
as “not fully German”, “half-Jew”, “non-aryan”, “mixed blood”, which were
not so much descriptive as discriminatory and were naturally not used by
those affected.
The paradox was that, since the Nazis had no biological means of
establishing who was a Jew, they were obliged to use a religious test based
on allegiances sixty or eighty years previously. Having only one Jewish
grandparent was enough to be categorized as falling under the Nazis’
draconian racial legislation. But the implementation of these new rules for
those no longer or not fully Jewish was to provide for bureaucratic
headaches.
As for those affected, their sudden plight in being treated as no longer
only Christians and Germans was traumatic. They were frequently regarded by
the Jewish community as renegades, but were only semi-accepted by the
Christian churches, which too often shared much of the Nazis’ racial
thinking. Particularly lonely were those who had been born as Christians or
converted to Christianity but had later lapsed into free-thinking or
atheistic beliefs, who now found themselves totally abandoned by any
community to whom they might have turned.
The two major churches’ response to the Nazi persecution was ambivalent, at
best. Neither sought to mobilize their congregations to protest such
injustices, even on behalf of their own supporters. The Catholic Church
established a committee which principally sought to encourage emigration,
while the Protestant community saw the rapid rise of the pro-Nazi group, the
so-called “German Christians”, which openly called for the elimination of
all Jewish elements from their liturgies and theology, as well as the
ejection of all “non-aryan” pastors. Although these moves were resisted by
the Confessing Church on theological grounds, even so there was little
sympathy shown to their “non-aryan” members. Not until 1938 did the
Confessing Church establish a small committee under Pastor Gruber in Berlin
to assist such Jewish Protestants to emigrate. By contrast the effective aid
given by Bishop Bell of Chichester to a group of Protestant pastors and
their families, enabling them to leave for England was notable. But for
those laity like Victor Klemperer who wanted to stay in Germany and have
their rights championed, the Buro Gruber proved to be a disappointment.
Left to their own devices, in the summer of 1933, some members of this group
decided to form their own self-help group, the Reich Association. But it was
quickly overwhelmed by the number of people seeking advice or protection
from the Nazi authorities. It was necessarily both dependent on Nazi
permission to exist and seeking to challenge the unwelcome and unprecedented
measures adopted against its members. Throughout its brief existence, the
Reich Association, despite its fervent affirmations of national loyalty, was
constantly in a subordinate position to the overwhelming power of the
Gestapo, who had never any interest in furthering its objectives, unless it
was to encourage emigration. As the author makes clear, the Association’s
deferential approach to the Nazi authorities went hand in hand with the
illusion that these anti-Jewish measures were only temporary, or that
Christians would be exempted. Clinging to this vain hope was clearly a
psychological necessity as it was widely held by the membership for far too
long.
The officers of the Reich Association were all respectable bourgeois and
mainly Protestant citizens, eager to stress their German nationalism and
offering their services to forward the goals of the “national revolution”,
as for example supporting the November 1933 plebiscite on Germany’s
departure from the League of Nations. The same officers declared their lack
of sympathy for any pacifists, communists or exaggerated intellectuals, who
would not be accepted as members and whose activities were deplored. These
highly conservative and patriotic attitudes, however, did them little good.
The Nazis were not impressed.
Given the Nazis’ incessant antisemitic propaganda, the Reich Association’s
leaders had to abandon their wishful thinking about integration into the new
Germany, but instead still believed their patriotism could prevent their
being isolated in a kind of Christian non-aryan ghetto. But, inevitably,
organizing activities and community services for this special group led to
increased feelings of separation. Yet, for the growing number of unemployed
artists and writers, cultural activities undertaken on their behalf were a
significant help.
By 1935 it was clear that being Christian was of little help against the
Nazis’ discriminatory measures. Reluctantly the Association had to take up
the idea of emigration and to encourage educational and re-educational
courses which could be of practical value. Particularly the young people saw
no alternative and were increasingly disinclined to adhere to the leaders’
nationalistic appeals. At the same time, the escalation of the antisemitic
measures in 1935 with the proclamation of the so-called Nuremberg Laws
heightened the tension for the Christians of Jewish origin too.
In the subsequent two years the Gestapo stepped up its harassment and
intimidation. At the same time, a new leader, Heinrich Spiero took over the
Association, whose career is here ably depicted. But despite his highly
conservative and nationalist views and good connections, he was unable to
reverse the Nazi policy. The numbers affected by the new laws grew apace and
Spiero’s strenuous efforts to provide programmes to assist them proved
unavailing. In 1937 the Gestapo demanded a still more rigorous
interpretation of the Nuremberg Laws, forcing the eviction of all members of
the Association who were themselves born Jews, and leaving it purely for
those of “mixed blood”. Since its leaders including Spiero were all in the
first category, this effectively put an end to the organization. The rump
group was no longer to be linked by their Christian attachment, and it
became purely a means of controlling the “Mischlinge”. But the hope of
gaining more recognition by abandoning both its Jewish members and its
Christian character proved illusory. The screws continued to be tightened
and in August 1939 the organization was ordered to close down immediately.
This dismal record of bureaucratic brutality is based on an excellent
mastery of the sources. But necessarily it excludes almost entirely the
personal stories of the victims. Their exclusion from German society and
their shunning by the churches to which they belonged is another sad story
which in part has been told. by Ursula Buttner, in her book Die Verlassene
Kinder der Kirche (1998) which forms a valuable complement to Vuletic’s
study.
JSC

c) John D.Thiesen, Mennonite & Nazi? Attitudes among Mennonite colonists in
Latin America, 1933-1945. (Studies in Anabaptist and Mennonite History no
37) Kitchener, Ontario: Pandora Press 1999 329pp
We still lack a full English-language study of the Mennonites in the period
of the Third Reich. Possibly the sensitivity of the issues and their
emotional and divisive overtones are still felt among the survivors and
their descendants in North America. But John D.Thiesen, archivist for the
General Conference Mennonite Church from the campus of Bethel College in
Kansas has now given us an insightful examination of one very small part of
the wider picture, namely of the political attitudes found in the exiled
Mennonite communities of Latin America. In fact, since their presence in
both Mexico and Brazil was so small, the book is principally about the
situation in Paraguay. Thiesen’s basic question is: “How was it that in the
Mennonite colonies, with a deep tradition of pacifism, many people embraced
the same volkisch National Socialist assumptions that underlay Hitler’s
atrocities?”
The answer largely arises out of the context. The Mennonites were given a
grant of land on the remote western borders of Paraguay in the 1920s in
order to secure title from Bolivian ambitions. One group of settlers arrived
in 1926-7 from Canada, disaffected by the pressure there to anglicize and
modernize. Another larger group arrived in 1929-30 from Russia, where they
had been subject to increasingly distressing persecution by the Communists.
Thanks to energetic rescue efforts by the German government, they were
brought from Moscow to Germany, but in the circumstances of the growing
depression stayed there only a few weeks before proceeding onwards to their
new settlements in Latin America.
Their predominant political attitude was clearly an overwhelming hostility
towards the Soviet Communists, who had deprived them of their homelands,
wealth and prospects. At the same time, all these new settlers found
themselves stranded in a difficult environment, completely cut off from the
local inhabitants. These colonies were four days’ journey from the capital
city. Their isolation reinforced their desire to cling on to their ethnic
consciousness as Germans and to build their institutions on the basis of
their German language and their familiar ideologies, which they believed
held them together against the dangerous tides of revolution and modernity.
It was hardly surprising that, in such remote communities which lacked
communications, the influence of the few educated members, such as the high
school teachers or the editor of the colony’s newspaper, should be
disproportionate. These were the individuals whose enthusiasm for the new
Nazi regime after 1933 was to have such an impact in the Paraguayan
colonies, especially Fernheim, whose archives have luckily been preserved.
In addition to the romanticized view of Hitler as Germany’s saviour against
Bolshevism, the kind of Nazi propaganda arriving in Paraguay stressed the
essential duty of preserving the German race from all outside forces – a
kind of defensive posture which appealed to many unsophisticated Mennonites.
Furthermore these trends were actively encouraged by their Mennonite mentors
in Germany to whom the colonists looked for guidance on such political
matters. Professor Bernard Unruh and another teacher Walter Quiring both
eagerly supported the Nazi remaking of German society, and provided their
proteges overseas with justifications for upholding the great ideas of
“Deutschtum” and its volkisch destiny. Both Unruh and Quiring’s views were
extensively quoted in the colonists’ newspaper, and propagated in the high
school, where Unruh’s student, Fritz Kliewer, organized the young people in
a manner highly reminiscent of the Hitler youth.
Such few visitors as the colonists received, especially German officials,
naturally encouraged such a positive view of the new Third Reich. It was a
considerable time before alternative views about what was happening in
Germany reached Paraguay. Tales of the Nazi persecution of the churches were
frequently denied, while Unruh and Quiring continued to claim that National
Socialism and Christianity were fully compatible. But eventually a serious
division appeared in the colonies over the issue of pacifism, since the
new-found enthusiasm for the Third Reich and its militant expansionism could
hardly be combined with traditional Mennonite views. Even so, a group of
young people actually went back to Germany in 1939, full of enthusiasm. The
men, apparently willingly and following the example of their German
Mennonite counterparts, were ready to abandon their pacifist heritage. They
joined the German army, “doing their duty unto the uttermost for the German
Fatherland”, and looked for the day when Germany’s military victories in the
Ukraine after 1941 would enable them once more to return to their old
settlements. Nine of them were killed or missing in these campaigns.
The opposition to such a political stance came mainly from those American
and Canadian Mennonites, seconded to help out in Paraguay, but who were
perceived as “modernizers’ or disruptive to the Germanness of the colonies.
Nevertheless, after 1941, this factor attracted attention from outside
interests, including the American government, which brought pressure on the
Paraguayan authorities to arrest known Nazis on their territory. In the end,
the two most prominent activists were temporarily arrested and forced out of
the colonies.
After the war, those who had most ardently propagated their support of
National Socialism in the name of Germanness claimed they had been deceived
by Hitler. But, as Thiesen suggests, a better explanation for this kind of
enthusiastic encounter with Nazism is to be found in the Mennonites’ need to
create a new cohesive identity for themselves which could make sense of
their previous sufferings as refugees and offer hope for a new future even
in a strange land. We can be grateful to John Thiesen for elucidating these
problematic attitudes, even if his account may well uncover old and still
unhealed wounds.
JSC

d) Frieder Ludwig, Church and State in Tanzania. Aspects o a changing
relationship. 1961-1994. (Studies of Religion in Africa, XXI)
Leiden/Boston/Koln; Brill 1999
Since studies of the churches in Africa are uncommon, this new contribution
by a German scholar, nicely translated into English, is much to be welcomed.
Ludwig seeks to cover the story of all the churches in the newly-independent
nation from the early 6os to almost the present. This was of course the era
of Julius Nyerere as the founding father of the new nation and his bold
experiments in economic development on a communitarian scale. The strength
of this work is the careful consideration of how the various churches moved
from their former era of European missionary dominance and dependency to a
more truly African symbiosis. The comparisons Ludwig makes are insightful,
especially on the difficulties each group had with the various strains and
stresses caused by their European origins. But the transition away from
missionary control to indigenous leadership was in many respects easier than
the problem of their own profile in the new state. The churches had the
advantage that Nyerere was known to be sympathetic, so the initial stages of
the post-independence period were harmonious with the local church leaders
deferring to the President’s guidance, and obtaining his help in the new
arrangements for such things as education and health. But this relationship
did not allow for any kind of prophetic criticism. As Nyerere’s government
took on more and more authoritarian features, the churches’ silence was
notable. Only in the last few years has a more critical stance been adopted
as the failure of Tanzanian Ujamaa Socialism has been admitted. At the same
time, the church structures also need to evolve from the kind of
hierarchical patterns of the past. Ludwig’s survey is helpful and balanced –
an excellent example of the outside observer, having researched the
available sources, being able to evaluate, with sympathy but not
uncritically so, the complex developments of the past generation.
JSC

5) Articles: Mark Lindsay, Dialectics of Communion: Dialectical Method and
Barth’s Defence of Israel, has appeared in a new book, ed. K. Tonkin, Karl
Barth: a Future for Postmodern Theology (Australian Theological Forum/Open
Book 2000) Lindsay’s chapter deals with the continuing usage of dialectic
within Barth’s CD II/2 on the doctrine of election, and the way in which
this section of his Dogmatics, written between 1941-2, was in direct
opposition to Nazi antisemitism and the onset of the ‘Final Solution’.
John Pollard, The Vatican and the Wall Street crash, in The Historical
Journal, Vol 42, no 4, December 1999, pp 1074 ff. An informative account of
the Vatican’s financial strategies in the period of the great depression,
when the grant given by Italy in connection with the Lateran Treaty was
almost squandered by the grandiose building schemes of the Vatican’s leaders
Sabrina P.Ramet, Religion and Politics in Germany since 1945, in Journal of
Church and State, Vol 42, no.1, Winter 2000, pp 115 ff. This broad survey of
the political stances adopted by both the Catholic and Protestant churches
in Germany over the past half century covers a lot of ground, some of which
Prof. Ramet has already described in more detail in her books. But useful is
the listing of the current political problems encountered as the churches
have tried to deal with the new conditions created over the past ten years
since re-unification.
Jonas Alwell, Religious Liberty in Sweden. An overview, in Journal of Church
and State, Vol 42, no 1, Winter 2000, pp 147 ff. The evolution of Sweden
from a tightly-knit Lutheran church-state symbiosis to the present
secularized state with a remnant establishment of the national church is
here well described and evaluated. The author makes some interesting
observations about the place of minority religions such as the Jews and
Muslims, and the difficulties which a secularized state encounters in trying
to meet their requirements.

With best wishes to you all for a blessed Ascension Day
John S.Conway
jconway@interchange.ubc.ca

I am most grateful to the Library staff at Regent College who have now
compiled a Website for the John S.Conway Collection, books and files etc,
http://www.library.regentcollege.ubc.ca/Conway/Conway_collection.htm

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

Newsletter- May 2000- Vol.VI, no. 5

 
Dear Friends.

I would like to thank Doris Bergen very much on your behalf for guest
editing last month’s Newsletter, and producing such a rich and interesting
fare that we had to split it into two parts. Judging by the response, we
very much hope we can prevail on her to take up the responsibility again in
the future.

Contents: 1) New Website
2) Obituary – Dieter Albrecht
3) Book reviews a) The Holocaust and the Christian World
b) U.Werner, Anthroposophism under Nazism
c) H.Roggelin, Franz Hildebrandt
d) G.Besier, Kirche, Politik und Gesellschaft im 20 Jahrhundert
4) Book notes a) Building the Church in America
b) H.Troper, The Ransomed of God
5) Journal articles: Zalar, Borromausverein ,Jones, Catholic conservatives

1) Thanks to the generous help of Randy Bytwerk, Calvin College, Grand
Rapids, Michigan, we now have a new website. This is henceforth:
http://www.calvin.edu/academic/cas/akz/
and contains the index of all the issues of this Newsletter since its
inception in 1995. This will now be kept up to date. By the end of the
summer, the website will also include the full text of each issue back to
January 1998, and will be searchable for key words.

2) Obituary: Dieter Albrecht
Greg Munro, Australian Catholic University, Brisbane writes:
Subscribers to this Newsletter will be sad to learn of the death of Prof.
Dr. Dieter Albrecht on 8 October 1999. Prof. Albrecht achieved international
recognition for his research in the history of the Catholic Church during
the Church Struggle against the Nazi state. His principal areas of research
were the relationship between the Third Reich and the Vatican, Bavarian
history in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and the history of the
Thirty Years War. Born in Munich in 1927, Dieter Albrecht studied History
and Germanistik at the University of Munich and completed his doctorate
under Max Spindler. From 1951 to 1953 he worked for the Kommission fur
bayerische Landesgeschichte. He completed his Habilitation in 1958 and
lectured at the University of Munich until 1963. From 1963 to 1967 he was
Professor of Modern History at the University of Mainz, before taking up the
chair of Modern and Contemporary History at the University of Regensburg
which he held until he retired in 1992. Prof. Albrecht was one of the
founding members of the Kommission fur Zeitgeschichte in September 1962,
which quickly emerged as one of the leading research centres for the history
of the relationship between the Catholic Church and the Nazi dictatorship,
as well of Catholicism in Germany during the past two centuries. The
Kommission published a number of his works, including the massive three
volumes of Der Notenwechsel zwischen dem Heiligen Stuhl und der deutschen
Reichsregierung (1969-1980). He was a member of the Historical Commission of
the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and was awarded the Verdienstkreuz (Class
1) of the Federal republic of Germany.

3) Book reviews a)
ed. Carol Rittner, Stephen Smith, Irena Steinfeldt, The Holocaust and the
Christian World. Reflections on the past: Challenges for the future. London:
Kuperard 2000
278 pp GBP 14.95
The chief value of this collection of short essays by Christian and Jewish
scholars lies in its comprehensiveness. Virtually all those aspects of the
Holocaust in which Christians were involved, both personally and
institutionally, are here explored in a scholarly and critical fashion,
providing not only a most useful reference work, but also guidance as to the
latest findings in the continuing historical debates over the role of the
Christian community during the tragic era of Jewish persecution and death.
Excellently produced, well illustrated, sensitively edited, the book is
intended as a resource for informed church laity or study groups or visitors
to Holocaust memorial centres such as Yad Washem in Jerusalem.
What Christians did or failed to do during the Holocaust continues to haunt
and challenge the Christian world. Few Christians risked their lives to help
Jews escape the Nazi perils. Most stood aside as bystanders. The authors’
search for explanations for these stances avoids too much moralizing
lamentation, but certainly pinpoints the deficiencies in Christian
theological and ecclesiastical attitudes. Included along the edge of the
pages, in side-bars, are useful quotations, questions for reflection and
suggestions for further English-language reading. Also helpful are a
comprehensive 10-page chronology, an up-to-date videography, and a list of
international on-line resources. The editors hope this volume will spur
church members to recognize that the Holocaust was not just a Jewish event,
but one which affected Christianity too, and which should lead them to take
action on behalf of others in need, as part of the task of healing and
reconciliation shared by Jews and Christians alike.
Because the contributors are all from western countries, the articles
reflect an emphasis on the Roman Catholic and Protestant churches in western
Europe, but there is a short chapter on the non-established churches and
sects, and another on the non-Jewish victims of the Holocaust. The situation
in 1933 in both the major German churches is suitably analyzed, and
criticism expressed of the unwillingness amongst either Protestants or
Catholics to see the now-threatened Jewish community as falling within their
circle of obligation, after so many centuries of antipathy and disdain. More
pertinently, the absence of any philo-semitic tradition could have been
noted. It is this feature – a positive willingness to support Jews – which
is excellently described in the chapter entitled “A glimmer of light” which
outlines the few but heroic Christian rescue efforts in various countries.
Particularly among Reformed church members, such as the family of Corrie ten
Boom in Holland, or the French villagers of Le Chambon, this motive gave
strength and courage to these “Righteous Gentiles”. It is also good to have
recorded the actions of lesser-known figures such as Metropolitan
Chrysostomos of Greece or Mother Maria Skobtsova, a Russian nun in France,
murdered at the very end of the war.
The chapter on the reactions of the churches in Nazi-occupied Europe is
informative, especially on little-known areas such as Bulgaria, Slovakia and
Denmark. However, Norway, Greece and Yugoslavia are omitted, while Italy is
included in the chapters on the Vatican where the recurrent differences of
opinion about Pus XII’s policies are well aired.
The final part covers the post-holocaust period, showing how Christians have
responded in interfaith dialogue since the 1960s to bring about a striking
change. Both the initiative of Pope John XXIII and the Second Vatican
Council, as well as equivalent measures adopted by many Protestants, have
ushered in a wholly new relationship with Judaism, which must be seen as the
most significant theological development of the twentieth century. This
clearing away of the Church’s unfortunate legacy now offers both Catholics
and Protestants an opportunity to begin a new chapter, with the shadow of
the Holocaust as a constant reminder of the dangers of the past. Several
short chapters outline the activities which could further this goal, and the
issues which remain to be confronted. These are particularly valuable for
discussion groups or parish seminars, and as such can be warmly commended.
JSC

b) Uwe Werner, Anthroposophen in der Zeit des Nationalsozialismus
(1933-1945).
Munich: R.Oldenburg Verlag 1999, 473 pp.
It is good to see yet another solidly researched account of the fate of a
small sect persecuted by the Nazis, namely the Anthroposophists who were the
followers of Rudolf Steiner. Before his death in 1925, Steiner had moved the
headquarters of this movement to Switzerland, leaving various small groups
in Germany to propagate his ideas, the most successful of which were the
Waldorf schools. Steiner’s views were individualistic, international and
highly ethical. Hence there was no sympathy for Nazism, even though some of
the members were overwhelmed by the apparent success of the Nazis in 1933.
For their part, the Nazis looked on antrhroposophism as an eclectic
conglomeration of exotic ideas, and its followers as sectarian and dangerous
to the regime. Consequently the Nazi radicals, especially in the SD and the
Gestapo, were soon prepared to take measures to suppress the sect’s
activities and even its existence. And even though some anthroposophists
tried to protect their institutions by stressing their national loyalty,
this did them little good. In fact, it took six years before these policies
of persecution were fully effective. But resistance from such a small group
of basically unpolitical enthusiasts could only be limited, especially as
there was no centrally directed organizational structure.
Uwe Werner has searched the relevant archives and presents his material with
flair. His task was made easier by the opening of official records
previously held in Moscow and East Berlin, but on the other hand hindered by
the evident reluctance of leading members of this group after 1945 to record
their immediate recollections or to attempt to come to terms with their
past. But the Nazis’ own files provided him with significant material to
depict their campaign of persecution. Already in 1933 accusations were
directed against Steiner and Steinerism, lumped together with Free Masonry,
Communism and Judaism. The influence of spiritism, occultism and hypnotism
which Steiner’s followers allegedly practised was enough to call forth
vehement attacks from Nazi propagandists. In November 1935 the Gestapo
prohibited the Anthroposophist Society throughout Germany as being “a danger
to the state”, even though leading members were still negotiating with
various Nazi offices about how to continue their activities. It was another
sign of Himmler’s winning the battle for totalitarian control in the Nazi
polycratic structures. Yet, the Fuehrer’s deputy, Rudolf Hess, showed some
interest in the anthroposophists’ ecological policies. So, when Hess fled to
Scotland in 1941, his opponents were quick to blame Steiner’s occultism as
the cause of his highly damaging defection. And it is clear that Hitler
ordered even more drastic measures against this sect as a result. However,
the Gestapo did not order mass imprisonments, or only for short durations.
Luckily, therefore, enough anthroposophists were able to maintain their
beliefs so that Nazism did not succeed in extinguishing the group entirely,
any more than was the case with other small prohibited sects. And after 1945
they were to reemerge to begin all over again.
JSC

c) Holger Roggelin, Franz Hildebrandt. Ein lutherische Dissenter im
Kirchenkampf und Exil. (Arbeiten zur kirchlichen Zeitgeschichte, Reihe B,
Darstellungen 11) Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht 1999. 350pp
Franz Hildebrandt was a close friend of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. They met in
1927 as young students of Adolf von Harnack, and remained close until the
outbreak of war in 1939 broke off all contact. He has often been seen as a
foil to his more famous friend, but Holger Roggelin successfully undertakes
to portray Hildebrandt in his own light. Hildebrandt was three years
younger, but came from a similar upper bourgeois academic background, and
strangely enough wanted to study theology to make sense of the confused
world of the 1920s. From 1931 the two men were drawn together by the
increasing political tensions which spilt over into the church. The rise of
the Nazis to power was particularly ominous for Hildebrandt since his mother
was of Jewish origin. The victory in mid-1933 of the pro-Nazi “German
Christians” and their demand for the purging of all “non-aryan” pastors, led
both young friends to seek a post abroad, in Bonhoeffer’s case successfully
but not so for Hildebrandt. However, he at once supported Martin Niemoeller’
s opposition group, the Pastors’ Emergency League, and sought to mobilize
church opinion against the nazification of church life, especially against
the denial of the rights of the Jewish Christians. In October 1933 he
resigned his curacy and went to London as Bonhoeffer’s guest. But in January
Niemoeller summoned him back to Berlin to help defy the ruling church
authorities. At that time, the model he sought was that of Thomas Chalmers
who had led his followers out of the Church of Scotland a hundred years
earlier to found a Free Church, based solely on biblical truth. But he was
to be disappointed. Too many of his colleagues still hankered after some
attachment to the national church, so that the dissenters had to be content
with a Confessing Church instead, which audaciously claimed to be the “true”
German Evangelical Church and condemned the “German Christians” as heretics.
Such a stance inevitably involved compromises, as the Confessing Church
members sought to reconcile their national and ecclesiastical loyalties, to
be good Germans and good Christians at the same time.
As Roggelin makes clear, Hildebrandt shared this dilemma. On the one hand he
encouraged and promoted efforts to protect the Nazis’ victims, especially
the Jews, but yet could still believe that the Nazi state could be brought
to behave along Christian ethical lines. Too many of his colleagues shared
this illusion – right up to 1945. And, with regard to the Jews, too often
the Confessing Church showed by its language and expressions how much it
participated in the Nazified atmosphere of disdain. Hildebrandt grew
increasingly dismayed by this readiness to abandon the Christian
“non-aryans”, and rightly believed this would be the test case for the
ethical stance of the Confessing Church. At the same time, he still retained
a very traditional Christian view towards the Jews in general, affirming
their eventual destiny to be converted to Christianity. Nor did he have any
particular sympathy for Zionism.
In 1937 the situation became critical. The Gestapo pounced on the leaders of
the Confessing Church. On July 1st they arrested Niemoeller, who thus began
his eight years’ incarceration. Hildebrandt was also arrested on a lesser
charge, but after a month was released. He realized he had to emigrate. So
he fled to England, where he was warmly received as a welcome reinforcement
by his staunch friend Pastor Julius Rieger, who was upholding the Confessing
Church among the German community in London. Hildebrandt quickly became
involved with other emigres and refugees, and realized how much the church
had left them in the lurch. But the Berlin church authorities threatened
reprisals if he were to preach or more actively campaign in England, a step
supported by the majority of the German pastors in Britain whose put their
national loyalties above any solidarity with the refugees. It was largely
this opportunistic behaviour and the subsequent refusal of such church
leaders to acknowledge any sense of guilt even after Hitler was overthrown
which deterred Hildebrandt from returning to Germany or ever setting foot in
Berlin again.
Attempts to find Hildebrandt a teaching post in Britain failed. But in 1939
he was enrolled as a graduate student in one of Cambridge’s theological
colleges, and at the same time was given the task of ministering to the
group of exiles and refugees gathered in this city. The local clergy gave
strong support and even arranged for joint Anglo-German services to be held,
the first of which took place on the very day war was declared. As the
English vicar noted: “The fact that two congregations of two nationalities
at war could meet together in common worship at such a moment was a pledge
that here, at any rate, the anti-German hysteria which disgraced Church and
Nation in 1914 would not occur again.”
Nevertheless in the summer of 1940 security reasons led to all enemy aliens
including Hildebrandt being interned on Whit Sunday, immediately after
preaching in Holy Trinity Church. Appointed to be “camp speaker” he was
saved from being sent to Canada or Australia, and at the same time became
even more heavily involved in pastoral work for his fellow internees for
whom the uncertainty about their future was often traumatic. Bishop Bell’s
support gave the refugees, and especially the pastors, enormous
encouragement. Thanks to his intervention, most of the clerics were
released, and in October Hildebrandt was able to return to Cambridge.
Roggelin’s account of the Christian Fellowship in wartime, along with the
inevitable nationalist and theological tensions which ensued, is excellently
done Notable was the warm reception given to these German preachers even in
places suffering from German bombing. Hildebrandt’s pacifist inclinations
were however suspect from some of the more militant English Christians. Long
debates about using him for the BBC broadcasts to Germany continued for
several months, but finally from the end of 1942 he was able to take part,
even though very well aware that such services could be misused for
political purposes. His staunch adherence to his Lutheran theological
heritage, however, increasingly separated him from Anglicanism and the
Church of England, as represented in Cambridge by Charles Raven, Master of
Christ’s College, with whom Hildebrandt had a notable theological
controversy, opposing what seemed to him to be the English sin of liberal
Pelagianism and universalism.
After the war ended, his reluctance to return to Germany, and his
unwillingness to undergo re-ordination into the Church of England, led him
to become a Methodist, all the more gladly since he noted the connection
between Luther and the Wesleys. After serving a parish in Edinburgh, he was
appointed to the Methodist Drew University in New Jersey and served there as
teacher and pastor for several years. He died in Edinburgh in 1985.
Roggelin’s final chapter is devoted to an insightful analysis of Hildebrandt
‘s complex relationship with Bonhoeffer. In the post-war years he was
frequently invited to contribute to the vigorous controversies about the
significance of Bonhoeffer’s witness and theology. But he continually
refused. “The friendship was of an intimacy which makes it impossible for me
to enter the debate about him”. But undoubtedly, Roggelin believes,
Hildebrandt was not enamoured with the more popular exploitation of
Bonhoeffer’s catchy slogans of “the world come of age” or “religionless
Christianity”, and still less with the interpretations of such commentators
as Bishop John Robinson in “Honest to God” in the 1960s. Robinson’s attempt
to replace the traditional orthodox doctrines of God he regarded as merely a
“sell-out”.
On the other hand, Roggelin asserts, Hildebrandt did have a considerable
influence on Bonhoeffer in the early years, especially through his deep
knowledge of the Bible and his pacifism. Both men were fated to become
outsiders in the Lutheran world of their day. And this characteristic marked
Hildebrandt’s career for the rest of his life. As a champion of Christian
eschatological hope and humanitarian ethical obligations, Hildebrandt
deserves to be known in his own right. This initial biography gives us an
insightful picture and a fair tribute to one who was destined to be a
continual dissenter and who thereby exemplified the cost of discipleship.
JSC

 

d) G.Besier, Kirche, Politik und Gesellschaft im 20. Jahrhundert, Munich:
R.Oldenbourg Verlag, 2000. 184pp
This compact volume of 184 pages is in reality a handbook, one of a series
of approximately 100 titles which together comprise a vast project to
provide an Encyclopaedia of German History. Prof. Besier has already written
the volume for the churches in the 19th century, and now gives us this
concise but insightful survey of the 20th.
The book falls into three equal parts: the first 60 pages describe the major
events from 1918 to 1989 in which the churches were involved, which is
necessarily a very quick hop,skip and jump over such a turbulent and often
traumatic period.
The second 6o pages analyze the historiography and research trends, covering
the range of controversies which have sprung up over the past few decades,
as well as indicating the gaps and shortfalls in this coverage.
The third section lists the major works in this field, concentrating on the
most recent publications which have appeared in the last twenty years.
Almost exclusively this bibliography consists of German authors.
Students in our field will no doubt be interested in Prof. Besier’s views in
the central section where he examines some of the disputes among historians
of the churches, including several in which he himself has been involved.
For example, he takes issue with the kind of apologetic historiography of
the immediate post-war years, not only from the formerly pro-Nazi group of
churchmen, but also from supporters of the Confessing Church, and points out
the defects of these approaches. He outlines the debate between Klaus
Scholder and Konrad Repgen over the origins and political effect of the 1933
Reich Concordat, where the overtones of Catholic-Protestant antipathy were
unmistakable, Equally he is stringent about the defensive positions adopted
by some of the supporters of the stance adopted by the Evangelical Churches
of the now unlamented German Democratic Republic. But he also points out the
unresolved tensions in this historiography between the advocates of a less
church-centred approach, which instead argues in favour of a more integrated
stance with secular techniques and values, or those who still argue in
favour of making church history a separate endeavour with its own criteria
for evaluating events, which resists the attempt to see church history as
just another branch of social, let alone socialist, historiography. Besier
does not hide his opposition to the kind of historiography which smacks of
‘Kulturprotestantism’ with its fateful readiness to compromise with the
powers that be, whether of right or left, even with dictatorships. He points
out how readily such an approach has benefited those who collaborated with
such regimes.In place of former decisive condemnations, we now have a
pluralistic view which denies any ultimate moral values in history. The
danger of a marginalisation of theological standards is readily apparent,
and, according to Besier, should be steadfastly opposed lest church
historians once again fall into the sin of opportunistic accommodation to
modernity. He quotes with approval one of his few English-language sources:
“In the past two hundred years, many liberals have sold out under the
influence of modernity. What unites such diverse thinkers as Rudolf
Bultmann, Paul Tillich, . . . and Karl Rahner? Accommodation to modernity.
This underlying motif unites the seemingly vast differences between many
forms of existential theology, process theology, liberation theology, and
demythologization – all are searching for a more compatible adjustment to
modernity”.At the same time Besier also shows clearly enough how this debate
has been a continuing one ever since the early years of the twentieth
century. The legacy of Harnack, Troeltsch and Barth is still very much alive
and still controversial.
Such considerations lead Besier on to take up the prospects for the future –
presumably as a topic which deserves further research. His criticism of
liberal theology gives him the opportunity to point out the disastrous
tendencies of such secularizing trends, with the watering-down of doctrinal
beliefs, the substitution of secular-political social service as a major
emphasis amongst many of the clergy, the possibility of a separation of
church and state, and the rise of ersatz religions in both the political and
intellectual spheres. At the same time he can be readily critical of the
present policies of the German church leaders, both Catholic and Protestant,
designed to maintain a kind of hierarchy in church-state relations. Far from
accepting the declared freedom of religion, which would regard all
denominations as equally worthy of social acceptance, the major churches
have continued for the past fifty years to insist on a vertical scale with
themselves at the top in positions of privilege, while lower down come the
free churches, and lower still the sects and foreign imported religions, and
lowest of all such dangerous phenomena as Scientology. How long such a
system can be preserved, let alone propagated, especially when its
theological content has been so reduced, is rightly questioned.
Besier’s listing of the sources is helpful. For outsiders, even this much
abbreviated
selection shows how active the pursuit and writing of church history is in
Germany – a valid criticism of other countries’ efforts! But yet, it is also
clear that the Protestants are by far the largest contributors, and
virtually every one is masculine. This situation should indeed give us all
pause to reflect!
JSC

4) Book notes: a) ed. J.C.Linck,C.O., and R.J.Kupke, Building the Church in
America. Studies in Honor of Monsignor Robetrt F.Trisco, Washington, D.C.:
The Catholic University of America 1999, 283 pp.
This Festschrift for Fr.Trisco, the long-serving editor of the Catholic
Historical Review, exemplifies the qualities of meticulous scholarship and
broad-minded enquiry, which he himself has shown for so many years, thereby
enriching the whole Catholic constituency in North America. These essays are
written by scholars, many of whom were either pupils or colleagues at the
Catholic University, bringing a variety of interesting viewpoints to their
subjects, which range from the eighteenth century to the present.
For the historian, perhaps the most significant contribution concerns the
belated efforts of the Catholic hierarchy at the end of the 1930s to “deal
with” the problem of Father Charles Coughlin’s virulent anti-semitism. As
the object themselves of much calumny, the Catholic bishops were well aware
of the need to protect freedom of speech, and seemed to regard the
propagation of anti-Semitism as a lesser evil. By contrast, another essay
describes the sufferings of a German-American priest persecuted at the end
of the First World War for his national origins, and even convicted
evidently unjustly as a spy.
Such examples show the difficulties Catholics have had of combining their
church loyalties with their American situation, and hence the obstacles to
building the church in America.

b) H.Troper, The Ransomed of God, Toronto: Malcolm Lester Books 1999, 275pp
The title is irresistible for this Newsletter. In fact, Troper’s account
describes the indefatigable efforts of a Toronto woman, Judy Feld Carr, to
rescue Jews from Syria over twenty-five years until they were finally given
the right to emigrate in 1992. God takes a back seat in this book to the
resolute and often daring schemes undertaken to circumvent the political
barriers and heavy discriminations imposed on Syria’s Jews. Mrs Carr’s
ingenuity, as well as her capacity for raising vast sums for bribes, is
breathlessly recorded, but in the end she did manage to obtain the release
of several thousand victims of a inhuman dictatorship.

5) Journal articles:
Jeffrey Zalar, “Knowledge is Power”. The Borromausverein and Catholic
reading habits in Imperial Germany, in Catholic Historical Review, Vol
LXXXVI no 1, January 2000
This sprightly description of the work of the Borromausverein makes two
points: first, the desire of the more educated Catholics in Germany, in the
period after unification, to escape from the Protestant-led charge that they
were a backward superstitious community, still tied to clerical control and
lacking in progressive ideas. To overcome this, a huge system of Catholic
libraries was skillfully organized by the Borromausverein, which was
remarkably successful in reaching out, certainly to the urban Catholics, and
making up for earlier educational deficiencies. But secondly, the
Borromausverin sought to offset the more dangerous accusations of political
disloyalty or unreliability which their opponents had brought up during the
course of the Kulturkampf. Thus the educational work stressed their
nationalist sympathies, and as Zalar makes clear, they underwent a subtle
process of assimilation to the majority’s cultural views on political
questions. There was therefore a continual tension between the desire to
build up a separate Catholic existence, with its own identity and
institutions – as happened so successfully in Belgium and Holland – and the
desire to belong fully in the wider German nation. Zalar’s account
excellently recreates the atmosphere of these endeavours. And it is to be
hoped that he will be able to continue his study by looking at the even more
dramatic developments which happened after the downfall of the imperial
system.
Larry E. Jones, Catholic Conservatives in the Weimar Republic. The politics
of the Rhenish-Westphalian aristocracy, 1918-1933 in German History, Vol 18,
no 1, 2000
Larry Jones gives us a sweeping condemnation of the activities of the
Rhenish-Westphalian aristocrats after the first world war. Their deliberate
undermining of the legitimacy of the new republic, and their strong
influence on the local Catholic population against democracy and
parliamentarianism are here carefully but damningly outlined. It is
impossible to ignore the fact that this same reactionary group supported the
rise of Nazism and that many of these aristocrats played leading roles in
this area of Germany, at least in the initial years. By giving
respectability to the Nazi cause, they became a willing and integral part of
the conservatives’ close alliance with totalitarianism. Jones’ essay sheds
light on the political stance of Bishop Galen and his relations, which is
hardly flattering, despite the attempts after 1945 to portray them as heroes
of the Resistance.

With best wishes,
John Conway
jconway@interchange.ubc.ca

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

Newsletter- April 2000- Vol.VI, no. 4

guest editor: Doris L. Bergen, University of Notre Dame

CONTENTS:

1) Obituary for Eberhard Bethge

2) Excerpt from the foreward (by Clifford Green) to the new edition of Eberhard Bethge’s Dietrich Bonhoeffer: A Biography (edited and translated by Victoria Barnett)

3) Viewpoints on the Pope’s Visit to Israel

a) Scott Appleby
b) Susannah Heschel

4) Book review of Anne Loveland, Evangelicals in the United States Military

5) Book notes:

a) John Cornwell, Hitler’s Pope
b) Susannah Heschel, Abraham Geiger and the Jewish Jesus
c) Robert P. Ericksen and Susannah Heschel, eds., Betrayal: German Churches and the Holocaust
d) Gerhard Lindemann, “Typisch jüdisch” Die Stellung der Ev.-luth. Landeskirche Hannovers zu Antijudaismus, Judenfeindschaft und Antisemitismus 1919-1949

5) Conference Reports:

a) American Society of Church Historians, January 2000
b) Holocaust and Churches Conference, Philadelphia, March 2000
c) Military Chaplains in their Contexts, March 2000

6) Research in Progress: Victoria Barnett

 

---

 

Dear Friends

Many thanks to John Conway for inviting me to edit the newsletter for
April 2000. The last month has been an eventful one, both for scholarship
in church history and even more significantly, for the churches in the
world today. Some of the news is sad: Eberhard Bethge, biographer and
publicist of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and an influential theologian in his own
right, died in March. John Conway’s moving obituary of a man many of you
knew personally is the first item in this newsletter. Information on the
new, English-language edition of Bethge’s biography of Bonhoeffer
follows.

Pope John Paul II’s trip to Israel caused a sensation this past month,
although reactions among Christians, Jews, and Muslims have ranged from
euphoria to resentment. Not often do events connected with the churches
make top news stories all over the world; not often are scholars of
religion called on to discuss international politics on primetime
television. March 2000 saw both phenomena. I have tried to provide a
sense of that coverage by including a section called “Viewpoints on the
Pope’s Visit to Israel,” featuring reflections by Scott Appleby and
Susannah Heschel. Other items this month–book reviews, notes, conference
reports, and an account of research in progress–address matters that
were central to Eberhard Bethge (and Dietrich Bonhoeffer) and echo issues
that the Vatican and our newspapers remind us are still at stake today:
Christian antisemitism; religion and war.

I am grateful to everyone who submitted items for the newsletter. I hope
that all of you who receive it will find grounds for critical reflection.
Best regards!

Doris L. Bergen

1) Obituary for Eberhard Bethge

It is with great sorrowthat we share with you the news of the death at the
age of 90 of Eberhard Bethge. Although he had been in failing health, it is
good to know that
he was recently able to celebrate the completion of the German-language
edition of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s collected works, to which he and his
wife Renata had contributed so much.

Eberhard is known primarily as the pupil and then closest friend of Dietrich
Bonhoeffer, and as the recipient of the Letters and Papers from Prison,
which were so carefully
preserved and later published under his auspices. Subsequently Bethge
went on to write what must be one of the most notable biographies of this
century. His portrait of Bonhoeffer is based both on his close personal
friendship and collaboration in the 1930s and 1940s, but also on his
sharing in Bonhoeffer’s striking challenges to Lutheran theology, and
rejection of Nazi pretensions. It was Eberhard’s determination to rescue
Bonhoeffer from the damaging accusations of national as well as
ecclesiastical disloyalty, which led him to undertake years of work to
make Bonhoeffer’s views and writings known to the world.
In this endeavour and in his personal commitment to endless meetings,
conferences and seminars, he was ably supported by Renata, as Bonhoeffer’s
niece. Eventually after years
of misunderstanding and even opposition within their own church, the
Bethges succeeded in changing the theological climate, not merely in
Germany but world-wide. Had it not been for their efforts, Bonhoeffer
might still be as largely unknown as he was at the time of his murder in
1945.

At times it could appear as though Eberhard was so devoted to the memory and
legacy of Bonhoeffer that he was unable to develop his own theological
stance. But in fact
his services in the cause of Christian-Jewish reconciliation deserve to
be remembered as a highly significant contribution to this very
problematical field. It was largely due to Eberhard’s persuasions that
the Rhineland Synod of the German Evangelical Church in 1980 issued a
notable declaration on this subject which demonstrated an unprecedented
readiness amongst Lutherans to acknowledge the sins of the past, and
called for a wholly new stance towards Judaism.

Immediately after the war, Eberhard had served in the London Lutheran
parishes where Bonhoeffer had preceded him. He there gained a fluency in
English and with
English-speaking theology which opened many doors. He was frequently a
welcome guest in North America, as for example at the Annual Scholars’
Conferenmce on the Holocaust and the Churches. His genial and warm
friendliness was guaranteeed to counteract any lingering anti-German
prejudices left over from the Nazi period. He and Renata were in this
sense marvellous ambassadors for the new Germany and standing rebuttals
of the exaggerated charges of such as Daniel Goldhagen. Though never
employed in a German theological faculty, it would be true to say that
his theological influence has been of enormous value to contemporary
Protestantism. He will be much missed.

– John S. Conway, University of British Columbia

2) Victoria Barnett has prepared an edition in English of
Eberhard Bethge’s _Dietrich Bonhoeffer: A Biography_. The following is an
excerpt from the foreword by Clifford Green:
This new edition of Eberhard Bethge’s classic biography of Dietrich
Bonhoeffer brings into English for the first time the complete text of
the German edition that was first published in 1967. It includes all
material that was omitted or abridged in the 1970 English translation,
and all revisions and additions made to subsequent German editions.
This new English edition has been enhanced in other ways as well. In
addition to citing English translations of Bonhoeffer’s books in the
notes, it provides citations to the newly completed German critical
edition of his writings, the <underline>Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Werke</underline>. Because this seventeen-volume collection contains
material not published in the <underline>Gesammelte Schriften
</underline>when the biography was first published, it has been possible
to add numerous notes. Finally, Victoria Barnett has compared the entire
text of the latest German edition with the previous translation and made
numerous corrections throughout. Because of all these enhancements, this
classic of twentieth-century biography comes back into print with even
greater vitality, pertinence, and durability.
Since its first publication in Germany three decades ago, the biography
has gone through eight editions. By the fifth edition in 1983, the
research of a growing number of scholars had begun to supplement Eberhard
Bethge’s monumental work. How was the biographer to respond to this
development? While welcoming the new research, Bethge decided not to
rewrite the biography. As he wrote in the preface to the 1983 edition,
the biography should “show what its original inspiration was and
continued to be.”
Eberhard Bethge turned 90 last August. The new edition of the biography
appeared shortly before his death on March 18. It is a tribute to his
outstanding contribution to the church and to the history of our times —
not only through this book but through his decades of work as the editor
of Bonhoeffer’s writings, as a lecturer and teacher, and as a generous
friend and helper to all whose research has built on his own. Bonhoeffer
wrote eloquent theology about human community. This was embodied in his
leadership in the Confessing Church and his work in the resistance
movement on behalf of Germany and peace. It was also embodied in
friendship. “Finest and rarest blossom, at happy moment springing from
the freedom of a lightsome, daring, trusting spirit, is a friend to
friend,” wrote Bonhoeffer in Tegel Prison in his poem “The Friend.”
Without Eberhard Bethge, the legacy of Dietrich Bonhoeffer in all
likelihood would have gone unnoticed. This biography is a fruit of that
friendship, and the biographer has widened the circle and spirit of that
friendship around the world.
Now that the twentieth century has ended we can assess its achievements
and horrors from a broader perspective than was possible when this
biography was first published. In that light, the life and theology of
Dietrich Bonhoeffer have a paradigmatic significance for the church that
transcends his own lifetime and transcends this century — a witness
against humanity’s perennial temptation to idolatry and its destruction
of life, and a witness to the authentic humanity that is the fruit of a
genuine Christianity.

– Clifford Green

3) Viewpoints on the Pope’s Visit to Israel
a) Scott Appleby, University of Notre Dame:
A good deal of commentary on Pope John Paul II’s visit to the Holy Land
explored the political implications of the itinerary, and weighed the
words and actions of the pope in this light. Nonetheless, the pope did not
journey to the Holy Land to endorse specific political positions, or to
move the peace process in a partisan direction; he was hunting bigger
game-cultural/religious reconciliation and dialogue.
There will be no durable peace in the Middle East without some measure
of religious and cultural “acceptance” on the ground, the pope correctly
knows (as did the late King Hussein of Jordan, who often made a similar
claim). Shaping cultural values and promoting religious reconciliation is
the first step in achieving the kind of social and cultural receptivity to
peace accords.
The pope’s remarks and itinerary were, indeed, politically calculated, but
at this higher level of abstraction, so that the pope “kissed the soil” of
the Palestinian West Bank as well as the Jewish Galilee, visited Jewish and
Muslim as well as Christian sacred sites in Jerusalem, and identified
with the human suffering and religious/spiritual aspirations of every side
of the conflict-the Palestinians as well as the Jews, the Muslims as well
as the Christians.
Did the visit have more concrete political implications? Of
course, it did-inevitably. But an analysis of the pope’s actions and
words on this level reinforce the notion that he was more concerned with
building inclusive cultural alliances than with promoting a specific
political
outcome. His overt political references-e.g., to the Palestinian right to
a “home land” (he disappointed those who wanted him to use the word
“state”)-were in fact cautious, designed to avoid undermining his
cultural priorities. Actually he did no more than to endorse “the facts in
the
field” as they had been accepted by all major players prior to his arrival.

b) Susannah Heschel, Dartmouth College
First, I believe the Pope’s visit to Israel, especially to Yad Vashem,
was deeply moving to Jews around the world. His comments at Yad Vashem
about the need for silence were very appropriate and seemed soothing to Jews
who are often wary of Christian leaders. It was clear that he spoke with
genuine empathy. The event was historic, something that will be
mentioned in the future in Jewish history textbooks.
Of course, the Pope’s audience was Catholic as well as Jewish, and for
Catholics around the world, this was an important lesson. Most are
perhaps unaware of his earlier statements about Jews and Judaism, of his
visit to
a Rome synagogue, or even of his apology the week before his trip. Not
only did Catholics learn from their Pope how one should respond to Jewish
suffering, they also heard the Pope affirm the continued validity of
Judaism, a lesson many of them need.
At the same time, some Jews were disappointed. Because this Pope has
been at the forefront of improved Catholic-Jewish relations, many Jews had
hoped he might go further while in Israel and express a sense of
responsibility for the misdeeds of the Vatican during the years of the
Holocaust. They
were disappointed. While the Pope spoke specifically about Christians
who acted heroically during the Holocaust to save Jews, he might have also
spoken about those who failed to save Jews, those who were indifferent.
Some Jews feel the Pope should apologize for the Holocaust, because,
unfortunately, there are some Jews who look at a cross and see a
swastika. They confuse the Nazis with the Vatican, Hitler with the Pius XII,
perpetrators with bystanders. Important historical and moral
distinctions are thereby lost. Personally, I don’t want an apology. For one
thing, I
don’t think that an apology is commensurate with the horror of the
Holocaust. And if the Pope were to apologize, then to whom? He would
have to apologize to the people who were murdered, which he cannot do. No
Jew today can accept an apology on their behalf. Nor are Jews really
prepared to
offer forgiveness – that, too, would be inappropriate.
We have not yet been able to determine the nature of Vatican
responsibility during the Nazi years, because the Vatican has not yet opened
its
archives to historians for their scrutiny. Far more valuable than an apology
would be for the Pope to open those archives.
Until now, many Jews, especially Israelis, have not been very interested
in Christianity or in Catholic theology. The Pope’s visit has brought
Catholicism to the attention of Israelis and to Jews around the world,
demonstrating that it is not only the religion of Crusades,
Inquisition, and the Holocaust, but also of the Second Vatican Council and
Nostra
Aetate, of a new attitude and openness.

4) Book Review
Anne C. Loveland, American Evangelicals and the United States
Military, 1942-1993. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press,
1996. Pp.356.$55.00, hardcover.
Reviewed by Duff Crerar, Grande Prairie Regional College

During the Gulf War, rumours of revivals among the troops
thrilled American evangelicals, helping to balance other
rumours about rampant immorality within the gender – mixed forces.
Stories emerged of dedicated “Bible-believing” chaplains (who were
found in greater numbers than ever among the padres) effectively
“getting through” to their men, and evangelicals having great
influence with fellow-soldiers. While the revival tales were nothing
new to students of American wars and religion, what was new was the
high profile of evangelical Christianity over there – the culmination
of trends in both the United States military and society since the
Vietnam War. Not since the 1860s had evangelicalism so dominated the
chaplaincy – in fact the entire military establishment. How did this
come to pass?
Anne C. Loveland’s fine book provides a careful examination of this
complex but profound and growing interrelationship between fighting
Americans and evangelical Protestantism. She thoroughly and
convincingly documents the growth of evangelicalism in American
society after the Second World War and correlates it to the growing
numbers and influence of evangelicals in both the chaplaincies and
officer corps as well as the ranks of the military. Whereas other
denominations increasingly turned away from war, and
often became outrightly anti-military during the turbulent
Vietnam years, evangelicals identified military men and women
as a vital mission field, and, as loyal Cold Warriors, became
increasingly pro-military in their orientation. Whereas many secular
American soldiers found Vietnam a spiritually searing experience,
evangelicals found it an energizing crucible of faith. Loveland provides
several convincing studies of prominent chaplains, flag officers and Chiefs
of defense staff who played leading roles in
fostering this mutual reinforcement.

Such renewed interest in the soul of the military corresponded with
the increasing stake in mainline American society held by the
socially, economically and politically rising evangelical classes of
American society (remember the endorsement of the Eisenhower
presidency by the young Billy Graham?). Just as the Cold War and
Vietnam crisis hardened mainline (and we can talk about
evangelicalism becoming “mainline” in American public life by the
1980’s) evangelical militancy, so embattled officers and
soldiers, thanks to the legacy of Vietnam, came to trust and even
welcome the only segment of American Protestantism which faithfully
supported their wars. American soldiers learned that
they could count on the evangelicals, both in public life (and
controversy), and in the field. By the 1980s, even flag officers and
staff officers of the highest rank were found at prayer-breakfasts
and upholding the work of evangelicals such as James Dobson, the
Navigators, and Full Gospel Christian Businessmen among the troops.

Such close mutual relationships, however, have their weaknesses. It
is especially poignant for a scholar of First World War chaplains to
read the religious phrases and preaching sentiments of the trenches
repeated in the boonies of Vietnam, given the profound
disillusionment felt by many veterans after both wars. Chaplains,
by the 1960’s, no longer could exercize as prophetic a role as they
had when militarism and evangelicalism were mutually suspicious (a
situation before and during much of World War Two). Evangelicals
still wince when they remember how the Nixon presidency
turned the tables on them, and impaled even Billy Graham on
the horns of the religion-state policy dilemma. Parallels with
the 1980s and the Reagan administration are obvious. The alliance of
evangelicals and officers works well when American civil religion
embodies evangelical values, but what happens when (as in the early
1990s) the Commander-in-Chief wants to bring gays into the military?
As Loveland points out, the steady and stubborn resistance to the
Clinton administration on this issue may well have been the last
victory of the military evangelicals, as new secular – and religious
– movements arise to challenge the public Christianity of United
States politics and society. As evangelicalism continues to fragment
and divide in American public life, how will this affect the troops?
This, and other religious developments in and around the United
States Armed Forces, obviously bear watching.

Clearly anyone arguing that armed forces are representative cross-samples of
their host societies will find Loveland’s book of interest. Especially
provocative are the implications of the growing divorce between American
society and its increasing pluralism and the conservative military creed of
its fighting men and women. Pluralism
will certainly remain a fundamental challenge to the evangelical
military consensus. But Loveland’s book is still only a first word on
the subjects of American civil and military religion. Roman Catholics
have not by all means been anti-war through this period, and call
for detailed study. Loveland’s work concerns, primarily, officers
and chaplains, as well as public and policy relationships: what about
the effects at the level of the rank-and-file? What about “folk
religion” in United States forces: that blend of fatalism,
patriotism and the cult of honour and duty which so resembles the
Mithraism of the late Roman Army?

Loveland’s book is a dispassionate, but sensitive to the sincerity
and depth of the people who bear their creed and wear the United
States uniform. Her book will be an essential part of any study of
the U.S. military and its religions. It will have to be taken into

full account by both secular – and secularist – as well as
evangelical scholars who want to monitor the subject in future. Above
all, it profoundly adds to the growing understanding of the
interelationship of all of a society’s elements with the men
and women who guard it.

– Duff Crerar, Grande Prairie Regional College (Canada)

5) Book Notes:

I would like to draw the following items to the attention of those
readers interested in Christian antisemitism and the churches and the
Holocaust:
a) Rainer Decker’s review of John Cornwell’s _Hitler’s Pope_ (highly
recommended by John Conway) can be found at the following addresses:
http://www.h-net.msu.edu/reviews/showrev.cgi?path=3D4726951832799
or
http://members.friendfactory.com/rdecker/index.html

b) Sussanah Heschel, _Abraham Geiger and the Jewish Jesus_ (Chicago:
University of Chicago Press, 1998): Heschel’s original and very readable
study of Abraham Geiger, a nineteenth-century Jewish theologian and
historian, “reverses the gaze” to reveal the anti-Jewish content of
familiar Christian interpretations of Jesus. Anyone interested in
Christian-Jewish relations in Europe, particularly Germany, will find
this book valuable.
c) _Betrayal: German Churches and the Holocaust,_ edited by Robert P.
Ericksen and Susannah Heschel (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1999): This
collection includes essays by Ericksen, Heschel, Bergen, Shelley
Baranowski, Kenneth Barnes, Guenter Lewy, Michael Lukens, and Micha
Brumlik. Much of the material is familiar to those in the field, but
having these pieces pulled together in one volume should prove useful for
students. At least some readers of this newsletter have already assigned
parts of the book in their classes.
d) Gerhard Lindemann, _”Typisch juedisch”: Die Stellung der Ev.-luth.
Landeskirche Hannovers zu Antijudaismus, Judenfeindschaft und
Antisemitismus 1919-1949″_ (Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, 1998): In more
than 1000 pages this book recounts the depressing history of Protestant
hostility toward Jews and converts from Judiasm to Christianity in the
Hanover region. Less detail and more analysis might have made for easier
reading, but the study is nevertheless extremely useful, in particular
for its treatment of pastors defined as “non-Aryan” under the Nazi
regime. (I will be reviewing this book at length in _The Catholic
Historical Review._ )DB

5) Reports from Conferences
a) The American Society of Church Historians
On January 6-9, 2000, downtown Chicago swarmed with historians.
Walking along Michigan Street that weekend, one could catch fragments of
intricate historiographical discussions and debates of all sorts as the
participants of the American Historical Association’s annual meeting
wandered out of
their hotels and into the brisk wind. Around the Downtown Chicaco
Marriott, these discussions tended to center around religious
themes–since there most historians participated in the meetings of the
American
Society of Church History, alongside those of the AHA.
Founded in 1888, the American Socity of Church History encompasses a
broad range of topics relating to religious history. Sessions ranging from
“Demons in Late Antiquity” to “Religion on the Edge: Heterodoxy and
Orthodoxy on Frontiers of Christianity” opened for discussion religious
topics reaching around the globe. While many sessions focused on more
traditional American church history topics, such as “Continental
Pietism and German-American Religious Traditions” and “Twentieth-Century
Biblical Exegesis,” other sessions like “Queer Theory and the Study of
Ancient
Christianity” pressed into less familiar territory.

Several of the sessions and individual papers dealt with women, gender,
and religion. Some of the established historians of women in religious
history noted during a breakfast for Women in Theology and Church History
that
this had not always been the case. They reminisced about their early years
in the organization when it was very much male dominated, and welcomed the
younger women who as graduate students or professors had joined their ranks.

The sessions gave both distinguished scholars and graduate students
opportunities to present their work. Several graduate students from=20
the nearby University of Notre Dame, as well as students from around the
country, gave papers at the conference and benefited from helpful
feedback for their continuing studies. The congenial atmosphere at the
conference made it possible for historians of all ages to share their work
and to
leave with fresh ideas for further research.

– Kristin Kobes, University of Notre Dame

b) Holocaust and the Churches Conference, Philadelphia

The highlight of this year’s Scholars’ Conference on the Holocaust and
the Churches, held at St. Joseph’s University, Philadelphia, from March
4th – 7th, was the award of an honorary degree to Elie Wiesel. As the
Conference patron, Wiesel has addressed this group frequently with
insight and inspiration. So it was highly interesting to hear his
confident opinion that “Never in history have Christian-Jewish relations
been so good”. Wiesel attributed this to the significant change in
Christian attitudes over the past generation, and the example of the
present Pope, of whom he was at first suspicious, but now admires for his
tenacity and sincerity on this matter.
Certainly the atmosphere at the conference fully reflected Wiesel’s
opinion. Over 400 registrants took part, and lively discussions followed.
Particularly notable was the larger number of women participants, some of
whom gave first-rate thoughtful papers. As usual, we had several valuable
contributions to the history of the Nazi period, which added yet further
mosaic stones to the wider picture. At the same time, the larger debates,
such as the uniqueness of the Holocaust, were revisited, and new
interpretations explored. One notable innovation was a televised
conference call to Jerusalem, so that we were able to see Professor
Yehuda Bauer on one half of the screen, and the local speakers on the
other, for nearly two hours. At this session a particularly significant
speech was made by Ward Churchill, speaking for the American native
Indian community, which reminded us that the issue of restitution and
reconciliation with this community has as yet hardly been touched. At the
same time, it was good to learn about the building of a new Holocaust
memorial centre in Britain, with the hope that the same process of
exchange of views between Christians and Jews will receive an additional
impetus in that country. As usual the conference concluded with sessions
devoted to the strategies for teaching this legacy to the next
generation. Once again we are grateful to the leadership provided by
Franklin and Marcie Littell for organising such a stimulating experience
for all comers.

John S. Conway

c) Military Chaplains in their Contexts, University of Notre Dame, South
Bend, Indiana, 18-20 March 2000

In the last twenty years, a growing interest in the experiences of
clergymen ministering to soldiers has led to a wide and disparate
body of scholarly literature on the military chaplaincy. This
conference, organized by Doris Bergen and David Bachrach of the History
Department at Notre Dame,brought together several dozen scholars, chaplains
and graduate students to focus on the oft-controversial military padre.
Papers ranged
from the medieval and late-Roman origins of the office, through to the
experiences of American chaplains in Vietnam and afterwards. Two common
themes ran through most: chaplains have consistently faced profound
role tensions as representatives of both religion and the government
on the battlefield, and they have struggled for credibility with
their own men , because most chaplains were given officer or
gentlemen status, and thus represented the establishment in the eyes
of the soldiers. As a result, modern-era observers, many of them
ex-soldiers, have portrayed chaplains as ineffective and
hypocritical, having sold out to Caesar and neglected the deepest
spiritual needs of the fighting man. These discussions prompted
distinguished writer, and veteran, Paul Fussell, to suggest that
future chaplains should be non-commissioned officers, or privates,who live
with the men and share their fighting and living conditions,
much as the way medics accompanied his unit in World War II.
Fussell’s observations were illlustrated by Thomas Kselman’s
comments on French soldier-priests in World War I, but challenged

by serving chaplains present, who pointed out that without officer
rank they were unable to minister effectively to officers, or freely
function in hierarchical military cultures. Kselman’s portrait of the
soldier-priests viewing themselves as missionaries to their own
secularized state and army was also noted by other scholars of other
chaplaincies at the conference. Their missionary zeal was added to by
the intense battles between church and state in the Third Republic,
which spurred them on, along with the xenophobic nationalism of their
times. Then, as always, padres have often felt that they had
something to prove.
During the session on late Roman and medieval chaplains (which
included passages presented by Michael McCormick from a ninth-century
sermon), discussion centred on the practical and expedient as
well as spiritual tasks: chaplains were there to pray the “liturgy of
war”, but also to foster loyalty to the king and obedience and
effectiveness in the troops. By the time of the crusades, the
desperate situation of the Franks brought renewed urgency to their
prayers, which still drew on their Carolingian forefathers.
Chaplains were not only spiritual counsellors, they provided some of
the vocabulary and ideology for the institution of chivalry. As
Patrick Geary noted in his commentary, guided by the needs of the
age, the Christian priest had gone from shyness about and shunning of
war to, aided by new forms of penance before battle, baptizing and
blessing organized killing, creating the powerful vocabulary and
controversial image of the fighting saint which endures into the
modern period. The deplorable side of this, to Geary, was the way in
which the prophetic office of the cleric was undermined, and
chaplains became mere easers of conscience, while unit officers
were the true spiritual leaders of the men.
In the discussions of the chaplaincy in the early modern era, Anne
Laurence presented the complicated picture of chaplaincy to both
Royalist and Roundhead in the English Civil War. Chaplains and
soldiers found civil war one of the most complex of contexts for
discussion of religion, as the question of “which IS the state?”
blended with the religious chaos caused by the many dissenting
denominations arrayed for battle over political supremacy. The
pluralism of the Civil Wars meant that many a Parliamentary padre
spent as much time debating with his own men over which vision of the
kingdom or Kingdom was legitimate, as he did preaching the cause of
his army or easing consciences. In such wars, where preachers were
also often in short supply or unable to visit the many small
detachments throughout England, most soldiers ended up creating
their own moral and spiritual worlds. John Lynn presented a strong
contrast, in the chaplaincy to the Royal armies of Louis XIV, who

institutionalized the army chaplaincy and wedded it to a system
which became the model for other armies of Europe. Louis’s regiments
and brigades were more likely, between battles, to have absentee
officers than absentee chaplains. Chaplains became promoters of good
discipline and responsible to officers for reporting on conduct and
morale, as well as preaching the rightness of the cause.

Just as the Bourbon, so the Hohenzollern monarchy, Hartmut Lehmann
pointed out in his paper on the Prussian chaplaincy, where the first
chaplains were chosen from the ranks of Pietism to sustain conformity
and good evangelical moral discipline in the barracks. Unfortunately,
he argued, as subsequent rulers from Frederick the Great
through to Kaiser Wilhelm II involved the armies in tumultuous and
ultimately disastrous wars, the chaplaincy evolved both an ethos and
theology which made Germany’s destiny and dominance identical with
the cause of Christ, something which would have appalled the Pietist
forefathers in chaplaincy, and which led to disastrous outcomes in
World War I. Chaplain preaching ultimately embodied rather than
challenged the hyper-nationalism of imperial society. By the
end of the Great War, Lehmann argued, many chaplains, including Paul
Tillich, had realized that a fatal and even toxic union of
nationalism with faith had undermined the validity of the office and
the chaplain’s message.
Dr. Lehmann’s comments were especially apposite in the light of a
session on the world wars. Duff Crerar argued
that the negative stereotype of the military chaplaincy in Canadian
society stemmed from post-World War I distortions by an angry and highly
articulate minority of veteran writers, and that this stereotype
persists in contemporary scholarly studies of the Canadian
chaplaincy. Despite a growing body of literature on the Canadian
military chaplaincy to the contrary, most Canadian scholars and
commentators still prefer to refer back to the negative portrait
in the inter-war literature, perhaps because Canadians view
the war and its crusading rhetoric and propaganda with profound
ambivalence, and hold the padres largely, perhaps unfairly,
responsible for it.

Doris Bergen’s paper on the German army chaplains in the Nazi era made a
profound impression on participants, as she argued that, though hated by
Hitler, disadvantaged by commanders and even ordered into suicide missions,
army chaplains ministered in the face of death, paradoxically abetting the
many appalling atrocities of the war
by their presence at the front and commitment to their men.. Though few were
diehard Nazis, they ironically furthered the Nazi cause by assisting
army morale and nationalist sacrifice. In a spiritual and moral world

turned upside down, doing their best at the front would come to haunt
the German army chaplaincy after the war, and into the present.

Irony also coloured the paper given by Gardiner Shattuck on the
American Civil War. Union chaplains were haphazardly recruited
and untrained, unsupervised and unranked in the armies of the war,
and yet were expected to represent Christ in the field. Even more
chaos existed on the Confederate side. Yet padres on both sides
consistently reported the phenomenon of revival breaking out. The
fighting power of the men and the lethal battlefield technology combined
with revival to present the tremendous irony of committed evangelical
Christians slaughtering each other by the thousands. Most padres proved to
be surprisingly effective at reassuring the men that if they died they went
to
heaven, which may have made soldiers less rather than more effective in
battle, as the promise of heaven made one’s own sacrifice (rather than
killing the enemy) the main objective. Civil war padres may indeed have made
too many
soldiers too heavenly-minded to be of any earthly military good!

Retired chaplain Joseph O’Donnell, C.S.C. brought the
conference back to earth with his honest and straightforward account of
ministry in Vietnam and afterwards. His moving stories illustrated
the many challenges contemporary pluralism, peacekeeping missions and
disastrous situations create for the modern padre. Modern
communications as well as modern technology have created new
stresses as well as advantages for chaplains: next-of-kin today are
much closer in time and space to the chaplain, thanks to technology,
than they ever were before. O’Donnell’s ministry to them, judging by
his stories, remains one of the most traumatic and yet satisfying
parts of the profession. As commentator Anne Loveland put it,
chaplains since Vietnam have surrendered the front-line
morale-building role, somewhat as a result of the critics of the
Vietnam era who attacked padres as servants of state not church.
Today this has been replaced by character formation and
transformation of military culture missions, as padres in the
American forces have become more professionalized. Padres now are
moral advisors to commanders, and guardians against atrocities: they
are affirming human values in peacekeeping and peacemaking missions
as much as on the field of conventional war. Yet, pastoral care to
men and their kin at home remains, and will continue to remain, their daily
task.

As the conference closed, comments from the audience raised new
topics for future discussion. Has the density of chaplains gone up as
armies matured, and have their social origins changed from past to
present? If so, what do theses trends mean? How do military
and ecclesiastical structures (after all, chaplains are “officers” in
both) relate to each other through the office of chaplain? What does
the ecumenical and increasingly secular pluralist nature of armies
mean for chaplains, and will historic responses be adequate for the
future? Is any armed force today training chaplains adequately, and
if so, how have they learned from the past? Can padres serve in
modern armies at war without demonizing the enemy? How has the
understanding of war, from distasteful but necessity to
apocalyptic harbinger, influenced their work. And how has the ongoing
pastoral care imperative shaped chaplaincy? All these questions
continue to call for more scholarly inquiry, and, one hopes, another
conference.

– Duff Crerar, Grande Prairie Regional College (Canada)

 

6) Research in progress:

So many of the readers of this newsletter are engaged in important
programs of research. Mindful of the themes in this month’s
contributions, I asked one of them, Victoria Barnett, to describe her
current work. In addition to her edition of Eberhard Bethge’s Bonhoeffer
biography, Barnett recently published an insightful study called
_Bystanders: Conscience and Complicity During the Holocaust_ (Westport,
CT: Greenwood Press, 1999). She is also the author of _For the Soul of
the People: Protestant Protest Against Hitler_ (New York: Oxford
University Press, 1992). db

“There has already been research, notably that of Klemens von Klemperer,
on the communications between the German resistance and Catholic and
Protestant leaders abroad. Some of these Christian leaders not only
passed on German position papers, but reflected themselves on what kind
of society they hoped for in a post-Nazi Europe, and some of these
reflections included specific suggestions about the status of Jewish
citizens in European society after the fall of Nazism.

A deeper examination of the international Christian community’s knowledge
of, and response to, the persecution and genocide of the Jews offers a
context for understanding these ecumenical reflections and the
conclusions that were drawn. In any case, it is clear that these
discussions were affected by the communications being received from the
German resistance. It is particularly interesting in this context to
look at Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s reflections on the future of the church.=20
Several of his writings, including his fragmentary notes made for the
1943 Breslau synod (which he was unable to attend, since he had been
arrested) show how his notion of “religionless Christianity” was part of
a profound rethinking of the church’s place in civil society. It is
impossible to separate this development from the work he was doing for
the resistance. The case can be made, I think, that these writings
reveal much more about his attitude toward Judaism and the Jewish
community toward the end of his life than do his theological writings on
Judaism per se.

Several documents from the Myron Taylor papers in the Library of
Congress, the National Archives, the Henry Smith Leiper papers at Union
Seminary and the Federal Council of Churches archive in Philadelphia shed
light on this issue. In an interview I conducted with him in February,
Dr. Gerhardt Riegner in Geneva directed me toward copies of archival
documents that he sent to Willem Visser ‘t Hooft during the 1960s at the
latter’s request; these documents reveal much about the extent of Visser
‘t Hooft’s and Adolph Freudenberg’s knowledge and activities.
A preliminary paper on this research will be presented at the forthcoming
International Bonhoeffer Congress in Berlin in August”.

– Victoria J. Barnett, Arlington, Virginia

7) Technical Note (from previous newsletters):
This Newsletter comes to you free, gratis and without cost. Anyone who
is genuinely interested in contemporary church history is welcome to
subscribe.
Anyone desiring to unsubscribe should so indicate to the editor, John S.
Conway, and not to the list in general. His address:
jcopnway@interchange.ubc.ca.

With very best wishes,

Doris L. Bergen
Department of History
219 O’Shaughnessy Hall
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN 46556-0368
fax: 219-631-4268
tel.: 219-631-7189
******************************

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

Newsletter- March 2000- Vol.VI, no.3

Dear Friends,

I am very happy to let you know that for next month’s Newsletter we shall have a Guest Editor, Dr Doris Bergen. Doris is well known to some of us for her fine account of the pro-Nazi German Protestants, The Twisted Cross. She now teaches at Notre Dame University in South Bend, Indiana, but returns to her homeland Canada for the summers.

I am most grateful to her for accepting this assignment in the midst of her teaching duties, and very much hope that you will all welcome this change of viewpoints which is designed to enlarge our horizons.

Contents:

1) Forthcoming conference, Oslo, Norway, August 2000

2) Book reviews:

a) A.Wilkinson, Christian Socialism

b) ed. G.Kelly, C.J.Weborg, Reflections on Bonhoeffer

c)L.Terray, Bishop Lajos Ordass

d) A.H.Ion, Canadian Missionaries in Japan

3) Book notes, “Dietrich Bonhoeffer”, F.Thimme’s Church Struggle Mitteilungen d. Evang Arbeitsgemeinschaft f. kirchl.Zeitgeschichte 1) Forthcoming conference: CIHEC, Oslo, Norway, 11 August 2000

 

---

 

As part of the 19th International Historical Congress, to be held at the University of Oslo from August 6th -13th, the affiliated Commission Internationale d’Histoire Ecclesiastique Comparee is arranging two sessions, organized by Prof Hartmut Lehmann, Director of the Max Planck Institute for History,Gottingen. These will be held on

a) Friday morning, 11 Aug, On the Road to a History of 20th Century. Christianity: Problems, Questions, Methods, with papers by W.Brandmuller (Rome). Jeffrey Cox (Iowa), Fr.W.Graf (Munich), M.Lagree (Rennes), H.McLeod (Birmingham), Jens H.Schjorring (Aarhus), chaired by H.Lehmann.

b) Friday afternoon, 11 Aug.: Writing the history of religion under Stalinism and Marxism. 1945-1989 with papers by G.Besier (Heidelberg), A Hryckiewicz (Minsk), V.Rajsp (Ljubliiana), F.Sanjek (Zagreb), F.Smahel (Prague), chaired by B.Vogel (Strassburg). For more information, contact Prof Lehmann = lehmann@mpi-g.gwdg.de

2) Book reviews:

a) Alan Wilkinson, Christian Socialism: Scott Holland to Tony Blair. London: SCM Press 1998. 302 pp. GBP 14.95

Alan Wlkinson is one of the Church of England’s senior historians, and these insightful lectures bring us up to date with one of the significant trends in this Church’s life over the past hundred years.The opening chapters nicely recapitulate the story already told, from the early influence in Britain of F.D.Maurice, Coleridge and J.W.Ludlow with their protests against the harsh rigidities of evangelical dogmatism and laissez-faire economics, to the impact of novelists like Dickens, Mrs Gaskell and Charles Kingsley, passionately denouncing the selfishness of the rich and successful. These writers all sought to evoke a kinder, more compassionate society in Britain, arising out of a sense of Christian love, where the needs of all would be fostered rather than the profits of the few. The second stage of Christian socialism developed in the 1880s following revelations of the ghastly conditions in London’s slums. Young men and women from Oxford and Cambridge were recruited to serve in newly-founded settlements in the East End, such as Toynbee Hall, which did much to create a socially sensitive leadership for the twentieth century. At the same time the first leaders of the trade unions were almost all recruited from the nonconformist chapels, which had a strongly Christian ethical commitment, and provided their lay preachers with the skills they needed to address public gatherings. Their socialism was reformist, immanentist and optimistic, and as such outweighed the much harsher creed of the secular revolutionaries. As we all know, the Labour Party owed more to Methodism than to Marx.

For its part, the Church of England demonstrated its commitment to social justice through the work of numerous Anglo-Catholic parishes in the slum areas. The sacrificial witness of such priests as Fr Robert Dolling or John Groser created a tradition which still endures. Their liturgical services brought a richness of drama and colour to their often sordid surroundings, even if many such parishes indulged in a nostalgia for the good old mediaeval days.

The Christian Socialist movement’s theology was incarnational, seeing the material world as an object for sanctification. Its advocates placed a new emphasis on sharing the gifts of the Church, especially the Eucharist, in a democratic fellowship. Yet they remained ambivalent about the exercise of power. Frequently its supporters were idealistically utopian, suspicious of political compromise and happiest in opposition, where moral absolutes and righteous indignation were, and are, always easier to maintain.

Intellectually the movement gained much from the Church Social Union, founded in 1889 under Canon Scott Holland, which sought to apply Christian principles to social and economic life. It functioned as both an educational and a research group, undertaking down-to-earth investigations of social problems and propagating its findings through the parishes. It encouraged collective action and called for governmental intervention, no longer believing that poverty and destitution were the result of individual moral failures. It came to enjoy considerable support from both the bishops and the Liberal Party, and from its ranks came such distinguished figures as R.H.Tawney, author of the highly influential book, Religion and the Rise of Capitalism, and the later Archbishop of Canterbury, William Temple.

But, as Wilkinson, rightly notes, the movement was elitist, working from the top down. It never really succeeded in recruiting the working classes to whom it ministered and for whom it campaigned. Its leaders were drawn from the clergy, academics, writers and politicians whose Christian convictions led them to seek the practical realization of their social justice ideals, but who had rarely experienced unemployment, homelessness or poverty. Yet their success made England virtually the only country where Christianity and socialism were not seen as incompatible.

Wilkinson depicts the leaders, such as Holland, Gore, Tawney and Temple, as well as lesser-known figures, with sympathy, but no uncritically. By the light of later years, these were indeed giants in the land. All were moralists at heart, and were convinced that the struggle against capitalism was fundamentally ethical in character. But their Christian faith saved them from both utopianism and the worship of the all-powerful state or party. At the same time, their tradition separated them from the continental socialists. English, and especially Anglican, Christian Socialism was, and is, very much a local phenomenon. As a result, even in other English-speaking countries, such as Canada or Australia, it has had only limited success. But in Britain too, its Christian ethical basis came to be rejected by many socialists whose philosophy was entirely secular or opportunistically materialist.

In the inter-war period, William Temple lent his prestige and public relations skills to fostering the cause by advocating the principles of freedom, fellowship, service and sacrifice. But these proved too fragile to withstand the international challenge of Nazism, Fascism or Communism, or, at home, to offset the class warfare experienced on the road to Wigan Pier.

While the sponsors of the post-1945 British Welfare state, such as William Beveridge, were influenced by these views, the actual practice of the 1950’s recovery was prompted by less exalted motives, being egged on by the pursuit of materialist consumerism.

The cause of Christian socialism was not helped by the activities of such mavericks as the ‘Red’ Dean of Canterbury, Hewlett Johnson, who for years lent a religious gloss to his praise for Stalin and the Soviet system, totally ignoring even in the late 1950s the totalitarian and oppressive character of that regime. Instead, as he naively claimed, Communism was putting the New Testament into practice in the twentieth century. Just as Jesus proclaimed universal brotherhood, so did Communism. But as Adrian Hastings justly remarked: “there is a certain inherent silliness in the preaching of political revolution by a gaitered cleric from the comfort of a cathedral close”.

Far more constructive has been the influence of such men as Kenneth Leech who has ministered all his life in London’s East End. He has for years sought to make the Catholic movement an effective counter-society with cells of holy discontent, so that it can witness to the age to come amidst the structures of this fallen world. His 1997 book, The Sky is Red reasserts the need for a prophetic rather than just a reformist role for Christian Socialism. So there is a place for utopian dreams after all, as a counterbalance to the deadening effects of bureaucratic do-goodism by the state.

In 1989, the collapse of the East European political systems forced all the left to rethink their ideas about the role of the state. Christian socialists now found their suspicion of the omnipotent and omniscient state reinforced. The emphasis should revert to the earlier insight of socialism >from below, by encouraging participation in democratic structures at the local level, backed by moral commitment from engaged volunteers. At the same time, in Britain, another factor for the revival of Christian socialism , as can be seen in the stance of the present Prime Minister Tony Blair, was the revulsion against the selfish and harsh individualism of the Thatcher years.

Ethical corporatism in the Tawney tradition is presently favoured by both bishops and politicians in pursuit of the common good. In 1996, for instance, Tony Blair claimed that the Labour Party was in the tradition of the Old Testament prophets and Wilberforce, presumably stressing their concern for social justice. “the good of all depends on the good of each, but also confirms duties and responsibilities”. Libertarian individualism when “you did your own thing” is an inadequate creed for a whole society. Instead partnership, co-operation and consensus are the prime virtues, even though severely tested in the circumstances of Northern Ireland. Yet, as Wilkinson believes, by acknowledging his debt to his Christian faith, Tony Blair can draw support from the tradition derived from F.D.Maurice a century and a half ago.

Wilkinson concludes this stimulating survey by asking pertinent questions about the future. How should Christians react to the often disintegrating force of technological globalization? How should churches, long the upholders of the traditional past, react to the rapidity of seemingly unstoppable change? And particularly but not only in Britain, how should Christians react to the evolving pluralist society in which they are no longer a majority and which is sooner or later likely to renounce its Christian heritage? And where shall we find an ethical framework for a plural society in a plural world? Wilkinson clearly hopes that the Christian Socialist tradition which he has so ably described will be able to contribute to this on-going task. We can certainly be grateful for his invigorating insights.

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b) ed. G.Kelly and C.J.Weborg, Reflections on Bonhoeffer. Essys in honor of F.Burton Nelson, Chicago: Covenant Publications 1999, 357 pp

This Festschrift is in honour of our well-beloved colleague, F.Burton Nelson, who has served for many years at North Park Seminary of the Evangelical Covenant Church in Chicago. It is entirely appropriate that these essays open with a well-deserved tribute to Burton, and follow with reflections on the impact of Bonhoeffer, since Burton has done so much to teach, preach and research about this German theologian and make his findings known to so many North American students.

This collection may be seen as the parallel publication to the Cambridge Companion to Dietrich Bonhoeffer, reviewed here last December. In fact, many of the same authors contribute to both books, though on different aspects of Bonhoeffer’s significance. Even though this field is extremely well tilled, there are still nuggets to be found, and those not yet familiar with Bonhoeffer will be assisted to see his importance in the whole range of theology.

The essay by Geffrey Kelly, one of the editors, on Bonhoeffer and the Jews advances the discussion of what has been a thorny issue: when and how did Bonhoefffer leave behind the typical anti-Judaism of his Lutheran Church? Were his protests of 1933 primarily on behalf of the converted or on behalf of all Jews? And was his priority the defence of the Church’s autonomy against political interference, or the championing of human rights per se? In Kelly’s view Bonhoeffer should be given the benefit of the doubt, but only to note how exceptional his attitude was, compared to that of his colleagues. He also makes clear how embarrassing it was for the Confessing Church to be provoked into taking a stand against the State on this very issue. Even Niemoller only came to recognize the significance of standing up for the Jews after he was incarcerated in Dachau. “When they came for the Jews. . etc. . .” But Bonhoeffer’s part in the rescue of fourteen Jews who escaped to Switzerland was an integral part of his resistance to Nazi tyranny, and the immediate cause for his arrest in 1943. For that reason, Kelly argues, he deserves to be recognized as a “Righteous Gentile”, an honour so far denied by Israel’s Yad Washem Centre. In any case he cannot be denied the credit of leading the way, followed by others after his death in 1945, calling for the abandonment of Christian triumphalism and for the recognition of the need for reconciliation with our elder brothers, the Jewish people.

The later contributions cover Bonhoeffer’s legacy in ecumenical and contemporary issues. I particularly liked Keith Clemens’ autobiographical account of how Bonhoeffer’s words helped him to come to terms with his family’s and the western church’s missionary imperialism in China. In conclusion Charles Sensel warns of the danger that Bonhoeffer’s creativity may be forgotten in the pragmatic mixture of psychology and religion in the reactionary 1990s experienced in the United States. But in fact, in Germany and elsewhere, Bonhoeffer remains an icon to be revered but also learnt from. Expounding his theological witness has been Burton Nelson’s life work.

These essays help to show why it was so important and rich a legacy.

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b) Laszlo G.Terray, He Could Not Do Otherwise. Bishop Lajos Ordass 1901-1978. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans 1997. 171 pp.

Bishop Lajos Ordass was one of the leaders of the Lutheran Church in Hungary during the troubled years immediately after the Second World War. This tribute, originally published in Norway some years ago, has now appeared in an attractive English translation. It gives a valuable appreciation of the church-political struggles which this community endured. Ordass was born in the old Austro-Hungarian Empire, where several communities of Lutherans had migrated southwards over the centuries. But that Empire’s downfall in 1918 created new rival nationalisms, and Ordass found himself separated from his wider family for years as a result. Educated in Hungary, he was fortunate to spend a year in Sweden where he found a different form of Lutheranism, more ecumenical and pietistic, and less subservient to the German tradition. It was this which saved him from being seduced, after 1933, by the allurements of the “German Christians” who sought to rally all Lutherans to the Nazi cause. He was also influenced by these contacts to play a small role in assisting the Jews of Budapest in the darkest days of 1944.

Following the end of the war, new leadership was called for, and Ordass was elected bishop for western Hungary, including Budapest, The pastoral tasks involved in restoring church life were enormous, and were only made more difficult because Lutherans were frequently regarded as agents of the now hated Germans. But luckily with the aid of the World Council of Churches and the international Lutheran community, assistance was provided from Scandinavia, Switzerland and the United States. In 1947 Ordass was able to spend several months abroad to express his gratitude and to attend the constituent assembly for the newly-formed Lutheran World Federation.

In 1948, however, the Soviet-imposed Communist party tightened its grip. Its leaders made no secret of their hostility to the churches, especially those with connections to the West. Having watched closely the church struggles, especially in Norway, during the Nazi years, Ordass was resolved not to compromise the church’s integrity. Predictably the church schools were the regime’s first target. Ordass’ declared opposition to their being taken over led to the refusal of a passport to attend the 1st Assembly of the World Council of Churches, and subsequently to his arrest in September 1948. The following mock trial sentenced him to two years imprisonment and the loss of office. The similar arrest of the Catholic Primate, Cardinal Mindszenty, clearly showed the regime’s intentions. The surviving Lutheran authorities counseled submission, and when Ordass refused to resign, he had to be deposed. Even after his release from prison in 1950, he was not allowed to return to his ministry.

The revolution in October 1956, however, led to his rehabilitation and restoration to his episcopal office. For a brief period, the church seemed to enjoy more freedom of action, and Ordass threw himself into the pastoral tasks of rebuilding congregational life. In the following summer he was allowed to attend the Lutheran World Federation meeting in Minneapolis, a most welcome recompense after years of isolation.

But subsequently relations with the Communist Party again deteriorated, and in November 1958 Ordass was again deposed. For his remaining twenty years, he lived as a pensioner, but subject to constant reproach for not identifying himself or his church with the atheistic government. For his fellow Lutherans abroad, however, he symbolized, along with Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Bishop Berggrav of Oslo, the unflinching steadfastness of Christian and Lutheran resistance to state tyranny, as is reflected in this biography. Not until 1995, and only then under pressure, was his own church in Hungary prepared to acknowledge the injustice done to this valiant upholder of Luther’s tradition.

As in the other Communist countries, the role of the church leadership in Hungary during these repressive years remains hotly disputed. The author of this memoir is highly critical of the compromises which other leaders made, seeking to conform their congregations to the prevailing political climate. His praise for Bishop Ordass serves to remind us of the high price paid for such staunch witness.

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c) A. Hamish Ion, The Cross in the Dark Valley: The Canadian Protestant Missionary Movement in the Japanese Empire, 1931-1945. Waterloo, Ontario, Canada: Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 1999. xvi.428 pages (B & W photos).

The author, who teaches at the Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario, has written three volumes (of which this is the third) on British and Canadian Protestant missions in Japan, Korea and Taiwan, beginning from their beginning in 1865 . In his first volume he explains his interest in missionaries, not primarily as evangelists but rather as agents of cultural interchange between Japan and the West. So when he writes in this volume, “This book studies the end of the missionary age in the history of Japan’s international relations with the West . . .” he is telling us that with the rise of militarism based on the worship of a god-emperor the missionaries had failed in the end to act as carriers of modern, western democratic values. That process must now be taken up by other groups.

In spite of Ion’s denial that he is concerned with the religious side of the missionary movement, he provides a good deal of interesting information about the final days of missionary activity. In twelve chapters he covers every possible aspect of Anglican, Presbyterian and United Church work in the prewar empire. Of particular interest is his comparison of evangelism and social service in Japan and the colonies (chapters 2 & 3, 6 & 7). In Japan, Christianity appealed mainly to members of the middle class, which tended to identify with the establishment, whereas in the colonies, workers, farmers and indigenous minorities responded. Thus in Japan, Christians – and their missionary friends – tended to affirm their country’s nationalist aspirations. In the colonies, on the other hand, the class consciousness of the underclass converts reinforced opposition to colonial dictates, a stand usually supported by their missionary mentors.

This contrast was most marked in the controversy over Christian attendance at State Shinto shrines (chapter 4). In Japan most Christians, eager to be counted patriotic citizens and members of a ‘mainline’ religion, accepted the government argument that shrine attendance was not an act of worship but an expression of “patriotism and loyalty” [87]. Missionaries like Howard Outerbridge of the United Church agreed with this arrangement and criticized the stance of colleagues in Korea who supported indigenous resistance to shrine attendance. Both sides, though, viewed the question as a “purely religious” one without being much concerned about its political aspect. This limited perspective meant that no missionary – only a diplomat like the Canadian ambassador, Herbert Marler – was equipped to deal holistically with the relations between the religious question and the rise of militarism. Hence the ‘failure’ of the missionary movement to influence events, whether in Japan or in Canada, which Ion notes in his introduction [1].

Ion’s treatment of the closing days of prewar missions (chapters 10-12) combines skillful use of archival material with sensitivity to the emotional elements involved in the missionaries’ leaving Japan. None of the missionaries wanted to leave, and their unwillingness was supported by the ambivalent attitude of the indigenous Christians. On the one hand, old friendships made them feel needed. On the other, the identification of church leaders with their country’s nationalistic goals meant that the Canadians (as ‘British’) represented a source of suspicion on the part of police and other government agents. This reviewer remembers his father’s anguish when his license to officiate as a priest was revoked by his Japanese bishop in 1942. His lifetime of work in Japan seemed to him to have been repudiated by the very people to whom he had dedicated his life.

There are a few flaws. The context of missionary withdrawal would have been enriched by more detailed reference to the changes in theological thinking about mission: by growing insight into the relations between missions and colonialism and the moves toward devolution (the handing over of leadership to indigenous Christians) that were being encouraged by the very nationalism described. The Jerusalem Conference of 1928 and the Layman ‘s Commission (briefly mentioned) are but two examples of what was going on in the understanding of the churches in the West. There are some curious stylistic infelicities that could have been altered by closer editorial supervision. But these are minor points in a work which breaks new ground, not only in our understanding of the earliest stage in Japanese-Canadian relations, but also in the detailed information about Canadian work that has hitherto been buried in British, Canadian, and Japanese archives.

Cyril Powles, Vancouver

Book notes:

a) “Dietrich Bonhoeffer” is the title of an essay by the well-known novelist Marilynne Robinson in a collection entitled The Death of Adam: Essays on Modern Thought (Thomas Allan $19.95). This is a sympathetic analysis drawing particular notice to the tension evidently occurring in Bonhoeffer’s career through the contrasts between his transcendental theology and his immanentist ethics, which was only made more acute by being played out in the struggle against Nazi tyranny The book also contains a fine appreciation of the career of Jean Calvin, as an example of a thinker now too often disregarded, but who still has many worthwhile things to say to us all.

b) Friedrich Thimme, Briefe. Schriften des Bundesarchiv 46, Boppard 1994 Friedrich Thimme, a distinguished political historian, and editor of Germany ‘s diplomatic documents, retired just as the Nazis came to power. For the next five years, until his death in a climbing accident in 1938, he was much involved with church affairs. As a staunchly orthodox and upright Lutheran, he was from the first deeply opposed to Nazism, with its cult of violence and its totalitarian ambitions. His letters from these years, edited by his daughter,who formerly taught at the University of Alberta, show his resolute attempts, as a layman, to mobilize his fellow churchmen to recognize the Nazi danger. One of his aims was to publish an authoritative book of essays by both Catholic and Protestant authors warning of the Nazis’ neo-paganism.

Although he gained the support of several prominent Catholics, his own community were luke-warm, and even the staunch members of the Confessing Church shied away from any collaboration with Catholics. Suspicions died hard, even when both were on the same side against Nazi presumptions. At the same time, Thimme sought to convince his own immediate circle, including two brothers who were clergymen, not to indulge in wishful thinking about Hitler or to suppose that the Nazi take-over of power was a historic moment of national renewal. But largely he met with opportunistic responses, even from the leaders of the Confessing Church. (Ah, frailty thy name is Marahrens!) As a first-hand source for the early Church Struggle, these letters shed light on lay attitudes, make clear the prevarications and clash of loyalties which affected so many who should have known better, and show why the Church’s resistance to Nazism was so limited in its scope and effectiveness.

The latest Mitteilungen (18) put out by the Evangelische Arbeitsgemeinschaft für kirchliche Zeitgeschichte (Munich) contains the text of a special lecture given by Prof. Martin Greschat, now retired from the University of Giessen, on “Continuity and Crises: German Protestantism in the 1960s”, as well as a description of the publications planned by the Committee for the History of the Protestant Churches in a divided Germany since 1945. The debates over whether such history has to be written in two separate parts, corresponding to the division of the country for forty years, or as one overarching national experience, are still continuing. There are also reports on the various conferences marking the tenth anniversary of the downfall of the unlamented G.D.R.

The recently published Festschrift for Prof Ringshausen (Luneburg) entitled: Widerstehen und Erziehen im christlichen Glauben, edited by Gerhard Besier and Gunter R.Schmidt, and published in Holzgerlingen by Haenssler, 1999, includes the following items of interest to church historians: Joerg Thierfelder: “Aber Hände weg von Bibel und Kirche”. Wahlverweigerer im evangelischen Wuerttemberg bei der Volksabstimmung vom 10. April 1938, Ruediger von Voss: Der 20. Juli 1944. Anmerkungen zum Verstaendnis deutscher Geschichte, Gerhard Besier: “Efforts to strengthen the German Church”. Der Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America und die Repraesentanten der deutschen evangelischen Kirche in der Nachkriegszeit (1945-1948), Peter Steinbach: Die Ludwigsburger Zentrale Stelle und die Zukunft deutscher Vergangenheitsbewaeltigung.

 

With every best wish to you all,

 

John S.Conway jconway@unixg.ubc.ca ity, and a deep strain of anti-utopianism.

Andrii Krawchuk, Christian Social Ethics in Ukraine. The legacy of Andrei

Sheptytsky.

Edmonton: Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies Press 1997 404 pp.

Krawchuk’s doctoral thesis is a solid piece of historical scholarship

dealing with the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the first half of this

century, when the leading figure was its long-serving Metropolitan

Sheptytsky. The author’s coverage is both political and social, and

describes the attempts of the Metropolitan, up to his death in 1944, to keep

his church afloat in the midst of terrifying political persecution and

oppression. This work complements the 1996 study by B.R.Bociurkiw, The

Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and the Soviet State, 1939-1950.

For Germans, but not only for them, the forthcoming November 9th is a date

of particular importance. I would be interested to hear from any of you how

in fact you have commemorated the events which took place in this century,

either on or around that date itself, especially if you made any specific

reference to a possible Christian interpretation of its significance. Of

even wider significance are the commemorations of November 11th.

Now that we have abandoned the kind of religiously-flavoured national

patriotic demonstrations, what kind of ceremonies can be said to be fitting,

other than a purely secular wreath-laying. Do let me know what happens in

your area.

With best wishes,

John Conway

jconway@interchange.ubc.ca

 

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

Newsletter- February 2000- Vol.VI, no. 2

Dear Friends,

 

Contents:

1) Obituary: Dr L.Siegele-Wenschkewitz

2) Forthcoming Conference: 30th Annual Conference on the Holocaust and the Churches, March 4th – 7th

3) Book reviews:

a) S.Selinger, C.v.Kirschbaum and K.Barth

b) E.Voegelin, Hitler and the Germans

c) N.Railton, German Evangelicals and Third Reich

4)Book notes:

a) A.Lindemann, Esau’s Tears
b) B.Chiari, Alltag hinter der Front
c) ed.P.Smith, After the Wall
d) Kretschmar, Das bischoefliche Amt
e) Mensing, Pfarrer und Nationalsozialismus

5)Journal articles:

a) R.Shaffer, Japanese Internees
b) G.Besier, East German Churches
c) B.Schafer, East German Catholics
6) Correction: H.Kreutzer, Reich Church Ministry

7) Technical Note

 

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1) It is with great regret that we learn of the recent death of Frau Dr. Leonore Siegele-Wenschkewitz (1944-1999) in Frankfurt, Germany. As a former associate of the late Professor Klaus Scholder in Tubingen, she developed a keen interest in the history of the Church Struggle, and published her researches on this topic. most notably in her valuable study Theologische Fakultaeten im Nationalsozialismus, Goettingen 1993. From 1983 she worked as Moderator of Studies at the Evangelical Academy in Arnoldshain, near Frankfurt, of which she became the Director in 1996. The numerous conferences and seminars she helped to organize there played a significant role in the life of the church in western Germany. At the same time she was an adjunct professor at Frankfurt University, when she had an opportunity to express her interest in the role of women in the church She served for many years as a member of the Evangelical Church’s Board for Contemporary History, and since 1988 was its vice-chairman. In view of the sad illness of the chairman, she was called on to take a very active role in the Board’s affairs in the last year of her life. In 1999 she was awarded the Edith Stein Prize, and was fortunately able to go to Gottingen to receive this honour and to deliver an appropriate speech in recognition of Edith Stein on this occasion.

2) The 30th Annual Scholars’ Conference on the Holocaust and the Churches will be held at St. Joseph’s University and the Adams Mark Hotel, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from Saturday, March 4th to Tuesday, March 7th. The key note address on Sunday, March 5th will be delivered by Elie Wiesel. Registration and information can be obtained from the Annual Scholars’ Conference, P.O.Box 10, Merion Station, Pa 19066, FAX 610-667-0265.

3a) Suzanne Selinger, Charlotte von Kirschbaum and Karl Barth. A Study in Biography and the History of Theology. University Park, Penn: Penn.State U.P. 1998. 206pp

Female theologians are still a rarity: how much more so seventy years ago! The career of Charlotte von Kirschbaum, secretary and theological assistant to Karl Barth for over thirty years, has long intrigued, and sometimes scandalized, admirers of the most prominent Protestant theologian of the 20th century. Feminists have long accused Barth of exploiting “Lollo”, as she was always known, and Suzanne Selinger, herself an accomplished theological writer, shares a lot of the anger at what she sees as Barth’s
selfishness in not promoting von Kirschbaum’s own career. On the other hand, Lollo herself was an intelligent, devoted and faithful interpreter of Barth’ s often complex theology and accepted, apparently willingly, her indispensable role as part of his household.
Suzanne Selinger recognizes that the secrets of their personal relationship are hardly recoverable and instead seeks to elucidate more about their professional links. She regrets that Lollo only published a small amount on her own account, but senses in this accomplishment signs of the kind of influence she may have had in her daily discussions with Barth. Selinger rightly sees that, in order to achieve the kind of theological writing in which he excelled, and especially in his great work Church Dogmatics,
Barth needed a dialogical partner – someone to function as sounding board and, most characteristically, someone with whom to think things through. In his earlier career, Eduard Thurneysen had played this role. But after Barth moved to Germany, and needed more direct assistance in his academic affairs, it was only natural that he should seek out someone whose sympathy for his ideas and understanding of his mental processes and doctrinal positions, was matched by an incredible capacity for more humdrum tasks. Not only did Lollo type out Barth’s drafts, answer his letters, “manage” his students, organize his timetable of meetings, lectures and speaking engagements, but even found time to compile a vast collection of useful excerpts from a huge variety of Christian writers, which could then be turned to at will.

Selinger is particularly good at tracing Lollo’s nuanced view of gender issues, in the light of the christologically-based anthropology she shared with, or adopted from, Barth. She certainly rejected the patriarchal view of much of her German tradition-bound society, as also the romanticized view of women as inherently dependent on men, or alternatively more religious than man. Such stereotyping had to be rejected in favour of the kind of relational existence of both men and women in response to God’s command. In the later chapters, Selinger examines closely Barth’s doctrines of the image of God, the gender question and his innovative theories of dialogical personalism. Lollo’s contribution to such ideas is impossible to unravel, but Selinger clearly believes she played a significant role in their eventual formulation, especially in stressing the creativity of women, including a mutual fellowship in the constructive building of community. To understand all this, a close acquaintance with Church Dogmatics is recommended.

Charlotte von Kirschbaum was criticized, both in her time and since, by feminists unable to comprehend her spiritual approach, who saw only exploitation of her undoubted gifts by the dominant male. Yet she chose to be freely herself for Barth – a perfect realisation of I – Thou relationship. It was a one-sided partnership, yet clearly rewarding for both. Perhaps, as Selinger suggets, Barth’s need to have Lollo’s constant presence was the result of a weakness, a loneliness, which demanded the company of the other. Her legacy is to be found buried in his comprehensive theological work. It is not therefore to be disparaged.

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3b) Eric Voegelin. Hitler and the Germans. Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 1999.

This book is based on lectures Eric Voegelin gave at the University of Munich in 1964, that are being published now for the first time. The lectures were given in German, and they have been ably edited and translated into English by Detlev Clemens and Brendan Purcell. In this work, Voegelin seeks to address questions such as these: What were the spiritual conditions in Germany which allowed Hitler to rise to power and gain the support of so many average people?, Why did the Christian churches respond to Nazism so weakly?, How did a regime rooted in illegality and murder take over the legal system in Germany?, Why do intellectuals and academics in Germany after the war have such a poor understanding of Nazism as a spiritual phenomenon?, Why are many former Nazis who are war criminals living openly and prospering in Germany after the war?

Those who are already familiar with Voegelin’s philosophy will find here the basic concepts which he has developed elsewhere: human existence occurs “in between” materiality and the transcendent realm of God; human beings have a marked tendency to avoid living honestly with this reality of the “between”; this leads them to create false “second realities” in which they attempt to exist autonomously, apart from God; the flight from reality has led to the modern neo-gnostic regimes of mass murder such as Stalinism and Nazism. In these lectures, Voegelin focuses on the historical circumstances of Nazism, making this volume more concrete and accessible than his other more abstract and philosophical writings, which have a tendency toward dense argument and complex terminology. This volume would serve very well as an introduction to Voegelin for someone who has not read him.

There is a clear undercurrent of anger animating this text, which is understandable given Voegelin’s personal history of persecution at the hands of the Nazis. Voegelin doesn’t allow his anger to derail his central purpose, however, which is to analyze the various dimensions of the “abyss” into which Germany descended: the academic abyss, the ecclesiastical abyss, and the legal abyss. In the academic realm, Voegelin’s principal target of attack is P. E. Schramm, the historian who edited Hitler’s Table Talk. Voegelin pillories Schramm for producing an “anatomy” of the dictator which reveals a fundamental lack of understanding of the subject. This lack of understanding is reprehensible in Voegelin’s eyes because the intellectual tools needed for correct understanding were available to Schramm–in classical philosophy, biblical theology, and the writings of contemporaries such as Karl Kraus, Robert Musil, Thomas Mann, Hermann Broch, and Heimito von Doderer.

Voegelin comments on the ecclesiastical situation in two substantial chapters which are devoted to the Catholic and Protestant spheres. In each case his critique is very harsh, emphasizing the idea that most Christians knew of the persecution of the Jews by the Nazis and either applauded it or did not care about it as long as they themselves were not being persecuted. When the reach of the Nazis’ power did begin to negatively impact the churches, then Christians all of sudden began to realize that they should be concerned about their fellow human beings who are being murdered. Voegelin reveals the narcissism at the root of this morale debacle as a massive failure of the Christian church to hold fast to the central biblical teaching regarding the creation of all people in the image of God. On pages
199-201, Voegelin puts forward a list of ten biblical and philosophical points which are necessary to teach German clerics and theologians “the elements of Christianity.” His wish for the use of this list: “Lower clergy, copy it out daily ten times; bishops and theologians, daily a hundred times; theologians who have received a Cross of Merit from the Federal Republic, daily two hundred times until they have got it.” Voegelin’s anger and sarcasm make the book lively, but they don’t set the stage for a balanced and comprehensive historical account. He pays very little attention to the Confessing Church, for example, mentioning Bonhoeffer only in passing and Karl Barth not even once. His judgment that there was “no good theology” being produced in Germany at the time seems very odd in light of Barth’s works (162). But in hindsight, the impact of the Confessing Church was minimal in stemming the tide of Nazism, and Voegelin’s portrait of the situation is generally accurate. I make this comment without being a historian of that period myself. I would be very interested to read a review of this work written by such a person. It may be that members of the historical guild will not be as favorable in their attitude toward this work as I am, representing the guild of theological ethics.

Charles Bellinger, Regent College, Vancouver

3c) Nicholas Railton, The German Evangelical Alliance and the Third Reich. An analysis of the ‘Evangelisches Allianzblatt’, Bern: Peter Lang 1998, pp. 265 £27

Railton, who has already written an assessment of the German Free Churches and the Third Reich, has now produced this revealing study of the German Bible belt. Consisting of about one million adherents in the 1930s, and stretching from the Saxon Erzgebirge through Thuringia and Hessen to Baden and Wuerttemberg, it gave a depressingly rosy response to Hitlerism as a force standing for ‘positive Christianity’. Railton shows us quite clearly how much German evangelicalism (‘evangelikal’ used in its Anglo-American sense can be dated only as far back as 1965) in its modern phase, beginning with the loose inter-denominational Gnadau Association (1897) of Lutheran, Reformed and United Church evangelicals and their new missionary press (1890: c. 5,000), owed to the early modern and habitual German home-town environment and mentality of Pietism, Moravianism and early nineteenth-century Revivalism. Wilhelmine and Weimar successors, simply put, could not adapt either spiritually or morally to the challenges posed by our modern industrial age. It appears also that authoritarian political values investing the ‘state’ and those who ran it with an almost divine aura over-rode a religious ethos associated with being ‘born again’. The ideals of 1789, western Liberalism, Marxism, Bolshevism, post-1918 democratic republicanism and an alleged Jewish ‘materialism’ were lumped together, with not so much as the odd tweak of conscience, as poisons. These supposedly contaminated a German muscular evangelical post-1918 culture which drew its main inspiration from the recent hurrah patriotism of Bismarck’s Second Reich, and the ‘ we-are-so-hard-done-by’ interwar German Nationalist Party.

It does seem extremely odd today, that the two years 1933 and 1934, marking Nazi ‘co-ordination’, should be seen by the German Free Churches and evangelicals as giving far greater freedoms and opportunities than the years of the Weimar Republic, which had awarded the Christian Churches and other religions freedoms and financial support on a scale unheard of in Germany before 1918. It repays to read again and again, however bleak one’s frame of mind, this German ‘evangelical’ way of thinking and speaking during 1930-3. Railton summarizes it in the following way: ‘Hitler talked of “God”, ” the Lord” and “Providence”, so now they began to talk of the “Zeitenwende”, the “nationaler Aufbruch” and “Vorsehung”. The language of the Third Reich was already becoming the language of German evangelicalism’ (p.27) Chapter vi, ‘Evangelical social concerns’, and chapter vii, ‘The Jewish question’, recording adulation for Hitler as Mr Clean, and overt evangelical support for Nazi public moral hygiene, meaning clearing the streets of pimps,
prostitutes, homosexuals, Jews and assorted riff-raff, and approval of Nazi anti-abortion policy, pile a murky Pelion upon Ossa. The teaching of the Bible, purged, one might add, of the Old Testament, seems to have been completely dispensed with.

Nicholas Hope. (This review appeared first in the Journal of Ecclesiastical History, July 1999, p. 612-3)

Book notes:

4a) A.S.Lindemann, Esau’s Tears: Modern anti-semitism and the rise of the Jews, Cambridge University Press 1997. 568pp

The object of this large-scale history of anti-semitism is basically to take issue with the prevailing view found in simplistic surveys such as those by D.Goldhagen or Lucy Dawidowicz, which have blamed outside forces, including the Christian church, for this henomenon. Lindemann instead seeks to advance the polemical and provocative view that some aspects at least of this intolerance were due to the Jews’ own behaviour and their “rise”. On the historical role of the Church, Lindemann makes the following statement:

“One can unquestionably pinpoint Christian tendencies towards demonizing Jews, but such tendencies are balanced by others. The evidence is hardly persuasive that within Christian belief is contained a strongly determined predisposition, drawing in all Christians, to violent hatred of Jews. In modern times Christian peoples have differed enormously in their reactions to Jews, from mild philo-Semitism to murderous loathing. This range of sentiment cannot be convincingly connected to various traits within varieties of Christianity, whether Catholic, Protestant, or Greek Orthodox, sincere or lax, popular or elite.. . . Religion, though often seen as the ultimate or fundamental source of anti-Semitism, is too elastic and ambiguous a category to offer much more than conjectural, ahistorical and woolly explanations, in which the preconceptions and emotional agendas of the authors play a decisive role.” (p.xvi)

b) B.Chiari, Alltag hinter der Front. Besatzung, Kollaboration und Widerstand in Weissrussland 1941-1944 Dusseldorf, Droste Verlag 1998

This belated study of the German occupation of White Russia (Byelorussia) has a few pages dealing with the role of the church under Nazi rule (pp103ff). As in the Ukraine, the initial hopes for deliverance from the Communists led to exaggerated expectations amongst the upper Orthodox clergy which were soon enough disillusioned. As for the Catholics, who constituted some 20%, they were always regarded as hostile, and were treated accordingly. This is another mosaic in the wider picture of the fate of the Soviet churches which still remains to be written up. But B.Chiari has researched the Russian sources thoroughly as far as this aspect of his topic goes.

c) ed. Patricia Smith, After the Wall. Eastern Germany since 1989, Boulder, Colo. Westview Press, 1998

Detlef Pollack, a sociologist who teaches at Frankfurt an der Oder, contributes a chapter on the situation of religion since 1989, which draws on various interviews and samples to show that in fact the differences between religious practices and beliefs in east and west Germany are not all that great. Despite 40 years of deliberate secularization, the churches survive, though noticeably weaker in eastern Germany. On the other hand the anticipated loss to other faiths or cults has not happened. The expectations of what the churches should be like are similar, and the level of commitment, as for example to be seen in baptism or confirmation, are remarkably constant, but can not lend comfort to those who had hoped that the end of Communism would see a re-christianisation of the east German
society.

d) Georg Kretschmar, Das bischoefliche Amt. Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht 1999 355pp

The former Professor of Church History in Hamburg and Munich, and subsequently the bishop of the revived Lutheran Church in the Baltic States, has contributed these studies in the episcopal office which cover the office of the bishop in the Early Church, its rediscovery and renewal of the ministry during the Reformation era, and its ecumenical relevance. e) The study by Bjorn Mensing, Pfarrer und Nationalsozialismus, which was reviewed here by Prof.Gerhard Besier in November 1998, has now achieved a
second edition with a new publisher, Verlag C. u. C. Rabenstein, Bayreuth. The author has taken the opportunity to make suitable corrections in the light of a vigorous response, extending from helpful additions by surviving eye-witnesses to personal attacks and threats of legal action, even anonymous denunciations.

5) Journal articles:

Jacques Kornberg, Ignaz von Dollinger’s Die Juden in Europa: A Catholic Polemic against Antisemitism, in Journal for the History of Modern Theology/Zeitschrift fur neuere Theologiegeschichte, Vol. 6 no 2, 1999, pp. 223-245

Kornberg, a professor at Toronto, brings to light a long forgotten lecture given in 1881 by this most distinguished Bavarian academic, who unfortunately had been excommunicated by the Vatican for his opposition to the policies of Pope Pius IX. Kornberg sees this attack on the kind of vulgar anti-Judaism in one persistent strain of Catholic thought as part of Dollinger’s overall campaign against the ultramontane authoritarianism being imposed by Rome. On the other hand, Dollinger still adhered to the kind of triumphalism which looked forward to the eventual voluntary conversion of Jews to (liberal) Christianity. The sentiments expressed are very reminiscent of those adopted 8o years later at the 2nd Vatican Council, and contributed to Dollinger’s recent rehabilitation.

Robert Shaffer, Opposition to Internment. Defending Japanese American rights during World War II, in The Historian, Vol 61, no. 3, Spring 1999, 597ff

This article describes the small number of sympathizers with the Japanese Americans interned in 1942, often pastors and missionaries, who had some contact with these congregations on the American West Coast, and sought to alleviate their plight.

Gerhard Besier, The German Democratic Republic and the State Churches, 1958-1989, in Journal of Ecclesiastical History, Vol 50, no 3, July 1999, p. 523ff

Designed to bring to an English audience the results of Prof.Besier’s enormous volume of research into the fate of the East German churches under Communist rule, this article is a valuable if much abbreviated summary. For those who want to explore further, the footnotes give useful help.

Bernd Schaefer, State and Catholic Church in Eastern Germany, 1945-1989, in German Studies Review, Vol. XXII, no 3, October 1999, p. 447ff

A useful summary of the Catholic Church’s position, on similar lines to the previous item.

6) Correction: Following our notice in last November’s Newsletter of Heike Kreutzer’s 1993 MA thesis on the establishment of the Reich Church Ministry in 1935, the author has now kindly sent us her more recently completed PhD thesis from Tuebingen University on the same topic, which is to be published later this year. She has expanded her earlier work with a full analysis of the documentation relating to the Church Ministry, which was for so long unavailable in East German archives. Although her treatment essentially stops in 1938, she again emphasizes her view that the Ministry’s failure and its fate was already decided by that date. Her researches confirm in detail what was already known – that the Minister, Hanns Kerrl, was an impulsive, semi-educated, naive and bungling politician. Moreover, he was incessantly caught in the cross-fire between the rival church camps, especially in the Evangelical Churches, on the one side, and at the same time, sabotaged by his supposed colleagues in the Nazi Party, who were much more skillful than he at interpreting Hitler’s often contradictory tactics towards the churches.

Kerrl started from the “idealist” position that the Churches and the Nazi Party should be integrated more closely together. “True Christianity and true National Socialism are identical” was typical of his approach, which was found to be absurd not only by orthodox churchmen, but also by the Party radicals. While Kerrl sought to bring the churches under state control, the Party radicals sought to diminish or even to abolish them. Kerrl found his only support in a handful of “German Christians”, but already by 1937, he had been effectively outmanouevred and his grandiose plans aborted. Heike Kreutzer’s contribution is to document the lamentable career of this
hapless Nazi minister in a manner which will not need to be done again. Her viewpoint is not new, and suffers from a considerable amount of repetition. Especially revealing is her account of the extent to which Kerrl was unable to gain the loyalty of his own staff, which included at least three clergymen regularly reporting on his actvities to the Gestapo. The official in charge of Catholic affairs, a renegade priest, was a determined opponent of the Concordat, and organized an extensive campaign to weaken the Catholic Church’s institutional life, thus playing into the hands of the Nazi extremists. On the Protestant side, the ministry’s officials did seem to have more sympathy for their “clients’, but again proved ineffective against the increasingly anti-church and anti-clerical camp led by Bormann, Goebbels and Rosenberg.

Ms Kreutzer clearly shows how this Ministry and its officials were part of the internecine rivalries within the Nazi power structures, which in the end led to its complete subordination and failure. It would be nice to think that this misbegotten attempt to use state power to manipulate and coerce the churches had been defeated by the churches’ united resistance against such unwanted provocation. But the evidence shows that this was not the case. Not only did the Catholic Church, for example, welcome the close association with the state by signing the Concordat with Hitler in 1933, but successfully campaigned to have it upheld again in West Germany in the 1950s. And the experience in East Germany, where the Ministry for Church Affairs, reappeared in a communist guise, was to prove equally lamentable on both the state’s and the churches’part. It was not a chapter of church history to be proud of.

7) Technical Note:

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John S.Conway jconway@unixg.ubc.ca

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

Newsletter- January 2000- Vol.VI, no. 1

Dear Friends,

Welcome to the New Year!

Contents:

1) Book reviews,

a) ed. G.Baum, The twentieth Century

b) J.Cornwell, Hitler’s Pope

2) G.Baum, Catholics in the Weimar Republic

3) Journal articles: O.Heilbronner, Catholic Resistance

B.Stambolis, German Catholics
M. Greschat, Churches in the GDR
M.Elliott/S.Corrado, Religion in Russia

4) Website: Karl Barth archive

 

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1) Book reviews:

 

a) ed. Gregory Baum, The Twentieth Century. A Theological Overview, Orbis Books Maryknoll, New York – G.Chapman, London 1999. 263pp

What better way to start a new century off in this Newsletter than by reviewing a stimulating book of essays, edited by one of our list-members, about the theologians’ responses to the principal political and social trends of the last hundred years? It was a splendid idea for Gregory Baum to invite some of his ecumenical colleagues to contribute to this valuable and sometimes provocative survey, which seeks to show that the story of twentieth century theology has been one of both fidelity and anguish – fidelity to God’s revealed word under changing historical conditions, and anguish over the unanswered questions and the powerlessness of truth in a sinful world.

His team comprises both Protestants and Catholics from leading North American universities, as well as some distinguished European scholars. Predictably they cover such major topics as the two World Wars, the Great Depression, the rise of Fascism, the Holocaust, as well as more far-reaching developments as the impact of the women’s movement or the ecological crisis in today’s world.

Douglas J.Hall leads off by pointing out that the catastrophes of the First World War were made more acute because the dominant liberal Christian theology of the day had so completely fostered the optimistic climate of “the religion of progress”, and had largely abandoned the vocabulary of earlier Christian (and Jewish) attempts to come to terms with disaster. It was no less fateful that the more conservative theologians so readily endorsed their nation’s war-time cause, and claimed divine approval for their side. The spectacle of such mutually exclusive pronouncements, and the incompatibility of the war’s conduct with Christian doctrines of love and peace. destroyed Christianity’s credibility for many of the survivors, and discredited much of theology as hypocrisy.

The post-1918 theological scene was marked by extreme confusion and uncertainty. Striking political events, such as the Communist Revolution in Russia or the rise of National Socialism in Germany, took their toll. Bernard Dupuis describes sympathetically the response of the Russian exiles seeking to defend Orthodoxy, while James Reimer outlines the scandalous divisions amongst the German theologians of the 1930s, when neither Paul Tillich’s religious socialism, nor Karl Barth and Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s defence of confessing church neo-orthodoxy prevented the widespread support of Nazism by the theologians of the so-called “German Christian” movement, who indeed betrayed their craft. More notable was the renaissance of Catholic intellectual life in France where Jacques Maritain, Emmanuel Mounier, Henri de Lubac and others in conjunction with literary and philosophical scholars represented what Joseph Komonchuck calls a return from exile after the bleak crisis over “modernism”. Both he and Victor Consemius see these men’s ideas as formative in the restoration of a publicly significant Catholic theology which not only held the church together during the Second World War, but provided the seed-bed for the Second Vatican Council.

Not surprisingly the recurrent crises of the capitalist order prompted North American theologians in particular to formulate their protest against the resulting injustices. Donald Schweitzer gives a splendidly succinct description of Reinhold Niebuhr’s trenchant and influential critique of the existing political circumstances, and also of the parallel movement in Canada, the Fellowship for a Christian Order. In fact, the latter, though largely unknown today, was seminal in setting the moral agenda for much of Canadian politics, both at home and abroad, and can be said to be still having an impact decades later. Certainly the Canadian political scene allowed these advocates more direct influence than was possible in the United States. The Fellowship’s champions were, and often still are, possibly too eager to see God’s Kingdom in terms of an achievable political utopia. But their debate with Niebuhr was valuable in delineating what can be hoped for in history.

In the 1950s Protestant theology lived off the massive achievements of Niebuhr and Karl Barth. But in the following decades, as described by Gary Dorrien, the challenge to all authority, and especially to Christian authority, spawned a host of liberationist, feminist and other politically radical movements which repudiated the past.

For Catholics, the sense of renewal launched by the Second Vatican Council did something to preempt many of these feelings. The Council, and equally the 1968 Medellin Conference, as analyzed by the Mexican scholar Virgilio Elizondo, expanded horizons, challenged the Roman Catholic Church’s European predominance and established the preferential option for the poor, especially of the third world. The pastoral and theological significance of these developments are still being worked out. But the impact is undeniable. For the future, claims Lee Cormie, the great themes at the heart of Jewish and Christian theologies – creation, fall, liberation/redemption, salvation – will have renewed relevance in meeting the challenges of social, political and technological globalization. The sceptic must however ask whether this is not just wishful thinking at a time when faith and ethics are so often treated as irrelevant, or reduced to the private sphere. However, Harvey Cox, in his essay, joins others in disputing the view that growing secularization would and will lead to the disappearance of religion. The evidence is just not there. Rather, even where institutional and intellectual Christianity of a traditional type has been weakened, there are many other plural forms of religion which seek a re-ordering of worldviews, with or without the Enlightenment’s blessing. This transformation allows Cox to see a continuity with his earlier book of thirty years ago.

Gregory Baum, in his own chapter, examines the impact of Marxist ideas on Christian theology, suggesting that these have strengthened the sense of outrage against structural injustices and lent impetus to the theological praxis supporting the healing and redemption of the world. In a world now dominated by neo-liberal ideologies, such ideas are still necessary. At the same time, in his concluding remarks, Baum suggests that one of the most significant shifts in the last forty years has been that “the emancipatory dimension of divine redemption has assumed, for the first time, a central place in the construction of Christian theology”.

These essays portray the intellectual creativity, the rich imagination and the passion displayed by theologians in recent decades. Baum is confident that future theologians will demonstrate similar qualities. If they do, then indeed “the Spirit will continue to speak to the churches in the coming century”

JSC

b) John Cornwell, Hitler’s Pope. The Secret Story of Pius XII, New York: Viking Press, 1999

In 1963 Rolf Hochhuth’s play Der Stellvertreter (The Deputy) led to a bitter controversy over the stand of the Pope and the Catholic Church under the Nazi regime. Debates over the role of Eugenio Pacelli (1876-1958), who was the papal nuncio in Germany between 1917 and 1929, have never been resolved. As Cardinal Secretary of State, in other words as ‘Foreign Secretary’ of the Vatican (1930-1939), and then in his role as Pope (1939-1958), Pacelli is basically accused of not having gone far enough to prevent the persecution and genocide of the European Jews. John Cornwell, a Catholic and Senior Research Fellow at Jesus College, Cambridge, now presents this volume to support the above accusation. Cornwell is not unknown to the Vatican. In 1991, he wrote a book ‘As a thief in the night’ which showed there was no proof that Pope John Paul I, who had always suffered from poor health, experienced an unnatural death on September 28, 1978, after only 33 days in office. Even at the start of his research on Pius XII, Cornwell affirmed that he was ‘convinced’ that the latter’s pontificate and the Catholic Church would “finally be vindicated above all reproach”.

The expectations aired in Rome, and the research on John Paul I gave Cornwell access to secret material that had accumulated in connection with Pacelli’s’ beatification. The only striking revelation of this book is that he was allowed access to these documents. And yet, his findings were disappointing for both sides. The author admits that at the end of his research he found himself ‘morally shocked’. Not only Pius XII but also ‘recent papal history’ is generally accused of greed for power and of ‘dislike of Jews’.

It was mainly the latter reproach which electrified the offspring of victims and offenders alike. Pro-Vatican historians called Cornwell’s book a pejorative pamphlet and undertook refutations. Cornwell sought to defend his position by claiming that other researchers had concentrated mainly on the period of the Second World War, and/or that the documents already published are only a limited sample. (See ‘Die Welt’, November 2nd). He is here referring to the twelve volume edition, ‘Actes et documents du Saint Siege, pendant la seconde guerre mondiale’, edited by four Jesuits, Pierre Blet, Angelo Martini, Robert A.Graham and Burkhart Schneider, and published in Vatican City from 1965 to 1981. Two years ago, in 1997, the last surviving editor, Pierre Blet, wrote his own history of Pius XII during the second world war, based on the introductions to these twelve volumes as well as other documents. He repeated the claim that no significant amount of material had been omitted, although he admitted that some few of the unpublished documents would have been worth including, even though they had been mentioned and their contents summarized..

Cornwell bases his case more on the earlier period of 1933 when he suggests that Pacelli entered into fateful negotiations with Hitler in pursuit of a Reich Concordat, which seriously compromised his attitude thereafter. This aspect he believes has not been treated thoroughly enough by other historians.

Fr Peter Gumpel, SJ, has also been working on the Pacelli files since 1965, in connection with the possible beatification. But on the basis of his heated attacks on Pius’ critics, Cornwell excludes him from the circle of “historians who can be taken seriously” and puts him among “mere apologists”. So too, Cornwell takes issue with the Israeli author, Pinchas Lapide, who judged Pius XII positively in his book ‘The last three Popes and the Jews’,(1967) because, according to his findings, Pius XII had saved the lives of some 800,000 Jews. Cornwell accuses him of not having acknowledged Carlo Falconi’s workThe Silence of the Pope: a documentary report. (1970). But such a criticism reflects badly on Cornwell himself, since he is also guilty of omitting consideration of numerous German works relevant to the subject, such as the readily available biography by K-A Recker Bischof Berning im Dritten Reich (1998), even though Berning collaborated closely with Pacelli in 1933. So too Hansjakob Stehle’s valuable study The Eastern Policies of the Vatican (1981) remained unused

There are of course some prominent historians who support Cornwell’s views, for example the distinguished German Protestant church historian, Klaus Scholder, who died in 1985. It is to his “masterful scholarship” that Cornwell shows a “deep reverence”. In fact, almost all that Cornwell reports about Pacelli’s policies from 1930 to 1934 is derived from Scholder’s two volumes, The Churches and the Third Reich (Eng.trans. 1987). Cornwell’s evaluation of this period revolves around the thesis, first advanced by Scholder, that Pacelli and the loyal leader of the German Centre Party, Ludwig Kaas, had sacrificed this party and its future existence for the sake of obtaining a long-desired Concordat. Such a debate is not new, since Scholder’s advocacy of this opinion had already aroused much controversy during his life-time in the late 1970s, and was again reviewed by Scholder’s friend, Professor Karl Otmar von Aretin, in a commentary in 1988. Even though this text was translated into English a year later, Cornwell left Aretin’s opposing arguments nmentioned.

This is not the only place where Cornwell dismisses objections and contrary views to his own, and in effect suggests there can be no alternative interpretations. Even though the book is marvelously well written, this drawing of dogmatically firm conclusions, and the exclusion of all ambiguities, is certain to lead to continuing disputes. Apart from this there is not much that is really new.

The second-to-last chapter reveals that Cornwell is concerned not only about an appropriate assessment of Pius XII but also about ‘recent papal history’ in general. The chapter is entitled ‘Pius XII Redivivus’ and takes issue with the present Pope John Paul II. Cornwell does not accuse the Pole Karol Wojtyla of antisemitism but rather of seeking to restore an authoritarian, power-minded and centralist papacy. By establishing a direct continuity between Pius XII and John Paul II and their alleged propagation of these trends, Cornwell assesses current church policy matters. And in subjecting such features to striking criticism, he wants history to give a boost to the reformers in the Catholic Church.

In his opinion, “The beatification of Pius XII would be a major victory for the traditionalists over the progressives with regard to the interpretation of Vatican II. If the Papacy becomes too strong to the detriment of the people of God, the Catholic Church will suffer a loss of moral and spiritual influence to the detriment of us all”.

Gerhard Besier, Heidelberg University- first published in Die Welt, November 2,1999, and subsequently translated by the author for this Newsletter.

2) Catholics in the Weimar Republic and Walter Dirks The Weimar Republic was neither anticipated nor wanted. German Catholics, as a whole, remained attached to the monarchical principle and found it difficult to adjust to the new democratic regime. Conservative Catholic thought, in reaction to 19th century liberalism, repudiated the idea of popular sovereignty and defended monarchical authority, held to be ultimately derived from God. Even the Catholic Party, the Zentrum, strongly represented in the German parliament, was internally divided. On the other hand, German Catholics profited from the collapse of the Protestant Monarchy, in which they had been treated as second-class citizens. The door was now open for their full participation in the cultural and political life of the nation.

One of those who sought to do so was the young Walter Dirks, whose Catholic spirituality of faith and political responsibility had been fashioned by membership in a lively youth group, Quickborn. From 1922 on, he worked at the Rhein-Mainische Volkszeitung, published in Frankfurt, a progressive Catholic daily that offered strong support for the new republic and defended social democratic values. With his colleagues on this newspaper, he became the great defender of democracy with much hope for the future of Germany. (His articles and editorials from this time were published in his Gesammelte Schriften, Zurich: Ammann Verlag 1989-90). Only after the September election of 1930, when National Socialism made a sudden leap forward, did Dirks and his friends become more pessimistic.

Dirks’ writings then turned to an analysis of German fascism and, in particular, ‘the German fascist coalition’, by which he meant the classes, groups and communities that were likely to be attracted by Hitler’s National Socialism. He passionately advocated the creation of an anti-fascist coalition, the sustaining core of which was to be collaboration between Catholics and the working class. His efforts failed. After Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933, the Rhein-Mainische Volkszeitung was closed down. Dirks’ writings for this newspaper and several other publications in the twenties and early thirties offered detailed analyses of current events which allowed him to make predictions about the likelihood of certain developments. In the twenties he observed the growing integration of Germany into European society, Germany’s gradual economic recovery, its outstanding cultural creativity, and the spread of critical socialist ideas among many thoughtful people. But after the 1930 elections, his tone became less optimistic. He was shrewd enough to realize that Hitler’s decision to seek dictatorial powers in Germany by legal means, rather than by revolution, meant that the Nazi Party had to appeal to wider sections of the population. Hence his appeal to unsuspecting Catholics. The only way to stop the Nazis, Dirks argued, was to build a strong coalition between the Zentrum and the Social Democratic Party, both renewed. But this aim was to prove to be
wishful thinking.

In a seminal essay published in 1931, “Katholizismus und Nationalsozialismus” Dirks shows that, from a philosophical perspective, Catholicism and National Socialism were irreconcilable. The bishops too, for more pragmatic reasons, supported this stance, several of them published pastoral letters to this effect. The Bishop of Mainz even decreed that in his diocese members of the Nazi Party were to be excluded from receiving Holy Communion. Catholics were ill at ease with the revolutionary tone adopted by the leaders of the Nazi Party, with the atmosphere of hatred created by Nazi ideology, and with the lack of respect for traditional values and authorities.

Yet a more careful analysis persuaded Dirks that, under certain circumstances, the Catholic population could easily become supporters of Nazism. His fears were indeed justified after 1933. In the first place, Hitler used his first months in power skillfully to adjust the Nazis’public image. In order to consolidate his position, he needed to live at peace with the Christian churches, at least for the time being. Hence he frequently mentioned God and divine Providence in his speeches, supported the so-called German Christians in the Protestant Church, and more importantly, agreed to enter into a Concordat with the Vatican – a step the Weimar Republic had refused to take.

In the second place, many German Catholics seemed to place their material interests ahead of their spiritual concerns. Nazism appealed to the middle classes whose well-being had been shattered by the inflation and depression. The working classes were attracted by the promise of ending unemployment. The peasants believed they were unappreciated by government and public culture, while students and intellectuals were fearful of being permanently out of a meaningful job. For the great majority, Dirks believed, the turn to fascism was taken in the hope of solving their material problems. They seemed unable to recognize that democratic socialism was the only force which could create a more just society. While Dirks made these predictions on the basis of a class analysis, he was right to see that this failure to recognize the dangers was to have terrible political consequences. In the early months of 1933, Dirks was heart-broken that his dark premonitions had turned out to be correct. He kept on writing critical articles in Catholic newspapers as long as he could, including a highly interesting piece in April 1933, courageously deploring Nazi antisemitism and the persecution of the Jews, and defending the continuing vocation of God’s first-chosen people – a theological argument almost unknown in the Christian literature of that time.

Dirks was not alone in fighting for these ideals. The Catholic intellectuals of the Rhineland were more open and pluralistic in their views than was the case in other parts of Catholic Germany, such as Bavaria. And his vibrant faith, drawn from his Quickborn associations, kept him going even though he was criticized from time to time by Catholic bishops and attacked in the Catholic press. It was these qualities which enabled him to maintain his faith, and to play a significant part in the rebuilding of Germany in the post-Nazi era.

Gregory Baum, McGill University, Montreal (extracted from an article to be published shortly in a collection of essays: Why Weimar: Questioning the Legacy of Weimar from Goethe to 1999, McGill European Studies, New York: Lang)

3) Journal articles

a) Oded Heilbronner, Catholic Resistance during the Third Reich? in Contemporary European History, Vol 7 no 3 (1998) pp 409-414.

Oded Heilbronner, an Israeli scholar, has recently published a valuable study of ‘Catholicism, Political Culture, and the Countryside. A social history of the Nazi Party in South Germany’ – to be reviewed here shortly. So he is well equipped to take a very sharp look at the notion of Catholic resistance during the Third Reich. This article is in fact a review of three recent books, and takes issue with the authors for being part of the Catholic research establishment which failed to take a more critical view of their fellow Catholics under Hitler’s rule. For years this Catholic establishment has insisted that the Catholics formed the chief focus of resistance to Nazi claims, and much of its scholarship has this apologetic tone. The reason, Heilbronner, suggests is that many German Catholics have an interest in preserving the myth of the ‘Kirchenkampf’. This boosted the Catholics’ fortunes after 1945, and still needs to be maintained after the changes of 1989, when Catholics became a minority once again. But by stressing the Catholic opposition to Nazi attacks on the church as the source of their resistance, these authors evade the question Heilbronner poses: ‘If the Nazis had not taken action against the Catholic Church, would the latter have joined the war waged by the Nazis against the Jews, the Bolsheviks and the European peoples as a whole?’ His suspicion is: yes.

This raises the very touchy point of Catholic antisemitism. Up to now, Catholic apologists have emphasised the fact that their clergy were not nearly so infected as were the Protestants. But such a view, as expressed for example by Thomas Fandel in his book on the Palatinate – reviewed here, October 1998 – covers over the extent to which Catholics did in fact serve Hitler loyally throughout the war, and even if opposed to certain Nazi practices, nevertheless still wanted to uphold the Nazi state. They were possibly even more subject to the Nazis’ social control than other sections of the community. By trying to claim they were united in anti-Nazi resistance, these Catholic historians distort the record, and must be found guilty of white-washing whole areas of Catholic life especially for the war-time period. Of course, in 1945, their leaders immediately claimed they had been the first victims of Nazi persecution – and this has remained their refrain from then on. But Heilbronner knows better, and, more importantly, is prepared to say so.

JSC

b) Barbara Stambolis, (Hagen), Nationalisierung trotz Ultramontanisierung oder: “Alles fur Deutschland. Deutschland aber für Christus”. Mentalitätsleitende Wertorientierung deutscher Katholiken im 19 und 20 Jahrhundert in Historische Zeitschrift, Vol 269, no.1, August 1999, pp 57-97.

This article describes how German Catholics adopted their own version of national identity after 1870 with increasing enthusiasm until the Nazi period. Only after 1945 was this nationalist fervour replaced by a return to the ideals of the “Christian West”. Stambolis shows how easily elements in the German Catholic tradition could be manipulated for nationalist or even Nazi purposes, but also how the German Catholic mediaeval heritage could be used in the post-war attempt to re-Christianise Europe.

c) Martin Greschat, Politische Macht, Kirchen und Gesellschaft in der DDR. Ein Ueberblick in Neue Politische Literatur, Vol. 44, no 1,1999, pp 59-80

Writing for a primarily secular audience, Martin Greschat here gives a masterly survey of the major works produced over the last ten years on the churches in the former East Germany. The main problem is to know the criteria to be used in any overall assessment. Despite the fact that the initial spate of revelations, recriminations,and accusations has now died down, most of the works discussing both the churches’ life and witness, as well as those dealing with the special theologies expressed during the forty years of communist rule, still carry on the atmosphere of support or criticism of the stance taken by the churches. This is just as true of the Catholics as the Protestants. Greschat himself has sound comments to make on the shortcomings of these approaches, but nicely includes the books by two of our list members, Gregory Baum and Bob Goeckel. His general point is well taken: it is still too early to say whether this special situation should be seen as an errant episode, or as a prophetic witness, in the history of the German Church.

d) M.Elliott and S.Corrado, The 1997 Russian Law on Religion: the impact on Protestants. in Religion, State and Society, Vol 27, no 1, March 1999, 109-34

This describes the spotty impact of the new restrictive law in Russia, reversing the more tolerant ruling of 1990, and gives a partial list of incidents where Protestant churches have been subjected to discrimination.

4) The website for the Karl Barth archive and Newsletter is http://www.unibas.ch/theologie/Barth

With every best wish for the forthcoming century!
John S.Conway

jconway@interchange.ubc.ca

Alphabetical list of books reviewed in 1999:

Arrington, Leonard: Adventures of a Church Historian March

Baginski, Christophe: La politique religieuse de la France en Allemagne occupee February

Blet, Pierre: Pie XII et la seconde guerre mondiale March

Booty, John: An American apostle. The life of Bishop Bayne November

Brewer, John D: Anti-Catholicism in Northern Ireland April

Buchanan, T. and Conway, M.: Political Catholicism in Europe 1918-65 November

Buttner, Ursula and Greschat, M.: Die verlassenen Kinder der Kirche May

Chadwick, Owen: A History of the Popes 1830-1914 Aug/Sept

Chandler, Andrew: The terrible alternative. Christian Martyrdom April

” ” ed.: The moral imperative February

Collins, Donald E: When the church bells ran racist June

Conway, Martin: Catholic politics in Europe 1918-1945 November

Coppa, Frank J.ed.: Controversial Concordats November

Deselaers, Manfred: Die biographie von Rudolf Hoess January

Drapac, Vesan: War and Relgion in occupied Paris May

Finke, Anne-Kattrin: Karl Barth in Grossbritannien October

Fritz, Hartmut: Otto Dibelius July

de Gruchy, John ed.: The Cambridge Companion to Dietrich Bonhoeffer December

Haynes, Stephen: Holocaust Education February

Hesse, Hans ed.: Am mutigsten waren immer die Zeugen Jehovahs April

Kirby, Dianne: Church, State and Propaganda. Archbishop Garbett July

Luxmoore, J. and Babiuch, J.: The Vatican and the Red Flag Aug/Sept

Melady,Tom: The Ambassador’s story January

Mueller-Rolli, Sebastian: Evangelische Schulpolitik in Deutschland 1918-58 Aug/Sept

Nagel, Anne: Martin Rade June

O’Brien, Darcy: The Hidden Pope Aug/Sept

Oldstone-Moore, Christopher: Hugh Price Hughes.Founder of a new Methodism October

Phillips, Paul: A Kingdom on earth. Social Christianity 1880-1940 January

Ramet, Sabrina: Nihil Obstat.Religion,Politics and Change in eastern Europe January

Recker, Klemens-A.: Wem wollt ihr glauben?. Bischof Berning April

Reich, Peter: Mexico’s hidden revolution May

Xi, Lian: The Conversion of missionaries in China March nis weiter. Oberkirchenrat Udo

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

Newsletter- December 1999- Vol.V, no. 12

Dear Friends,
This month marks not only the end of the year, and supposedly of the
Millennium, but also the completion of Volume 5 of this Newsletter. When I
launched this project – as a retirement occupation – I never imagined that
it would continue for so long, nor that the volume of materials relating to
contemporary church history would be so large. Nor had I any idea who might
be interested in receiving these brief bulletins about recent books and
events in this particular field. So of course I have been pleasantly
surprised and encouraged to find that some 300 colleagues around the world
subscribe to this Newsletter, and – what is more important – that there
continues to be a valuable output of new books on our subject, indicating
not only an active pursuit of new archives and sources, but also a lively
interest in the on-going debates which engross the church history
fraternity. This Newsletter can only hope to cover a small portion of the
total field, but I am vastly encouraged by the messages you have sent
indicating that you feel the endeavour is worth while. My hope is that I
will be able to continue this service to the cause for some time yet, but my
task would be much easier, and the quality doubtless enhanced, if you would
avail yourselves of the invitation to contribute items you would like to
share. Please feel free to write or E-mail me anything which would have this
wider interest. And together I trust we shall be able to mark the advent of
the new century with suitable contributions to remembering the achievements
of the past.
To mark the advent of the new century, the Newsletter is launching a
Millennium Prize of $100 for the best essay – to be submitted in either
English or German – on the topic:
“The Christian Churches in the Twentieth Century”
You are invited to contribute an essay of no more than 10 single space
pages.
The deadline for entry is March 31st 2000.
Since this is the season of Advent and Christmas, let me take this
opportunity of expressing to you all my hopes that you will be able to have
a blessed celebration of these Feasts, and to send you by this means my
very best wishes for your well-being in the New Year.
John Conway
Contents:
1) Conference reports, a) Protestant Churches under Communism, Sandbjerg,
Denmark
b) German Studies Association, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
c) Bonhoeffer Conference, Pennsylvania State University
2) Book review: The Cambridge Companion to Dietrich Bonhoeffer
3) New journal issue, Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte
4) Book notes: Dorothee Soelle, Memoirs; L.Spitzer, Hotel Bolivia
1a) Protestant Churches in Central and Eastern Europe under Communist
rule. This international conference held in Sandbjerg Manor, Denmark, at the
end of October, was a part steering-committee and part conference weekend.
This project is sponsored by the Danish state and by Volkswagen funds, and
is managed by an international steering committee under Prof. Jens-Holger
Schjorring, Church History and Practical Theology, Aarhus University. Its
aim is to sponsor, where it can, archival research leading to monographical
publications by a new generation of central and eastern European church
historians working on the contemporary history of their Protestant churches.
Periodic conferences are projected mixing general papers and current
research reports. This was the initial introductory meeting, made all the
more pleasant by being held in the fine late eighteenth-century Reventlow
and Dahl family home, now managed by Aarhus University.
The following general papers were given: The Iron Curtain and its
repercussions for the Churches in East and West – Nicholas Hope, Glasgow;
The Estonian Evangelical Church and its relations with the Protestant
churches of Latvia and Lithuania – R.Altnirme; The Protestant Churches in
Slovakia before and under Communist rule – D.Vesely; Thoughts on the
contemporary church history of the Balkans – C.Riis and P.Lodberg; The
Protestant Churches in the Soviet Occupied Zone of Germany and in the GDR –
Methods and Research so far – Martin Greschat; Hungary: Theologies of Church
Government:
Perspectives from above and below – T.Fabiny; The Protestant minority in
Rumania under communist rule – C.Klein; Destruction and Renewal of the
Protestant Churches in the Soviet Union – G.Stricker.
Of particular interest were several reports on very recent research by young
central and eastern European scholars. Sandbjerg’s mix of plenary sessions
and informality was an excellent start to a project which aims to promote
and share, in both east and west, the work of a new generation of church
historians.
N.M.Hope, University of Glasgow

1b)This year’s meeting of the German Studies Association in Atlanta,Georgia,
included several panels of particular interest to scholars of church
history.
Several of these papers were clearly sequels to those given at last year’s
conference, see below, under New journal issue,KZG.
i) “German Protestants Face German Guilt, 1945-1950,” with papers by Robert
Ericksen (Pacific Lutheran University); Rainer Hering (Staatsarchiv
Hamburg); and Hartmut Lehmann (Max-Planck Institute for History,
Goettingen); moderator and commentator Peter Steinbach (Freie Universitaet,
Berlin).

Bob Ericksen began with a paper on, “Protestant Evasion: `Persilscheine’ and
Other Guilt Avoidance Measures,” examining the role of German Protestant
leaders in evading early denazification efforts. As his title suggested,
Ericksen told a story of moral failure. Prominent Protestant leaders such as
Martin Niemoeller and Bishops Wurm, Meiser, and Faulhaber, all opposed plans
of the military governments to carry out denazification. Protestant pastors
produced numerous so-called Persil certificates attesting to the “clean
hands” of their bearers; such statements from clergy did help people get off
in many cases. It was not only small-fry who sought and got help from
Protestant clergy. A Confessing Church pastor in Frankfurt wrote in support
of Professor Verscheuer, Director of the Kaiser-Wilhelm Institute in Berlin
and Josef Mengele’s mentor. Bishop Wurm interceded on behalf of Hans
Heinrich Lammers, head of Hitler’s Reich Chancellery, as well as SS
Hauptsturmfuehrer Hans Sommer, even though Sommer had left the church in
1933. Protestant pastors even defended leaders of the notorious
Sonderkommmandos who had slaughtered Jews and other supposed enemies of the
Reich in the Baltic states. According to Ericksen, Protestant church leaders
never considered denazification to be legitimate. They thought that a purge
of National Socialists would strengthen what they considered the church’s
own enemies–leftists and Jews. Moreover, they could not accept
denazification because they had been Nazis themselves, or if not themselves,
certainly they had friends and family members in Nazi ranks.

Rainer Hering’s paper was called “Did the Allies Make a Concentration Camp
out of Germany? Paul Schuetz (1891-1985), the Third Reich, and the Question
of War Guilt.” Hering used one individual, the churchman Paul Schuetz, to
examine the ambiguity of German Protestant responses, both to National
Socialism in its time and to dealing with that chapter of the German past.
Schuetz, a pastor and Privatdozent during the Nazi years, became a leading
representative of the church in Hamburg. Neither a member of the Nazi Party,
a “German Christian,” nor a vehement antisemite, he even had one of the
books he authored seized by the Gestapo in 1935. Nevertheless after 1945, he
considered the real victims of the war to have been gentile Germans. Schuetz
equated the destruction of Jews with what he called the Allies’ postwar
“psychological terror” against Germans. It was Schuetz who claimed that the
Allies had turned all of Germany into a concentration camp. Hering concluded
with reflections on Schuetz’s theology, which came out of a tradition that
emphasized God’s forgiveness for human sin much more than the need for
reconciliation and forgiveness between human beings. This was not the only
case where churchmen showed a startling disrespect for and obstruction of
attempts at an accounting with the Nazi past.

Hartmut Lehmann’s paper asked “Muss Luther Nach Nuernberg?” As suggested in
the subtitle–“Deutsche Schuld im Lichte der Lutherliteratur
1946/47”–Lehmann looked at how Luther’s legacy was assessed in Germany
after the war. Nazi propaganda had made much use of Luther’s anti-Jewish
writings, but as Lehmann showed, postwar Protestants found ways to avoid
confronting that stain on their hero. It was Hans Asmussen who asked, “Muss
Luther nach Nuernberg?,” but most of his counterparts avoided a direct
answer to that question. Gerhard Ritter insisted that Luther had nothing to
do with the crimes of the Third Reich; he did not mention Luther’s
anti-Jewish writings even once. Theologians who had supported Hitler as well
as those who had criticized or opposed National Socialism had little or
nothing to say about Luther’s antisemitism; at most they conceded that he
had been misused. Some, like Heinrich Bornkamm, altered their earlier
writings to present a sanitized, “denazified” Luther. The net result,
according to Lehmann, was that German Protestant theologians after the war
declared Luther–and by extension themselves–innocent of any wrong. Their
cleaned-up version of Luther seemed to provide a comfortable foundation on
which to build a new church for the future.

ii) “Resacrilizing the Secular: Protestantism and the Making of Modern
Germany,” with papers by Edward Mathieu (University of Michigan); Timothy
Kaiser (University of Michigan); and Richard Steigmann-Gall ( St. Francis
Xavier University, Nova Scotia); moderator Dagmar Herzog (Michigan State
University); comment by Doris Bergen (University of Notre Dame).
There was a smaller crowd for the presentations by three younger members,
but a lively discussion followed. Ed Mathieu spoke on “Public Ritual and the
Bourgeois Religious Project in Imperial Germany,” focusing on the Luther
Festival of 1883. According to Mathieu, the late nineteenth century was a
“time of continuing religious antagonism and perceived Protestant decline”
in Germany. The Luther Festival provided the German Protestant bourgeoisie
with an opportunity to define and assert themselves and their values
vis-a-vis German Catholics, Jews, workers, and “the masses.” In Thuringia,
every town and city staged its own Luther Festival in the anniversary year
of 1883; those events show the blending of religious and national action in
local settings.

Tim Kaiser’s paper was called “Fight the Good Fight: Protestant Youth and
the Battle against `Schund und Schmutz’.” He looked at a German Protestant
organization in the 1920s and early 1930s that sought to combat publication
of material its members considered distasteful and morally dangerous. Kaiser
argued that the so-called Protestant Schundkaempfer called on their
religious beliefs and traditions to create a unique and separate identity
for themselves. Protestantism, he said, was an explicit part of these young
men’s motivational structure. Like other youth groups, they used the
language and images of military combat to describe their activity, but they
also presented their fight against Schund and Schmutz as an element of a
much larger spiritual struggle of good against evil. Bible study and prayer
were central to their activities, although they also used the amenities of
the modern “big city” to help promote their cause.

Richard Steigmann-Gall’s contribution, “Apostasy or Religiosity? The
Cultural Meanings of the Protestant Vote for Hitler,” dealt with the
question of who voted for Hitler and investigated the roles that German
Protestantism played among the Nazi electorate. Steigmann-Gall identifies
what he calls a “Protestant affinity” for Nazi politics leading up to
January 1933, when Hitler became chancellor of Germany. Protestantism was
the single most important factor in determining who voted for Hitler, he
said, and it was not just the institutional affiliation that made the
difference. According to Steigmann-Gall, the extent of support for National
Socialism correlates directly to the degree of allegiance to Protestantism,
rather than, as has been so often suggested, apostasy from it.
Steigmann-Gall’s historiographical survey called for a dual reassessment: on
the one hand, he suggested, social and political historians need to take
seriously issues of religiosity; on the other hand, scholars who study the
ideas of Nazism and the churches in the Third Reich need to consider
Nazism’s connections to Protestantism rather than simply assuming it to be
inherently anti-Christian.

iii) A session on ‘Human Rights in Democratic Germany’ included a paper on
Jehovah’s Witnesses by Gerhard and Renate-Marie Besier (Heidelberg). This
paper focused on the legal request by Jehovah’s Witnesses to be acknowledged
with the status of a corporation under public law (i.e., instead of being
considered a sect without legal rights). Gerhard explained the background,
including the ironic fact that Witnesses, who suffered so much under
National Socialism, still suffer stigmatization under a democratic regime.
Renate added a statistical analysis to show that, according to the very
indices considered significant for German society, including employment, job
satisfaction, family stability, etc., Jehovah’s Witnesses would seem to
represent a positive rather than a negative force in Germany. [See also
below, item 3]
Doris Bergen, U. of Notre Dame and Bob Ericksen, Pacific Lutheran University

1c)”Bonhoeffer’s Dilemma: The Ethics of Violence”: conference held at
Pennsylvania State University, October 28-31, 1999.
Interest in the German pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was
executed by the Nazi regime on April 9, 1945, shows no sign of decreasing.
One reason for this may be the unusual scope of Bonhoeffer’s interests and
activism, which went far beyond the realm of his own church. He was not only
actively involved in the German church struggle; he had a strong interest in
(and opinions about) the European ecumenical movement and the religious
scene in the United States. His movement into the political resistance was
unusual for a theologian, and his theological reflection on this move is one
factor that makes his writings seem so relevant today.
Thus, scholars who study Bonhoeffer in depth are compelled to go beyond the
boundaries of their own disciplines. Historians who examine Bonhoeffer’s
role in the German resistance, for example, are helped by understanding the
controversies that marked the German church struggle, as the context for
Bonhoeffer’s own ethical and theological reflections on resistance and the
role of the church.
These aspects make Bonhoeffer an ideal subject for interdisciplinary study
and an intriguing case study in ethics. The recent conference, organized by
the Institute for the Arts and Humanistic Studies at Pennsylvania State
University, focused on a specific dilemma: how to resist violence without
creating an equal or greater evil. Drawing upon Bonhoeffer as a case study,
speakers from very different disciplines brought their expertise and insight
to bear upon this question.
The result was an extensive exploration of Bonhoeffer and his legacy. The
nature of evil, nationalism and resistance were discussed, both within the
limited context of Nazi Germany and on a more universal level. Several
speakers addressed Bonhoeffer’s relevance for African-American theologians
and his political legacy in the United States civil rights movement and, as
John de Gruchy described, in the South African anti-apartheid movement (as
well as in the painstaking process of reconciliation that has followed).
This proved to be a fascinating and thought provoking exchange.
John Pawlikowski offered a valuable overview of which Catholic theologians
have dealt with Bonhoeffer (and which have not), and concluded by comparing
key tenets of Catholic social teaching with some of the central themes of
Bonhoeffer’s thought. Another panel, including Klemens von Klemperer, as a
nearly contemporary witness, contrasted Bonhoeffer’s approach to the ethic
of resistance and tyrannicide with the larger context of his notions of
Christian love and existence. This counterpoint showed how his ethical
thinking changed as the brutality and oppression of the Nazi regime
intensified.
Because the two Jewish scholars invited had to withdraw, a Jewish
perspective on these issues was missing. This was particularly unfortunate,
since much recent scholarship has focused on the significance of
Bonhoeffer’s theological perspective on Judaism and the extent to which his
political resistance was motivated by outrage against the Nazi persecution
of the Jews. Since both these questions continue to be debated, a Jewish
response to some of the points raised in other papers would have been a
valuable addition to the meeting.
The true strength of the conference was its interdisciplinary nature and the
dialogue between scholars from different fields. An added attraction was the
moving recollections of retired East German bishop Albrecht Schönherr, who
was one of Bonhoeffer’s seminarians in Finkenwalde, and one of the few men
still alive who knew Bonhoeffer personally. Schönherr’s own ministry and
leadership after 1945 gave him a unique perspective from which to reflect
back upon his early teacher and the ongoing legacy, in very difference
circumstances, of Bonhoeffer’s life and work. [see also below, items 2 and
3] Victoria Barnett, Washington, D.C.
2) Book review: ed. J.W.de Gruchy, The Cambridge Companion to Dietrich
Bonhoeffer, Cambridge University Press 1999 281 pp.
The series of Cambridge Companions is intended to provide an accessible and
stimulating introduction to significant events or personalities for the
intelligent non-specialist or new readers. Each volume contains specially
commissioned essays by international scholars, who do not seek to advance
new theses or research but to sum up the state of debate so far. In the case
of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, this aim is well fulfilled by an expert team of a
dozen English-speaking scholars and a lone German, led by John de Gruchy,
Professor in Cape Town. Fifty and more years after his martyrdom, Bonhoeffer
‘s importance is still, even increasingly, recognized both as theologian and
Christian witness. A current evaluation is therefore timely.
The book falls into two halves: Bonhoeffer’s life and legacy, and the major
themes in his theology. The Australian scholar John Moses leads off with a
finely balanced account of the political context of the time, when so many
of the intellectual trends led Germans to see Nazism as a desirable solution
to their political woes. Burton Nelson of Chicago follows with a brief
biographical sketch which De Gruchy complements with an examination of why
Bonhoeffer’s life and thought continues to inspire and challenge Christians
world-wide.
This account is not purely hagiographical. Keith Clements, for example, can
ask some penetrating questions about the realism of Bonhoeffer’s pacifist
commitment and the ecumenical church movement’s role in world affairs. Ruth
Zerner points out that Bonhoeffer’s statements about the Jews in 1933 now
seem unconvincingly patronizing, though she believes, had he lived, he would
have taken the lead in dismantling Christian anti-Judaism. Larry Rasmussen
rightly points out the centrality of Bonhoeffer’s search for new ethical
foundations at a time when traditional cultural and religious patterns were
being torn to shreds. His unfinished book ‘Ethics’ is an attempt to find
some responsible way for both individuals and societies to relate
dynamically to their actual situations when the Church could no longer lay
down moral laws for all.
Bonhoeffer’s concept of human autonomy in a world come of age is now so
well-known that Peter Selby’s recapitulation of the passages from the
Letters from Prison seeks to evoke once again the shock these seemingly
outrageous statements made when they were first read. But he does well to
point out that Bonhoeffer was depicting a situation derived from his own
German experiences. Nevertheless, his call for the Church to be a vehicle
for reconciliation and redemption, the church for others, in the service of
a suffering God, has been heeded universally with a world-wide impact. The
inspiration and the incentive still remains, even though it took nearly
three decades before his fellow Germans were prepared to accept his witness.
But fifty years after his death, as Geffrey Kelly reminds us, Bonhoeffer’s
spiritual pilgrimage and his combining prayer with action for justice and
peace is still enormously appealing.
These collected essays go a long way to explain why this is so. JSC
3) New issue of journal: Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte Vol 12, no 1 1999/1
This issue, just released, contains contributions by several authors already
noted above in the conference reports. The general theme is “Religions and
Denominations in European Society”, covering a wide range of twentieth
century aspects. Nicholas Hope, for example, gives a excellent overview of
the Scandinavian churches and their relationships to the national political
bodies in the first half of the century. Drawing on papers given at last
year’s German Studies Association conference, Richard Steigmann-Gall
analyses the “Furor Protestanticus: Nazi conceptions of Luther 1919-33”, Bob
Ericksen describes “Luther, Lutherans and the German Church Struggle”, and
Hartmut Lehmann depicts the views of the Erlangen theologian Hugo Preuss in
1933.
Hartmut Lehmann also contributes a longer piece in which he reflects on the
position of the churches at the end of the century. He believes that,
despite all the pressures and disruptions they have gone through, the
churches are still able to maintain their position in European society. “It
would be short-sighted, not to say false, to depict the development of
religion and denominations in Europe in the 2oth century purely from the
aspect of the secularization theory. What we have is actually a complicated
mixture of tendencies towards both a de-Christianisation, a secularization
as well as a de-mythification of the world on the one side, but also a
re-christianizing and a sacralising of at least some parts of both public
and private life, along with a rediscovery of new aspects of mystery/myth on
the other side”.
In addition, Inge Mager, having carefully studied Bonhoeffer’s so-called
‘Love Letters from Cell 92’ sees in his relationship with his fiancee Maria
an important factor in developing his ideas on the ‘worldly’ interpretation
of theological concepts. And Waldemar Hirsch outlines the sad story of the
persecution of the leading member of the Jehovah’s Witnesses in Germany by
the Stasi, using Nazi records to discredit him and his followers as
‘traitors’, in order to justify the GDR’s total ban on this sect’s
activities in its territory.
4) Book notes:
a) Dorothee Soelle’s autobiography ‘Against the Wind. Memoirs of a radical
Christian’ (Fortress Press, Minneapolis 1999) has now appeared in English,
in a sprightly translation by our two Nova Scotia colleagues, Barbara and
Martin Rumscheidt. This reflects very well Soelle’s struggle as a German
woman theologian, not only for academic recognition, but also to make
concrete her search for an appropriate theological response to the terrors
of today’s
world. As a leading champion of liberation theology for women and men,
Soelle has bravely borne her share of criticism, but has pursued her quest
for justice with both passion and prayer. She describes her arrival in New
York in the 1970s to teach systematic theology at Union Theological Seminary
as an ideal opportunity to pursue independent writing with a teaching
position in a very liberal theological school. The contrast with Germany was
notable. She laments the often reactionary political stance of her own
church in West Germany, but affirms the positive signs of penitence and
renewal she sees around the globe. This is a very personal memoir,
witnessing to an activist’s confronting suffering with commitment, pain with
protest, as often expressed through her poetry. She also shows a resolute
determination to affirm a radical Christianity which will not yield to
complacency or conformity, but pertinently asks the question: Does anyone
seriously believe we could live without hunger and thirst for justice?
b) One of the most perceptive new books on the Jewish refugees who fled from
central Europe in 1938-9 is Leo Spitzer’s Hotel Bolivia. The culture of
memory in a refuge from Nazism, (New York: Hill and Wang 1998). Based on his
own and his families’ memories and mementos, Spitzer describes the fortunes
of the small group who gained visas for Bolivia, and were transported to the
high plateaus of the Andes without any opportunity for climatic or cultural
adjustment, or desire for permanent settlement. Hence the book’s title.
Spitzer brings out with great insight the feelings of relief, guilt,
frustration and accommodation experienced by these refugees, almost all of
whom left Bolivia as soon as convenient after 1945. A model for Holocaust
survivor narratives.
Sincerely
John S.Conway
jconway@interchange.ubc.ca

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

Newsletter- November 1999- Vol.V, no. 11

 

Dear Friends,

 

I have recently exchanged computers, and am only just getting the hang of

this new one. So please forgive me if there are any errors in orthography or

lay-out.

I thought Windows 98 would be more user-friendly, but alas! However, I trust

you will find the enclosed to be of interest, especially the first book

review, in the light of the current furore over John Cornwell”s new account

of “Hitler’s Pope”, which will certainly be dealt with here shortly..

 

Contents: 1) Book reviews

a) F.J.Coppa ed., Controversial Concordats

b) J.Booty, An American Apostle

c) Political Catholicism in Europe

2) Report on 1999 Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte conference

3) M.A.Thesis: H.Kreutzer (Bonn)

4) Book notes

 

1a) Frank J.Coppa, ed., Controversial Concordats.

The Vatican’s Relations with Napoleon, Mussolini, and Hitler.

Washington,D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press.

1999 248pp

It was a good idea for a group of American Catholic historians

to put together this comparative analysis of the much-disputed Concordats

signed by the Vatican with the three dictators of recent European history.

Protestants have all along denounced such agreements as a flagrant betrayal

of the Church’s ideals, or as examples of the Papacy’s overweening political

ambitions.

But many Catholics are also distressed by what seem now to have been

unsavoury deals. What can be said about them in the present context? To

answer this question, the valuable and academically-sound scholarship of

these authors will be of considerable help.

The first thing to note is, of course, that in each case these Concordats

were concluded at a point before these rulers became so notorious. These

deals are controversial only because of the dictators’ subsequent policies

and crimes.

At the time they were assessed differently. Second, we have to note that

Vatican policy is based on very long-term considerations. As the world’s

oldest diplomatic entity, it is the repository of a centuries-old collective

memory (and equally centuries of secret archives). As John Zeender points

out in his introduction, the Vatican for several hundred years has adopted

the practice of seeking to fix relations with the various nation states and

their rulers through publicly-announced and supposedly legally-binding

agreements. Indeed such concordats have been the favourite instrument of

papal diplomacy since the twelfth century. In the modern era, the loss of

directly-ruled Papal territory on the Italian peninsular made the

consolidation of the Vatican’s influence and power in other lands all the

more urgent. And the awareness of how dangerously unpredictable the actions

of upstart rulers could be prompted attempts to secure the position of the

Church, even at the expense of unwelcome compromise.

William Roberts’ account of the Concordat of 1801 shows clearly enough the

mixture of political and religious factors involved. Despite the convoluted

process of negotiation, this Concordat lasted for a hundred years and became

the model for numerous other such pacts both in Europe and abroad. Napoleon

was pragmatic. Ideology was superfluous. But since morality and stability

were desirable, the Church should be recruited for these tasks. A Concordat

would serve to discredit the surviving royalist and anti-revolutionary

bishops (mostly in exile), while the Pope could be brought to discipline

those of his clergy opposed to Napoleon’s rule. The seizure of church

property could be mitigated by the state’s payment of clergy salaries.

Bishops were to be nominated by the state but confirmed and instituted by

the Pope. Interestingly nothing was said about the future of religious

orders, both male and female, which subsequently were to play so large a

role in French church life. But by the end of the century the rise of

anti-clericalism and attendant secularism in the petite bourgeoisie who

controlled the legislature of the Third Republic led finally to the breach

of 1905, despite the Vatican’s best efforts to retain the status quo.

By 1919, the loss of France, the continuing hostility of Italy, which had

gobbled up the Papal States, the downfall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, as

Catholicism’s main bulwark in central Europe, and the rising menace of

revolutionary Communism, all impelled the Papacy to seek new alignments.

Pope Pius XI, whose reign began about the same time as the rise of Mussolini

to power, was prepared to accept the inevitable loss of the Papal States and

to seek a new accommodation with Italy. Mussolini, despite his violently

anti-clerical past, was also pragmatic enough to want a settlement. The

Lateran Agreements of 1929 in fact served both sides well, until Mussolini

fell under Hitler’s spell and sought to introduce his antisemitic racial

policy in the late 1930s.The price paid was the abandonment of Catholic

political activities, but none of the Popes actually welcomed this form of

commitment. Treaties, even with dictators, were held to be safer. The

Vatican’s independence, in its mini-state of 108 acres, was hereby secured.

The papal officials finally recognized they were better off abandoning their

former territorial dreams. In return the Church gained broad concessions. As

Frank Coppa rightly notes, only the authoritarian Mussolini, by stifling

criticism, could have granted the Church such an advantageous agreement.

Pope Pius XI thought the Concordat would bring God back to Italy. Mussolini

thought he could exploit the Church in the Fascist cause. Neither

development occurred. But, in effect, the Vatican was deterred from any open

protests against the Duce’s misleadership thereafter, lest it be accused of

having made a grave error of judgment. This was in fact a most ominous

legacy. But the apparent success of the Lateran Agreements with Italy led to

the illusion that the same could be achieved with Germany.

The Reich Concordat signed with Hitler in July 1933 has given rise to even

more controversial debates, as succinctly reviewed here by Joseph Biesinger.

The tide of criticism of the Vatican for concluding such a disputable pact

continues even after sixty and more years. There is, however, a large amount

of wishful thinking in such attacks, just as there has been a large dose of

self-justifying apologetic amongst the Concordat’s defenders. The

personality of Cardinal Pacelli, the Concordat’s principal instigator, and

subsequently Pius XII, remains the focus point of high-flown controversy,

almost all of which is derived from later hindsight. Biesinger’s view is

that, at the time, the Vatican was motivated by realism. Hitler offered

unprecedented concessions, the refusal of which could have been

counter-productive. At the same time, he argues that Hitler had all along

planned to deceive the papal authorities, since his aim was nothing less

than the obliteration of the Church altogether. In which case, the Vatican’s

illusions about Nazi policy would have been even more reprehensible. But in

fact, the evidence suggests that, in 1933, Hitler’s attitude was still

ambivalent. He was still opportunistic enough to recognize the desirability

of Catholic and Vatican support. Only later, when his messianic and racist

ideology came to dominate his thinking and actions, did his stance turn

decisively against the Church. Could this have been foreseen in 1933? Could

the German Catholics have been mobilized against such a popular leader?

Could the Vatican have successfully prevailed against the Nazis’ appeal to

patriotic (and racialist) nationalism? On the other hand, Biesinger is right

that, by signing the Concordat, the bishops were restrained from overtly

challenging the Nazis’ claims and actions.

For its part, the Vatican protested vigorously but diplomatically the almost

incessant breaches of the Concordat. Both Pius XI and Pius XII failed to

recognize the dynamic nihilism of the Nazi regime. They were not alone. And

even if they had recognized the truth, it was far from clear what could have

been done. Equally sadly, the fact is that, had Hitler called off the

persecution of the churches, German Catholics would have supported him with

unshaken enthusiasm. Biesinger still thinks that some more forceful protests

would have brought results, but scepticism is allowed here. After 1939 Pius’

decision to follow a path of strict neutrality impeded any open

denunciations of the Nazi breaches of the Concordat. And after 1942

Biesinger agrees with me that “a sense of frustration, disillusionment and

failure was markedly to affect the Vatican’s efforts to assist the victims

of the war”. In 1945 only the Allied victory made the Concordat policy

appear to be a success.

In the aftermath, the Church’s successful bid to have the Concordat continue

in force – at least in West Germany – has been accompanied by serious

questioning of such politicized deals. The disadvantages are now clearly

recognized. To be sure, by negotiating with such dictators, the Church

gained in France and Italy, and after Hitler’s defeat in Germany too,a

status which it was unlikely to have won otherwise. But, as Stewart Stehlin

rightly notes in his concluding chapter, the price of making treaties with

immoral regimes which profess ideologies antithetical to the Church’s

teachings was a disastrous loss of credibility. Today the Church seeks to

rely less on treaties and accords and more on the appeal to idealism in

underlining spiritual rather than international laws. Church-State tensions

will undoubtedly continue. But lessons have been learnt, not least from

these three controversial concordats.

The texts of the Concordats are appended.

JSC

1b) John Booty, An American Apostle. The Life of Stephen Fielding Bayne,Jr.

Valley Forge, Pennsylvania: Trinity Press International 1997. 235pp

Biographies of American bishops are a rarity. So John Booty’s life of

Stephen Bayne, Bishop of Olympia and first Executive Officer of the Anglican

Communion, is welcome. Episcopal careers are usually too predictable to

deserve commemoration. They differ little from year to year or country to

country. But Bayne served during a particularly significant period in the

life of the Anglican Communion, when it began the process of

“de-colonization” and rediscovery of a more ecumenical world-wide

fellowship. So his story is of interest to show the gains and losses of this

development.

Bayne grew up in the Anglo-Catholic tradition of the eastern United States,

and his leadership skills were soon recognised as he advanced through the

parish ministry, college chaplaincy and wartime service in the U.S.Navy. At

the age of 39, he became the Bishop of Olympia, encompassing all of western

Washington State with his headquarters in Seattle. In the post-war and baby

boom, the Episcopal Church grew rapidly and happily. For Bayne these were

perhaps his best years.

By the end of the 1950s and following the 1958 Lambeth Conference of

Anglican bishops from around the world, there was a recognition that new

machinery was required. The Archbishop of Canterbury could no longer fulfill

the role of liaison to the now ever more numerous diocesans springing up.

Furthermore there was a need to shed the colonialist image, when Anglican

churches overseas were seen as nothing more than the ex-English at prayer.

The appointment of Bayne, a vigorous American, to be the Executive Officer

for the whole world-wide Communion, was designed to provide a new image. And

his leadership in this endeavour could be seen at the Anglican Congress held

in Canada in 1963 which adopted the forward-looking slogan “Mutual

Responsibility and Interdependence in the Body of Christ”. The objective was

to call all the 18 different Anglican churches with their 340 dioceses to a

new sense of belonging together, rather than being merely off-shoots of the

Church of England. At the same time, the paternal leadership of the

Archbishop of Canterbury was retained, and the Lambeth Episcopal Conferences

continued to be held every ten years in Britain.

This was a compromise solution which seemed to suit most Anglicans. But

Bayne felt less happy when Michael Ramsey took over as Archbishop, since he

sensed that Ramsey’s roots were still too tied to the Church of England. So

he gave up the post of Executive Officer and retreated to the USA, narrowly

failing to be elected Presiding Bishop there. As Director of the Overseas

Department and later Vice-President of the Episcopal Church, based in New

York, Bayne had the opportunity to put into practice many of the plans for

Mutual Responsibility and Interdependence, particularly in the Caribbean and

Latin America. But the programme, world-wide, ran into financial

difficulties. It still limps along, but the sense of genuine partnership was

only fitfully recognised.

Bayne was orthodoxly conservative, both theologically and politically. But

he was well aware, by the end of the 1960s, that his privileged and rich

church needed to come to terms with such critical factors as the civil

rights movement or the war in Vietnam. The tensions between the call to

social activism and the traditional pursuit of personal sanctity became

increasingly more evident. Many dioceses were reluctant to follow the

national church leadership. Ecclesiastical bureaucrats, like Bayne, were

obliged to spend long frustrating hours explaining, justifying, mediating or

simply appealing to the deaf. In 1970 he resigned in order to return to the

Anglican Seminary in New York as a “spiritual handyman”. His final years

before retirement proved as busy as ever, teaching, administering and

preaching as before. Luckily for John Booty, most of Bayne’s sermons and

much of his incidental writing was preserved, so his points of view could be

elucidated and the narrative established. It is all credibly done.

One of Bayne’s last responsibilities was to chair an episcopal committee on

the ordination of women. It was typical of his stance that he could “see no

conclusive argument against admitting qualified women . . . but I am not

eager for the day when they are admitted because of the bitterness and

hostility they will encounter”. Sadly he did not live to see the outcome,

but died in 1974 shortly after retiring.

Booty’s tribute is a well-balanced account which places Bayne in his

Anglican context and provides the evidence to show why he deserves our

respect as one of the percipient leaders of the Anglican Church in the

mid-twentieth century.

JSC

1c) eds. T.Buchanan and M.Conway, Political Catholicism in Europe 1918-1965.

Oxford: Clarendon Press 1996. 312 pp

M.Conway, Catholic Politics in Europe 1918-1945. London/New York: Routledge

1997

118pp

Most of the essays in the first of these volumes were presented as seminar

papers to the History Faculty at Oxford, which brought together ten experts

from various western European countries. Together they make an impressive

and scholarly contribution, which should do much both to fill a gap and to

correct misapprehensions, too often deliberately indulged in by “secularist”

historians who seek to deny the validity of religious experience by simply

ignoring its part in historical developments.

Each author has the space and the expertise to develop a convincing, though

not uncritical, picture of the political beliefs and actions of Catholics in

each of the countries described. Their general contention is that political

Catholicism reached its full fruition after the First World War when the

vestiges of previous hostility in the predominantly Protestant countries

were removed, and when Catholics themselves began to articulate their own

variety of political understandings. The book concludes with the sweeping

changes, both theological and political, symbolized by the Second Vatican

Council in the mid-1960s, which saw a whole new era of divergent trends

emerging. Only western Europe is treated, because of the very different fate

of Catholics beyond the Iron Curtain after 1945.

In general, the authors seeks to combat the view that Catholic political

movements were only part of diminishing and even disappearing religious

culture, destined to be replaced by enlightened secularism. Instead they

show how Catholic religion could not be divorced from politics in twentieth

century Europe. Indeed they collectively demonstrate that, in the first half

of the century, the vitality of Catholicism, both religiously and

politically, was remarkable, and was accompanied by a mood of self-confident

optimism. This kind of Catholic witness was to be of significance both for

the reconstruction of western Europe after the Fascist and Nazi onslaughts,

and for the building of at least a partial ideological consensus behind the

“European” idea of the 1950s and beyond.

The similarities and divergence between the situations in the major

countries of Germany, Italy, France and the British Isles are here

thoroughly and successfully explored. Each essay is substantially footnoted,

though there is no overall bibliography. Together they give a valuable and

insightful picture of how Catholics met the challenges and pitfalls of the

early twentieth century in their respective national settings.

Martin Conway (no relative) is Fellow and Tutor in Modern History at Balliol

College. He has prepared a shorter and chronologically-organised account of

the same subject, obviously designed for undergraduates, but equally well

and concisely written. It has the advantage of presenting the issues and

debates clearly and adds very extensive and helpful bibliographical notes.

JSC

2) Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte Conference:

This year’s conference was held in the Bildungszentrum of the Free Churches’

Academy in Elstal on the outskirts of Berlin in September. Hosted by

Professor Gerhard Ringshausen of Luneburg, the theme was “Freikirchen

zwischen sich sakularisierender Gesellschaft und klerikalisierender

Grosskirchen seit 1945. Italien und Deutschland im Vergleich”.

We met in this pleasant locale, adjacent to the now derelict Olympic Village

where Jesse Owens and others stayed in 1936. Together with Paolo Ricca of

Rome, Gerhart Ringshausen had planned these sessions in order to compare

developments in Italy and Germany in terms of minority free churches and

their relationships both to the dominant state churches and to the postwar

forces of secularization.

Despite a recent rethinking of secularization, given all the evidence of

religious impulses in the supposedly secular twentieth century, Ringshausen

still opened the proceedings by stressing secularism’s impact on the modern

European state. Hopes for a rebirth of Christianity in Germany after 1945,

for example, hopes which seemed briefy to be realistic, came up against the

powerful pluralistic attitudes of the 1960s. Since then the major state

churches have tried to deal with social ethics and with ecumenism. But their

approach has made it difficult to sustain Karl Barth’s concepts of

revelation from God, or indeed any other claims in which questions of faith

are taken seriously. As a result the established churches have been

diminished as a major player alongside the state.

Free churches in Europe have always had to deal with this diminished role,

never enjoying the benefits of state-empowered authority. For purposes of

comparison Reg Ward described modern developments aamong Methodists in Great

Britain, noting that clericalization in the ranks of the clergy (more

trained and ordained clergy, fewer lay pastors) has led to a gap between the

agenda of church authorities and the faith and concerns of church members.

We then heard reports on Waldensians in Italy, Mennonites in Germany,

Italian Baptists and both Baptists and Methodists in Germany. Space prevents

a full description, and no more than a mention of the role of American

Southern Baptist missionaries in postwar Italy with their motorcars and

their warnings against reading European theologians. However, the general

theme of the conference seemed to be that social forces in Europe since

1945, whether purely secular like the rise of consumerism, or ecclesiastical

through the increase of religious minorities, have provided similar

challenges to both state-supported and free churches. This challenge

involves a concern for maintaining the message while also holding on to an

accepted place in a pluralist society.

These papers are due to be published in full next year in the journal,

Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte.

(Submitted by Robert P.Ericksen, Pacific Lutheran University,

Tacoma,Washington)

3) M.A.Thesis Heike Kreutzer, Die Entstehung des Reichsministeriums fur die

kirchlichen Angelegenheiten. Rahmenbedingungen, Kompetenzen und Aufbau einer

obersten Reichsbehoerde. Leipzig 1993

One of the first-fruits of the opening of the archives of the Nazi Ministry

for Church Affairs – which had for so long been secreted away in East

Germany – was this M.A. thesis written under the direction of Prof U v. Hehl

in Leipzig. It deals with the origins and development of the Ministry, as

seen from its own files.

After an initial chapter on Church-State relations before 1933, and another

on the Nazi Party’s attitudes to the churches, Ms Kreutzer then examines the

process in 1935 which led to the Ministry’s establishment. Actually she

cannot throw any new light on this decision, but rightly surmises, as other

have done, that this was Hitler’s compromise between a radical separation of

Church and State, or a direct governmental control as had been the case

before 1918.

The thesis brings new information about the chief characters in the

Ministry, but stresses its basic weakness, due to Minister Kerrl’s impotency

in the Party and State, its lack of any organisational basis, the probable

fact that other agencies had “infiltrated” its staff, and that Kerrl himself

never had the complete loyalty of his bureaucrats.

There is a splendid bibliography, a list of archival sources, and

biographical notes of all concerned.

JSC

4) Book notes:

Richard von Weizsacker, Vier Zeiten

The memoirs of the former President of Germany, Richard von Weizsacker, have

now been excellently translated into English: From Weimar to the Wall, New

York: Broadway Books 1999.

Several chapters describe his involvement with the German Evangelical

Church, in particular with its lay movement, the biennial Kirchentage.

This project was revived by Reinhold von Thadden, after his spell in a

Russian P.O.W.camp, to be a means for national renewal and reconciliation.

Its week-long meetings have attracted and still attract huge crowds, and

provide a successful opportunity for lively discussion of major social and

political issues from the church’s perspective. In 1964 Weizsacker was

selected to succeed Thadden, and thus gained his first exposure to the range

of current national and social problems. He described the atmosphere as

follows:

“One scene from the Cologne Kirchentag in 1964 remains etched in my mind.

Though we were Protestants, this overwhelmingly Catholic city on the Rhine

welcomed us warmly. The Catholic prelate, Cardinal Josef Frings, gave us a

reception and recited from memory the verses from Galatians that became the

basis of the conference: Stand fast in liberty. It was a truly gripping,

moving ecumenical high point among churches in Germany”.

Subsequently Weizsacker served as German member on the executive committee

of the World Council of Churches, which widened his horizons still more, and

gave him a broader perspective for moral judgments. These experiences proved

valuable when he embarked on his later career as member of parliament,

governing mayor of Berlin and then President of Germany for ten years from

1984. Possibly his most significant act in that office was his speech on the

40th anniversary of the end of the war, which managed to strike a memorable

note of moral repentance and political realism, which did much to improve

the German image. The entire text, in English translation, is printed as an

appendix.

“In my speech I quoted a piece of old Jewish wisdom: ‘The desire to forget

prolongs the exile, and the secret of salvation is remembrance’. We cannot

save ourselves, nor can we undo what has been done. We have lived through

unfathomable and abysmal events and taken part in them. But one thing we can

and must do: look at our past steadily, recognise its truth. We owe it to

ourselves and to future generations”.

David Dowland, Nineteenth Century Anglican Theological Training. The

Redbrick Challenge. Oxford: Clarendon Press 1997, Oxford Theological

Monographs 241pp.

A study of the lesser-known colleges founded to provide theological training

for non-graduates of the major universities, and a survey of the official –

and usually disparaging – attitudes towards the often “lower-class” men who

attended them. The author sees these colleges as pathbreakers towards the

present formation of clergy in the Church of England. An informative view

from the inside of Anglican training practices.

Patrick Aliff, Catholic Converts, British and American Intellectuals turn to

Rome. Ithaca/London: Cornell U.Press 1997 343pp.

Most of the major Catholic intellectuals over the last 200 years have been

converts. Newman has been followed by a host of distinguished writers and

thinkers, and their spiritual pilgrimages are here charted in chronological

order. Nice vignettes of numerous personalities and descriptions of their

impact on the wider church community up to the Second Vatican Council. The

attraction, Aliff believes, lay mainly in the quest for doctrinal clarity

and authority, and a deep strain of anti-utopianism.

Andrii Krawchuk, Christian Social Ethics in Ukraine. The legacy of Andrei

Sheptytsky.

Edmonton: Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies Press 1997 404 pp.

Krawchuk’s doctoral thesis is a solid piece of historical scholarship

dealing with the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the first half of this

century, when the leading figure was its long-serving Metropolitan

Sheptytsky. The author’s coverage is both political and social, and

describes the attempts of the Metropolitan, up to his death in 1944, to keep

his church afloat in the midst of terrifying political persecution and

oppression. This work complements the 1996 study by B.R.Bociurkiw, The

Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and the Soviet State, 1939-1950.

For Germans, but not only for them, the forthcoming November 9th is a date

of particular importance. I would be interested to hear from any of you how

in fact you have commemorated the events which took place in this century,

either on or around that date itself, especially if you made any specific

reference to a possible Christian interpretation of its significance. Of

even wider significance are the commemorations of November 11th.

Now that we have abandoned the kind of religiously-flavoured national

patriotic demonstrations, what kind of ceremonies can be said to be fitting,

other than a purely secular wreath-laying. Do let me know what happens in

your area.

With best wishes,

John Conway

jconway@interchange.ubc.ca

 

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

Newsletter- October 1999- Vol.V, no. 10

 

Dear Friends,

Contents: 1) Conference Announcement, Penn State University

2) Boston College conference report

3) Forthcoming conference, Notre Dame,Ind.

4) Book reviews

a) C.O-Moore, H.P.Hughes

b) A-K Finke, Karl Barth in Grossbritannien 5) Journal article, Moses:

Justifying War 6) Book notes

7) In memoriam

1) The Pennsylvania State University is arranging a conference on the theme

of “Bonhoeffer’s Dilemma: The Ethics of Violence” to be held on October

28th-31,1999 at the Nittany Lion Inn, Penn State University Park, with a

very distinguished cast of speakers and the world premiere of a new opera on

Bonhoeffer. For more information, contact Chriss Schultz by E-mail:

ConferenceInfo1@cde.psu.edu

2) Boston College conference, Sept 17-18th 1999

The very useful meeting held at the prestigious Jesuit centre of Boston

College last month provided an opportunity for some 20 scholars to discuss

“Christian Life and Thought: confronting totalitarianism/authoritarianism”.

Meeting in plenary session for two whole days gave a chance for both younger

and older scholars to have an intensive and valuable exchange of views,

particularly across denominational lines. In fact, apart from one paper

which examined the remarkably favourable treatment of the Mormons in the

German Democratic Republic, the rest of the papers were concentrated on the

churches’ responses during the Nazi period. The reason is clear: for

historians, the archives are now fully accessible and are being well used;

for the theologians, the issues have been around long enough for cogent and

critical discussion. The same amount of excellent scholarship could hardly

have been mobilised for papers on the churches’ responses to Soviet

totalitarianism.

How did the churches react to Hitler’s rise to power in 1933? With

acclamation, enthusiasm and a readiness to believe that, in their hour of

need, God had granted Germany a new heroic leader. Such were the illusions

which accompanied the signing of the Concordat, or which led many

Protestants to seek to align their beliefs with Nazi ideology. We heard a

scathing account of how leading Catholic theologians like Karl Adam and

Michael Schmaus instrumentalised their theology for political purposes. Many

of the papers in fact drew attention to the dangers of lending theological

legitimisation to political regimes in this century. The dilemma for

theologians under pressure to adopt a position in times of political crisis

is clear. The German case stands as a warning, but the issue still deserves

further examination. By what criteria can a justified political theology be

assessed? This was one underlying theme of the conference.

A second theme related to the topic of resistance. To what extent can the

examples of non-conformist behaviour displayed by various church members be

seen as resistance? There was agreement that, from the point of view of the

Nazi authorities, the churches were particularly suspect and therefore all

deviant behaviour was treated as punishable treachery. But in fact, almost

all church members remained loyal to their concept of Germany, even when

they disobeyed some of the Nazi edicts, and certainly didn’t consider

themselves to be part of a resistance opposition, let alone seek to

overthrow the regime. Such were the cases of those Catholic priests in rural

areas who regarded Polish forced labourers as fellow Catholics to be treated

with sympathy rather than with racial antagonism, or those pastors who

prayed weekly for the Nazis’ victims by name from their pulpits. The

ambivalence of their stance is reflected in the continuing uncertainty of

how they should be categorized by historians.

A third unavoidable theme was the response of the churches to the

persecution and sufferings of the Jews. Even after sixty years the aura of

guilt still haunts this topic, whether it is the ongoing debate about Pius

XII or the motivations of pastors such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer. In the former

case, since the documents remain unavailable, the result can only be

speculative, and the danger of scapegoating is evident. In the latter case,

a valuable corrective was heard against too easy a presumption of

Bonhoeffer’s pro-Jewish stance. At the same time it was valuable to hear

about such righteous Gentiles as Corrie ten Boom or the Viennese journalist

Irene Harand. a hitherto almost unknown Catholic campaigner on behalf of the

persecuted Jews. As our Jewish colleague noted, Corrie ten Boom’s undoubted

supersessionism should not be equated with antisemitism, however

theologically incorrect it may now seem.

The witness of such figures was however too little regarded in post-war

Germany, where the lessons of the Church Struggle were interpreted in

different ways to suit the need of the future. For the most part the

conservative wing of the Confessing Church, self-satisfied with its stance

against Nazi heresies, was able to restore the church-political landscape to

its liking, and to suppress the more radical wing which looked for a more

complete church renewal.

The German churches’ responses to totalitarianism were and are significant

to more than just the Germans. The explanation for their failures has to be

found less in moral than in historical terms. To be sure they were indeed

intimidated and persecuted, but not entirely so. Rather their early

enthusiasm has to be ascribed to the lack of preparation, theological as

well as political, for such an onslaught. And this in turn was largely due

to the confusion and uncertainty caused by the disasters of the first world

war. The remainder of this century can, in fact, be seen as the working out

of the dilemmas and challenges of that time, many of which still remain

unresolved.

3) Upcoming Event: International Symposium on “Military Chaplains in their

Context”, University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana, 17-18 March 2000.

There will be a keynote address and a small number of papers by invited

presenters. Anyone interested in the role of military chaplains from late

antiquity to the present is welcome to attend and take part in the

discussions.

For more information, contact Doris Bergen, Department of History,

University of Notre Dame, IN 46556. Tel: 219-631-7189

E-mail: Doris.L.Bergen.4@nd.edu

3a) Book review: Christopher Oldstone-Moore, Hugh Price Hughes. Founder of a

new Methodism, Conscience of a new Nonconformity. Cardiff: University of

Wales Press 1999 393pp.

Hugh Price Hughes was an eminent late Victorian Methodist, now forgotten. In

his heyday he was known as a spell-binding preacher and an active social

reformer. Christopher Oldstone-Moore’s newly-published and laudable

biography seeks to make him known to today’s audience, because he

represented a force for good which is no longer so vital in British

religious life, but which deserves to be remembered.

A century after John Wesley’s death, the Methodists had grown by leaps and

bounds to become a truly national entity. But they still suffered from

questions of identity. Disdainfully dismissed by supporters of the

established Church of England as “nonconformists”, Methodists saw themselves

as the champions of religious freedom from state control. But they still

felt discriminated against, on both social and religious grounds. Or again,

their fervour and devotion was often highly internalized. This quest for

personal salvation eclipsed any concern for the political and social welfare

of their fellow citizens. All this Hugh Price Hughes sought to change.

He made it his mission to convince his followers that nonconformity should

be seen as a positive virtue. Nonconformists enjoyed opportunities for

witness not given to the established church. They could embark on campaigns

for social and personal improvement which the Church of England, so long

embroiled with the ruling classes, could never undertake. As a young

minister, he was quickly involved with the temperance movement. But he came

to realise that campaigning against the “demon drink” was not just a matter

of personal moral righteousness. Rather it needed to be part of a wider

concern for social reconstruction.

Before the days of the Labour Party or of radio and television, and with

only the initial stages of trades unionism, the socially-minded churches

were the only means to arouse public concern for good causes. The memory of

the anti-slavery campaign was ever-present. But Hughes rightly saw that

consciences needed to be aroused and kept alert. This was what nonconformity

was called to do. In many ways he himself personified this new stance,

throwing himself into all sorts of struggles against social evils and

injustices.

At the same time he brought his intense vitality and institutional

leadership (what he called Christian audacity) to the task of refashioning

Methodism for the tasks ahead. The 1880s were a time of considerable

optimism and growth. Hughes wanted Methodists to outgrow their reputation of

being earnest, if narrow-minded, enthusiasts, and did much to promote the

denomination’s theological capacities. His principal achievement in

propagating his vision of a socialistic and democratic Christianity was to

found and edit a new Methodist newspaper to give impetus to the moral

reconstruction of the nation along evangelical lines. This venture copied

the secular press in being lively, personal, direct and topical, and soon

had a large readership.

This idealistic programme demanded commitment. Hughes and his wife both

fully exemplified this requirement. But, in the long run, this stance was

subject to erosion from two directions: many conservative Methodists were

only partly convinced of this social gospel, and preferred the earlier

emphasis on individual holiness. On the other side, social radicals

persuaded themselves that they could do good without having to subscribe to

any Christian doctrine. But, in the short run, the impact was undoubted,

especially in the ranks of the newly-founded Labour Party, which was rightly

categorized as “owing more to Methodism than to Marx”.

Oldstone-Moore ably outlines the ecclesiastical and political struggles in

which Hughes was involved. He admits that Hughes was an impassioned,

sometimes impulsive, man given to rhetorical excess. But the need for moral

regeneration made anything less than the highest standard of public

behaviour a betrayal. His watchword was: what was morally wrong cannot be

politically right. So compromises came with difficulty. His insistent

earnestness was an example to many But it took its toll in constant

frustration and even embitterment. And it is doubtful that the level of

evangelical, political and philanthropic enthusiasm which Hughes demanded of

his followers could have been maintained on a continuing basis.

The 1890s were in any case difficult years. The Irish Home Rule bill was

defeated. Mr Gladstone resigned. His successor was an aristocratic gambling

horse race owner. And shortly afterwards the conservatives returned to

power, from whom no advances towards righteousness could be expected. And

even though Hughes’ pre-eminence was recognised by his election as President

of the Church and the Free Church Association, the strain of his unceasing

efforts proved too much. He died of a stroke at the age of 55.

His optimistic preaching of the social gospel had been inspiring. In his

day, as Wesley had done before him, he convinced many thousands that God was

working out a new salvation in the world. But, with the onset of the first

world war, such idealisms seemed sadly out of place. In subsequent years the

appeal for building a righteous nation faded away, heralding the decline of

Methodism and other churches throughout this century.

JSC

3b) Anne-Kathrin Finke,Karl Barth in Grossbritannien: Rezeption und

Wirkungsgeschichte. Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag 1995 ISBN

3-7887-1521-9, xiv+354 pp.

In this book, the reworked version of her thesis (KiHo Berlin 1993),

Anne-Kathrin Finke has two aims. The first is to offer a detailed discussion

of the influence and reception of the theology of Karl Barth in Great

Britain (or, more precisely) in England and Scotland), proceeding both

chronologically and critically. The second is to offer insights into the

different approaches to “doing theology” in Britain and Germany. The first

aim should be understood as primary. Finke’s work draws upon a wide range of

theological discussions of Barth’s work to provide what she hopes will be

“an adequate description of the development in British discussions of Barth”

(p.11) She demonstrates, in contrast to the conclusions drawn by Richard

H.Roberts, that British discussions of Barth’s theology have been, not

one-sided, but fundamental, fair and fruitful.

Finke structures her work largely chronologically. Writing for a German

audience and assuming (probably rightly) that most German readers will need

an introduction to British theological thought, she opens with a brief

discussion of the history of theology in England and Scotland in the

nineteenth and twentieth centuries, concluding that British theology in the

1920s was still dominated by liberalism and influenced by German liberal

theology. In his introduction, Christoph Gestrich hopes that Finke’s

introductory chapter might be of use also to British readers, but both

British and German readers would be well advised to seek additional

background information elsewhere. The section on the Reformation in England

and Scotland contains some strange omissions (for instance, there is no

mention of the Prayer Books of either 1552 or 1559, the latter noted for

drawing together different theological interpretations and thus of some

importance, one would think, to Finke’s argument). She gives the impression

that England and Scotland were entirely separate kingdoms until the

beginning of the eighteenth century. Her discussion of the Church in the

nineteenth century would have benefited from reference to general

discussions other than Vidler’s The Church in an Age of Revolution (perhaps

Owen Chadwick’s The Victorian Church). On Lux Mundi there is now a detailed

discussion by Ulrike Link-Wieczorek (however this was not available to

Finke). And while the opening chapters introduce the German reader to

important aspects of English and Scottish theology, the English-speaking

reader unversed in German (theological) history may well be left wondering

in what way German theology, not to mention the situation in Germany in the

1920s, differed from that in England. What was the crisis that produced

Barth’s so-called “crisis theology”? The reader must be in a position to

know this, for Finke will not tell her.

Finke proceeds to discuss the theological work of Peter Taylor Forsyth. The

similarities between Forsyth’s theology and that of Barth, observed by early

British commentators such as John McConnochie and noted by Barth himself,

demonstrate that a “barthian” or dialectic theology can emerge from a

totally different context from that of post-First World War Germany. Finke

does not elaborate on the differences between the theologies of Forsyth and

Barth, and since she admits that Forsyth’s theology cannot be said to have

prepared the way for Barth’s, the impact of Forsyth’s work remains somewhat

unclear.

The remainder of Finke’s work is devoted to a discussion of the reception of

Barth’s theology in Britain. She identifies four phases in this reception,

of which the first is the impact made by Barth’s early theology from 1924 to

1936, the year in which George Thomas Thomson’s translation of the first

half-volume of the Church Dogmatics was published. From the beginning,

Barth’s rejection of natural theology was a primary concern – and point of

criticism – for British theologians; this early focus remained central in

the continuing discussions of his theology. In this period, English and

Scottish considerations of Barth’s theology take a similar line; the primary

work is that of Hugh Ross Mackintosh and John McConnochie. The second phase,

1936-1945, was the period in which Barth had most personal contact with

British theologians. It was also the time when his political profile as an

opponent of the Nazi regime in Germany was highest. This juxtaposition was

not without its complications, for, as Finke makes clear, theologians and

churchmen (for instance Bishop George Bell) who applauded Barth for his

opposition to Hitler were often unable to share his theological concerns.

Nevertheless, Finke concludes, “despite their semi-Pelagianism, natural

theology, moralism and optimism,” Barth found the British very attractive;

so much so, indeed, that he wrote to Bell in 1946: “Were I not Swiss, I

would choose to be British” (p.177).

It was only after the Second World War, in what Finke identifies as the

third phase of the reception of Barth’s theology, that this came to be

appreciated in its entirety. Barth’s Church Dogmatics was translated in its

entirety between 1956 and 1977, and thus became accessible to non-German

readers. Finke traces the increasing difference between Scottish and English

understandings of Barth in the post-war years, and especially the growing

influence of Thomas Forsyth Torrance, whose extremely individual

interpretation of Barth’s theology affected generations of systematic

theologians in Scotland. Despite the importance of this achievement (an

entire chapter is dedicated to Torrance), Finke notes that it is not always

easy to distinguish between Torrance and Barth’s interests; however, she

believes that Torrance’s interpretation of Barth still informs British

theological debates about Barth today (p.245). In the final phase, the 1970s

and (early) 1980s, British – and perhaps especially English – theologians

began to take seriously John Baillie’s plea that “there can be no hopeful

forward advance beyond (Barth’s) teachings . . if we attempt to go round it

instead of through it” (p.202).

Finke’s study offers a consideration of a wide range of theologians and

theological works. Her “person-centred” approach, probably the only approach

possible given the extent of her material, leads sometime to some odd

chronological juxtapositions. Thus, Barmen (1934) is discussed in the

chapter dealing with 1936-1945, and the beginnings of the ecumenical

movement in the 1930s appear in the post-war chapter. Sometimes her view of

cause and effect seems a little over-simplified: can there really be “no

doubt” that interest in Barth “accounts for the founding of the Study for

the Study of Theology” (p.197)?

Taken as a whole this book offers a resource which summarises who in Britain

wrote what about Barth when. Moreover the wide range of topics discussed in

the reception of Barth’s theology suggests that Finke could well be right to

claim (against the perhaps characteristic modesty of many British

theologians themselves!) that the British reception of Barth offers an

adequate and considered understanding of Barth’s theology, especially given

that it is, as Finke conceded, impossible to define who or what is “the

whole Barth”. Her claim might however, have been further substantiated had

she at some point defined what she understands to be an adequate

understanding of Barth’s theology. As it is, this issue can only be decided

by those more versed in Barth’s theology than I.

If”the whole Barth” is impossible to characterise, so too is “German

theology”. But however it may be defined, it would be risky to assert that

it is exclusively Barthian. Finke seems not to have taken this into account

and it is for this reason that, in my view, her book cannot claim to be a

comparative study of British and German theological mentalities. Barth has a

reception history in Germany just as he has in Britain; a comparison of

German and British reactions to Barth might offer some real insights into

the different ways of “doing theology” to be found in the different

contexts. Finke’s book offers a good resource for such a project, but her

achievement is another. She has produced a useful and detailed survey which

indicates that the impact of Barth’s theology on British theological

thinking has been both broader and deeper than has previously been

appreciated.

Charlotte Methuen, Ruhr-Universitat, Bochum

4) Journal Article:

John A.Moses, Justifying War as the Will of God: German theology on the eve

of the first world war. in Colloquium: The Australian and New Zealand

Theological Review, Vol 31, no 1, May 1999, p3-20.

Because this journal may well not be widely available beyond its homelands,

John Moses’ contribution to the most recent issue deserves mention. He seeks

to assess the part played by theologians and church leaders to the climate

of excessive nationalism, militarism and racism which has been frequently

seen as the cause of Germany’s disastrous history during this century.

Whereas critics of this Sonderweg view of secular German history have

claimed that other “great powers” did not behave too differently, so that

there is only a factor of difference of scale, Moses shows that as far as

the theologians goes, the Germans played a considerable role in maintaining

the idea of their spiritual separateness because they had received a special

calling from God and consequently a world mission unlike any other country.

From 1870 onwards there was a remarkable rise of national Protestantism and

its identification of the nation with the will of Almighty God, or the

advocacy of the idea that God had chosen Germany to be His agent on earth,

as His instrument in the “History of Salvation”.

This conflation of sacred and secular history should not be ignored by even

the most materialist of historians. It explains why religion came to endorse

limitless violence, how war was prioritized, and how German national

aggrandisement came to have spiritual significance. Alas, this view survived

the shock of the 1918 defeat, and came in handy for Hitler’s propagandists.

We even heard overtones about God’s hand guiding Germany’s destiny in 1989.

However, after the impact of the Holocaust’s revelations, the use of

national Protestantism as a tenable paradigm for educated Germans has been

effectively discredited. The religious Sonderweg has therefore been

abandoned, but what is to follow remains to be seen.

JSC

6) In Memoriam

We learn with sadness of the death of Sabine Leibholz, the twin sister of

Dietrich Bonhoeffer. She herself was also a victim of the Nazis when she and

her husband were forced to leave Germany in 1938, and seek refuge in Oxford.

Her husband subsequently returned to have a distinguished career in the

German Supreme Court. Sabine was the last of this generation of Bonhoeffers,

and took a lively interest in the activities over the years designed to

commemorate her brother.

With best wishes

John Conway

jconway@interchange.ubc.ca

 

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

Newsletter- August-September 1999- Vol.V, no. 8-9

 

Dear Friends
Greetings to all those of you who are just now in the process of beginning
another academic year, and my very best wishes for the success of your
endeavours, especially in the field of contemporary church history.
Contents: 1) Book reviews:
a) 3 books on the Vatican
Chadwick, O’Brien, Luxmoore
b) Muller-Rolli, Evang.Schulpolitik
2) Book notes
3) Dissertation abstract: Roisin Healey
1a) Owen Chadwick, A History of the Popes 1830-1914, (Oxford History of the
Christian Church) Oxford: Clarendon Press 1998, 614pp.
Darcy O’Brien, The Hidden Pope. The Untold Story of a Lifelong Friendship
that is changing the relationship between Catholics and Jews. The personal
journey of John Paul II and Jerzy Kluger. New York: Daybreak Books 1998, 406
pp
Jonathan Luxmorre and Jolanta Babiuch, The Vatican and the Red Flag. The
struggle for the soul of eastern Europe. London: Geoffrey Chapman 1999.
351pp. ISBN 0-225-66772-X
Sir Owen Chadwick is the doyen of British ecclesiastical historians. His
magisterial narrative histories and his sprightly ecclesiastical biographies
have earned him world-wide respect. This latest history of the
nineteenth-century Popes will only enhance this reputation. His command of
the sources is masterly. His explication of the problems and dilemmas, both
theological and political, confronting the Papacy provides a valuable guide
to English-speaking (and presumably largely non-Catholic) readers. His
portraits of the Popes are sympathetic but not uncritical. Even for such
obstreperous autocrats as Pius IX, he can find arguments to dissuade one
from condemnation. Above all he has a sense of the value of the institution
and the need to see the developments of history from its age-long
vantage-point. This makes for a distinguished and, for an Anglican, unique
perspective.
He rightly centres his account of the reign of Pius IX on the horrendous
anguish caused by the loss of the Papal States. Their recovery was Pius’
main priority. Yet he was militarily impotent to protect his realm. He
believed he could substitute spiritual power to achieve the same end. Most
of the condemnations of the 1864 Syllabus or Errors, and the dogmatic
assertions of Papal Infallibility in 1870, were designed to demolish the
anticlerical forces, especially in the Kingdom of Italy, which had so
wantonly seized the papal lands. “The prisoner of the Vatican” appealed for
world-wide sympathy, seeing himself as the bastion of civilisation against
the rising onslaught of liberal revolution and its attendant destructive
ideas. All of which Chadwick knows was wrong-headed, but nonetheless shares
some sympathy with the stalwart defenders of the past.
The problem of Italy and the Vatican enclave remained unresolved until 1929.
But Chadwick shows that already Leo XIII was beginning to realise that the
absence of physical power could be an advantage to a universal church. By
the end of the century, other issues began to loom larger. Here is
Chadwick’s summary:
“The Church was in conflict with the modern world. Everyone admitted it.
Popes made the conflict a matter of faith. Laymen and laywomen who thought
themselves modern despised the Church as behind the times. Was this gulf
necessary? Was it needful for the Church to despise the world in order to
gain its soul? . . If churchman conformed their faith to the axioms of
contemporary fashion, there would soon be not much of a Church. The
conservatives argued thus: we may admit that the Church is always in need of
reform. But ordinary men and women need not to be disturbed in their faith
and way or worship.
The opposite viewpoint argued thus: . . was it a necessary consequence of a
theory of evolution that faith in God the Creator be denied? At least there
should be liberty to enquire.” (p.348)
But the dilemma continued unabated. Leo’s successor, Pius X was “a simple,
conservative pastor, who could not understand what was happening” but who
“had to be admired because his sense of right was such that he cared nothing
for the practical.” He and the Curia believed in the doctrine of the
slippery slope. Any opening of the doors to critical enquiry, whether of
systematic or biblical theology, would lead to the proliferation of
unsubstantiated radical ideas, and confuse the faithful irrevocably. Those
who propagated such heresies, like Loisy or Tyrrell, had to be ejected, lest
they give comfort to the Church’s enemies. Chadwick rightly asks whether in
the long run the suppression of such enquirers did not do more damage. The
same can be said for the notorious papal bull Apostolicae curiae of 1896
which condemned the validity of Anglican orders (including Chadwick’s own!)
Here he argues that the condemnation which so much hurt relations between
Rome and Canterbury (and is still in force) was due to intrigues in the
Vatican, and to the Roman tradition of rejecting new insights. “The bull was
a supreme example of self-contradictory policy in Rome. It was a sign that
the Pope was ageing. In 1896 he was 86 years old”.
Chadwick stands in the tradition of his predecessors as Regius Professor of
Modern History, Lord Acton. He deplores tyranny and exalts freedom of
enquiry. But at the same time, his strength is that he sees – and convinces
his readers to see – the vastly complex intertwining of the problems each
Pope had to confront daily. How to deal with hostile government, how to
assert Papal rights, how to protect the faithful, how to arouse consciences
against evil – all are on the agenda and overlap with one another. Prudence
and cautious conservatism are inevitably the result. And while continuity
was ensured during this period by the remarkable longevity of these Popes,
the sudden urge at the next conclave to have a different kind of Pope did
not necessarily improve matters. Chadwick paints a wonderfully rich picture
of the life of the Church, warts and all. It is all immensely rewarding for
the reader. Here is both a stimulating depiction of the rich cast of
ecclesiastical characters, and a thoughtful exploration through the thickets
of controversies which still have much to teach us today.
Darcy O’Brien is an accomplished journalist who tells the story of two young
Poles, one Catholic, one Jewish, the former destined to become Pope, and the
latter to escape the Holocaust by fleeing to Russia and the Middle East and
later to become a business man in Rome. After many years the two were
reunited and enjoy their close friendship again. Using extensive interviews,
family records and photographs, O’Brien reconstructs, in a highly positive
light, this life-long relationship with sparkle and humour. He also seeks to
interweave the theme of Christian-Jewish relations by claiming that this
particular friendship was a significant factor in John Paul II’s thinking.
It was this friendship, he believes, which led to the Pope’s historic
determination to overthrow the traditional Catholic hostilities of the past
and to encourage a wholly new era of reconciliation and trust between
Catholics and Jews.
This gives O’Brien the opportunity to review the steps taken over the past
twenty years to achieve this goal. He pays tribute to John Paul’s undoubted
tenacity and outlines the numerous political and theological obstacles to be
overcome. Such formidably intractable problems as the diplomatic recognition
of the State of Israel or the sad recriminations over the Convent at
Auschwitz are here ably discussed, and tributes dutifully paid. An
encouraging story.
Jonathan Luxmoore and Jolanta Babiuch are British Catholic journalists who
saw the disintegration of the Soviet Empire in eastern Europe as an
opportunity to survey the seventy year history of how the Vatican and the
Catholic Church responded to the Marxist political and ideological system.
They go on to claim that the role of the Papacy, especially of John Paul II,
was a significant factor in its overthrow.
Their account covers the political and diplomatic activities of the Catholic
Church in eastern Europe since 1945 – with only a barest reference to
theological developments. Their basic argument is that, during the reign of
Pius XII, the Church was on the defensive, pessimistically trying to save
what was left of the old aristocratic Catholic civilisation of the past. At
the same time the Church was confronted with the aggressive dogmatism of
militant Communists from East Berlin to Peking, which made the confrontation
ever sharper. But from 1960 the climate changed. Pope John XXIII was a more
attractive character. The Second Vatican Council called for a more positive
relationship with the modern world. And the Communists abandoned their ideas
of extirpating Christianity. Instead they concentrated on the exercise of
power, though events such as the Berlin Wall or the invasion of
Czechoslovakia destroyed much of their credibility.
The way was open, the authors believe, for a new approach by the Church to
appeal to the souls of eastern Europe through the pursuit of idealism,
particularly the ideals of democracy, free enquiry and human rights. Instead
of strident condemnation of Marxist theories, the church leaders sought an
evolutionary path of accommodation in order to put forward their own goals.
This involved a complicated pattern of advances and retreats, which are here
amply described. Most notably, this change can be seen in the career of
Karol Woytila, who is the hero of this book. His energy and influence, they
believe, was crucial to the success of the Polish challenge to Soviet
domination, and his pragmatic readiness for dialogue was a significant
factor in ending repression throughout the whole region.
These authors follow much the same path already traced out by Hans-Jakob
Stehle, the veteran correspondent in Rome of the German newspaper, Die Zeit.
His account of the Eastern Policies of the Vatican first appeared twenty
years ago, was translated into English, and has since been revised and
updated in 1993. But like Stehle, Luxmoore and Babiuch were not given access
to the Vatican’s files. They are therefore dependent on secondary works, as
outlined in the excellent bibliography. Yet caution is here called for.
Since the Papacy is newsworthy, there are innumerable correspondents
attached to, and observing, the Vatican. Often not much happens. But
journalists must justify their existence. Consequently speculative accounts
abound. Even these authors’ mentor, the late Peter Hebblethwaite, was not
immune to the temptation to speculate where nothing certain could be
ascertained. On the whole, Luxmoore and Babiuch are reliable in their
commentaries, especially of the successive Papal statements. But, until the
archives are open, these accounts must remain provisional. In the meantime,
this survey, together with Stehle’s account, is a good summary of the
progressive political stances of the present Pope. It was, they say, a long
march of hope. And it came to a climax in those spectacular visits John Paul
II has paid to his homeland. Here, the authors contend, is the incarnation
of the modern Catholic witness, aware certainly of the burden of history and
of the uncertainty of all human endeavour, but nonetheless presenting a
message of inspiration to captivate the souls of modern men and women.
JSC
b) Sebastian Mueller-Rolli, Evangelische Schulpolitik in Deutschland
1918-1958. Dokumente und Darstellung. Unter Mitarbeit von Reiner Anselm und
einem Nachwort von K.E.Nipkow. Veroff. d. Comenius-Inst. Muenster
Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht 1999 791pp Cloth DM 148.
Bildungs- und Schulpolitik steht bis heute nicht nur in der Bundesrepublik
Deutschland im Licht oeffentlichen Interesses, weil der Ausbildung des
Nachwuchses grosse Bedeutung fuer die Gestaltung der Zukunft beigemessen
wird. An dieser Diskussion nehmen die grossen Kirchen und
Religionsgemeinschaften regen Anteil. Um so mehr ueberrascht es, dass ein en
Geschichte der Schulpolitik der evangelischen Kirchen im 20 Jahrhundert noch
aussteht. Waehrend es zur Geschichte der Religionspeaedagogik – auch im
“Dritten Reich” – verschiedene Arbeiten gibt, besteht fuer die
protestantantische Schulpolitik eine gravierende Luecke. Daher ist es
besonders erfreulich, dass jetzt Mueller-Rolli eine Dokumentation mit
zusammenhaengender Interpretation ersetllt hat.
Die 1919 Trennung von Staat und Kirche bedeutete einen wesentlichen
Einschnitt in der deutschen Schulgeschichte. So wurde der in der Verfassung
fesgeschriebene Religionsunterricht nunmehr Teil der gemeinsamen
Bildungsverantwortung von Staat und Kirche. Die Schulpolitik, vor allem die
Auseinandersetzung um die Konfessionsschule, bestimmte noch bis in die
sechziger Jahre das Verhaeltnis von Staat und Kirche nachhaltig.
Die hier vorgelegte Quellensammlung dokumentiert die Beziehungen zwischen
Staat und evangelischer Kirche im Bereich des Volksschulwesens in der ersten
Haelfte des 20. Jahrhunderts. Sie konzentriert sich auf die sechs
Brennpunkte: 1918-21: Jahre der Konfrontation – Schulpolitik in der
Republik, 1936: Innere Zerissenheit – Schulpolitik im Kirchenkampf,
1941-144: Schulpolitische Vorstellungen in den Widerstandskreisen, 1945-48:
Regionale Eigendynamik unter allierter Kontrolle, 1948-9: Die Schulfrage in
den Beratungen des Grundgesetzes und 1958: Die Schulfrage auf der Berliner
Synode der Evangleischen Kirche in Deutschland (EKD). Jedem Kapitel ist ein
einordnender Text vorangestellt, der die Entscheidungsprozesse und
Argumentationsmuster herausarbeitet, einen Ueberblick ueber die abgedruckten
Dokumente und Hinweise auf weiterfuehrende Literatur gibt. Sofern es
erforderlich ist, werden einzelne Quellen noch eigens erlaeutert.
Die 95 in chronologischer Reihenfolge abgedruckten Dokumente sind sehr
heterogen und umfassende Erlasse, Verlautbarungen, Anweisungen,
programmatische Texte, Reden (geheime) Denkschriften, Schriftwechsel und
Berichte aus dem Alltag. Sie reichen vom Erlass des preussischen Ministers
fuer Wissenschaft, Kunst und Volksbildung ueber den Religionsunterricht vom
29. November 1918 bis zum Wort zur Schulfrage der Synode der EKD vom 30.
April 1958, in dem sich die Evangelische Kirche zu einem “freien Dienst an
einer freien Schule” verpflichtete. Sie verstand und versteht ihre
Mitwirkung am Bildungssystem als Dienst an den einzelnen Kindern und
Jugendlichen im Blick auf ihre individuelle Bildung und als Dienst am
Gemeinwesen im Rahmen einer grundlegenden, zeitgemaessen allgemeinen
Bildung. Damit kam der schulpolitische Selbstklaerungsprozess innerhalb des
Protestantismus nach der Verabschiedung der Verfassungen und Schulgesetze in
den Laendern der Bundesrepublik und der sich als landfristig abzeichnenden
Teilung Deutschlands zum Erliegen.
Ein umfangreiches Nachwort “Die gefaehrdete Freiheit in Schule und Kirche”
von Karl Ernst Nipkow (pp 720-33) skizziert die Entwicklung von den
fuenziger Jahren bis zur Gegenwart.
Muller-Rolli stellt einleitend klar, dass nicht alle Landeskirchen
gleichgewichtig behandelt werden. Besonders beruecksichtigt wurden aufgrund
ihres ueberregionalen Engagements Bayern und Baden-Wuerttemberg. Leider ist
diese Auswahl problematisch. Fuer das Gesamtbild waere ein Blick auf die
Hamburger Landeskirche bereichernd, um die evangelische Schulpolitik im
Angesicht von Entkirchlichung und gesellschaftlicher Modernisierung am
Beispiel einer Millionenstadt augzuzeigen.
Ergaenzungsbeduerftig ist auch das Literaturverzeichnis am Ende des Bandes,
das etliche fuer das Thema wichtige Titel, insbesondere neuere biographische
Arbeiten ueber zentrale Personen wie Otto Dibelius, Klara Hunsche, Helmuth
Kittel und Walter Uhsadel, oder die Studie von Ludwig Richter ueber Kirche
und Schule in den Beraturngen der Weimarer Nationalversammlung (Duesseldorf
1996), vermissen laesst.
Erschlossen wird das voluminoese Buch durch ein auch als Nachschlagewerk
nuetzliches Personenregister mit biographische Angaben. So ist – trotz der
kritischen Bemerkungen – ein sehr verdienstvolles Werk entstanden, dass
hoffentlich weitere Arbeiten zum Bereich Kirche und Bildung/Schule nach sich
ziehen wird.
Reiner Hering, Staatsarchiv Hamburg
2) Book notes:
a) Frank J.Coppa, ed., Controversial Concordats: The Vatican’s relations
with Napoleon, Mussolini and Hitler. Washington, D.C.:Catholic University of
America Press. 1998.
(to be reviewed here shortly)
b) John Pollard, The Unknown Pope: Benedict XV (1914-1922) and the pursuit
of Peace 1914-1922. London Cassell 1999.
A fine examination of the diplomatic papers recently released.
c) Karl-Hermann Kandler, Die Rolle der ev.-luth.Kirche in Freiberg waehrend
der “Wende” 1989-90. Freiberg 1996.
One of the pastors involved has compiled this vivid account of events in
this town in southern Saxony during the overthrow of the former communist
regime. He makes use not only of the church’s records but also those of the
municipal authorities, which took a consistently pejorative view of the
church members. Kandler endorses the opinion that the church’s role in
bringing about the end of the regime was hardly revolutionary, but certainly
played its part in mobilizing public opinion against the misdeeds of their
former rulers.
d) When Night Fell, An Anthology of Holocaust Short Stories, edited by Linda
Raphael and Marc Raphael. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press 1999
300pp.
This is the first anthology of short stories drawn from the Holocaust
experience, and is intended for teaching purposes. Several well-known
authors are here included, as well as unknowns. Given the nature of the
subject, there is surprising variety to be found,.though the mournful
reverent tone is prevalent throughout.
3) Roisin Healy, Dissertation Abstract: The Jesuits as enemy: anti-Jesuitism
and the Protestant bourgeoisie of Imperial Germany, 1890-1917.
This dissertation addresses the reasons for the strength of anti-Jesuit
feeling in Imperial Germany. While more intense in previous centuries,
anti-Jesuitism was sufficiently strong after the unification of Germany in
1871 to bring about the expulsion of Jesuits in the Jesuit Law of 1872. This
was one of the many laws passed against clerical authority and Catholic
institutions during the Kulturkampf. But this law did not benefit from the
subsequent thaw in church-state relations in the 1880s and remained in force
until 1917. The main agents of anti-Jesuitism were men of the liberal
Protestant bourgeoisie. Jesuitism represented all they rejected –
clericalism, internationalism,.and irrationality. Anti-Jesuits used their
criticism of the order to emphasise their own commitment to the German
nation, to individual autonomy, and to reason. In exaggerating the power of
their enemies, anti-Jesuits revealed a lack of confidence in the liberal
Protestant tradition, especially its capacity to find a balance between
authority and autonomy, which would be as effective as the Jesuits’ model of
absolute obedience.
Using both government documents and pamphlet literature, this dissertation
combines an account of the Jesuit Law with an investigation of
anti-Jesuitism in its social, political and cultural context. Organised in
the Protestant League, Protestant churches, and liberal political parties,
anti-Jesuits campaigned intensively against the readmission of Jesuits after
1890, when Catholics, inspired by the collapse of the anti-Socialist Law,
reasserted their opposition to the Jesuit Law. Anti-Jesuits drew on an
existing canon of charges against the Jesuits to make their case. They found
least support among socialists and conservative Protestants.
Socialists sympathised with Catholics as another persecuted minority. Some
conservative Protestants felt closer on theological or political grounds to
Catholics than to liberal Protestants. The Reichstag passed repeal bills
repeatedly, but the Bundesrat refused to endorse them on the grounds of the
Protestants’ strong opposition. The federal government pushed through repeal
in 1917 as an effort to boost wartime morale among Catholics.
This work testifies to the importance of confession in molding cultural
values and political convictions in Imperial Germany. It confirms that
growing realisation among German historians that liberalism cannot be
equated with tolerance. Rather, liberalism’s strength grew by excluding
Catholics and others. Finally this dissertation stresses the role of “hate
propaganda” in modern political culture. The dangers implicit in its use
were clear, even if the progression to physical violence was not a necessary
or inevitable consequence.
Sincerely,
John S.Conway
jconway@interchange.ubc.ca

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

 

Newsletter- July 1999- Vol.V, no. 7 

Dear Friends

 

Contents: 1) Congratulations 2) Book reviews a) Graham and Alvarez, Nothing Sacred b) Evangelische Pfarrer 3) Journal article: Webster, Non-aryan clergymen in exile 4) Kirchliche Tourismus: South Tyrol

 

1) Congratulations are due to our list members, Mark Lindsay, who has successfully completed his doctoral studies with distinction at the University of Western Australia. His thesis was on”Covenanted Solidarity: The theological bases for Karl Barth’s opposition to Nazi antisemitism and the Holocaust”; (another list member, Professor John Moses, being one of his examiners); and to Rob Levy, for completing his MA thesis on “Screening the Past:Scholarly histories and popular memories” for Washington State University.

 

2a)David Alvarez and Robert A.Graham,SJ. _Nothing Sacred.Nazi Espionage against the Vatican, 1939-1945_. London and Portland,Oregon: Frank Cass Publishers, 1997. Pp 190. Cloth$42.50. ISBN 0-7146-4744-6 Paper ISBN 0-7146-4302-5(This review appeared on H-German on June 5th) Fr.Robert Graham, who sadly died last year, was a notable journalist and Jesuit, who wrote several books on the history of the Papacy and the wartime policies of Pope Pius XII. In the course of these studies, Graham uncovered a large amount of material relating to the espionage and surveillance efforts by foreign governments or emissaries directed against the Vatican. With the assistance of a younger colleague >from California, David Alvarez,his bulky findings have now been reduced to a compact and readable 183 pages, concentrating on the Nazi attempts to spy on the Vatican during these turbulent years. The Vatican was, and is, a strictly hierarchical entity,whose policies are not subject to public scrutiny. Its diplomacy,similarly, is enveloped in secrecy, a characteristic which became even more tightly controlled once the European war broke out in 1939. The result was that all sorts of groundless rumours, imagined scenarios and even calculated falsehoods were rife about what the Pope would do or say, purveyed by “informants” who were only too ready to satisfy the world’s curiosity, often for personal gain. Since this “information” was never authorized, but equally rarely officially denied, fanciful speculations abounded, some of which were later repeated in post-war journalistic books. The Holy See was widely assumed to have considerable spiritual power which could affect the Catholic citizens of many nations. Such influence was worth cultivating. For this reason,during the war, “all of the major belligerents (with the exception of the Soviet Union) maintained diplomatic missions at the Vatican to press the righteousness of their cause and to solicit the support of the Pope and his advisers. At the same time all of the major belligerents (including the Soviet Union) sought to determine the sympathies of the papacy, and to uncover and frustrate the intrigues of their opponents by maintaining intelligence coverage of the Vatican” (ix). Prominent among these players was Nazi Germany. Hitler and his associates always had a hostile and suspicious attitude towards Catholicism. The Papacy, they believed, employed a world-wide network of clerical agents supplying potentially dangerous information to Rome. In consequence their deliberate aim was to curtail and curb such activities, not only by a ruthless persecution of “political Catholicism” in Germany and its occupied territories, but also by establishing their own networks of agents in the Vatican environment itself. A principal locale was the German Embassy to the Holy See. The Ambassador, Diego von Bergen, however, was a diplomat of the old school, rightly sceptical of much of the supposed “insider information” fed to him by various dubious contacts, and even by some pro-Nazi clerics. But Bergen was near retirement and no longer enjoyed much support in Berlin. Much more significant were the intrigues of Reinhard Heydrich, head of the Reich Main Security Office (RSHA), whose pathological hatred of the church made him lose all sense of logic or proportion. He built a large staff in Munich and Berlin and in 1941 declared that “our ultimate goal is the extirpation of all Christianity” (59). In the meanwhile intelligence operations against such a dangerous foe should be intensified. The Vatican, as the centre of this anti-Nazi activity, was particularly suspect. Already in March 1939 an agent had been sent to Rome to report on the papal election, though his speculations proved entirely erroneous. This debacle showed that spying on the Holy See required better staffing, despite strong opposition from the regular diplomats. The RSHA was successful in penetrating not only the Nunciatures in Berlin and Slovakia, but also the central office of the German Catholic bishops. Various agents with contacts to high ecclesiastics were paid large sums to send in information. These machinations, on the other side, aroused alarm in the Vatican, leading to the belief that the Nazis were about to invade Vatican territory or even kidnap the Pope. In August 1943, this threat seemed so imminent that sensitive diplomatic documents and the Pope’s personal files were hidden under the marble floors of the papal palace. Despite the authors’ diligent researches, they have been unable to find any hard evidence that such a plot was instigated, but the fears were genuine, even if “inspired” by western agents. The closest the RSHA got to penetrating the Vatican itself was by bribing some exiles from Georgia with funds to buy a convent in which they tried to install a secret radio transmitter. But this failed when the Allies reached Rome first. They did manage to”turn” a young Soviet agent from Estonia, who did translations for the Congregation for the Eastern Churches, but he promptly reverted when the Germans left and was last seen in a Siberian ‘gulag’. The harvest was very meagre. The only real success came from eavesdropping on the Vatican’s signals communications and deciphering the Vatican’s diplomatic codes. Despite being the first in history to use cryptography, by the 1940s the Vatican’s methods were primitively out of date. Both Germany and Italy had no difficulty in reading most of the papal traffic, or in tapping the various nuncios’ telephones. In fact, the Vatican officials knew their systems were insecure, and hence were obliged to be even more discreet than ever. It was a severe restraint, and probably the greatest weakness of papal wartime diplomacy. The authors conclude that the results were mixed. No high-level Nazi agent was placed in the Papal entourage, and none of the very small number of individuals in the Vatican responsible for policy decisions was disloyal. This lack of success was partly due to the duplication of efforts by rival Nazi agencies, but also to the total misapprehension of the Vatican’s stature in the world,which was nothing like as powerful (or sinister) as the Nazis imagined. Nazi espionage was only one of the reasons why the Vatican’s influence and prestige suffered disastrously during the second world war. Essentially much more significant was the growing gap between its ideals of peace and justice and the meagre achievements of its diplomacy, for example in its efforts to mitigate the Holocaust. But the authors succeed very well in depicting vividly the turgid, claustrophobic and conspiratorial atmosphere which prevailed during those fateful years.JSC

 

2b) _Evangelische Pfarrer: Zur sozialen und politischen Rolle einer burgerlichen Gruppe in der deutschen Gesellschaft des 18 bis 20 Jahrhunderts_, edited by Luise Schorn-Schutte and Walter Sparn. (Konfession und Gesellschaft. Beitrage zur Zeitgeschichte, 12) Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 1997. ISBN 4-17-014404-9. 217pp_Evangelische Pfarrer_ is a collection of ten essays edited by an historian, Luise Schorn-Schutte, and a theologian, Walter Sparn.Like half of the contributors to their volume, both were born in the 1940s. Eberhard Winkler and Johannes Wahl are the only two theologians represented; Reinhart Siegert was trained in Germanistik, and the others all appear to be historians, Given their professional profile, it is no wonder that the collection is heavily influenced by the methodological and thematic approaches to history which emerged in Germany in the 1970s and early 1980s. Indeed, a quick survey of the contents reminds us just how productive those years were in developing new ways to explore the German past.Schorn-Schutte’s piece on “Evangelische Geistlichkeit im Alten Reich und in der schweizerischen Eidgenossenschaft im 18 Jahrhundert” echoes attempts at cross-national comparisons that grew out of the French Annales school and its interest in the”longue duree”. Wahl’s “Lebenslaufe und Geschlechterraume im Pfarrhaus des 17 und 18 Jahrhunderts” builds on alternative traditions of Alltagsgeschichte. Hartmut Titze’s use of quantification, in “Uberfullung und Mangel im evangelische Pfarramt seit dem ausgehenden 18 Jahrhundert” is reminiscent of older works by Konrad Jarausch, who used quantified date to explore issues of professionalization. Titze’s assumption that social structures underlie cultural and material phenomena brings to mind the structuralism of Hans Mommsen and others. In his study of the Protestant pastors in the Vormarz in Kurhessen, Robert von Friedeburg echoes the so-called Bielefeld school of social history around Hans-Ulrich Wehler and its efforts to link the social and the political. The marks of Bielefeld are also evident in Frank-Michael Kuhlemann’s essay on “Die evangelischen Pfarrer und ihre Mentalitat in Baden 1860-1914″ with its sociological concerns, debt to Max Weber, and incorporation of the Annalistes’ attention to”mentalite”. Oliver Janz, in “Kirche,Staat und Burgertum in Preussen”, focuses on another preoccupation of the Bielefelders:the educated middle class, or “Bildungsburgertum”. Questions of change and continuity, so crucial to reassessments of World Wars Iand II in earlier works by Fritz Fischer, and at the heart of the debate over Germany’s alleged “Sonderweg”, reappear in productive ways in Kurt Nowak’s fascinating “Poliische Pastoren: Der evangelische Geistliche als Sonderfall des Staatsburgers (1862-1932)”.Of course the past twenty years have also changed historical methodology, and most of the essays reflect at least some of these developments. Schorn-Schutte and Wahl pay attention to women and gender, a part of the population and a category of analysis noticeably absent from mainstream German scholarship of the 1970s. Kuhlemann’s interest in culture represents another innovation, evident also in Christoph Klessmann’s intriguing”Evangelische Pfarrer im Sozialismus – soziale Stellung und politische Bedeuting in der DDR”, with its exploration of “milieu”. The one piece by a Germanisten, Siegert’s :”Pfarrer und Literatur im 19 Jahrhundert”, might not have been possible without scholarship on reading and production of books over the past decades, some of the best of it by the cultural historian Robert Darnton. So although there are times at which the essays in _Evangelische Pfarrer_ give one the impression of being in a time warp, in fact the book in rather subtle ways shows signs of the 1990s as well.As the book proves, application of older approaches, many of them drawn from Wehler’s “Gesellschaftsgeschichte” – a particularly German variety of social history – to the study of Protestant clergy in modern Germany, can be very fruitful. For example, the emphasis on the political contexts in which pastors existed helps complicate old cliches about relations between church and state. Here we see not simply the oft-invoked union of “Thron und Adler”,but a multi-faceted, dynamic, regionally-varied relationship between pastors – some of whom were liberals, some of whom sought more independence for their churches – and states that followed their own agendas. Attention to issues of class reveals complex connections between the clergy and the bourgeoisie:sometimes they overlapped to the point of coalescence; sometimes they moved in opposite directions with regard to prestige and power. In general, studying the social and material realities of pastors’ lives puts into perspective the changing conditions in which clergy and their families operated over time. Surprisingly, one of the most interesting and useful pieces in the book is what might seem at first glance the driest: Titze’s quantitative analysis of the six phases in the market for Protestant clergy from the end of the eighteenth century to the present.But there are downsides to the reliance on methodologies from the1970s as well. For one thing, those by now somewhat old-fashioned approaches lend an unnecessary provincialism to much of the book. The essays here, rooted in a German historical tradition,miss much of the enrichment that drawing on works from outside might have produced. In vain I searched the footnotes for reference to the burgeoning English-language literature on religion in Germany, much of it written by subscribers to this list: people like David Diephouse, Helmut Smith, and Dagmar Herzog. Although such works are in many cases directly relevant to the topics being explored, they might as well not have been written for all the impact they appear to have had on these scholars. Not surprisingly,the few exceptions – references to Steven Ozment and David Sabean or to Robert Ericksen (pp. 37, 48 and 72) – appear in what are, in my view, some of the livelier essays here: the contributions by Wahl and Titze.The book’s chronological coverage also reflects both the strengths and the weaknesses of the 1970s historiography. One of the great contributions of that decade was its recovery of the Kaiserreich as a period of interest. To a significant extent that concentration grew out of efforts to identify the roots of National Socialism, but the works stood on their own merits. _Evangelische Pfarrer_ partakes in that scholarly legacy; moreover, it also reflects the significant emphasis these days on the post-World War II Germanies. Klessmann’s contribution on the German Democratic Republic is an excellent example of how much can be learned by taking into consideration the most recent German past. Entirely absent from the volume, however, is any examination of Protestant pastors in the Nazi era. The editors decry this gap in their introduction (xxiii),but it sticks out like the famous blue elephant in the middle of the room which no one mentions and all the guests politely avoid, but which nevertheless remains an all-too-embarrassing presence in every conversation. How can one speak of the development of German Protestant clergy over time without even addressing the years that constituted the greatest challenge to these men and their congregations? Given the many outstanding German scholars working in the area, the editors could certainly have done more to include some discussion of the Nazi years.Finally, a sociological approach that lends itself well to exploring processes like secularization in many cases also produces bloodless analyses that can become tedious for readers. The worst culprit in this regard is Friedeburg. I found myself scouring his essay for signs of human life – anecdotes, even names – as relief from the impersonal discussion. In contrast, Eberhard Winkler’s piece on”Evangelische Pfarrer und Pfarrerinnen in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland (1949-1989)”, the least historically and methodologically informed of all the contributions, was a refreshing reminder that history can be about people. Perhaps Winker could be faulted for his anecdotal approach, but I for one benefitted from his personal, engaged assessment of the challenges facing the Protestant clergy in West Germany before unification – and after. It is Winkler too whose concluding question provides a fitting close to the book: “Wie werden Menschen dazu bewegt, ihre geistigen und materiellen Gaben gemass (1 Peter: 4:10) als gute Haushalter der vielfaltigen Gnade Gottes in den Dienst zu stellen?” (p. 211) The reference to the New Testament and the content of 1 Peter 4:10 itself “As every man has received the gift, even so minister the same to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God”.remind us that, after all, a discussion of pastors is still a conversation about religion.By invoking scripture, Winkler highlights what is perhaps the most serious weakness of a purely social-historical approach to the study of Protestant pastors: that is, the way it excludes precisely the most absorbing and even urgent questions about religion. Economics,social class, relations with state authorities, education,professionalization, and religious institutions are only part of the story. What about belief, ritual, tradition, community, faith and spirituality? To address these components of the history of Christianity in Germany, one needs tools that allow access to the irrational, the emotional, and even the physical – tools that are more likely to come >from anthropology, cultural history and gender studies than from sociology and social history._Evangelische Pfarrer_ would have benefited from more careful editing. Some problems with breaks in words produced many cases of inappropriate hyphenation in the middle of lines. In addition to being distracting, non-words like “kon-ne”, “Bekennt-nisse” and”ba-dischen” (pp 89,93 and 121) create a postmodern or even Heideggerian effect that stands at odds with the book’s content. There is no index, and Janz’s essay is severely under-footnoted.Such quibbles aside, Schorn-Schutte and Sparn have put together a collection that will be useful to everyone concerned with Protestant clergy in the Kaiserreich, the Weimar Republic, or the post-World War II Germanies.Doris Bergen, University of Notre Dame(with apologies for the unavoidable omission of umlauts)

 

3) Journal Article: Ronald Webster, German “non-aryan” clergymen and the anguish of exile after 1933. in Journal of Religious History, (Sydney,Australia), Vol 22, no 1, Feb. 1998, pp 83-103.This article, based on oral and archival sources, comments on the lives in exile of a group of “non-aryan” pastors forced to flee to the U.K., Canada and USA to escape Nazi anti-Jewish persecution. It pays homage to the work of those who assisted the refugees, and explores the ways these testimonies open new ground for the the ongoing dialogue between Judaism and Christianity.

 

4) Whitsun in the South Tyrol. The village of Klobenstein sits halfway up the mountainside, high above the gorge of the River Etsch which hurtles down >from the Brenner Pass, past Bozen, Trent and Verona to the Italian plains.Nestled amongst surrounding meadows, in its midst is the village church – hardly larger than a chapel – where my wife and I went to celebrate the Coming of the Holy Spirit on Whitsunday.Like most of these ancient churches, it must have been a simple Gothic structure, but was later rebuilt during the baroque period,and now is surmounted by a onion-shaped steeple, whence two discordant bells unharmoniously summoned us to the Mass.Inside the apse was decorated with three large pictures under classical porticos, and the altar was moved forward, so that there wasn’t enough room for all the parishioners, especially on a major Festival like Pentecost. Many of them were obliged to stand throughout in the aisle, the narthex or even outside the west door.Luckily the sermon was short and simple, while in the gallery a wind and brass ensemble accompanied the Introit, Gloria and Creed with a tuneful folkloric setting. A lady parishioner read the Prayers of the People, invoking God’s aid for the tense political situation in Indonesia, which sounded very far from this peaceful Alpine village.We sang a hymn, which, since there were no hymn books, must have been well known to the villagers. But I did notice the young priest glowering at the congregation for not singing more enthusiastically. Afterwards everyone spilled out to the nearby coffee shop and Gasthaus to enjoy the bright sunlight.We walked back through the copses and fields, glowingly bursting with yellow buttercups, king cups, campion and blue violets. We crossed over the picturesque little tram line which loops and turns through the meadows. Every hour a tiny South Tyrolean “sky-train”trundles slowly between the farms and hamlets, as it has done ever since it was built in 1907.At the other end of the line is the settlement of Mary Ascension,where the wealthy merchants of Bozen have for centuries built their summer homes to escape >from the heat below. The only sounds were the calling of the cuckoos and the clanging of cow-bells. It was an idyllic rustic paradise.But it was not always so. Whenever the Etsch gorge was blocked by rock slides, floods or high waters, the only route open from north of the Alps necessitated ascending the hillsides to Klobenstein and then zig-zagging down the steep descent to Bozen far below. From Roman times onwards, thousands of merchants, soldiers, pilgrims and caravans trod the same paths we took on our way to church.Plundering armies invaded from north and south, looting the peasants’ cattle, and forcing them higher up into the mountains.Even in modern times, political turmoil has engulfed the area. Originally the South Tyrol was part of the Austrian Hapsburg Empire. But in 1919 it was awarded to Italy, in flagrant contradiction to President Wilson’s principle of self-determination.Under Mussolini, a vicious policy of “italianization” was launched -democratic rights were expunged, the German-speaking school system abolished, and place names forcibly changed. In 1939 Hitler and Mussolini signed a notorious agreement, giving the South Tyrolese the option, either of moving back to the German Reich to be rewarded with new lands conquered by the Nazi armies,or of compulsorily becoming Italian citizens, and even, it was said,of being evicted to Sicily if they disobeyed. This choice split the community apart, and the wounds still show. With Mussolini’s overthrow in 1943, the South Tyrol was seized by the Nazis, and hopes for a German future arose again, only to be dashed as the American and British armies “liberated” the territory in 1945. Demonstrations and sporadic violence against Italy’s rule continued until finally, some thirty years ago, the Italian government recognised the virtue of multiculturalism and restored most the German-speaking rights.The casualties in this long drawn-out struggle were high. On our way back to the hotel, we passed a memorial chapel dedicated to a young priest, Fr Peter Nuss Mayer, executed by the Nazis for refusing to take an oath of allegiance to the SS in 1945. Only a third of those who “opted” to go to Germany returned to their homes after the war. Despite the lushness of the meadows, economic realities make for difficult survival on these mountain slopes. Only embedded tradition and loyalty keeps this German-speaking minority attached to their homesteads.Across the valley looms the massive cliff face of the Schlern, rising a thousand feet precipitously from the valley floor. In the summer evenings, when the sun’s angle is right, the whole rock face turns a brilliant crimson – much to the delight of the tourists dining on the hotel terraces. Then the light fades, darkness falls, a night-bird calls,and the whole valley is silent, wrapped in the peace and grace of God. JSC

 

With every best wish for the summer holidays to you all,

 

John S.Conway

 

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

 

Newsletter- June 1999- Vol.V, no. 6 

Dear Friends,

 

Contents: 1) Renewed request for biographical and research information 2) New electronic website on theology 3) Journal for the History of Modern Theology/Zeitschrift fur neuere Theologiegeschichte contd: 4) Journal issue: Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte 5) Book reviews: a) A. Nagel, Martin Rade b) Collins, Methodism in Alabama 6) Book notes 7) Personalia

 

1) Some months ago, we made a request to members of this List to send in information about their research interests, and possibly some biographical details, including their academic affiliation, so that other members could be aware of new developments going on,and so that we could get to know each other better. Personally I find it highly frustrating to receive an E-mail message from some anonymous numbered account, which gives no indication of the location of the sender. But I rejoice in hearing about your endeavours. So far the response to our invitation has been modest. The results can be read on http://www.calvin.edu/academic/cas/bytw/conway.htm

 

I am most grateful to Randy Bytwerk, Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan for this help.

 

2) New electronic website on theology. Dr Charles Bellinger, Public Service Librarian, Regent College,Vancouver has compiled a comprehensive website which is now available. This is a selective, annotated guide to a wide variety of electronic resources of interest to those who are teaching or studying religion and theology at the undergraduate or graduate level. The basic principle of organization used here is the course area heading. Under these headings, one will find materials divided into types: syllabi, electronic texts, electronic journals,websites, bibliographies, listserv discussion groups, and for some pages, liturgical resources. In all the site contains several hundred pages. These material types may also be browsed on their own pages. Information is also provided on ways in which electronic resources may be integrated into teaching.The course areas listed, for example, are:Archaeology and Classics Biblical Studies Christianity; General and Historical periods Ethics, Society and Culture Philosophy and Religion:Introductory and General courses World Religions Any of these subjects can be easily traced, and the appropriate website brought to your screen. In some cases, you will find that material in print has been added electronically and can be read by this means. Under Christianity/Theologians, for example, I found an alphabetical list of theologians of all ages, with details of the various websites, listservs, and electronic documentation pertaining to each. Undoubtedly a most valuable resource to explore. Many thanks to Charles Bellinger.The route to follow is http://www.Wabash center.wabash.edu/Internet/front.htm

 

3) The Editor of the Journal for the History of Modern Theology,Dr Richard Crouter, asks for attention to be drawn to the Source Document section of this journal, which is one of its most distinctive features. “In this section we print hitherto unpublished collections of materials (letters, lectures, documentation) that pertain to the history of modern theology. Recent issues have included such material by Harnack, M.Dibelius, F.Gogarten and an extensive exchange of correspondence between Bultmann and Krueger. There are even some letters from D.Bonhoeffer and Albert Schweitzer. We would welcome English-language materials dealing with theological developments and connections in the twentieth century. We encourage submissions of documentation reaching beyond Protestantism to include Catholic, Judaic and secular material that bears on the history of modern theology.”

 

4) The latest issue of the journal Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte (ed.Prof. Gerhard Besier, Heidelberg) contains a 120-page bibliography of items in our field published in 1997-8, mainly but not exclusively in German. This is impressive of the activity going on, and we are grateful to the editors for making this listing.Unfortunately, because of cost, this bibliography will not be printed in KZG in future, but will still be available, either on their web-site, or by E-mail, or on a disk or computer off-print. If your library subscribes to this journal, perhaps you would want to alert the librarian to this new offer, which might otherwise be overlooked.This issue also contains an informative, if shocking, article by Prof B.Hamm, Erlangen, about the theological justification for German militarism and racism as seen in the work of the prominent Lutheran theologian Werner Elert during the period 1914-1945.Vera Bucker contributes a useful analysis of the various Declarations of Guilt issued in 1945 by the German and Austrian Catholic bishops, as well as the better-known Stuttgart Declaration issued by the leaders of Evangelical Church. Her comparative approach shows both the strengths and weaknesses portrayed in these documents.

 

5a) Anne C.Nagel, Martin Rade – Theologe und Politiker des Sozialen Liberalismus. Eine politische Biographie (Religiose Kulturen der Moderne, Bd 4) Gutersloh 1996 pp 336 DM 178 (The review appeared previously in the Journal for the History of Modern Theology, Vol 5, p 317-20) Ambiguous Visions and Ambivalent Politics Martin Rade as Political Theologian In February 1934, Martin Rade wrote a letter to Wilhelmvon Pechmann, the well known representative of the Protestant church who resigned from all his ecclesiastical offices shortly after the Nazis came to power, thus protesting against the treatment of the German Jews. Referring to von Pechmann’s plan publicly to declare his leaving of the Protestant church as a way of protest, Rade stated that not being prominent enough, such a step taken by himself would not be effective. However he pointed out that an appeal to the public was necessary. In the present situation, he wrote, if “Die Christliche Welt” published such an appeal, this would lead to self-sacrifice. Perhaps there was a time to “die beautifully” – “In Schonheit sterben” (p. 291) as he put it. But, he continued, the right occasion would have to be found first. However, neither the “Christliche Welt” nor Rade .committed such a self-sacrifice. Whereas von Pechmann left the Protestant Church in April 1934, Rade remained inactive. Criticising the Protestant church and her treatment of baptised Jews in private letters, he did not entirely condemn the state’s policies towards the Jews: “Wenn nun der Staat Krieg mit Juda fuhrt”, he wrote in a later letter to von Pechmann in February 1939.”so kann man sich nicht wundern, wenn es nach Kriegsbrauch geht. Aber die evangelische Kirche durfte von ihren Gliedern die Hand nicht lassen”. (p. 292) These two letters show that Rade’s evaluation of the Nazi dictatorship was inconsistent. His faith in Christian values and his partial consent to the new German state and its order – these were the contradictory extremes of Rade’s political thinking. Anne Christine Nagel’s political biography of Rade (1857-1940) unfortunately does not focus on these extremes. Her book attempts to present the political commitment of this prominent representative of civil culture protestantism in Imperial and Weimar Germany. In ten chapters she describes the development of Rade’s political commitment, focusing on his liberal ‘Gelehrtenpolitik’ before the first World War in the first four chapters and on his democratic convictions after 1918 in chapters 6 to 9. Chapter 5 discusses Rade’s political attitude in the first World War, which she sees as an important break. In chapter 10 the author uses Rade as an example for evaluating the “Grosse und Grenzen professoralen Engagements” (p. 267). However, in writing a political biography, Nagel’s aim is to correct the image of Rade having been rather unpolitical and interested mainly in religious affairs. Instead, Nagel is more concerned with Rade’s political concepts and social visions than with his personal or academic life. But since he was an influential university theologian, a member of numerous liberal organisations and the longtime editor of the”Christliche Welt”, she shows how well Rade fits into the category of ‘Gelehrtenpolitiker’. By focusing on Rade’s social role and his political action,Nagel attempts to reconstruct his political thinking, his ‘Weltbild'(p.19) and analyses closely his political writings. She has used a wide array of primary sources, including Rade’s articles in national and regional newspapers, his special war pamphlets, and of course the weekly issues of the “Christliche Welt”. She has also made use of his papers deposited in Marburg University Library, including his correspondence with colleagues and his brother-in-law Friedrich Naumann, personal notes and official university documents. Furthermore she used archival material of the various parties of which Rade was a member, the “Fortschrittliche Volkspartei” and the “Deutsche Demokratische Partei”. Thus the book is also a contribution to the history of German liberalism. as seen through the writings of one of its most prominent men. She pays especial attention to the first World War and sees the catastrophe of Germany’s defeat in 1918 as a significant caesura.Indeed, she claims that her book can be divided into two separate parts by that event. However it is doubtful whether this rather artificial and unoriginal division is convincing. This book is not easy to evaluate. Certainly, a new biography of Rade was long overdue. Focusing on Rade’s political thought is of special interest not only for theologians but also for historians. But it is doubtful whether one can agree with Nagel’s results. Her thesis is that his career was not a success story, but that his greatness lay in his continuous aim to preserve and spread constitutional principles, his fight for the existence of universal values and his consequent demand for democratic rights. To be successful or unsuccessful – is that really the question that counts in a political biography? In the following I will concentrate mainly on two aspects crucial for an assessment of Rade’s ‘Gelehrtenpolitik’: his political stance during World War I and his role in Nazi Germany. On the outbreak of the war, Rade – who had been a member of the ‘Deutsche Friedensgesellschaft’ since 1908 and had often pleaded for international understanding – was as enthusiastic as many other academics. While pacifism was important to Rade, it was outweighed by patriotism in his political thinking. Even though in July he had criticised the German policy, in the following month he greeted the war, which he perceived as an “Umwerter aller Werte” (p.144). Convinced that his fatherland had to fight ‘um Sein oder Nicht seen’, as the Kaiser had put it, Rade used his magazine to join the ‘Krieg der Geister’. Whereas some readers complained that his articles were not patriotic enough, some colleagues, and the young Karl Barth especially, strongly criticised his statements. However, Nagel rightly stresses that Rade remained a true patriot throughout the war, but also points out his ambivalences. On the one hand he stressed the importance of subscribing to war loans right up to October 1918. On the other hand, already in 1915 he had started to plead for peace by agreement. In his war articles, Rade frequently outlined his vision of a new German state. From August 1914 onwards, he was convinced that it would be possible to build a ‘Volksstaat’ that would integrate all classes (p.124). He therefore pleaded for domestic reforms. However, at that time, he did not aim for democracy; his political vision was for a constitutional monarchy,a state in which everyone would be able to fulfil his ‘Pflicht zur Politik’ for the sake of the community. But after the collapse of the Empire in November 1918, he accepted the new order and joined the newly founded Deutsche Demokratische Partei. In the Weimar Republic Rade took part in the discussions about important reform projects, i.e. for reforming the Protestant church and the university system. He commented on political scandals. However, he also took a nationalist stance on Germany’s future international position, or on the need for internal renewal. He critically reviewed Hitler’s ‘Mein Kampf’ – but not until 1932. When the Nazis took power in 1933 Rade reacted optimistically and saw a new beginning (p.247) He eventually excused the SA’s brutality saying that a “Revolution” [sic] (p.248)was always brutal. Though he himself became a victim being dismissed in November 1933 – aged 76 -, Rade concluded”Wir konnten den Rad nicht in die Speichen fallen” (p.254) and remained politically inactive. Being unable to let “Die Christliche Welt” ‘die beautifully’, he evaluated the political situation in private letters. Condemning antisemitism and helping Jews secretly, he nonetheless considered them to be a social problem.Protestants in general aimed at helping to find a solution to what was called the ‘Judenfrage’. They pleaded for a re-christianisation of society to have a more perfect ‘Volksgemeinschaft’ and thus legitimised cultural exclusion of minorities. Rade greeted the Nuremberg Laws as a legal regulation that was long overdue. Now the ‘Loesung der Judenfrage’ (p.257) finally had a legal basis However, given the fact that these laws applied only to Jews, Rade considered it necessary to point out that the problem arose when ‘our baptised Christian children’ were forced to attend Jewish schools. Regarding the ‘Judenproblem’ as solved, he invented the’Halbjudenproblem’ and quickly offered the solution: Emigration. It becomes obvious that – contrary to Nagel’s contention – Rade was actually more concerned with the ecclesiastical than with political affairs. Equality before God – for Rade the sine qua non -and inequality before the law could exist in parallel. Rade did not question the Nuremberg Laws at all. Writing in this sense to von Pechmann in 1935, Pechmann in his answer stated his ‘schmerzliche Uberraschung’ (p.259) about Rade’s rather naive and uncritical attitude. The reader may be painfully surprised too, after noting Nagel’s conclusion that Rade continually aimed at spreading democratic ideas. According to her, Rade was a ‘republiktreuer, aber gleichwohl kritischer Publizist’ (p.265) who did not, however, see the danger arising in the Nazi movement. Having presented so many examples of his partial opposition and partial support of the regime, i.e. for the ‘Ambivalenz’ (p.149) of his thinking and actions, Nagel unintelligibly tries to save morally what cannot be saved objectively and ought not to be saved scientifically: the ‘good’ Rade. But whether he was good or not is as unimportant as whether his biography was ‘successful’ or not, because such criteria do not apply here. It has long been proved that, referring to Protestants especially, one cannot clearly distinguish between supporters and opponents of the Third Reich. Years before Nagel wrote her biography, it had already been stressed that the three basic elements of Protestant concepts of culture – the emphasis on the individual personality, the longing for cultural homogeneity and the ideal of the state as the guarantor of cultural values(“Kulturstaat’) – were important factors explaining the ambiguity of the Protestants varied attitudes towards Nazism and thus towards the ‘Judenfrage’. As F.W.Graf has noted, Protestants shared a paradoxical and simultaneous proximity and distance to the Nazi state.Characteristic was the combination of partial opposition to the racist parts of the Nazi ideology and a partial support of the new and strong state. Because they saw the state as the end-product of all values and the guarantor of the people’s unity, many liberal Protestants found it impossible to defend human rights against the state when they became endangered. Given that the basic elements of cultural Protestantism demanded resistance as much as forbidding it, only individual case studies could lead to further knowledge about how far liberal protestant mentalities were translated into social action. Being such a case study, Nagel’s book would have been more convincing if she had focused on this specific ambiguity.Instead she aims at giving a definitive interpretation where definite statements can hardly be given and thus misses that chance that writing an analysis of Rade’s multi-dimensional political views offered. Her political biography is an interesting and partly very detailed presentation of this academic’s political life. However, by neglecting the question of ambiguity, her book does not quite match the new research. If Nagel had had a look at war pamphlets in general, she would have noticed that academics in general, and Protestant theologians especially, were open to integrative anti-capitalistic and corporative ideologies. Indeed: Socialism and war-Socialism became common terms during the war, and the combination of nationalism and socialism was a widespread subject. This is why liberal Protestants, irrespective of their political views, were so susceptible to Nazism, because of their specific openness or adaptability to ideologies that offered an integral community. Based on collective devotion to the common good, such ideologies promised to overcome the scorned modernity. Being torn between his liberal values and his longing for a renaissance of a strong and powerful Germany, Martin Rade, as a political theologian, represents the ‘Gelehrtenpolitiker’ whose ambiguous visions and ambivalent politics marked ‘the decline of the German mandarins’ .(F.K.Ringer)                                                                           Steffen Bruendel, University of Bielefeld

 

b) Donald E.Collins, When the Church bells ran racist. The Methodist Church and the Civil Rights Movement in Alabama.Macon,Georgia: Mercer University Press 1998 xii +178 pp. As a young Methodist minister, Donald Collins served in southern Alabama during the height of the anti-segregation conflict in the 1950s and ’60s. He has now set down his personal recollections, aided by interviews with several former colleagues,in order to describe the attitudes and actions of the Methodist Church, and the agony and tragedy in which they were all involved. Collins’ stance is one of repentance for the failure of the Methodists of the Alabama-West Florida Conference to take a stronger stand earlier in the cause of justice for all. In particular he is critical of the church hierarchy for its absolute determination to defend the status quo and the supremacy of the dominant white group. The Methodist Layman’s Union, closely parallelling the White Citizens’ Council, opposed any relaxation of segregation and sought to prevent either the sudden or gradual integration of Negroes and whites. Interestingly, however, they did not try to defend this stance on theological grounds. The white clergy were, of course, in a difficult and exposed position. Their views and actions were subject to intense surveillance, and any hint of sympathy with the blacks could and did bring down immediate threats to have them evicted, or the loss of salary. Intimidation of such “nigger-lovers” was openly practised.It took immense courage to persevere, and Collins admits that many of his colleagues preferred to keep silent. The most active -including the author himself – were often quickly exhausted and opted to leave the ministry and take up secular jobs. Not even knowledge of overwhelming support from other sections of the church and the rest of the world could sustain them for long. Most congregations, however, accepted the tradition of injustices suffered by the black community as beyond contention. Even when lawless mobs brutalized the freedom riders in Birmingham and Montgomery, the church was silent. Its leaders expressed no outrage, and made no call for respect of law and order. The church bells rang racist. Collins describes the tense events of 1963-4 when education facilities in Alabama were finally integrated, and Methodists at last got round to removing the structures of segregation which had long prevailed in the church. But in Alabama-West Florida, Methodists remained bastions of resistance. Not until 1972 was the Alabama Methodist Church finally de-segregated. But even today, no black minister has ever been appointed to a white congregation. And racial integration has led to difficulties for both black and white members. The loss of qualified black ministers to more friendly conferences, the flight of white congregations to all-white suburbs and the closing of inner-city churches where inter-racial partnerships are most needed are disturbing features of the present scene. Although no longer serving as a Methodist minister,Collins writes with insight and sympathy for those who upheld the cause of reform at the most crucial time. His reportage and his witness as a Zeitzeuge are both insightful and valuable. But he continues to fear that in Alabama the church bells still ring racist.JSC

 

6) Book notes:a) ed. Frank J.Coppa, Encyclopedia of the Vatican and Papacy,Westport,Conn: Greenwood Press 1999 483pp ISBN 0-313-28917-4 US $99.50. This is a useful reference work, particularly good for its up-to-date biographies of all the Popes, each entry having an attached bibliography.

 

b) Peter Beier, Missionarische Gemeinde in sozialistischer Umwelt. Die kirchentagskongressarbeit in Sachsen im Kontext der SED-Kirchenpolitik (1968-1975) Gottingen: Vandenhoek & Ruprecht 1999 514pp DM 128

 

c) Last December the World Council of Churches celebrated the 50th anniversary of its establishment in 1948 during its 8th Assembly, held in Harare, Zimbabwe. The Assembly’s setting and deliberations have been incisively described in a 65 page booklet,entitled Journey Together Towards Jubilee, written by Martin Conway, who is distributing this from 303 Cowley Road, Oxford,U.K., price GBP 2.50, tel and fax +44(0)1865-723085.

 

d) eds. Gunter Brakelmann, Norbert Friedrich, Traugott Jahnichen,Auf dem Weg zum Grundgesetz. Beitrage zum Verfassungsverstandnis des neuzeitlichen Protestantismus.(Entwurfe zur christlichen Gesellschaftswissenschaft Vol.10)Munster: LIT Verlag 1999. 281pp ISBN 3-8258-4224-x This collection of essays describing the inter-relationship between the German Evangelical Church and the various successive constitutions since 1789 will be of interest primarily to church legal historians. Others will find the two essays by G. Brakelmann on the 5th article of the 1934 Barmen Declaration,and on the 1942 Freiburger Denkschrift, as well as Friedrich and Jahnichen’s essay on Gerhard Leibholz and Gerhard Ritter to be helpful in bringing out the atmosphere of the war and immediate post-war years. Like most such collections, the reader will need a good indexing system to remember and find the gold nuggets contained herein.

 

7) Personalia On April 25th, in Berlin’s French Cathedral, Archbishop Desmond Tutu was awarded the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Prize in recognition of his work for human rights and his leadership of South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission.In his acceptance speech, Tutu spoke of the power of reconciliation and pointed out that many of the victims of apartheid had chosen to forgive their oppressors, despite the terrible atrocities reported by the 20,000 victims interviewed. * **The first woman to hold a professorship in Catholic theology at a German university, Frau Uta Ranke-Heinemann, is being proposed as a candidate for the next Presidential election by the Party of Democratic Socialism. Since the era of the Vietnam war, she has been a prominent anti-war activist and a leader of Germany’s pacifist movement. Her father Gustav Heinemann served as German President from 1969 to 1974, having earlier been a leading lawyer for the Confessing Church in Essen during the Nazi period.

 

With very best wishes

 

John Conway

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

Newsletter- May 1999- Vol. V, no. 5 

Dear Friends,
Contents: 1) Obituary: Dr L. Siegele-Wenschkewitz
2) Forthcoming Conference: 30th Annual Conference on the Holocaust and the
Churches, March 4th – 7th
3) Book reviews:
a) S. Selinger, C.v. Kirschbaum and K. Barth
b) E. Voegelin, Hitler and the Germans c) N. Railton, German Evangelicals and
Third Reich
4)Book notes:
a) A. Lindemann, Esau’s Tears
b) B. Chiari, Alltag hinter der Front
c) ed.P. Smith, After the Wall
d) Kretschmar, Das bischoefliche Amt
e) Mensing, Pfarrer und Nationalsozialismus
5)Journal articles:
a) R. Shaffer, Japanese Internees
b) G. Besier, East German Churches
c) B. Schafer, East German Catholics
6) Correction: H. Kreutzer, Reich Church Ministry
7)Technical Note   1) It is with great regret that we learn of the recent death of Frau Dr
Leonore Siegele-Wenschkewitz (1944-1999) in Frankfurt, Germany. As a former
associate of the late Professor Klaus Scholder in Tubingen, she developed a
keen interest in the history of the Church Struggle, and published her
researches on this topic, most notably in her valuable study ‘Theologische
Fakultaeten im Nationalsozialismus’, Goettingen 1993. From 1983 she worked
as Moderator of Studies at the Evangelical Academy in Arnoldshain, near
Frankfurt, of which she became the Director in 1996. The numerous
conferences and seminars she helped to organize there played a significant
role in the life of the church in western Germany. At the same time she was
an adjunct professor at Frankfurt University, when she had an opportunity to
express her interest in the role of women in the church
She served for many years as a member of the Evangelical Church’s Board for
Contemporary History, and since 1988 was its vice-chairman. In view of the
sad illness of the chairman, she was called on to take a very active role in
the Board’s affairs in the last year of her life.
In 1999 she was awarded the Edith Stein Prize, and was fortunately able to
go to Gottingen to receive this honour and to deliver an appropriate speech
in recognition of Edith Stein on this occasion.

2) The 30th Annual Scholars’ Conference on the Holocaust and the Churches
will be held at St. Joseph’s University and the Adams Mark Hotel,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from Saturday, March 4th to Tuesday, March 7th.
The key note address on Sunday, March 5th will be delivered by Elie Wiesel.
Registration and information can be obtained from the Annual Scholars’
Conference, P.O.Box 10, Merion Station, Pa 19066, FAX 610-667-0265.   3a) Suzanne Selinger, Charlotte von Kirschbaum and Karl Barth. A Study in
Biography and the History of Theology. University Park, Penn: Penn.State
U.P. 1998. 206pp
Female theologians are still a rarity: how much more so seventy years ago!
The career of Charlotte von Kirschbaum, secretary and theological assistant
to Karl Barth for over thirty years, has long intrigued, and sometimes
scandalized, admirers of the most prominent Protestant theologian of the
20th century. Feminists have long accused Barth of exploiting “Lollo”, as
she was always known, and Suzanne Selinger, herself an accomplished
theological writer, shares a lot of the anger at what she sees as Barth’s
selfishness in not promoting von Kirschbaum’s own career. On the other hand,
Lollo herself was an intelligent, devoted and faithful interpreter of Barth’s often complex theology and accepted, apparently willingly, her
indispensable role as part of his household.
Suzanne Selinger recognizes that the secrets of their personal relationship
are hardly recoverable and instead seeks to elucidate more about their
professional links. She regrets that Lollo only published a small amount on
her own account, but senses in this accomplishment signs of the kind of
influence she may have had in her daily discussions with Barth. Selinger
rightly sees that, in order to achieve the kind of theological writing in
which he excelled, and especially in his great work _Church Dogmatics_,
Barth needed a dialogical partner – someone to function as sounding board
and, most characteristically, someone with whom to think things through. In
his earlier career, Eduard Thurneysen had played this role. But after Barth
moved to Germany, and needed more direct assistance in his academic affairs,
it was only natural that he should seek out someone whose sympathy for his
ideas and understanding of his mental processes and doctrinal positions, was
matched by an incredible capacity for more humdrum tasks. Not only did Lollo
type out Barth’s drafts, answer his letters, “manage” his students, organize
his timetable of meetings, lectures and speaking engagements, but even found
time to compile a vast collection of useful excerpts from a huge variety of
Christian writers, which could then be turned to at will.
Selinger is particularly good at tracing Lollo’s nuanced view of gender
issues, in the light of the christologically-based anthropology she shared
with, or adopted from, Barth. She certainly rejected the patriarchal view of
much of her German tradition-bound society, as also the romanticized view of
women as inherently dependent on men, or alternatively more religious than
man. Such stereotyping had to be rejected in favour of the kind of
relational existence of both men and women in response to God’s command.
In the later chapters, Selinger examines closely Barth’s doctrines of the
image of God, the gender question and his innovative theories of dialogical
personalism. Lollo’s contribution to such ideas is impossible to unravel,
but Selinger clearly believes she played a significant role in their
eventual formulation, especially in stressing the creativity of women,
including a mutual fellowship in the constructive building of community. To
understand all this, a close acquaintance with _Church Dogmatics_ is
recommended.
Charlotte von Kirschbaum was criticized, both in her time and since, by
feminists unable to comprehend her spiritual approach, who saw only
exploitation of her undoubted gifts by the dominant male. Yet she chose to
be freely herself for Barth – a perfect realisation of I – Thou
relationship. It was a one-sided partnership, yet clearly rewarding for
both. Perhaps, as Selinger suggets, Barth’s need to have Lollo’s constant
presence was the result of a weakness, a loneliness, which demanded the
company of the other. Her legacy is to be found buried in his comprehensive
theological work. It is not therefore to be disparaged.
JSC   3b) Eric Voegelin. Hitler and the Germans. Columbia: University of Missouri
Press, 1999.
This book is based on lectures Eric Voegelin gave at the University of
Munich in 1964, that are being published now for the first time. The
lectures were given in German, and they have been ably edited and translated
into English by Detlev Clemens and Brendan Purcell.
In this work, Voegelin seeks to address questions such as these: What were
the spiritual conditions in Germany which allowed Hitler to rise to power
and gain the support of so many average people?, Why did the Christian
churches respond to Nazism so weakly?, How did a regime rooted in illegality
and murder take over the legal system in Germany?, Why do intellectuals and
academics in Germany after the war have such a poor understanding of Nazism
as a spiritual phenomenon?, Why are many former Nazis who are war criminals
living openly and prospering in Germany after the war?
Those who are already familiar with Voegelin’s philosophy will find here the
basic concepts which he has developed elsewhere: human existence occurs “in
between” materiality and the transcendent realm of God; human beings have a
marked tendency to avoid living honestly with this reality of the “between”;
this leads them to create false “second realities” in which they attempt to
exist autonomously, apart from God; the flight from reality has led to the
modern neo-gnostic regimes of mass murder such as Stalinism and Nazism. In
these lectures, Voegelin focuses on the historical circumstances of Nazism,
making this volume more concrete and accessible than his other more abstract
and philosophical writings, which have a tendency toward dense argument and
complex terminology. This volume would serve very well as an introduction to
Voegelin for someone who has not read him.
There is a clear undercurrent of anger animating this text, which is
understandable given Voegelin’s personal history of persecution at the hands
of the Nazis. Voegelin doesn’t allow his anger to derail his central
purpose, however, which is to analyze the various dimensions of the “abyss”
into which Germany descended: the academic abyss, the ecclesiastical abyss,
and the legal abyss. In the academic realm, Voegelin’s principal target of
attack is P. E. Schramm, the historian who edited Hitler’s Table Talk.
Voegelin pillories Schramm for producing an “anatomy” of the dictator which
reveals a fundamental lack of understanding of the subject. This lack of
understanding is reprehensible in Voegelin’s eyes because the intellectual
tools needed for correct understanding were available to Schramm–in
classical philosophy, biblical theology, and the writings of contemporaries
such as Karl Kraus, Robert Musil, Thomas Mann, Hermann Broch, and Heimito
von Doderer.
Voegelin comments on the ecclesiastical situation in two substantial
chapters which are devoted to the Catholic and Protestant spheres. In each
case his critique is very harsh, emphasizing the idea that most Christians
knew of the persecution of the Jews by the Nazis and either applauded it or
did not care about it as long as they themselves were not being persecuted.
When the reach of the Nazis’ power did begin to negatively impact the
churches, then Christians all of sudden began to realize that they should be
concerned about their fellow human beings who are being murdered. Voegelin
reveals the narcissism at the root of this morale debacle as a massive
failure of the Christian church to hold fast to the central biblical
teaching regarding the creation of all people in the image of God. On pages
199-201, Voegelin puts forward a list of ten biblical and philosophical
points which are necessary to teach German clerics and theologians “the
elements of Christianity.” His wish for the use of this list: “Lower clergy,
copy it out daily ten times; bishops and theologians, daily a hundred times;
theologians who have received a Cross of Merit from the Federal Republic,
daily two hundred times until they have got it.”
Voegelin’s anger and sarcasm make the book lively, but they don’t set the
stage for a balanced and comprehensive historical account. He pays very
little attention to the Confessing Church, for example, mentioning
Bonhoeffer only in passing and Karl Barth not even once. His judgment that
there was “no good theology” being produced in Germany at the time seems
very odd in light of Barth’s works (162). But in hindsight, the impact of
the Confessing Church was minimal in stemming the tide of Nazism, and
Voegelin’s portrait of the situation is generally accurate. I make this
comment without being a historian of that period myself. I would be very
interested to read a review of this work written by such a person. It may be
that members of the historical guild will not be as favorable in their
attitude toward this work as I am, representing the guild of theological
ethics.
Charles Bellinger, Regent College, Vancouver   3c) Nicholas Railton, The German Evangelical Alliance and the Third Reich.
An analysis of the ‘Evangelisches Allianzblatt’, Bern: Peter Lang 1998, pp.
265 £27
Railton, who has already written an assessment of the German Free Churches
and the Third Reich, has now produced this revealing study of the German
Bible belt. Consisting of about one million adherents in the 1930s, and
stretching from the Saxon Erzgebirge through Thuringia and Hessen to Baden
and Wuerttemberg, it gave a depressingly rosy response to Hitlerism as a
force standing for ‘positive Christianity’. Railton shows us quite clearly
how much German evangelicalism (‘evangelikal’ used in its Anglo-American
sense can be dated only as far back as 1965) in its modern phase, beginning
with the loose inter-denominational Gnadau Association (1897) of Lutheran,
Reformed and United Church evangelicals and their new missionary press
(1890: c. 5,000), owed to the early modern and habitual German home-town
environment and mentality of Pietism, Moravianism and early
nineteenth-century Revivalism. Wilhelmine and Weimar successors, simply put,
could not adapt either spiritually or morally to the challenges posed by our
modern industrial age. It appears also that authoritarian political values
investing the ‘state’ and those who ran it with an almost divine aura
over-rode a religious ethos associated with being ‘born again’. The ideals
of 1789, western Liberalism, Marxism, Bolshevism, post-1918 democratic
republicanism and an alleged Jewish ‘materialism’ were lumped together, with
not so much as the odd tweak of conscience, as poisons. These supposedly
contaminated a German muscular evangelical post-1918 culture which drew its
main inspiration from the recent hurrah patriotism of Bismarck’s Second
Reich, and the ‘ we-are-so-hard-done-by’ interwar German Nationalist Party.
It does seem extremely odd today, that the two years 1933 and 1934, marking
Nazi ‘co-ordination’, should be seen by the German Free Churches and
evangelicals as giving far greater freedoms and opportunities than the years
of the Weimar Republic, which had awarded the Christian Churches and other
religions freedoms and financial support on a scale unheard of in Germany
before 1918. It repays to read again and again, however bleak one’s frame of
mind, this German ‘evangelical’ way of thinking and speaking during 1930-3.
Railton summarizes it in the following way: ‘Hitler talked of “God”, “the
Lord” and “Providence”, so now they began to talk of the “Zeitenwende”, the
“nationaler Aufbruch” and “Vorsehung”. The language of the Third Reich was
already becoming the language of German evangelicalism’ (p.27) Chapter vi,
‘Evangelical social concerns’, and chapter vii, ‘The Jewish question’,
recording adulation for Hitler as Mr Clean, and overt evangelical support
for Nazi public moral hygiene, meaning clearing the streets of pimps,
prostitutes, homosexuals, Jews and assorted riff-raff, and approval of Nazi
anti-abortion policy, pile a murky Pelion upon Ossa. The teaching of the
Bible, purged, one might add, of the Old Testament, seems to have been
completely dispensed with.
Nicholas Hope. (This review appeared first in the Journal of Ecclesiastical
History, July 1999, p. 612-3)   Book notes:   4a) A.S.Lindemann, Esau’s Tears: Modern anti-semitism and the rise of the
Jews, Cambridge University Press 1997. 568pp
The object of this large-scale history of anti-semitism is basically to take
issue with the prevailing view found in simplistic surveys such as those by
D.Goldhagen or Lucy Dawidowicz, which have blamed outside forces, including
the Christian church, for this phenomenon. Lindemann instead seeks to
advance the polemical and provocative view that some aspects at least of
this intolerance were due to the Jews’ own behaviour and their “rise”.
On the historical role of the Church, Lindemann makes the following
statement:
“One can unquestionably pinpoint Christian tendencies towards demonizing
Jews, but such tendencies are balanced by others. The evidence is hardly
persuasive that within Christian belief is contained a strongly determined
predisposition, drawing in all Christians, to violent hatred of Jews. In
modern times Christian peoples have differed enormously in their reactions
to Jews, from mild philo-Semitism to murderous loathing. This range of
sentiment cannot be convincingly connected to various traits within
varieties of Christianity, whether Catholic, Protestant, or Greek Orthodox,
sincere or lax, popular or elite.. . . Religion, though often seen as the
ultimate or fundamental source of anti-Semitism, is too elastic and
ambiguous a category to offer much more than conjectural, ahistorical and
woolly explanations, in which the preconceptions and emotional agendas of
the authors play a decisive role.” (p.xvi)   b) B.Chiari, Alltag hinter der Front. Besatzung, Kollaboration und
Widerstand in Weissrussland 1941-1944 Dusseldorf, Droste Verlag 1998
This belated study of the German occupation of White Russia (Byelorussia)
has a few pages dealing with the role of the church under Nazi rule
(pp103ff). As in the Ukraine, the initial hopes for deliverance >from the
Communists led to exaggerated expectations amongst the upper Orthodox clergy
which were soon enough disillusioned. As for the Catholics, who constituted
some 20%, they were always regarded as hostile, and were treated
accordingly. This is another mosaic in the wider picture of the fate of the
Soviet churches which still remains to be written up. But B.Chiari has
researched the Russian sources thoroughly as far as this aspect of his topic
goes.   c) ed. Patricia Smith, After the Wall. Eastern Germany since 1989,
Boulder,Colo. Westview Press, 1998
Detlef Pollack, a sociologist who teaches at Frankfurt an der Oder,
contributes a chapter on the situation of religion since 1989, which draws
on various interviews and samples to show that in fact the differences
between religious practices and beliefs in east and west Germany are not all
that great. Despite 40 years of deliberate secularization, the churches
survive, though noticeably weaker in eastern Germany. On the other hand the
anticipated loss to other faiths or cults has not happened. The expectations
of what the churches should be like are similar, and the level of
commitment, as for example to be seen in baptism or confirmation, are
remarkably constant, but can not lend comfort to those who had hoped that
the end of Communism would see a re-christianisation of the east German
society.   d) Georg Kretschmar, Das bischoefliche Amt. Gottingen: Vandenhoeck &
Ruprecht 1999 355pp
The former Professor of Church History in Hamburg and Munich, and
subsequently the bishop of the revived Lutheran Church in the Baltic States,
has contributed these studies in the episcopal office which cover the office
of the bishop in the Early Church, its rediscovery and renewal of the
ministry during the Reformation era, and its ecumenical relevance.

e) The study by Bjorn Mensing, Pfarrer und Nationalsozialismus, which was
reviewed here by Prof.Gerhard Besier in November 1998, has now achieved a
second edition with a new publisher, Verlag C. u. C. Rabenstein, Bayreuth.
The author has taken the opportunity to make suitable corrections in the
light of a vigorous response, extending >from helpful additions by surviving
eye-witnesses to personal attacks and threats of legal action, even
anonymous denunciations.   5) Journal articles:   Jacques Kornberg, Ignaz von Dollinger’s Die Juden in Europa: A Catholic
Polemic against Antisemitism, in Journal for the History of Modern
Theology/Zeitschrift fur neuere Theologiegeschichte, Vol. 6 no 2, 1999,
pp.223-245
Kornberg, a professor at Toronto, brings to light a long forgotten lecture
given in 1881 by this most distinguished Bavarian academic, who
unfortunately had been excommunicated by the Vatican for his opposition to
the policies of Pope Pius IX. Kornberg sees this attack on the kind of
vulgar anti-Judaism in one persistent strain of Catholic thought as part of
Dollinger’s overall campaign against the ultramontane authoritarianism being
imposed by Rome. On the other hand, Dollinger still adhered to the kind of
triumphalism which looked forward to the eventual voluntary conversion of
Jews to (liberal) Christianity. The sentiments expressed are very
reminiscent of those adopted 8o years later at the 2nd Vatican Council, and
contributed to Dollinger’s recent
rehabilitation.   Robert Shaffer, Opposition to Internment. Defending Japanese American rights
during World War II, in The Historian, Vol 61, no. 3, Spring 1999, 597ff
This article describes the small number of sympathizers with the Japanese
Americans interned in 1942, often pastors and missionaries, who had some
contact with these congregations on the American West Coast, and sought to
alleviate their plight.   Gerhard Besier, The German Democratic Republic and the State Churches,
1958-1989,
in Journal of Ecclesiastical History, Vol 50, no 3, July 1999, p. 523ff
Designed to bring to an English audience the results of Prof.Besier’s
enormous volume of research into the fate of the East German churches under
Communist rule, this article is a valuable if much abbreviated summary. For
those who want to explore further, the footnotes give useful help.   Bernd Schaefer, State and Catholic Church in Eastern Germany, 1945-1989, in
German Studies Review, Vol. XXII, no 3, October 1999, p. 447ff
A useful summary of the Catholic Church’s position, on similar lines to the
previous item.   6) Correction: Following our notice in last November’s Newsletter of Heike
Kreutzer’s 1993 MA thesis on the establishment of the Reich Church Ministry
in 1935, the author has now kindly sent us her more recently completed PhD
thesis from Tuebingen University on the same topic, which is to be published
later this year. She has expanded her earlier work with a full analysis of
the documentation relating to the Church Ministry, which was for so long
unavailable in East German archives. Although her treatment essentially
stops in 1938, she again emphasizes her view that the Ministry’s failure and
its fate was already decided by that date. Her researches confirm in detail
what was already known – that the Minister, Hanns Kerrl, was an impulsive,
semi-educated, naive and bungling politician. Moreover, he was incessantly
caught in the cross-fire between the rival church camps, especially in the
Evangelical Churches, on the one side, and at the same time, sabotaged by
his supposed colleagues in the Nazi Party, who were much more skillful than
he at interpreting Hitler’s often contradictory tactics towards the
churches.
Kerrl started from the “idealist” position that the Churches and the Nazi
Party should be integrated more closely together. “True Christianity and
true National Socialism are identical” was typical of his approach, which
was found to be absurd not only by orthodox churchmen, but also by the Party
radicals. While Kerrl sought to bring the churches under state control, the
Party radicals sought to diminish or even to abolish them. Kerrl found his
only support in a handful of “German Christians”, but already by 1937, he
had been effectively outmanouevred and his grandiose plans aborted.
Heike Kreutzer’s contribution is to document the lamentable career of this
hapless Nazi minister in a manner which will not need to be done again. Her
viewpoint is not new, and suffers from a considerable amount of repetition.
Especially revealing is her account of the extent to which Kerrl was unable
to gain the loyalty of his own staff, which included at least three
clergymen regularly reporting on his actvities to the Gestapo. The official
in charge of Catholic affairs, a renegade priest, was a determined opponent
of the Concordat, and organized an extensive campaign to weaken the Catholic
Church’s institutional life, thus playing into the hands of the Nazi
extremists. On the Protestant side, the ministry’s officials did seem to
have more sympathy for their “clients’, but again proved ineffective against
the increasingly anti-church and anti-clerical camp led by Bormann, Goebbels
and Rosenberg.
Ms Kreutzer clearly shows how this Ministry and its officials were part of
the internecine rivalries within the Nazi power structures, which in the end
led to its complete subordination and failure. It would be nice to think
that this misbegotten attempt to use state power to manipulate and coerce
the churches had been defeated by the churches’ united resistance against
such unwanted provocation. But the evidence shows that this was not the
case. Not only did the Catholic Church, for example, welcome the close
association with the state by signing the Concordat with Hitler in 1933, but
successfully campaigned to have it upheld again in West Germany in the
1950s. And the experience in East Germany, where the Ministry for Church
Affairs, reappeared in a communist guise, was to prove equally lamentable on
both the state’s and the churches’part. It was not a chapter of church
history to be proud of.   7) Technical Note:
This Newsletter comes to you free, gratis and without cost. Anyone who is
genuinely interested in contemporary church history is welcome to subscribe,
whether or not they have teaching responsibilities in this area. As of
January 2000, we have 275 subscribers, whose geographical location is as
follows:
USA 103, Canada 61, Germany 44, U.K. 22, Australia 10, Sweden 4, Norway 3,
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Poland, Austria, Ireland, Hungary, Finland 1 each, and a few in cyberspace.
The subscribers’ list is NOT made available to any other agency or
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Written contributions or comments are most welcome and can be forwarded to
me at the address below.
Anyone desiring to unsubscribe should also so indicate to me, and not to the
list in general.   With best wishes
John S.Conway
jconway@interchange.ubc.ca

Association of Contemporary Church Historians

(Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Zeitgeschichtler)

John S. Conway, Editor. University of British Columbia

 

Newsletter- April 1999- Vol.V, no. 4 

Newsletter – Vol V, no 4 – April 1999

 

Dear Friends,

 

Contents: 1) Book reviews: a) Jehovah’s Witnesses b) Brewer,Anti-Catholicism in N.Ireland c) Chandler, Terrible Alternative d) Recker, Bishop Berning 2) Thesis abstract: Jeff Zalar 3) Journal articles in Religion, State and Society 4) New books noted

 

1a) Hans Hesse (ed), Am mutigsten waren immer die Zeugen Jehovahs: Verfolgung und Widerstand der Zeugen Jehovahs im Nationalsozialismus, Bremen:Edition Temmen 1998, 447pp. DM48Klaus-Dieter Pape, Die Angstmacher: Wer (ver)fuehrt die ZeugenJehovahs?, Leipzig: St.Benno-Verlag 1998, 282 pp DM 26.80. Jehovah’s Witnesses (Watchtower Society) are a small Christian religious association with a history of over a 100 years’ activity in Germany. Today, they number more than 5 million believers world-wide. During the past five years, they have repeatedly made headlines in Germany because of their efforts – up to now unsuccessful – to gain the status of a corporation under public law.During both dictatorships, the J.Ws displayed remarkable resistance, and consequently suffered many casualties. In the early nineties, they went on the offensive in Germany, not only with respect to their legal status, but also by modifying the way they handle their own past. They became more open, co-operating with outside historians wishing to do research and pushing ahead some of their own historical projects. At the same time they modified their doctrines in some important areas. Unfortunately, these new social initiatives only stirred up latent prejudices and antagonisms still in existence among the major churches and other groups. So when in 1997 the J.Ws produced a video documentary entitled “Jehovah’s Witnesses Stand Firm against Nazi Assault”, emotions flared up. The Schulpsychologische Dienst (Centre for Educational Psychology)in Bremen circulated a somewhat awkwardly phrased letter,stating: “Although no doubt Jehovah’s Witnesses suffered torture,imprisonment and even death in the concentration camps under the Nazi regime, using this video documentary in schools cannot be recommended, because doing so would provide this sect with an opportunity to gain publicity for their organization.”When Jehovah’s Witnesses protested, the letter was withdrawn.But the Schulpsychologische Dienst would not drop its reservations. “The situation is complicated since the video documentary is about a religious association which is understandably interested not only in publicising their persecution but also their history, doctrines and organization”.Of course the fact that other films about the conduct of the churches during the Third Reich have been produced for as long as anyone can remember, films which also do not restrict themselves to the subject of persecution, is often conveniently ignored. The official institutions responsible for the approval of media for schools consulted six experts, including two “sect experts” from the major churches. The result was their decision not to let the film”get into the hands of pupils” and to recommend against distribution.Part B of Hesse’s book examines in detail the aspects of the film being criticised. One scholar in religious studies, not a member of the J.Ws, came to the conclusion: “In the light of Auschwitz and the Holocaust, if such an example of Christian integrity by a community of faith had not existed, then the credibility of Jesus’ teachings would have been put in doubt.” A “vindication” of Christianity by, of all people, the scorned J.Ws! Neither of the major churches can claim this distinction. Still, the facts speak for themselves. After some early attempts to adjust to the new”national conditions” in Nazi Germany, the J.Ws fiercely resisted all Nazi attempts to suborn their religious convictions.The first part of Hesse’s book reports that almost half of the 25,000 J.Ws in Germany suffered imprisonment or torture. More than 2000 were sent to concentration camps, where 250 were subsequently executed. Next to the Jews, the J.Ws statistically paid the highest price in terms of lives lost. There were solid reasons for this: “No other religious association resisted National Socialist pressure to conform with comparable unity and uncompromising character”. The reason why the fate of this group, persecuted with such animalistic force, has not been examined for over 50 years, is,according to Dietlef Garbe, historian and director at the Neuengamme (Hamburg) Memorial, because of “social resentment” against the Jehovah’s Witnesses. The second book under review takes a very different tack.Converts commonly tend to speak negatively about their former beliefs. Rarely does this tendency spread to the converts’ children.In the case of the Pape family, however, a whole clan has devoted itself to discrediting the group they were once part of. Guenther Pape, the father, at the age of nine, watched his parents being arrested by the Gestapo in 1936. He was then placed in a home for poor children. But from January 1946 onwards, he was a full-time worker for the J.Ws. After they were again bannedby the authorities of the GDR in 1950, he fled to the west. In the 1950s Guenther Pape fell out with the J.Ws and as a result was disfellowshipped. He subsequently wrote a strongly accusatory book against his former religious associates, entitled “I was a Jehovah’s Witness!” This was first published in 1961 and was reprinted some 15 times by 1993, but gave only vague reasons for the break such as “inner problems”, “external failure” and denunciations by the Witnesses. At Eastertide 1963 he converted to the Roman Catholic Church. Since the early 1970s, Pape – now in the employ of the Catholic Church – doggedly uses all his energy to warn whoever may be listening of the “deceptions, misrepresentations and falsehoods” of the J.Ws with a steady stream of books, brochures and lectures. His brother Dieter has been ardently pursuing the same goal in eastern Germany. Over the years they carried out energetic cross-border activities, even collaborating with the Stasito carry out their polemical attacks.. The Stasi records further identify Dieter Pape as an”unofficial co-worker” who attempted to justify the then existing ban on the J.Ws in the GDR “because of the provocative policies of the Watchtower Society, and their anti-democratic agitation in connection with other forbidden campaigns”. Interestingly a report of April 1962 by Stasi Lieutenant Teichmann relates a conversation with another “unofficial co-worker” code-named”Rolf”, in which Dieter Pape admitted that his brother could never have written his book without financial support. “The Catholic Church took over the finances”, he said. Guenther Pape’s son, Klaus-Dieter, a certified theologian employed by the Catholic Church, walks in the footsteps of his father and uncle. In the book under review, Klaus-Dieter Pape states that two papers he wrote in 1997 on the J.Ws’ “loyalty towards the law” were used by the experts advising the Federal Administrative Court, whose decision denied the J.Ws their sought-after status. A definite success for the Pape family business.Gerhard Besier, Heidelberg

 

1b) John D.Brewer with G.I.Higgins, Anti-Catholicism in Northern Ireland 1600-1998. The Mote and the Beam. London: Macmillan 1998. 248pp. John Brewer’s analysis of anti-Catholic prejudice in Northern Ireland proceeds along two dimensions, historical and sociological, and depicts the two central features which are deeply intertwined and mutually reinforcing: religious intolerance and secular/political antagonism. He shows how, ever since the early 17th century, settlers from England and Scotland brought with them the whole panoply of anti-Catholic arguments drawn from Reformation polemics, and used them to justify their struggle against the local Irish population. Every aspect of Roman Catholic doctrine and practice, as well as the iniquitous activities of the Pope, the priests and the Vatican, could be vilified and even if evidence was lacking, could be used to construct venomous conspiracy theories. The usefulness of such religious bigotry is readily apparent, since it can be used on any occasion, being timeless in substance and easily repristinated. In the twentieth century, secular and political antagonisms have been used to defend Northern Ireland’s minority against the danger of amalgamation with the republican south. But since the alleged devotion to a Greater Britain was and is subject to tensions,popular Protestantism formed the stronger bond with which to unite the whole anti-Catholic population. Brewer analyses the different sources of this religious antagonism, from the kind of Old Testament covenantal theology of the followers of Rev. Ian Paisley to disdainful liberal Protestants who deplore the backward superstitions of Irish Catholics. He makes the valid point that each party makes extensive use of the techniques of distortion, deletion, distance and denial to validate their polemics. Anti-Catholics have long since established what may be called a cognitive map or mid-set, which is serenely impervious to reasonable debate, and bears little relation to the actual Church doctrine as presently professed by Roman Catholics,or indeed to present political realities in the republic of Eire. It is clear that far too many minds have been made up for far too long,and fear of the future plays an enormous part in keeping them shut tight. Brewer’s attempt to put the record straight is clearly eirenicin purpose, and theologically evocative. But he knows very well that those who need to hear his skilful and scholarly words are unlikely to do so. And for them to admit that Catholic theology especially since the Second Vatican Council, has changed, would undermine their whole stance. As a sociologist, Brewer seeks to show how these particular prejudices have been mobilised at three levels: ideas, individual behaviour and the social structure. He offers interesting comparisons with antisemitism, showing how both forces could be used to expedite social and political goals in fostering group conflict. Because of the peculiar setting of Northern Ireland, anti-Catholicism has survived long after its equivalent in Britain (and elsewhere) has died out. At the same time the strength of this religious differentiation has slowed down the process of secularisation which could have altered the structural patterns. For many on both sides, Ireland remains locked in a religious conflict over unresolved centuries-old disputes, organised to reinforce minority ethnic defences, and bolstered by a huge armoury of invective. In Brewer’s view, the claim that anti-Catholicism is justified on scriptural grounds is based on lies, half-truths, ancient prejudices and out-dated conspiracy theories. His book’s sub-title is therefore very apt, and he concludes with a brief outline of the steps he thinks should be taken to produce a new and more harmonious way ahead in place of the vice-like hold of the past.JSC

 

1c) ed. A.Chandler, The Terrible Alternative. Christian Martyrdom in the twentieth century. London: Cassell 1998 186pp Last summer, over the entrance to Westminster Abbey, ten new statues of modern Christian martyrs were unveiled. They serve as a reminder that more Christians have died for their faith in this century than in any other age. The Abbey authorities sought to mark this fact by paying tribute to a small representative group of figures from all parts of the world and all branches of the Church. Some of them, like Martin Luther King, are household names. But others are virtually unknown outside their own localities, such as the teenaged girl on a native reserve in South Africa whose steadfast decision to worship Christ led to her persecution and death at her tribe’s hands. All are commemorated for their courage and readiness to choose, not the road of passive acquiescence, but the terrible alternative of facing up to persecution, knowing that death could well result. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the leading German theologian executed by the Nazis in 1945, was one such martyr, deliberately plotting to overthrow the Nazi regime by violence as the only way to save Christianity. So too, Maximilian Kolbe, recently canonised by Pope John Paul II, chose to give up his life in order to save another man in the awful circumstances of Auschwitz. The stories of these ten martyrs are told in this new book,edited by the Director of the George Bell Institute in Britain, when ten scholars describe the special circumstances of these martyrs’ sacrifice. These essays are particularly helpful for the information they provide on the lesser-known figures, such as Esther John, a Pakistani young woman who was killed in 1960 by unknown murderers, presumably because she had left her Muslim family and refused to return. So too, the clash of values led to the martyrdom in 1973 of Wang Zhiming, a member of the minority Miao group in southwestern China, where a flourishing Christian culture established by western missionaries was attacked by the zealots of the Chinese Cultural Revolution. Wang Zhiming’s public execution was watched by an audience of 10,000, most of them Christians, compelled to attend in order to frighten them into submission. But his witness only strengthened the faith of the church, and the overthrow of the “Gang of Four” brought a reversal of official policy. The brutal deaths of Archbishop Janani Luwum of Uganda and Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador were deliberately caused by their resolute opposition to the arbitrary lawlessness of the oppressive regimes in their countries. So too ideological hatred led to the death of Grand Duchess Elizabeth at the hands of Soviet Communists in 1918, or the unsung martyrs of Papua New Guinea at the hands of Japanese military invaders in 1942. These men and women chose to face martyrdom in their pursuit of faith and justice in the violent world of this century.Their biographies bring to life a sense of the vast moral and human tragedies of our age when terrible alternatives confronted Christians in so many parts of the world. Their names are now joined in the great tradition of Christian martyrs, whose witness remains a compelling example of commitment and dedication for the generations to come. As Archbishop Romero succinctly remarked shortly before he was assassinated: “Martyrdom is a grace of God that I do not believe I deserve. But if God accepts the sacrifice of my life, let my blood be a seed of freedom and the sign that hope will soon be reality. Let my death, if it is accepted by God, be for the people’s liberation and as a witness of hope in the future”.JSC

 

1d) Klemens-August Recker, “Wem wollt ihr glauben?” Bischof Berning im Dritten Reich. Paderborn; Schoningh 1998 525pp There are a number of biographies of Third Reich Catholic bishops and this is one of the best. Recker gets right to the point,discussing those questions we want to know about: antisemitism,racism, the Holocaust, and the failure of resistance. The appendices have some important documents and the study is nicely indexed. The first two hundred pages of the book deal with Berning’s shifting attitude towards Nazism and Hitler. Like other bishops, at first negative, Berning became optimistic after his 1933 meeting with Hitler, two years his junior. The Fuhrer assured the bishop that he would do what the church had wanted to do to the Jews for centuries – procure their elimination. Berning did not respond to this, but was enthusiastic when Hitler promised good church-state relations. Recker points out that German Catholics did not understand why their leaders had reversed themselves after the Concordat, and does not fail to mention Catholic criticism on this score. Berning’s optimism was in any event short lived. By 1934 he opposed Nazi racism, and did so officially in a pamphlet and from the pulpit. This led to conflict with local NSDAP leaders -especially over racism. The next section of the book – chapters dealing with the increasing alienation of the church from the state – the author is at pains to situate Berning’s anti-Nazism in the context of that of his peers within the German hierarchy. Secularization of church schools, the issue of schoolroom crucifixes, and attacks on the clergy were a few of the issues which led to Pius IX’s encyclical of 1937, Mit Brennender Sorge. Cardinal Bertram, head of the German Bishops’ Conference, wanted Berning to be a member of the team sent to Rome to draft this document because he thought of Berning as a competent negotiator. But the Pope rejected this suggestion outright. In fact, Berning turned out to be more of a critic of the Nazi regime than Bertram had thought. Regarding antisemitism, Berning preached “Christian humanism”. The bishop and the local Nazi officials in Osnabruck squared off over the cleric’s catechism statement that salvation came from the Jews. By 1938 Berning had explicitly rejected Nazi neopaganism and racism from his pulpit, insisting that the state must follow the laws of God. The war years put Berning to the test, as it did all German church leaders. His response was ambiguous at best. Recker looks first at the issue of the war itself. Berning praised Hitler for his aggressiveness in Austria and Czechoslovakia but remained silent about Poland and subsequent blitzkrieg attacks in the west and north. But by 1940 the bishop sounded hawkish: “If everyone does his duty at home and at the front, the war will be victorious for us”(274). And when Operation Barbarossa got underway, Berning wholeheartedly joined the chorus against the anti-Christian Bolshevists. It became a war against atheism and for Christianity. Bishop Berning was even more ambiguous about euthanasia and the Jews. Although not as compromising as Cardinal Bertram on the former issue, he put up no real resistance as did his neighbouring bishop, Galen, of Munster. Much worse was Berning’s record regarding the Jews. While subordinating race to the supernatural order and affirming that Germans were a mixed race, the bishop called pagans and Jews bitter enemies of the cross. Recker is highly critical of Berning in this regard,pointing out that the bishop had to have known that his anti-Judaic statements would only compound the situation of the Jews,subjected for years to antisemitic pogroms and propaganda. Instead of immunizing Catholics against antisemitism, the bishop in effect, opened the door for it. After Margarete Sommer apprised Berning about the destiny of the deported Jews, the bishop spread the word to other west German prelates. The hierarchy then fell into intramural wrangling over what to do. This is well-known to us now, but what role did Berning play? In 1941 he urged that all bishops protest the treatment of the Jews from their pulpits on Passion Sunday. This foundered because of opposition from Cardinal Bertram and bishops Buchberger and Groeber. Recker disagrees with Fr.Ludwig Volk, the now deceased dean of German Catholic historians, affirming that Berning tried to change Bertram’s mind and bring him around to Bishop Preysing of Berlin’s hardnosed opposition to Hitler and to the crimes of the Holocaust. In general,Recker’s biography does not alter our notion of why the church leaders failed to protest. Bertram was the “Hemmschuh”. Yet, Recker does point to other evidence which certainly played a part in the bishops’ minds. Top Nazis informed them in no uncertain terms that if they did not watch out what they said,their priests would be made to suffer. Some, like Galen, ignored this threat and spoke out against euthanasia. But Recker’s appendix contains three letters written to Berning from Luebeck priests in 1943 on the day of their execution for treason against the Nazi state. The effect of these martyrs’ letters on the bishop must have been bone-chilling. The alternatives for the church leaders were clear: keep silent; or see the priests they themselves had ordained pay the penalty of death; or put their own heads on the block. Recker’s conclusions are sharply worded but not always easy to find. He affirms that the bishops’ anti-Judaism could easily be viewed by many Catholics as akin to Nazi antisemitism, but this comes at the end of a short chapter on the Sinti and Roma! (359). I was pleased to see that Recker carried his biography through to the post-war period, especially because here he formulates his judgments about Berning and other Catholic bishops regarding the Holocaust. In his view, the bishops were only responsible, not guilty, for what happened to the Jews. They should not have left the faithful in the dark about the Nazi’s brutal atrocities.Unfortunately, after the war, these church leaders were unwilling to accept any personal responsibility for the crimes of their country, or to lead their followers in any widespread acknowledgement of their nation’s guilt.                               Michael Phayer, Marquette University, Milwaukee

 

2) Thesis abstract: Jeff Zalar, Georgetown University,102705.1001@compuserve.com”My dissertation, directed by Prof. Roger Chickering, is the first historical-cultural study of the Association of Saint Charles Borromeo in Wilhelmine Germany, 1890-1914. Founded in 1844,the Borromeusverein was the largest independent founder of libraries and reading rooms and the most influential advocate of broad intellectual consumption among the Catholic population. By advocating Catholic exposure to the great works of German culture and promoting the habits of mind associated with the German tradition of self-cultivation or Bildung, the Borromeusverein hoped to erode the image of the retrograde, ill-bred Catholic common among the Protestant majority, and thereby to relax the social restrictions and institutional barriers they faced. It insisted on the need for Catholics to be well-versed in the German cultural canon in order to participate fully in the social and institutional life of the Second Reich. It therefore set in motion a revolution in religious attitudes, especially among the Catholic middle class, that shook the censoriousness and deference that had governed Catholic education and cultural engagement in the 19th century.The main sources of my research are institutional papers, extensive episcopal correspondence, reports from local chapters, documents from related organizations, a number of Catholic journals, and memoirs. I am working primarily at the archives of the Borromeusverein in Bonn and in diocesan archives elsewhere.I am also using the archives of the Volksverein fur das katholische Deutschland in Moenchen-Gladbach to determine the relationship between these two associations devoted to, among other things, the cultural disposition of German Catholics. As my study investigates the connection between social class, religious values,and perspectives on education, I have developed a highly differentiated approach to these sources, including social history,the phenomenology of spiritual experience, and discourse analysis,which makes for a fresh and comprehensive study of the Borromeusverein an as important transmitter of educational values and religious mentalite.An article analysing the cultural-religious discourse of the Borromeusverein is due to appear shortly in “The Catholic Historical Review”.

 

3) Journal articles:Victor Conzemius, Protestants and Catholics in the German Democratic Republic, 1945-90: a comparison, in Religion, State and Society Vol 26, no 1, March 1998.A notably balanced and wise evaluation by a veteran ecumenical scholar, who shows how the two churches took different roads to living in the communist regime of the GDR. He has percipient criticism of both, and at the same time calls for more research comparing the responses of the churches to both the Nazi and the Socialist dictatorships.

 

The Orthodox Churches and the Ecumenical Movement.Several articles in Religion, State and Society, Vol 26, no 2, June 1998 outline the complex and sometimes conflictual relationship of the various Orthodox Churches with Protestant churches in the west, and particularly with the Geneva-based World Council of Churches. Highly sobering reading.

 

4) New books noted:ed. Klaus Koschorke, Christen und Gewurze, Vandenhoeck &Ruprecht, Gottingen 1998 The links between western missionaries and ancient Christian communities on other continents.

 

Sebastian Muller-Rolli, Evangelische Schulpolitik in Deutschland 1918-1958. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Gottingen 1998

 

Heather Warren, Theologians of a new world order. Reinhold Niebuhr and the Christian Realists 1920-1948, Oxford U.P. 1997A notable history of the American theologians’ involvement with the Ecumenical Movement in the first half of this century.

 

ed Martin Greschat, Personenlexikon Religion und Theologie Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Gottingen 1998A very useful pocket-sized reference book with brief biographical details of international scope and all centuries

 

ed.R.H.Stone and M.L.Weaver, Against the Third Reich. Paul Tillich’s wartime radio broadcasts into Nazi Germany, Louisville,Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press 1998, 275 pp.A useful translation of this source for Tillich’s political/theological views on Germany during the war.

 

Very best wishes for a blessed Easter to you all,

 

John S.Conwayjconway@interchange.ubc.ca.