Indeed, he hated all Christianity, but most of all he hated Judaism. Protestantism being the majority in Germany outside his native Catholic south, Hitler rather sought to infiltrate, co-opt, pervert and use the Protestant churches to further his objectives, as opposed to attempted eradication. The tracts and historical documents I've seen regarding the ungodly changes he sought to impose are chilling.
People were desperate and verging upon destitute due to the very recent privations of the Weimar Republic era and it's hyperinflation. They fell for Hitler's appeal to a return of former glory, of jobs and prosperity and national pride.
It's to some extent understandable in the very earliest years, it's not as if they foreknew what a monster he would turn out to be, but the level of denial it surely must have taken to maintain support in the face of the disappearance en masse of opposition groups is not at all understandable.
I suppose they were so thoroughly cowed by fear that they would be next, that they felt constrained to do anything about it lest they themselves be killed. There's an object lesson for ourselves in this. We see the demonization of both Jew and Christian again, barely a generation later.
Despite our differences, we have far more in common and will be forced by the world to stand together eventually.
RegulatorCountry:
A very accurate post. Hitler was indeed baptized Catholic but left the Church at 18 and never received the Sacraments again. He did persecute anyone who threatened his desire to make him and the German state and his nazi ideology the religion of Germany.
While he publicly at times was careful in not attacking either the majority Reformed and Lutheran CHurches, as well as the Catholic Church, in private and by his actions, he had no love for either, and particularly the Catholic Church which by its very essence and nature, was not tied to any nationalistic or country and thus was by its very nature “Catholic” in that ethnic groups from all over the world belonged to it, and those groups included ethnic groups which he viewed as inferior, and one of them, which bordered Germany, was Poland which he brutalized.
Now, may I ask you a question? There are many Protestants in these threads that jump in and ping together but as a Catholic, I never know which protestant group they belong to. So which Protestant tradition are you affiliated with? as I don’t think you are in fellowship with these other Protestants here as your posting style is totally different.
You are in my view, a very reasonable and even-handed poster and one that I as a Catholic would not have a problem “discussing” theology with [not this other nonsense that goes on with the usual suspects here].
Again, thanks for the well written and accurate post.