Between God and Hitler : military chaplains in Nazi Germany / Doris L. Bergen, University of Toronto.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bergen, Doris L., author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

World War, 1939-1945--Chaplains--Germany.

World War, 1939-1945.

Germany. Wehrmacht--Chaplains.

Germany.

Germany--Armed Forces--Chaplains.

Military chaplains--Germany--History--20th century.

Military chaplains.

Church and state--Germany--History--20th century.

Church and state.

World War, 1939-1945--Moral and ethical aspects.

World War, 1939-1945--Religious aspects--Christianity.

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Religious aspects--Christianity.

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945).

Nazi propaganda.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xix, 326 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, United Kingdom ; New York, NY : Cambridge University Press, 2023.

Summary:

During the Second World War, approximately 1000 Christian chaplains accompanied Wehrmacht forces wherever they went, from Poland to France, Greece, North Africa, and the Soviet Union. Chaplains were witnesses to atrocity and by their presence helped normalize extreme violence and legitimate its perpetrators. Military chaplains played a key role in propagating a narrative of righteousness that erased Germany's victims and transformed the aggressors into noble figures who suffered but triumphed over their foes. Between God and Hitler is the first book to examine Protestant and Catholic military chaplains in Germany from Hitler's rise to power, to defeat, collapse, and Allied occupation. Drawing on a wide array of sources - chaplains' letters and memoirs, military reports, Jewish testimonies, photographs, and popular culture - this book offers insight into how Christian clergy served the cause of genocide, sometimes eagerly, sometimes reluctantly, even unknowingly, but always loyally.

Contents:

An Incongruous Institution

"We will not let our swords get rusty!" : On the Cusp of 1933

"In times of peace the Church arms herself for war, 1933-1939

"Gott mit uns" : Blitzkrieg, 1939-1941

Saving Christianity, Killing Jews, June-December 1941

"The power of Christian truth and Christian faith" : Genocidal Culture, 1942-1943

"What should we preach now?," 1944-1945

From Nazi Past to Christian Future, 1945 and Beyond

"With what face should I remember this?"

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 18 Apr 2023).

Other Format:

Print version:

ISBN:

9781108767712 (ebook)

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license.