Fight Against Evil

After World War II, Christians and the Church were criticized for remaining passive about the Nazis and the Holocaust. It is true that many Christians chose not to oppose the Nazis in spite of Hitler’s hostility to Christianity and his racist attitude toward the Jews. Catholic and Protestant groups that openly opposed the Hitler regime were severely repressed or worse. Some Protestant groups supported Hitler believing that their priority was to be German not Christian. But Protestants Karl Barth and Dietrich Bonhoeffer and others strongly opposed this viewpoint and rejected Nazism. As a consequence, many were executed. There were those who remained passive in public but quietly and discreetly opposed Hitler behind the scenes. Pope Pius XII did not publicly denounce the Nazis, but 5,000 Jews were rescued and sheltered at the Vatican at different times during the war. Across Europe, Protestant and Catholic churches were devastated by the war. Churches and monasteries in Nazis-occupied territories were closed down. Church leaders were imprisoned, tortured, and killed. Realizing that they might have to pay with their lives, many risked helping the Jews. Corrie Ten Boom and her family became active in the underground movement in Holland hiding Jewish neighbors above their clock shop. Betrayed by an informant, they were sent to a concentration camp where only Corrie survived. Countless Protestants and Catholics were willing to become martyrs for their stand against the evil Hitler and his regime.

American Vision P.O. Box 220, Powder Springs, GA 30127, 800-628-9460, www.americanvision.org . History Unwrapped by Gary DeMar.

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