Did Nazi Germany order Churches to replace crosses with swastikas in the 1930's?

Question

Someone is telling me that there was an early 1930's order (something about Article 30, of German Church Regulations), by Martin Bormann, that forced ALL churches in Germany to remove their crosses and replace them with Swastikas. Any truth to this story? Can you cite any websites?

Answer 1

Hello,

No, not at all. Hitler did not like Christianity at all but realized it was too powerful a force to try and eliminate so he tried giving it some recognition and protection.

Martin Bormann had no use for the church at all as surmized here:

"In particular he tried to target the church in Nazi Germany. Bormann simply believed that there was no place for a Christian church in Germany and in 1942, he sent a confidential memo to all Gauleiters that the power of the church "must absolutely and finally be broken."

Check these sites:

The Churches in Nazi Germany

http://spindleworks.com/library/peet/german.htm


Martin Bormann

http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/martin_bormann.htm

I scanned quite a fe articles but find nothing on this rumor. Had he suggested it, I am sure he would have been vetoed by the Nazi administration who realized which side their bread was buttered on with respect to the churches and their powers.


Regards,

Michael Kelly

Answer 2

Please read the book: " Hitler's Pope" by John Cornwell. In Spanish: " El Papa de Hitler" translator: Juan Maria Maradiaga. It is all about Pope Pius XII and the Vatican's attitude in Italy during the 2nd World War. ( some, ( not many) priest and nuns yes, helped Jews to scape, but many priests ( in Italy ) did not. TV shows a documentary film showing all the routes where from Nazi Germany such routes ended always near by a Catholic Church, where the priests there were to help the Nazis to get out toward Brazil or Argentina at the end of the war. The journalists tries to investigate in some of these churches, and were denied the information.

Answer 3

This is not true. I mean it could have happened in an isolated area but for the most part they didn't do that. However Swastikas were required to be displayed throughout the church. Plus the church was pretty much government run and the sermons were corrupted greatly.

Answer 4

This story is not true. Church attendance was not encouraged and Hitler viewed religion rather as Marx did, "the opiate of the masses". He intended to replace religion with Nazism, but although priests and clergy who objected to the Nazis were arrested, churches were not ordered closed, nor were swastikas ordered to replace the more traditional cross.

Churches in conquered territories were vandalized and/or burned after their valuables had been removed.

The swastika is a cross and one was prominently displayed in the catholic church that Hitler attended as a child. (He went to school there.)

Answer 5

There have been several incidents leading to this but Hitler knew precisely well not to temper with the Church considering that after the annexation of Austria and Sudetenland at least 50% of what was then Germans were Catholic [the south of Germany has always been traditionally Catholic as well,and the Catholic Church was anti-Berlin at the time although official policy was that the Nazis were not to be provoked.]

At the height of his might Hitler's policies on euthanasia directed to people with mental illnesses and severe physical disabilities would eventually lead to the Church undermining him.Many people were killed under this program through gassing and their bodies burned. This should also serve to highlight what was to become of Jews in concentration camps considering that these atrocities commenced as early as the war.Hitler's policy on euthanasia also aroused strong opposition across Germany, and more especially amongst Catholics.Opposition throughout Germany increased after the invasion of Russia in 1941,largely on the grounds that the war there brought about large German casualties.German hospitals would fill up with maimed and disabled soldiers. Rumour had it that they could be subject to the same program.

Bitterness would increase amongst Catholics when a regional party leader of Upper Bavaria [who just so happened to be anti-christian] demanded that crucifixes be removed from schools in his region.This to many, was a direct attack on the church as an institution and mass industrial actions took place publicly - and they would go down the drain as the first in Nazi Germany [people for their own safety never took to the streets]. Petitions were signed as far afield as the front by largely Catholic soldiers there.Upon realisation of this, Hitler would demand crucifixes be put back however the secret was out - it was possible to oppose the regime sucessfully.More protests against the euthanasia program would take place as a result of this.The Bishop of Munster who was known for his anti-hitler sentiments spoke against the euthanasia program publicly, and even went on to send a telegram to Hitler himself.He later became more outspoken in his sermons and largely condemned the persecution of humans by the regime.Local political offices of the time requested that he be arrested, charged and tried however the Berlin went against this due to the fact that if he were arrested, people in and around Munster would revolt.

Protests on the euthanasia program would eventually spread to Bavaria [Nazi stronghold].In one of his rallies, Hitler would be jeered by an angry crowd and this would be the first and last time he would be opposed to his face in his rule.He was quite annoyed with that indeed but he knew very well he could not afford confrontation with the Church in that region when the nation was at war with the greater part of the world.He immediately cancelled the euthanasia program, and issued strict instructions to regional party leaders that under no circumstances must the churches be provoked up until the end of the war.This also proves it was possible to revolt against the state successfully then, and you should use this to imagine what would have happened had German people revolted against their state with the deportation of Jews OR what would have happened had churches spoken sharply against that.

Try reading more on the resistance.

Answer 6

I've never heard anything about Article 30 or any other regulation that would fit your description. Further, it doesn't ring true to me.

Answer 7

No. The Nazis were supported by many christians and they did not interfere with church ritual

Answer 8

No. Your "someone" doesn't know what they're talking about. The only thing I can think of that might be similar is the Nazis desecrated and closed all synagogues and Jewish cemeteries. Perhaps they're confusing it with that.