Do you hold Catholics responisble for the Holocaust and Hitler's reign of terror?

Question

(I don't.) Hitler proclaimed himself to be a Catholic, so does that mean Catholicism and all Catholics are to blame for what he did.
Many would argue "No" on the basis that such an argument is foolish, or that "Hitler was not a true/good Catholic".

So how then is it justifiable to blame/hate all Muslims for 9/11?

If you think that's just, please explain, because I just don't get it!

But Sunny Girl, if Hitler had said "I'm doing this in the name of Catholicism?" would you then blame all Catholics for it?

I am heartened and glad to see the number of people on this page displaying common sense and human decency.

Answer 1

No. And no. I do not blame/hate all Muslims for 9/11. I blame those who are responsible and for those who support those ideas. As for Hitler, I blame Hitler, Himmler (which everyone else seems to be absolutely void of any knowledge of... he's the one who constituted the concentration camps and torture... and Hitler said "What a great idea!") and anyone else who knowingly supported those ideas. Like the neo-Nazi's we have of today (though most of them don't have any clue what Hitler truly stood for or why - they just like to hate)

But, just like during WW2 and many people lost trust in Germans in general, people today simply do not trust Muslims in general because they do not know where the individual stands... We see in the Media many Muslims in the Middle East supporting the idea of terrorism against those they don't like, claiming that even killing innocents is justified according to their religion (mainly Laws that were set down, not by the religion itself, but by those of high status within the religion). Just as many blamed the Catholic Church in general because many of the Catholics in Germany itself supported Hitlers ideas... including the Pope of the time supporting Hitler (though many don't realize he supported ideas of how to maintain Germany's economic system - and later he was paid off to keep silent about everything else - backed up by History) As well as those who know the history of WW2, frown down on France for sitting idly by, knowing full well what Hitler was doing, telling the rest of the world they had no business trying to stop Hitler. (This is one of the reasons people don't like France)

I don't think it's just to hate everyone of a group because of what a radical group does. But one can't get them to change their minds if all we do is rail against them... there has to be some common ground where communication can flow easily enough to gain understanding of BOTH sides.... not just one or the other.

Answer 2

I think not, but I'm not 100%. What if questions like that are always tricky. The thing about it is someone can be ethnically Jewish (even if they are not of the Jewish faith). You cannot be ethnically Catholic or any other Christian denomination. Also, Catholic are in fact Christians. We belive in Jesus as the Christ. Jews were not the only group to be persecuted by Hitler, just the most notable. Other groups were imprisoned and persecuted (many killed) including gypsies, the physically and mentally handicapped, homosexuals and some Christians who resisted the Nazis (especially Catholics but some Protestants too) along with numerous other undesirables such as communists. Note: Hitler may have been part Jewish himslef. It is very hard to tell his true heritage because he had his family tree and other records changed, but I don't remember hearing that he was raised Catholic.

Answer 3

Both the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutherans played roles. Anti-Semites in Germany had been central among German Christians for centuries. Hitler was not a fascist dictator because he was a Catholic; he was a bloody psychopath, a little man who knew how to pull the German and Austrian peoples' strings. More than a few Catholic priests and Lutheran (or Protestant) ministers were murdered by German Nazis during Hitler's 12 years. Alas, the Vatican and the pope (now on the path toward sainthood) were complicit not only with the German but also the Italian fascists.

Answer 4

I blame evolution. Hitler was merely trying to purify the human race, which according to evolution, is perfectly acceptable behavior. It is, in fact, noble behavior. And they teach that in our public schools. Pretty scary, huh?

Anyway, I don't blame all Muslims. I blame Islam though. The Koran is a very violent book. The Bible is violent in the Old Testament but the Old Testament is balanced by the New Testament. Jesus was largely peaceful while Muhammad was very warlike. There's nothing wrong with Muslim terrorists if the Koran is really true. However, the Koran is not true, so they are in sin, and they will be punished if they don't repent. In the meantime, we'll try to stop terrorists from killing people and leave the rest of the Muslims alone.

Answer 5

No, Catholics were not responsible for the Holocaust. Hitler had embraced atheism prior to his atrocities. Fidel Castro is also Catholic....but again, he had embraced atheism before coming to power.

Believe me, I do not blame all Muslims for 9/11. I am a devout Catholic and I teach in a public school system....I defend Islam very strongly and I defend Judaism. If 10 million Muslims claimed to hate the U.S. and western ideology, that is representative of only 1% of the Muslim population which has over a billion members. I do not fear Islam. I teach my school kids the same.

The difference is that neither Hitler nor Castro acted in the name of God. If Islam wants more converts, they cannot be doing so by force. Islam has a huge role in gaining credibility as a religion of peace. Moderate Islam is not vocal enough against the actions of the extremists -- the so-called martyrs. Catholicism has many martyrs -- but none who became so by blowing themselves and others up. They did not martyr themselves. They were martyred because their lives were ended because of their faith. They did not commit suicide in the name of God. Being burned at the stake has no similarity to loading a truck with explosives and driving it into a building or a crowd of innocent peoples.

The two groups -- Christianity and Islam has two completely different views on what a martyr is. In Christianity, martyrs die for their faith. In Islam, martyrs kill for their faith. Huge difference.

Answer 6

Many religions aligned themselves with Hitler..Charles Taze Russell wrote a letter to Hitler, Claiming that the extermination of the Jews might be the Will of God, and got Hitler's attention in a very Bad way, Many Jehovah's Witnesses were killed, but Russell started the ball rolling.

No I think Satan was the instigator of the Holocaust.

Answer 7

Hitler was responsible for his own actions. However there is some debate over whether the Catholic Church sanctioned his actions or simply stood by and did nothing to condemn him. See John Cornwell's "Hitler's Pope" for reference on the actions of Pius XII. On the other hand, there is disagreement that Pius XII may have actually played a role in saving some Jews (The Myth of Hitler's Pope: How Pope Pius XII Rescued Jews from the Nazis by Rabbi Dalin).

Nevertheless, most religions don't condemn violence. For example, Jesus was no pacifist, however he explained on several occasions that his followers were to "turn the other cheek". He even counseled his own Apostle, Peter (considered the first Pope) when he attempted to defend Jesus from an angry mob to "return your sword to its place. Those who live by sword will also perish by it." Under no circumstances did Jesus permit his followers to engage in violence. Yet most "Christian" religions sanction military service, and there is a long, documented and bloody history of crusades and religious war.

If you support your religion, you support it's teachings. If your religion teaches love and peace, fine. If it doesn't, then yes, I think that's the same as condoning the actions of other adherents.

Answer 8

Although Hitler was raised in a Catholic family, he turned away from Christianity at an early age.

Automatic excommunication happens when Catholics commit certain offensives. This happens as soon as the offense is committed.

Adolf Hitler committed the following offenses resulting in automatic excommunication:
- Apostasy - the formal renunciation of one's religion. Hitler specifically rejected the Catholic Church, as well as Christianity in general. He described himself as "a complete pagan.”
- Heresy - a doctrine in theology, religion, philosophy, or politics at variance with those of the Catholic Church. Nazism is definitely heretical to Christianity.

There was no reason for the Catholic Church to excommunicate Hitler. He did it all by himself.

For Hitler's own words against Christianity, see: http://www.geocities.com/chiniquy/Hitler.html

For more information about excommunication, see: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05678a.htm
And: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excommunicate#Automatic_excommunication

With love in Christ.

Answer 9

No. I hold Hitler squarely to blame for the Holocaust.

Just as I hold Bin Ladin and Al Q squarely to blame for the terrorist acts on 9/11/01.

These individuals have much in common. They were both charismatic, and they both were able to stir people to action for their cause. When you get down to the motives of the individual, faith had (in my opinion) very little to do with it.

Answer 10

I not only think it is unjust, but I think it is an ignorant viewpoint held by people who do not know any Muslims and do not know anything about Islam other than what their church has told them. The Muslims I have known have all been very kind and peaceful. That is like saying all Christians should be judged by the actions of Jim Jones or Timothy McVeigh.
"If you judge people, you have no time to love them"- Mother Teresa