Reich Minister Kerri
Berlin W 8, 6 September 1939 CONFIDENTIAL
Dear Mr. Stapel!
I have received your letter of 31 August and in no wise neglected your memorandum on the situation of the Evangelical Church in Germany, but read it through immediately. I must tell you that I agree with the portrayal of the situation down to the last word, although I must assume that the "inflation of principles" is also aimed at me. However that did not annoy me, I
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understand your idea rather completely. So that you understand me too, I want to continue your memorandum with my reasons. You close with the absolutely correct conclusion:
The State should neither combat existing religion nor introduce a new religion. It should allow Christianity to prove by itself that it still has vital force. It should confine itself to spiritual affairs and only exercise compulsion in the production of a legal and administrative unity of the Evangelical Church.
Correct!
My action is determined however by the following situation:
As you know from the speech of the Fuehrer in the Reichstag on 30 January 1939, every power in exercising compulsion in the production of a legal and administrative unity of the Evangelical Church was completely withdrawn from me. The Fuehrer considers his efforts to bring the Evangelical Church to reason, unsuccessful and the Evangelical Church with respect to its condition rightfully a useless pile of sects. As you emphasize the Party has previously carried on not only a fight aginst the political element of the Christianity of the Church, but also a fight against membership of Party Members in a Christian confession.
I am of the opinion that in this situation it can very easily eventuate that the "Organization of German Understanding of the Christian Religion Through Luther" will collapse of its own accord, if, as in Austria and in the Sudetan Gau, the privileges, namely of collecting taxes and state subsidies are entirely removed from the Evangelical Church. If it comes to that then from the collapse of the organization of the Evangelical Church the advantage will redound not to the State but to the Catholic Church which cannot receive a mortal blow through such measures in its well-aimed unified, basically political organization.
The Catholic Church will and must, according to the law under which it is set up, remain a thorn in the flesh of a Racial State. An effective combatting of it cannot ensue from a State which thanks to its secure ideological basis desires and must refrain from every intervention into religious things. The National Socialistic State can therefore put nothing positive or new in the place of that which it must perhaps destroy and from the collapsing Evangelical Church the people somewhat deceived about their religion would in large numbers stream into the Catholic Church, and this Church would then divide the people into two mutually hostile groups in a much more regrettable manner than has happened through the confessions.
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In addition every negative struggle, which cannot in a positive manner replace that which has been destroyed, is anyhow condemned to failure.
In this factual situation I see an unheard of danger for the religious peace of the German people approaching and, all my efforts—you will understand that—have previously been only directed at eliminating this danger. But that is only possible if the Party learns to distinguish in the clearest manner between religion and ideology and thus, as Luther established and Kant scientifically proved, realizes, that ideology must limit itself to the area of experience, where alone reason can become knowledge. It must further realize that knowledge based on reason alone cannot satisfy the human being here on earth, but, that he (the human being) according to the structure of the "world of freedom within himself", or let us say, according to "the Kingdom of God within himself" cannot overcome the compelling moral necessity to attain certainty concerning the essence of God. The human being is now no "purely moral being", but the torture and the happiness of his earthly life consists in moving about in flesh and blood. Therefore however we have power over the inevitable weakness of not always being able to harmonize moral thought and deed. To be sure we do not need to be ashamed of original sin or to find our body despicable, for it, and thereby original sin is from God and we are no gods, but human beings. But how could we, who must believe in the moral importance of our life and the world, get along, because we without being sure of our immortality would not be able to yield our bodily life in fulfillment of our duty itself, without a religion going beyond the boundaries of reason? How could we who ourselves are righteous, doubt the fact that God must be just, and how could we demand of him the all-knowing, who knows our thoughts, that he confer on us immortality, if our righteousness condemns the one whom it recognizes as acting against his better moral conviction. Our life here on earth would be senseless, if we could find out nothing about the true essence of God, if we were not in some way certain that it is not righteousness but divine love. But we cannot find it out through knowledge based on reason, but only by the power of faith which we can get for ourselves through the personality of Christ, therefore from the true Christian religion, for which in no wise is the presentation of the priests standard, but only Christ himself.
The "Foundation of the Religion of Christ" rests in our own inner being. The Evangelical Church of today has not been able
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to lead us to this real "Religion of Christ". This Religion of Christ is only to be grasped if not only the genius of a Luther, but everybody has learned to distinguish the domains of reason and faith. It depends neither on sacred orders nor on sacraments, but one finds the way to it only if one has learned to doubt reason, as this reason has most accurately become acquainted with its magnitude and its narrow boundaries, and only Priests who have grasped that with reason, and heart, can penetrate from pseudo-priesthood to the true priesthood and thus fill the hearts of the people with true faith.
Therefore for 15 years I have been working on a book which explains to everybody the scientific basis of National Socialism in such a way that one learns to recognize the extent and the boundaries of reason as well as of ideology and the necessity of the religion of Christ, and comprehends, that in this area Party and State can do only one thing: to completely take one's own position and to renounce any claim to a decision.
I believe I can finish this work at this time; its publication however will not be possible until the return of peace.
However, in order that meanwhile these conclusions mentioned above which would lead to the destruction of the organization of the Evangelical Church, might not occur, it was my most important job to see to it that today's pile of sects in the Evangelical Church would consolidate of their own accord into an organ at least filled with a desire for unity.
Therefore, as I was no longer allowed to issue orders under the State I tried again and again to exercise influence on the district church leaders even though they seemed to be powerless according to your statements approved by me in your memorandum, at least to create this condition for the possibility of preserving the organization of the Lutheran Church. These efforts have at least reached a certain conclusion and become fruitful to such an extent that it was possible to aim at a unity among them over three men, who as a confidential council of the church chancellery now possess the possibility of finding by positive work confidence of the people who feel united in the Evangelical Church.
If these men, Bishop Mardahrens, Bishop Schultz of Mecklenburg and Oberkonsistorialrat Hymmen apprehend the commandment of the hour, then by positive work they can line up the direction of the Evangelical Church with the goals desired by me into a complete legal and administrative unity. If they do not understand how to direct this positive work correctly, then both of us
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will have to bury the hope of a preservation of the organization of the Lutheran Church, because only the success of such a work can give the Fuehrer the justification of giving us full power in the direction desired by us.
You can imagine that I would much prefer to see you among these three men, because 1 would then know that the work was being actively and successfully lined up with the goal jointly desired by both of us. However I shall pursue this aim with all the energy in my power as long as I am in my job and the decision of the Fuehrer gives me approval or disapproval.
These are difficult times into which our people are now entering, but I believe that Providence even here has correctly guided everything. It has through the Fuehrer created for conditions for the inevitable battle, as they cannot be found more favorable. If the German people maintain themselves—and what justifies us in doubting it—everything must come to a good and victorious end, and thereby would be created just the proper condition for the extension of the Third Reich externally in tranquil safety and in well-aimed work at home, but then would be created just the right soil for the possibility of nationalistic church work in the congregations, which you rightfully consider the most important thing.
Please be convinced that I am always happy to think of you and rejoice at every communication from you.
I know that you are a man who has already accomplished extraordinary things for the spiritual enlightenment of the German people and I am convinced that you will still accomplish in the future fruitful things in this work.
I need not emphasize to you that this letter is confidential. However, I shall make accessible to the Confidential Council copies of your splendid memorandum as well as copies of this letter for confidential cognizance. I would be especially glad if in the near future I found the opportunity to discuss orally with Reich Minister Hess your memorandum and my answer.
With hearty greetings and with
Heil Hitler!
Yours
[Signed] Kerri
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Letter to Mr. Stapel, on the government's relations with the Evangelical and Catholic Churches, the need to distinguish religion and ideology, and Kerrl's efforts to establish a unified Evangelical Church and "nationalistic church work" in Germany
Authors
Hanns Kerrl (Reich Minister for Church Affairs (1935-38); justice minister, Prussia (1933-34))
Hanns Kerrl
Nazi Minister for Religion (1887-1941)
- Born: 1887-12-11 (Fallersleben)
- Died: 1941-12-15 1941-12-12 (Paris)
- Country of citizenship: German Reich
- Occupation: politician
- Member of political party: Nazi Party
- Member of: Sturmabteilung
- Significant person: Paul Lindemann
- Position held: Member of Landtag of Prussia; member of the Reichstag of Nazi Germany; minister
Date: 06 September 1939
Total Pages: 4
Language of Text: English
Source of Text: Nazi conspiracy and aggression (Office of United States Chief of Counsel for Prosecution of Axis Criminality. Washington, D.C. : U.S. Government Printing Office, 1946.)
Evidence Code: PS-129
Citation: IMT (page 255)
HLSL Item No.: 450434
Trial Issues
Conspiracy (and Common plan, in IMT) (IMT, NMT 1, 3, 4) IMT count 1: common plan or conspiracy (IMT) Nazi regime (rise, consolidation, economic control, and militarization) (I…
Document Summary
PS-129: Confidential letter from Reich Minister Kerrl to Stapel, 6 September 1939, concerning the latter’s memorandum on the situation of the protestant church in Germany