Clearly not to you.
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Does it Matter that Hitler was a Theist?
- Thread starter Sunstone
- Start date
Well said.
Vultar
Active Member
Hitlers end goal was to rule the world. The Catholic Church probably saw this as a way to have their religious ideals also rule the world, so supported him. Also, the Vatican is in Italy and Italy was allied with Germany during WWII. It would be safest to go along with the power of the area.
A Troubled Man
Active Member
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=-1] "I believe that I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator: by defending myself against the Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord.." ~ Mein Kampf
[/SIZE][/FONT]"My feelings as a Christian points me to my Lord and Savior as a fighter. It points me to the man who once in loneliness, surrounded by a few followers, recognized these Jews for what they were and summoned men to fight against them and who, God's truth! was greatest not as a sufferer but as a fighter. In boundless love as a Christian and as a man I read through the passage which tells us how the Lord at last rose in His might and seized the scourge to drive out of the Temple the brood of vipers and adders. How terrific was His fight for the world against the Jewish poison. To-day, after two thousand years, with deepest emotion I recognize more profoundly than ever before the fact that it was for this that He had to shed His blood upon the Cross. As a Christian I have no duty to allow myself to be cheated, but I have the duty to be a fighter for truth and justice... And if there is anything which could demonstrate that we are acting rightly it is the distress that daily grows. For as a Christian I have also a duty to my own people." -Adolf Hitler, in a speech on 12 April 1922
CynthiaCypher
Well-Known Member
Ever heard of rationalization?
I feel that was more an existential question, and a good one.
I think he believed a possible interpretation of the bible.
I think that if he had been less religious, then he might not have found the violently anti-Semitic (and religiously-based) writings of Martin Luther to be as convincing as he did. Whether that would've stopped the Holocaust from happening... I don't know.
No, it does not matter. Religious faith, or lack of it, does not make people into genocidal tyrants. Something was seriously wrong with that mans head and I dont think theism or atheism could have caused that.
So this has nothing to do with the treatment of the Jews under Adolf Hitler?
Martin Luther said:
(source)
Unless you are willing to say that it matters that Stalin and Mao were atheists, then I would say it doesn't. Stalin and Mao both killed more than Hitler.
I didnt say he didnt use religion to justify his actions, I said religion alone doesnt make anyone genocidal. It didnt screw up Hitler, Hitler was screwed up and used it as an excuse.
McBell
Unbound
Actually, when you stop and really think about that statement, it makes no sense as written.
Nothing as significant as the rise of the Nazis and the Holocaust is caused by a single factor all by itself.
Adolf Hitler might have been crazy no matter what, but I think his religious views helped to focus that craziness toward the Jews specifically.
Also, I think it's important to remember the role that the antisemitism of German society - religiously-based to a significant degree - helped to create a fertile ground where the hate he spread could flourish. It takes willing helpers to perpetrate a genocide. If Hitler's message hadn't been accepted by others, he would have just been considered a crank and we never would have heard of him.
A Troubled Man
Active Member
Yes, what is your point?
Hitler's theology & Xian roots are most useful.
When religious wags say that faith is necessary to prevent evil, then I bring up old Adolph.
Then we argue a bit about whether he really was a Xian, but ultimately we reach an uneasy
truce, agreeing that heathens can be moral, & believers can be dirt bags. There are many
paths to being a decent human being. Judge all as individuals based upon their actions.
When religious wags say that faith is necessary to prevent evil, then I bring up old Adolph.
Then we argue a bit about whether he really was a Xian, but ultimately we reach an uneasy
truce, agreeing that heathens can be moral, & believers can be dirt bags. There are many
paths to being a decent human being. Judge all as individuals based upon their actions.
I absolutely agree.
Its possible. Again, I am not saying he didnt justify what he did with his religious views, or that he felt he was justified by religion to do what he did. But I dont think religion caused his insanity.
Of course. If there was no antisemitism he would probably not have been successful. At least not as successful.
There is also the fallacy fallacy.
When someone cites a fallacy (eg, the association fallacy), & the cited fallacy doesn't apply.
Hitler is evidence which disproves the claim that religion makes people do good.
And Godwin is often just a clever but empty joke.
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David M
Well-Known Member
It only matters when people try and claim he was an atheist and this "fact" supports their "atheists are bad" argument.