Thoughts on the influence of Luther and Darwin on Hitler’s worldview
“If I had to baptize a Jew, I would take him to the bridge of the Elbe, hang a stone around his neck and push him over with the words 'I baptize thee in the name of Abraham'” - Martin Luther
"Since Martin Luther closed his eyes, no such son of our people has appeared again. It has been decided that we shall be the first to witness his reappearance ... I think the time is past when one may not say the names of Hitler and Luther in the same breath. They belong together; they are of the same old stamp" - Hitler's Education Minister, Bernhard Rust
"The connection between Hitler and Darwinism is of course historically a difficult connection because they were separated by a good many years. One was English. One was German. None the less, if you open Mein Kampf and read it, especially if you can read it in German, the correspondence between Darwinian ideas and Nazi ideas just leaps from the page. Of course you have to add every Historical caution. Not everyone who read Darwin became a Nazi. Obviously not... no one is making that case. Darwinisms is not a sufficient condition for a phenomenon like Nazism, but I think it is certainly a necessary one." - David Berlinski in EXPELLED: No Intelligence Allowed
Luther and Darwin are probably the most notable contributors to Hitler's worldview... in my opinion (but of course there were others). Indeed many synergistic variables were brewing in the German population for hundreds of years before Hitler... and they all contributed to the Christian-apathy and justification for what Hitler did right under their noses when times became difficult.
I think many of us are aware (or should be aware) that dozens of attempts were made (by Germans) to overthrow the Nazi regime. That is a fact that does NOT negate the reality that thousands of German "Christian" soldiers and civilians looked-on and helped with the round up of Jews for deportation and dehumanization.
Note: I'm not Jewish (in the Jew-dah sense) and I have many German ancestors. Also understand that I believe the non-Jewish population of Germany was/is of the stock of Ephraim (i.e., Israelites).
A man like Hitler does NOT come to power in a vacuum... especially not within a highly-advanced and highly-civil nation like Germany.
But of course... NOT all German "Lutherans" were anti-Jew... and in the same way... NOT all German Darwinian scientists wanted to unnaturally select-away the Jews from the German population. However, many of Hitler's scientists imbibed the idea that Jews were less evolved and dangerous to the German and European population... and this was a major justification for their violent removal. Note: Assuming Darwin did not have an impact on Germany and Hitler simply because Darwin spoke English ... is delusional. The unification of Darwinism with the later rhetoric of Luther... was a recipe of great opportunity for the Nazis.
The following link may be more helpful in the Luther-Hitler connections in particular (not all agree with the connections of course): The use of Martin Luther by the Nazis
I've spent many hours watching WWII and Holocaust documentaries... and I'm always pondering why and how... how could such an atrocity have happened to the Jews and to Germany? ...and usually... I wonder... how could the Father have allowed such heinous suffering to transpire as long as it did... including the atrocities in Russia, China, Cambodia, etc... where millions upon millions of young and old were murdered?
These are difficult questions... and I'm certainly not one to only ask questions that I think I can answer... nor do I assume that I have the capacity to understand the Ways and Reasons of the Creator of the Universe... however... it doesn't mean I'm afraid to ask out of fear that my Faith will be hurt.... for I do believe the Father has been merciful and suffers us (and suffers with us) more than most of us know.
Hanok ben-Isaak
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