Donald J. Dietrich

Delineates the roles that individuals and their churches played in confronting Hitler. Written by both Jewish and Christian scholars, these essays focus on the Christian responses to Nazism and delineate the roles that individuals and their churches played in confronting Hitler.

Moral and Ethical Issues

Christian Responses to the Holocaust

Rationalism, romanticism, historicism and German idealism formed a multi-dimensional framework within which theological ideas matured. Hegel's German idealism was the most penetrating and influential philosophical synthesis in the first half of the nineteenth century. In particular, Catholic theologians opposed Hegel's emphasis on an organic, developmental reason historically evolving. While most Catholic theologians opposed German idealism in its subjective, naturalistic, or rationalistic aspects, Hermes, Sailer, those in the Tübinger School and Günther were outstanding in their critical analyses oh this new religio-cultural orientation. Constructive criticism separating «error» from realistic insight and not simple condemnation was their preference.

The Goethezeit and the Metamorphosis of Catholic Theology in the Age of Idealism

Michael J. Himes

Leading American and European theologians offer their insights on the achievements of the Tubingen School and their relevance for contemporary theology. In this volume, essays by prominent scholars look back on the achievements of 19th century theology and look ahead in terms of the resources they offer for the 21st century.

The Relevance of Nineteenth-century Theology for the Twenty-first Century

The Legacy of the Tübingen School

Why did some German Catholics support and others oppose the police state that was the Third Reich? In this insightful analysis, Donald Dietrich explores the social-psychological dynamics behind the religious reactions of German Catholics to political and moral issues during the late Weimar and Third Reich eras. Along with many other Germans, Catholics were enmeshed in a cruel dilemma. Assenting to Nazi ideals would mean a loss of moral credibility; opposing them would result in persecution. Dietrich shows how Catholics accommodated and sometimes resisted totalitarianism and the Final Solution. Three groups of Catholics are examined: the hierarchy, the theologians, and the laity. The literature on Nazi Germany is enormous. But this is the first analysis of the dynamics shaping individual motivations and group response to Nazi ideals. This comprehensive work fuses results derived from social science research with the massive amount of historical data available. It is an interdisciplinary study relating religious values to patterns of behavior, an issue that retains its significance today.

Donald J. Dietrich

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