Complicity in the Holocaust Quotes

“Germans faced adversity in the aftermath of World War I, and they proved ready to compromise their values in an effort to reestablish national strength and security. That was not only wrong, but disastrous. It led to German destruction and left Germans suffering shame and guilt into the second and third generation.7”
― Robert P. Ericksen, Complicity in the Holocaust: Churches and Universities in Nazi Germany

“We can remind ourselves that historical circumstances in Germany, especially from World War I through the Weimar Republic, prepared Germans to applaud Hitler’s rise to power and then to become participants in his wild ideas and brutal behavior. The heavy hand of disappointing events worked on pastors and professors too. Therefore, they liked much of what Hitler offered. They indulged in nationalistic emotions, which convinced them that Germany needed to take strong actions to redeem its place in the world.”
― Robert P. Ericksen, Complicity in the Holocaust: Churches and Universities in Nazi Germany

“We must also note that the Bonhoeffer family’s ties to the Christian church were almost entirely through Dietrich. Neither he nor his family had been regular churchgoers during his childhood, so that his youthful decision to study theology came as a not entirely welcome surprise to siblings and parents. It may even be that Bonhoeffer learned to oppose Adolf Hitler because he did not attend church as a child, because most church-going Protestants tended to think Hitler was wonderful. That would help clarify the uniqueness of his response and the loneliness of his battle.”
― Robert P. Ericksen, Complicity in the Holocaust: Churches and Universities in Nazi Germany

“The pastors and professors who gave their enthusiastic support to Hitler all were marked by a particularly intense nationalism. Furthermore, this nationalism justified in their minds any number of compromised values.”
― Robert P. Ericksen, Complicity in the Holocaust: Churches and Universities in Nazi Germany