The German Church Conflict

The German Church Conflict

Synopsis

What happens when a government decides to nationalise Christianity? There have been infinite examples in pre-modern times, but a very significant one shaked our entire world not so long ago: the foundation of the German-Christian Church by Hitler. Karl Barth essays, written between 1933 and 1939, offer an insight into what happened to the Church in Germany at the beginning of the century. Hitler's suggestion of the founding of a German-Christian Church seemed to accommodate the need for unity within the German Protestant faith. Whilst some Protestants were overjoyed at the idea that a national 'Christian' Church could be founded, others were highly critical. A conflict between Church and State soon arose. This collection of essays presents critical reflection from Barth's point of view upon the historical, social and political background to the transformation of the German churches. The first essay examines the nature of conflict in the Church, whilst the second focuses on the Church's opposition. The third investigates the significant year of 1933-34 for the German-Christian movement and it is in the fourth and fifth essays that the German Confessing Church's history of the period is analysed. The war on the Evangelical Church in Germany and the German Confessing Church of 1936-1939 form the central theme of the last six essays.

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