Just reading a biography of Himmler and was struck by the complexity of his attitudes towards Christianity. From being a strongly committed Catholic to embracing neo-pagan ideologies it seems like there was a real puzzle box of ideology there to try and unpick.
I was particularly struck by a letter he sent to a pastor in 1937 regarding the religious beliefs allowed to SS members, where he stated that “Every SS member is free to be a member of a church or not. It is a personal matter, which he has to answer for to God or to his conscience. SS men should not however be atheists, for that is the only world view or religious view that is not tolerated within the SS”.
Even this statement of course has to be treated with extreme caution. He was responding to a pastor at a time when the church was still a powerful influence in Germany and the Nazis certainly did not embrace a completely anti-Christian position.
At other times more privately however Himmler talked about Christianity being the ‘grave of all nations’ and spoke in terms that made it seem he had definitely decided that Christianity should not play a future role in the Reich.
I’m frankly intrigued by the spiritual journey this man was taking, and whether there was an actual conclusion he reached. Or whether his early Catholicism meant he could never leave the concept of a god yet his interpretation of what form that took simply spiraled into some strange combination of racial purity based theology with random things added where they seemed to fit.
Has anyone read deeply into Himmler’s religious journey that might have some deeper insight they can share? It’s especially interesting because at least until 1937-38 the Christians appeared to be the one group that really evoked passion in this generally cold man. Even on issues involving the Jews he didn’t have the vitriol and forcefulness he showed towards Christianity, which I’m assuming was a result of his own struggles with his childhood faith.
I was particularly struck by a letter he sent to a pastor in 1937 regarding the religious beliefs allowed to SS members, where he stated that “Every SS member is free to be a member of a church or not. It is a personal matter, which he has to answer for to God or to his conscience. SS men should not however be atheists, for that is the only world view or religious view that is not tolerated within the SS”.
Even this statement of course has to be treated with extreme caution. He was responding to a pastor at a time when the church was still a powerful influence in Germany and the Nazis certainly did not embrace a completely anti-Christian position.
At other times more privately however Himmler talked about Christianity being the ‘grave of all nations’ and spoke in terms that made it seem he had definitely decided that Christianity should not play a future role in the Reich.
I’m frankly intrigued by the spiritual journey this man was taking, and whether there was an actual conclusion he reached. Or whether his early Catholicism meant he could never leave the concept of a god yet his interpretation of what form that took simply spiraled into some strange combination of racial purity based theology with random things added where they seemed to fit.
Has anyone read deeply into Himmler’s religious journey that might have some deeper insight they can share? It’s especially interesting because at least until 1937-38 the Christians appeared to be the one group that really evoked passion in this generally cold man. Even on issues involving the Jews he didn’t have the vitriol and forcefulness he showed towards Christianity, which I’m assuming was a result of his own struggles with his childhood faith.