The De-Christianization of the Church in Nazi Germany (Or: Hitler’s Nazification of the Church in Nazi Germany)
By Pastor Shane Lems - Posted at The Reformed Reader Blog:
Published February 19, 2026
I’m hardly surprised that so much internet and social media drivel is peddled and gobbled up by the masses. But I am sometimes surprised that people believe things that are absolutely illogical and ludicrous. For example, some people actually are deluded enough to think the Earth is flat. Others believe that AI is secretly running governments or that President Biden had a body double. I’ve even heard people say with a straight face that the government is secretly manipulating the weather patterns. Yikes!Recently, I heard a foolish, vile, senseless, and even dangerous belief that is being peddled online: Adolph Hitler wasn’t as bad as everyone thinks(!). Revisionist history at its worst! Indeed, both the far left and far right are good at revising history when they see fit. Anyway, in light of this nonsense, I recently picked up this helpful book: The Nazi Persecution of the Churches 1933-1945. This monograph is a detailed survey by J. S. Conway that includes scores of original sources, quotations, and numerous citations. One section I read this morning was Conway’s discussion of the Confessing Church’s opposition to the Nazification of the church in Germany, also known as Hitler’s de-Christianizing of the church. (Note: I’m looking for the English translations of the Confessing Church writings that Conway cites, so contact me if you know where I can find them.) Here’s how Conway explained it:
The situation of the Confessing Church in 1936 was distinctly unhappy. The defection of those who were prepared to collaborate with the Nazis in general and with [Reich Minister of Church Affairs] Kerrl in particular left only a remnant of ‘Dahlemites’ (the name given to the followers of M. Niemöller) to carry on the work of the Provisional Church Administration. Hitler’s hold over the popular imagination appeared to be on the increase, and little or no help could be expected from friends in Ecumenical Church circles abroad.
