THREAD: My career has been spent studying Christianity and the rise of Nazism, specifically, the massive moral failure of a religion in the face of political nihilism to recognize it and fight back. In early 30's Hitler promised Germany he would take care of the communists /1
and other "degenerates" who threatened Christian civilization. He made the religious appeal knowing Germans would instinctively protect a religion that legitimated and justified anti-Semitism and cultural power, even though he had no real commitment to Christianity. /2
Millions embraced this message, even though it was cloaked in code about who the "enemy" really was. After gaining political power by subverting the law and creating a crisis with the Reichstag fire, Hitler passed legislation to stop dissent and /3
align all orders of society, especially the church and the universities with his plans. Those that went along, he rewarded, and those who opposed, he punished. Parallel with this was the agenda of taking public space through violence, #Kristallnacht #Brownshirts /4
This did not happen overnight, but over a period of years The way was prepared with 2,000 years of Christian anti-Jewishness, but it was enabled by venal politicians and a media who was too lazy to tell the truth or shine a light into the very dark places. /5
Christianity, with very few exceptions #DietrichBonhoeffer, failed to stand up to the demonization and dehumanizing of other human beings. As US descends into its fascist moment, Christianity replicates the moral failure of Nazi era by refusing to speak . . . /6
the truth. In a world where The Lie is coin of the realm, the truth is being destroyed while we dither. Mueller will not save us, Democrats will not save us; we must save ourselves by a willingness to stand up to the onslaught of lies, /7
but we cannot do this individually, we need communities of support. A large segment of Christianity has already been seduced, but now mainline Christianity replicates its failure by seeking to protect its cultural privilege. Some Christian individuals and communities are /8
speaking out, but few are listening. If you think "nationalism" isn't a dog whistle for forces that would destroy us, you miss the lessons of history. And, yes, Godwin's Law is misstated. Just because you're not HItler doesn't mean you don't follow the power playbook. /end
