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So. Let's talk about the little known story of how Nazis used a strain of angry, white-identity Christianity and transferred reverence of Jesus to Adolf Hitler, thus cementing a political-fascist-religious cult, and how that might remind you of what's happening right now... 1/
This was really surprising to me. The story I've always been told is that Nazis were extremely anti-religious and pop-culture shows them consistently destroying religious idols, suppressing religion. But the truth is that they co-opted a strain called Positive Christianity. 2/
Positive Christianity was a strain of racist Christianity in which the New Testament was emphasized and the Old Testament cast aside for its Jewish roots. They heralded Christ as an Aryan and saw his life as testament to Jewish evil. 3/
In Positive Christianity Jesus was depicted as being blonde and having blue eyes. He was the pinnacle of Aryan idealization. The story of him throwing the money changers out of the temple was seen as the first Anti-Semitic action, and the anger as a cue for war. 4/
Hitler would speak out against religion, but before he became the Fuhrer he would often call himself a Christian, made several references to fighting for the Lord, framed Jesus as an Aryan, and tied himself to Positive Christianity until he became synonymous with it. 5/
All right, so let's get upsetting. Positive Christianity was a strain of Christianity in which the leaders would continually claim that God was punishing the country for its sins. It's why they lost WWI, why they were suffering depression, they needed to repent. 6/
Positive Christian leaders accepted Hitler, despite his anger, despite his actions, because he was a fighter. They saw him as the right person to fight against cultural decay. They forgave him his mistakes and his behavior because they wanted a champion. 7/
For years the Nazi swastika appeared next to Christian symbols. They were interchangeable, part of the same movement. That is, until the Nazis decided they didn't need the Christian concept anymore and took it over completely. 8/
In 1937, it was announced to religious leaders that Positive Christianity and Christianity weren't needed anymore. Here's why: Hitler owned "the new revelation." That's right. He became the Christian messiah in the movement, thus negating the need for Christ. 9/
This takeover meant that, around Hitler, it wasn't just a secular control, it was religious. The Nazis were a literal religious cult in which the leader held the revelation, meaning he could never be questioned and any actions would be warranted based on doctrine. 10/
The Christian symbols fell by the wayside. Nazi flags and symbols replaced them, but were imbued with the same power and meaning because, to the followers, they were the same as the Christian symbols. It was a religion, not a movement, and the leaders accepted it wholesale. 11/
And what happens is that Hitler, as the leader of the cult, can lie however he wants, he can contradict himself fully whenever he needs to, and it can't be questioned, because his word is doctrine. He's the champion, the messiah, the leader of the faith. 12/
And what can we learn? That we have to stop looking at religion and secular/political concerns as walled off from one another. Religious groups can transfer faith and power at a moment's notice, especially if they feel threatened and if there's something to gain. 13/
The Aryan-izing of Jesus has existed for forever, but the iteration of American far-right Christianity reflects SO MUCH of what happened in Nazi Germany. It's identity politics and mobilization, the politicization and harnessing of a religion for political/fascist purposes 14/
What we're watching in this country, this cult of personality around a detestable politician, has happened before, time and time again, and when the religious aspect gets involved it can be so incredibly dangerous. We have to understand the past and how it's happened. 15/15
PS. We have to stop accepting simplified, Cliff Notes versions of history. These myths have hurt us and held us back from understanding the past. We have to have full understandings of what has happened and why. We have to, have to, have to dig deeper.
