Discussion Jumpstarter
Study leader reference - not a definitive answer
Question 7
The Wartheland church incorporation limited membership by Nazi “blood and Volk,” excluding Jewish or Slavic Christians, and included participation in Nazi “morning celebration” meant to kindle racial instinct; what does this episode teach about how quickly church membership and worship can be redefined by the state, and where are the weak seams in our own churches that could be exploited?
Another way to ask: What does this show about how fast a government can reshape who belongs in a church and what happens in worship? What weak spots in our churches today could be used the same way?
Discussion Jumpstarter
Direct Answer
The transcript shows that once a church yields to state pressure and seeks acceptance, the state can rapidly redefine who belongs and what “worship” includes—even to the point of racial exclusion and pagan-like rituals. The weak seams, by inference from Chester’s emphasis, are compromises of the two-kingdom conviction and the desire for security and approval.
- Chester describes the incorporation in Wartheland: membership was limited to “German nationality strictly defined… by blood and Volk, thus excluding Christians of Jewish or Slavic background.”
- He notes spiritual compromise: Mennonites joined Nazi “morning celebration, a pagan activity on one Sunday per month.”
- The purpose of that celebration was explicitly racial/spiritual manipulation: to “awaken… the forces of instinct… vital for the struggle for existence… of our people and our race.”
- Chester connects it to surrender of will: Heidegger’s call to “wholly submit to the will of Hitler… sacrificing… will to… the state,” and then: “the German Mennonites did just that.”
- He states the pattern: Nazis allowed church freedom only if they “abandoned all critical public commentary,” and “they said, ‘Yes, sir.’”