German Resistance to .Hitler; Ethical and Religious Factors

[12], 259, [1] pages. Footnotes. Bibliography. Index. Cover has some wear and soiling. Tear at top of spine taped. Foreword by John J. McCloy, Former United States High Commissioner for Germany. Includes chapters on: The German Fight Against Hitler; Resistance to Tyranny; Patriotism of Treason?; War against the Fatherland?; The Case for Conscience; Kreuz und Hakenkreus; and Conclusion. Sister Alice Gallin, OSU, Ph.D. was raised in New Rochelle, NY where she attended The Ursuline School and graduated from the College of New Rochelle in 1942. She taught history and worked as a research analyst in the US Military Intelligence Service before joining the Ursuline Order in 1946. From 1950-1978 Sister Alice served on the faculty and administration of the College of New Rochelle. She earned an M.A. from Fordham University and Ph.D. from The Catholic University of America. From 1976-92, Sister Alice served at the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities, becoming its Executive Director. She dedicated a number of years to research and publishing on the history of American Catholic Higher Education. In this role, she authored several books, monographs, numerous articles, delivered numerous papers and was awarded 21 honorary degrees. Sister Alice was instrumental in the publication and implementation of Ex Corde Ecclesiae. She served as the Director of Research for the National Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee for the bi-centennial program, "Liberty and Justice for All". She was Scholar-in Residence at the College of New Rochelle. Derived from a discussion of the book found on-line: Mary Gallin's book German Resistance to Hitler: Ethical and Religious Factors gives an in depth study of five major personalities of the underground German resistance to Hitler. Gallin investigates the ideals of Colonial General Ludwig Beck, Former Mayor of Leipzig Carl Goerdeler, Count Helmuth von Moltke of the Foreign Officer faction, Colonial Count Claus von Stauffenberg, and Secretary of State Ernst von Weizsäcker to reveal how resistance was fueled by ethical and moral motivations rather than religious ones. In fact, Gallin includes chapters describing Protestant and Catholic Churches' disapproval of any type of violent revolution against a state or government. This further emphasizes the break from these men's religious guidance in an era where one's sense of patriotism and ethical responsibility were redefined, trumping the direction of religion and ruling government regime. However, despite Gallin's insightful and detailed history of resistance inside Germany, she also discredits the position of the church against the oppression of tyranny, making it apparent that both the Protestant and Catholic Church systems did little to nothing to resist Hitler's orders. Through her study of several groups of active resistance comprised of military and civilian leaders, Gallin concludes that these resistors' motivations were inspired by the "human passion of freedom" as well as sense of duty and responsibility and that "religious belief was not a determining factor in the individual's decision to fight against Hitler" (Gallin, 200). Opposition to Hitler developed from basic Christian principles and one's own conscience (Gallin, 79), despite both the Catholic and Protestant church direction not to utilize violence or any type of revolution to remove the Nazis from power (Gallin, 229). Through extensive testimony, sermons, and letters of cardinals, fathers, and bishops, Gallin reiterates the fact that German theology at the time of the Nazis was pressing for other means dissenting peacefully, dedicating an entire chapter on it at the end. However, through her attempt to legitimize the church not supporting violent actions such as the attempted assassination on Hitler in 1944, she also inadvertently proved that the church promoted a sort of passive acceptance to Nazism among its followers.…