British Christians and the Third Reich
British Christians and the Third Reich
In this ground-breaking study, Andrew Chandler examines the complex relationship between religions and politics, church and state, and national and international politics during the period that witnessed the rise and fall of the Third Reich. He explores these dilemmas within the context of the tumultuous years when many British Christian confronted and challenged the Nazi regime. Chandler shows how many of the key moral questions which came to define the modern world now crystallized: What view should the Christian take of the political state? How should the claims of dictators and democrats be judged? How should the Church protest against injustice – and what can be done about it? How should peace be preserved and when should war be declared? How should a just war be justly fought? It is a history which places the Third Reich firmly in an international perspective, revealing the moral arguments and debates that Nazism provoked across the democracies. It is also an important study of the many ways in which men and women outside Germany intervened, protested, and campaigned against the Hitler regime and sought to support its critics and its victims.
- Shows the interrelationships of religion, morality and politics in the twentieth-century world
- Encourages the reader to explore new material and to integrate these debates in their own reflections, teaching and discussions in academic contexts and in public discourse at large
- Reveals the moral arguments and debates that Nazism provoked across the democracies
Reviews & endorsements
'This is the most comprehensive study yet published of the British churches' response to the rise and fall of Nazi Germany, and is of major importance both for historical understanding and for theological and ethical reflection on the perennial issues of the challenges faced by faith in the political arena.' Keith Clements, Baptist Quarterly
'This book will prove worthwhile to anyone interested in the intersection of religion and politics, national and international politics, and church and state relations during the first half of the 20th century.' Israel A. Kolade, Reading Religion
'This is a masterful and important study that will be essential reading for anyone interested in understanding mid twentieth-century British Christianity.' John Carter Wood, German Historical Institute London Bulletin
'[An] impressive and much-needed work three decades in the making. … Chandler exhibits a deep knowledge of the archival record and an impressive familiarity with the historical subjects whom he presents in this splendid work.' Blake McKinney, Fides et Historia
Product details
September 2024Paperback
9781107569645
432 pages
230 × 151 × 25 mm
0.652kg
Available
Table of Contents
- Part I. An Inhabited Landscape:
- 1. Observing British Christianity after the Great War
- 2. The public and private world of British Christianity
- Part II. The German National Revolution, 1933-1934:
- 3. Tumult in 1933
- 4. Escalation and controversy:
- 1933-1934
- 5. The deepening crisis:
- 1933-1934
- Part III. Resisting a Rapprochement, 1935-1937:
- 6. Uneasy calm:
- 1935
- 7. A dubious stability:
- 1936
- 8. A world of conference and a single arrest:
- 1937
- Part IV. Crisis, 1938-1939:
- 9. The destruction of peace:
- 1938
- 10. The coming of war:
- 1938-1939
- Part V. The Onslaught, 1939-1943:
- 11. A righteous war:
- 1939-1941
- 12. New alliances:
- 1941-1943
- Part VI. A Gathering Judgement, 1944-1949:
- 13. Unconditional realities
- 14. Peace aims and retribution
- 15. Justice in 1945 and after
- Part VII. Endings and Legacies.
