The German Church Conflict

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What happens when a government decides to nationalise Christianity? There have been many examples in pre-modern times, but a very significant one shook Europe in the early twentieth century: the foundation of the German-Christian Church by Hitler. Karl Barth's essays, written between 1933 and 1939, offer an insight into what happened to the Church in Germany at the beginning of the century. Hitler's suggestion of the founding of a German-Christian Church seemed to accommodate the need for unity within the German Protestant faith. Whilst some Protestants were overjoyed at the idea that a national 'Christian' Church could be founded, others were highly critical. A conflict between Church and State soon arose. This collection of essays presents Barth's critical reflection upon the historical, social and political background to the transformation of the German churches. Karl Barth was closely involved in the German Church conflict from the beginning. The greatest theologian of the twentieth century, Barth was teaching at Bonn University when the Nazis came to power. Following his deportation in 1935, he taught in his native Switzerland until his death in 1968.