Nazi German Church vs the Contemporary American Church-5*

   In the last tidbit I wrote that Alfred Rosenberg’s 1930 book attacking Christianity in a predominantly Christian nation caused a firestorm. However, Nazi propaganda was able to quiet the Tsunami by contending that Rosenberg referred to ‘negative’ Christianity. In other words, the Nazis invented the terms ‘negative’ Christianity and its obvious counterpart ‘positive’ Christianity to remain politically relevant. 
   What is ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ Christianity? And, why would a ‘Christian’ people allow the Nazis to re-invent their theology?
   To cut to the chase, ‘negative’ and ‘positive’ Christianity do not exist. In fact, Nazism has no right, nor the capability to define anything theological. Therefore, any twist they had regarding God, should have immediately been declared heresy and utter foolishness! Remember, Rosenberg’s book was published in 1930, a full three years before Hitler came to power—so the people did not yet have to be concerned with being imprisoned or killed for opposing the Nazis!!! Why then did Christians allow it?
   First, to set the record straight, the Nazi theological designations of ‘negative’ and ‘positive’ Christianity should have been discerned as:
1.UnBiblical. The German church should have dismissed the entire Nazi party as ungodly
 and unworthy of their support because the two terms are blatantly unbiblical.
2.Illegal. Germany had a separation of church and state meaning that German people, both Christian and non-Christian, should have discerned the Nazis crossed the line by attacking Christianity.

Second, the first reason the Nazis were able to diffuse the Rosenberg controversy, and appease the ‘Christians’, was by using propaganda to move the controversy away from the theological arena to the political arena. They accomplished this by defining ‘negative’ Christianity as pro-Jewish. Because the German culture had adopted both the anti-Biblical, and anti-theological concept of anti-semitism, violating both 1 and  2 above, the culture was already wallowing in deception, which prevented them from seeing the deception of the Nazis! The German cultural wickedness of abandoning God’s word regarding the Jews, set the foundation for later Nazi anti-theological aggressions, which further clarified their definition of ‘negative’ and ‘positive’ Christianity. For example, after the Nazis came to power in 1933, their hatred for the Jews spilled over into such things as recommending the Old Testament be removed from the Bible because it was pro-Jewish! Let me repeat that, in a nation that professed to be 95% Christian, a ‘political’ party was able to recommend the Bible be purged of the entire Old Testament!! Furthermore, a little later, the Nazis removed Bibles from churches and replaced them with Hitler’s Mein Kampf! In addition to that, they demanded crosses be removed from the churches replacing them with swastikas. At its core, the church allowed the Nazis to create ‘negative’ and ‘positive’ Christianity in order to redefine sin! The redefinition of sin means the Nazis were now responsible for determining right from wrong, and good from evil---which is the sole responsibility of God, Himself!  Therefore, Hitler declared himself god!
   The first lesson this teaches the church (everywhere) is there is no separation of church and state as defined by liberalism**! In other words, in essence, ‘ALL’*** nations have a god(s), and follow the direction of that god (Ps96:5, Ps33:12). Because God was never meant to be separated from any part of life (Col3:23,Pro9:10,Pro28:5), even if one creates a god, that created god’s law will still rule!
   Next, in the redefinition of sin, every evil becomes possible (Is5:20,Rom1:30). Like Germany, America is moving down the road of redefining sin. Although this process did not begin with President Obama, because of his position of authority, he has greatly contributed toward its establishment as unwritten national public policy. For example, in 2008, before becoming president, Tribune journalist Cathleen Falsani asked Obama, his definition of sin, he answered: "Being out of alignment with my values". 1John 3:4 offers God’s definition of sin.
   The redefining of sin in America has given us not only the establishment of the sin of homosexuality, but gay marriage, and transgenderism!  Tragically, America’s explosion of sexual perversion is now often marketed by the church!! Interestingly, the same way the redefinition of sin allowed Germany to commit evil never before seen (Rom1:30); without repentance by the American church, its redefinition of sin will end in worse catastrophic evil!
   The good news is—it’s never too late:
If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.  -2Chron7:14



*These series uses Victoria Barnett’s work, “For the Soul of The People”
**Liberalism defines the separation of church and state as the separation of God from the state.
***ALL people serve a god—no exceptions! All humans serve:
1.The real God: the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2.A false god:  Allah, a Hindu god, Buddha, idol, etc.
3.Self: People determine self to be god.

Quotebit
"Life is like a grinding stone - it can polish you or pulverize you - depending on how you position yourself" -- Larry De Angelo