The Religion Of Peace Strikes Again

Leo McNeil ^ | January 7, 2015 | Leo McNeil

[Sherman Logan]

BTW, my comments here are with regard to Christian faith as THE organizing principle of society, not individual faith.

To my mind, the plural nature of Protestantism meant that this faded earlier in Protestant countries. Lasted longer in many if not most Catholic areas, but when it do go, the change was faster.

[LeoMcNeil]

So go the elites in society, so go the peasants.

Hitler was born in the 19th century in Austria. If you look at baptism records from 19th century Austria you’ll discover that the majority of children were bastards. Divorce was common, so was abandonment. The peasants may have participated in historic church rituals such as baptisms and holy days but the way they lived their lives was anything but Christian. France was much the same. The church remained part of peasant life but it was completely disconnected from how people lived their lives.

That doesn’t mean there weren’t devout Catholics among the peasantry in these countries. I read a biography of Hitler’s childhood awhile back, with regards to the church life of the people it reminded me of the US today. The church exists in the background. It jumps on center stage for special days like xmas or rituals like baptism but once those are out of the way it fades into the background and people return to behaving like godless animals.

[Sherman Logan]

I’m afraid we’re just going to disagree on this one.

This is not at all the impression I’ve gotten from reading about the period from 1600 to 1900.

As I said, Catholic countries have always been odd in that people who turn away from the Church often developed a strident anti-clericalism. Which in a strange way shows a continued attachment.

Protestants have always been much more likely to just become indifferent.