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To: Alex Murphy; juliej; wideawake
But IMO the better question is, what could the Catholic Church have accomplished, had the Vicar of Christ openly denounced Hitler?

For your answer to that you need to look no further than the People's Republic of China's "official" Catholic Church today. In case you hadn't heard, the Nazis were all about propaganda, and good things seldom happened when their feelings got hurt. The major religions in Germany today are Lutheran and Anglican, I believe. The correct question may be that if Protestant's "can do no other" than to speak out, why didn't millions of them end up in the camps? Because this lame argument, like all the others, has always been first and foremost a politically correct way for the left (and people who just hate Catholicism) to attack the Catholic Church.

10 posted on 05/05/2011 1:09:18 PM PDT by presidio9 ("Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask rather what you can do for your country." -Cicero)
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To: presidio9

Germany today is roughly one-third Catholic, one-third Lutheran, one-third atheist.


12 posted on 05/05/2011 1:25:37 PM PDT by wideawake
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To: presidio9
The correct question may be that if Protestant's "can do no other" than to speak out, why didn't millions of them end up in the camps?

Certainly, words alone are often not enough. And many were cowards in both word and deed. But some were not.

The Ten Boom family were devoted Christians who dedicated their lives in service to their fellow man. Their home was always an "open house" for anyone in need. Through the decades the Ten Booms were very active in social work in Haarlem, and their faith inspired them to serve the religious community and society at large.

During the Second World War, the Ten Boom home became a refuge, a hiding place, for fugitives and those hunted by the Nazis. By protecting these people, Casper and his daughters, Corrie and Betsie, risked their lives. This non-violent resistance against the Nazi-oppressors was the Ten Booms' way of living out their Christian faith. This faith led them to hide Jews, students who refused to cooperate with the Nazis, and members of the Dutch underground resistance movement.

During 1943 and into 1944, there were usually 6-7 people illegally living in this home: 4 Jews and 2 or 3 members of the Dutch underground. Additional refugees would stay with the Ten Booms for a few hours or a few days until another "safe house" could be located for them. Corrie became a ringleader within the network of the Haarlem underground. Corrie and "the Beje group" would search for courageous Dutch families who would take in refugees, and much of Corrie's time was spent caring for these people once they were in hiding. Through these activities, the Ten Boom family and their many friends saved the lives of an estimated 800 Jews, and protected many Dutch underground workers.
-- Excerpted from the Corrie Ten Boom Museum website.

Have you ever read the book/watched the film version of The Hiding Place? Corrie Ten Boom and her family were members of the Dutch Reformed Church. Father Ten Boom's determination to wear the Star of David (identifying himself as a Jew, even though he wasn't one) was an symbolic, inspiring, and sobering testimonial to his faith and solidarity with the Jews in the face of the Nazi occupation of Holland. The Ten Boom household was betrayed, and sent to the Nazi concentration camps for their actions. Corrie's father and sister died in those camps.

Corrie Ten Boom was awarded the honorific "Righteous Among the Nations", by the State of Israel, for her actions on behalf of the Jews during WWII. Many Catholic priests and officials (incl. several Cardinals, Bishops, and the Superior General of the Jesuits) have also awarded with this honor; Pope Pius XII was nominated in 2009, but AFAIK has not received it to date.

15 posted on 05/05/2011 1:46:44 PM PDT by Alex Murphy (Posting news feeds, making eyes bleed: he's hated on seven continents)
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