"The political revolution has placed German civil life upon a completely new foundation which no longer leaves any room for party-political activity... Therefore the Zentrum is disbanding... in agreement with Reich Chancellor Hitler [which gives] its supporters the chance to make their energies wholly available for the national front under the leadership of the Chancellor, for positive co-operation towards the stabilization of our national, social, economic and cultural conditions, and collaboration in the restoration of law and order."
But wait, there's more moral perfidy and accommodation. A secret appendix excluded Catholic clergy from being drafted into military service, an odd request from the church unless it expected the regime to go to war against the nonbelieving hordes to the east. And in exchange for the cash flow from Third Reich to church accounts and other favors from the Reich an article forced all Catholic schools to teach students patriotic loyalty to the new Reich, while the exact fealty oath all Bishops had to take was as follows.
"Before God and on the Holy Gospels I swear and promise, as becomes a bishop, loyalty to the German Reich and to the State (Land) of [fill in], I swear and promise to honor the legally constituted government and to cause the clergy of my diocese to honor it. With dutiful concern for the welfare and the interests of the German state, in the performance of the ecclesiastical office entrusted to me, I will endeavor to prevent everything which might threaten it."
This was a prominent article in the document Pacelli signed. Note that the bishop promises under God to go to great lengths to protect not the best interests of the German people, but the interests of the Deutsch state run by Hitler. This vile oath to the Nazi devil gutted the ability of Catholic leaders to openly and straightforwardly criticize much less oppose Nationalist Socialist policies aside from those that directly violated the 1933 concordat.
This helps explain the bizarre and sick events of the next year, 1934. The regime soon began to violate the Concordat, probably to varying levels of approval and disapproval of Hitler who delegated a lot of authority in his popular dictatorship (sometimes Hitler pulled back anti-church activities when he became aware of them, other times he did not). And even the democracy hating von Papen was distressed by how far the Nazis were going. He made a speech requesting a return of some freedoms, and demanding that something be done about the most obviously extreme and perverted wing of the Nazi party, the storm troopers and their homosexual leader Ernst Rohm. Hitler thought the second proposal was sound, so Rohm and many other Nazis were murdered during the notorious Night of the Long Knives. Also rubbed out were some of Papen's associates as a warning to the Catholic politician that he had gotten out of line. In response Pacelli, the Pope, and the rest of the church said absolutely nothing. So did the other German churches, they being similarly quite relieved that Hitler had gotten rid of all those nasty Nazis leaving the "moderates" in charge. This primitive moral calculation anticipated that not objecting would encourage Hitler to kindly live up to terms of the Concordat. As for von Papen, he soon served Hitler as ambassador to Catholic Austria which he treacherously helped his boss make part of greater Germany, and then Turkey according to Vatican I he had to be loyal to his God ordained autocrat, after all.
As the regime continued to give the church trouble its top clerics increasingly protested violations of their precious concordat. In retaliation the regime deployed a favorite general tactic of targeting clerics with legal charges of immorality which considering recent history may have contained an awkward degree of truth. If you are wondering why German Catholics did not get more upset it is because their oath bound clergy kept telling them to remain loyal to the Third Reich despite the unpleasantries. Pacelli grew more distrustful of Hitler, and privately denounced him to western leaders while not letting his own followers fully in on the secret. But had the dictator ensured his regime stuck to the accord the loathing of Pacelli would have been much less. In 1939 Pacelli became Pious XII. He sent Hitler the following salutation this was after Kristallnacht.
"To the Illustrious Herr Adolf Hitler, Fuhrer and Chancellor of the German Reich! Here at the beginning of Our Pontificate We wish to assure you that We remain devoted to the spiritual welfare of the German people entrusted to your leadership... During the many years we spent in Germany, We did all in Our power to establish harmonious relations between Church and State. Now that the responsibilities of Our pastoral function have increased Our opportunities, how much more ardently do We pray to reach that goal."
Again it must be asked how those who loudly proclaim the Pacelli perpetually warned the globe about Hitler and fought him at every step can allow themselves to be seen in public. Seriously, I'd like to know. About the same time, Hitler celebrated his 50th birthday. Cardinal Bertram in Berlin sent greetings apparently at the behest of Pious XII, who did not put a stop to the solicitations as they continued until the end of the war --
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