17 Dec. 45
THE PRESIDENT: The one before you referred to was
070-PS. COL.
STOREY: Yes — 070-PS.
THE PRESIDENT: Before that, D-75?
COL. STOREY: That's correct. With Your Honor's permission, rather than
to quote the whole document I have summarized it here. Bormann's letter
cites as examples the hostile divergence between Nazism and the
churches, the attitude of the latter on the racial question, celibacy of
the priests, monasteries and nunneries. Bormann further declares that
the churches could not be subjugated through compromise but only through
a new philosophy of life as prophesied in Rosenberg's writings. Bormann
proposes the creation of a National Socialist catechism in order to give
that part of the German youth which declines to practice confessional
religion a moral foundation and to lay a moral basis for National
Socialist doctrines, which are gradually to supplant the Christian
religions. Bormann suggests that some of the Ten Commandments could be
merged with the National Socialist catechism and states that a few new
commandments should be added, such as: "Thou shalt be courageous;
Thou shalt not be cowardly; Thou shalt believe in God's presence in the
living nature, animals, and plants; Thou shalt keep thy blood pure;"
et cetera. He concludes that he considers the problem so important that
it should be discussed with the members of the Reich directorate as soon
as possible.
And now one quotation from the fifth paragraph on the first page of
that translation. I would like to quote Paragraph 5 of the first page:
"Christianity and National Socialism
are phenomena which originated from entirely different basic causes.
Both differ fundamentally so strongly that it will not be possible to
construct a Christian teaching which would be completely compatible
with the point of view of the National Socialist ideology; just as the
communities of Christian faith would never be able to stand by the
ideology of National Socialism in its entirety ... "
And then I quote from the last paragraph on Page 5 of that document:
"The Führer's deputy finds it
necessary that all these questions should be thoroughly discussed in
the near future in the presence of the Reich leaders" —
Reichsleiter — " who are especially affected by them ... "
I next offer in evidence Document 107-PS.
THE PRESIDENT: Do you suggest that the Blockleiter would have to be
present at that discussion?