The Grey Book: A collection of protests against anti-semitism and the persecution of Jews issued by non-Roman Catholic churches and church leaders during Hitlers ruleSnoek, Johan M.
Religion
The Grey Book: A collection of protests against anti-semitism and the persecution of Jews issued by non-Roman Catholic churches and church leaders during Hitlers rule
Snoek, Johan M.
Antisemitism; Christianity and other religions -- Judaism; Judaism -- Relations -- Christianity; Protestant churches -- Europe
At the end of August, 1943, the Bishop of Copenhagen, Dr. Fuglsang-Damgaard,
asked for an interview with the Director of the Foreign Ministry, who
declared that the Jewish question had not been raised. Nobody had been
arrested because of race or religion. When the Director had asked Dr. Best
about this matter, he had answered: "The question has not been broached at
all". [384] <165>
Dr. Fuglsang-Damgaard reported this in a letter to the pastors of his
diocese, dated September 4, 1943, adding that later developments would be
followed attentively. "From our experience with the German habit of breaking
promises, it was not thought wise to take Dr. Best's words too seriously.
Unfortunately however, his words perhaps did set our minds too much at
rest." [385]
The Churches, however, made necessary preparation in case persecution of
the Jews would begin. Bishop Fuglsang-Damgaard convened with pastors
belonging to the unofficial Pastors' Organisation P.U.F. [386] and asked
them to prepare a draft for a public protest, to be read out from the
pulpits. It was ready a short time later. The Bishop suggested some changes
but there was hardly time to make them as events developed rapidly.
On September 17, 1943, some Jewish houses in Copenhagen were raided. Bishop
Fuglsang-Damgaard thus had another interview with the director of the
Foreign Ministry, Svenningsen. In a letter to the Bishops, dated September 23,
he informed them that:
"... the raid did not indicate that they (the Germans) would raise the
Jewish question, but that it was connected with a suspicion of certain
persons. Thereafter I asked the Director of the Department to inform the
German authorities that their raising of the Jewish question would be met
by a joint protest by the Church and the Bishops. The Director promised to
inform the Germans of this..."
Bishop Fuglsang-Damgaard relates:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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