"In case persecution of the Jews should begin, this Protest must be read in the churches, and I propose that the pastors commence the reading with the following sentence: 'On the 29th September of this year the Bishops sent to the leading German authorities, through the Directors of the Departments, a letter with the following contents:...'" <167> On Saturday, October 2, 1943, theological students despatched the Protest to all the manses in Bishop Fuglsang-Damgaard's diocese. On that same evening, the Bishop again was advised by the Ministry of Religious Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to consider the consequences. "But there was nothing to reconsider. The matter had to be completed." [390] The Protest "Wherever persecutions are undertaken for racial or religious reasons against the Jews, it is the duty of the Christian Church to raise a protest against it for the following reasons: 1. Because we shall never be able to forget that the Lord of the Church, Jesus Christ, was born in Bethlehem, of the Virgin Mary into Israel, the people of His possession, according to the promise of God. The history of the Jewish people up to the birth of Christ includes the preparation for the salvation which God has prepared in Christ for all men. This is also expressed in the fact that the Old Testament is a part of our Bible. 2. Because a persecution of the Jews is irreconcilable with the humanitarian concept of love of neighbours which follows from the message which the Church of Jesus Christ is commissioned to proclaim. With Christ there is no respect of persons, and He has taught us that every man is precious in the eyes of God. 'There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.' (Gal. 3, 28). 3. Because it contradicts the sense of justice, inherent during centuries in our Danish civilisation and which lives in the Danish people. In accordance with the above principles, all Danish citizens have equal rights and duties before the law and freedom of religion assured to them by the constitution. We understand by freedom of religion the right to exercise our faith in God according to vocation and conscience, in such a way that race and religion can never be in themselves a reason for depriving a man of his rights, freedom or property. Despite different religious views we shall therefore struggle to ensure the continued guarantee to our Jewish brothers and sisters of the same freedom which we ourselves treasure more than life. The leaders of the Danish Church are conscious of our responsibility to be law-abiding citizens; we do not needlessly revolt against those who exercise the functions of authority over us; but at the same time, we are obliged by our conscience to maintain the law and to protest against any violation of human rights. Therefore, we desire to declare unambiguously our allegiance