Evening star., 1941-07-07
Bishops in Germany
Protest Restraints
On Catholic Church
Pastoral Letter Is Reed
Throughout Reich to
Reveal True Situation
a. the Associated Press.

b lDe Associated Press.
BERLIN. July IA pastoral
letter by the Catholic bishops OF
Greater Germany charges that
some forces presently are working
to dissolve the union between Christ
and the German people"
The letter of protest against re
straints and limitations" on free
expression of faith and religious
church life" was read yesterday in
Catholic churches throughout Ger
many.
The document was framed re-
Gently at Fulda, an ancient seat of
German culture northeast of
Frankfurt, at the grave of ST
Boniface,' apostle of Germany who
was martyred nearly IL centuries
ago.
Existence or non-existence of
Christianity and the church in Ger
many is at stake" the letter de-
clared
Official as we'll as authorized gov
ernment sources declined to COM
ment
Complaints Repeatedly Made.
The letter, among other state
ments, assured the faithful that
your bishops are at their posts"
and said 1t was intended to reveal
the real situation of the church"
Repeatedly, it said, the bishops
have made justified demands and
complaints to responsible authorities.
BE assured that the bishops are
speaking openly because as teachers
of the faith and defenders of the
rights of the church they are in
Stllled with a sacred duty to do so"
The letter referred to a book
not identified otherwiSe-in which.
1t said. the assertion was made that
Germans today had to choose be-
tween Christ and the German people.
With flaming indignation we
German Catholics decline to make
such a choice. We love our German
nation and serve it. if need be even
TO giving up our lives.
AT the same time. however. we
live and die for Jesus Christ and
want to remain bound TO him in
these times and eternally.'
Sacrifices Gladly Made.
The letter said the church "out
OF love for the entire nation" gladly
made the sacrifices necessitated by
war
But We fail to understand and
We are filled with deepest sorrow
because measures are seen effected
which interfere with church life
without being justified by the war"
The letter listed limitations in the
following fields Religious education,
religious literature. retreats. spir-
itual care in public hospitals. re-
llgious holidays and services.
In recent months many cloisters
of church institutions have been
closed and used for nonlchurchly
purposes. We have deepest SYM
pathv for the members of orders
who have been banished from their
cloister homes. it said.
The pastoral letter of yesterday
vas the first since the war started
and among the Sharpest of the
churchs challenges to Nazism.
1t comes at time when Adolf
Hitler is seeking to rouse Europe
for crusade against anti-religious
Communism and follows by one
week speech by Pope Plus XII
making no mention of the German
plan for a crusade
About half of Greater Germanv's
96 100000 inhabitants are Catholic
and figures published in 1888 showed
An increase in Catholic membership
since Hitler rose to power in 1888
The dispute between Nazi-ism and
the church was fundamentally over
rival claims to leadership in molding
the lives of Germans, particularly
German youth.
The church and the Nazi Reich
signed a concordat in 1888 in which
the secular training of Catholic
youth was allocated to the state
and religious training to the church.
But Nazi-ism is more than simple
political doctrine. 1t is a way of
life. Difficulties arose over inter-
pretation.
significance Seen Here.
Deep significance was attached by
Catholic sources in Washington to
the reading of the pastoral letter.
One prelate viewed it as rejecting
stiffening in defense of the church.
dictated by harsher re-
measures imposed recently.
Indications of a new militancy
by German Catholics were seen bv
another ecclesiastical authority in
tle circumstance that many of the
restrictions against which the let
ter protested were not new. although
the protest was not circulated until
yesterday.
Fulda, where the pastoral letter
was phrased, has long been the
periodical meeting place for the
bishops of Germany and each meet
ing usually has produced a pastoral
letter. However, after the latest
tulda meeting of which word had !
been received in Washington. held I
about six months ago, no letter was
Issued.
1t was recalled that DNB. official /
Germans news agency, reported at
the time that pastoral letter had
been drafted, but, significantly. was
being withheld. Whether the letter
read yesterday was the product of |
That meeting or of a more recent one
was not known. In any event it has
not yet been received by Catholic
authorities in Washington who have
teen previous letters.