Nazi Racism, American Anti-Semitism, and Christian Duty

of we they that persecution by such totalitarian Germany a problem. The American is still under the illusion that from are entirely though thousands [of Christian refugees] have forced to leave Germany and are without any means of livelihood. If we are to have a united front let it be not only against anti-Semitism but against persecution of both Jews and Christians.³ ⁰ Hundreds of thousands of our fellow-Christians are fleeing before Nazi brutality. It is im-possible to exaggerate their suffering. They are victims of the ruthless philosophy of “ race, blood and soil ” ; a philosophy which finds the religion of Jesus a stumbling block which must somehow, if possible, be eliminated. And let us make no mistake about it. The assault of the Nazi on Christianity is a carefully planned program of extermination; it has not stopped short of the fearful barbarism of the concentration camp and all the ter-rors of exile.³³

added that even these matters "weren ot,i ng eneral, of continuinga nd paramountc oncern."⁷ The historian Robert Ross was even sharper in his critique of the Protestant churches and their publications, characterizingthe Americanr eligious response to the Nazi persecution and extermination of the Jews as silence -the silence of "the failureofinformation to persuade," of "the failureofconcerted effort," and of "the failureofmodest actions."⁸ Curiouslyjuxtaposed to this negative assessment was Ross'sr ecognition that Protestant journalists and commentators had written widelyo nt he Nazi persecution of the Jews, and that U.S. Protestants had been quite active on behalf of Jews, donating money,organizing rallies, writing protests, commissioningdelegations to Germany, petitioningP resident Roosevelt, the U.S. StateD epartment,a nd Congress, establishing denominational and interdenominational committees, cooperating periodicallyw ith Jewish organizations,and organizing prayer rallies. But after listing all of these activities, Ross dismissed them on the grounds that they had neither deterred Hitler from persecutingJ ews nor convinced the U.S. government to intervene in Germandomestic affairs. Yet, not onlyw as Ross'se valuation naive about the potential of U.S. Protestant church leaders to influencee ither Hitler or Roosevelt,i tc oncentratedo nw hat Christians and churches had not done. Left aside was anya nalysis of how Protestants understood and interpreted Hitler, Jews, and Judaism, or what actions they had proposed that either the U.S. churches or the U.S. government should have undertaken.⁹ Haim Genizi, for his part,tackled the specific question of Americana pathy towards Christian refugees from Nazism, manyofw hom wereJ ews or "non-Aryans" accordingt ot he Nazi NurembergL aws, even if Christians by religious choice. Genizin oted the efforts of the Federal Council of Churches and other mainline voices to rouse AmericanP rotestants to aid refugees, but argued that agencies like the American Committeef or Christian GermanR efugees and dozens of other organizations werebasicallyunable to generate support from either Christian individuals or church bodies. In fact,J ewish organizations provided most of the earlyfunding for the AmericanCommittee for Christian GermanRefugees.¹⁰ Scholars have continued to reassess U.S. and Canadian Protestant attitudes and actions concerning Jews and Judaism during the Nazi era. Forexample, various recent studies have discussed the significant protests of American Christians just after the Nazi seizure of power and also, most notably, in the wake of the November1 938K ristallnacht pogrom.¹¹ Examining the convoluted history of evangelical-Jewish relations,Yaakov S. Ariel has mostlyagreed with Nawynt hat conservative evangelicals found themselvescaughtbetween competing ideas. They strongly condemned Nazi anti-Jewish policies and viewed Nazi ideologya s" ar ebellion against God and ad istortion of Christian theologyand values."¹² True to theirconvictions about salvation in Jesus Christ,t hey alsow orked to evangelize Jews, expressing particularc oncern for "non-Aryan" Christians caught in Hitler'sp ersecution. Nevertheless, evangelicals remained under the influenceo ft raditionala ntipathyt owards Jews and Judaism, and wereq uick to blame Jews for apostasy and conspiracy. They uncriticallyaccepted TheProtocols of the EldersofZion as genuine descriptions of Jewishb ehaviora nd intentions throughout the 1930s, onlya bandoning this view as the Nazi persecution of the Jews deepened.¹³ More negatively,Caitlin Carenen has argued that mainline Protestants -convinced of their culturalp reeminence -were largely intolerant of Jews (and Catholics) in the interwar period. Christian culturalp ower and rising nationalism fed ag rowinga nti-Semitism.  J udaism, and Zionism, 1865-1945( Brooklyn, NY:C arlson, 1991.  Ibid., 121, 142 -52. Among fundamentalists, some, like Gerald Winrod's Defenderso ft he Christian Faith,participated in this anti-Semitism and stoked fears of Jewish conspiracies. Others, though, stressed the importance of Jews in Christian eschatology and urgedk indness towardst hem. Particularlya fter the Kristallnacht pogrom, Carenen claims, sympathyf or Jews increaseda mong bothl iberal and conservative Protestants, as did support for Jewish emigration to Palestine, though not to the United States.¹⁴ In contrast to the aforementioned emphasis on what U.S. Protestants failed to do in response to Nazism and the Holocaust,t his chapter will examine how they perceivedHitler,Nazism, and the persecution of Germany'sJews in the prewar era, and what kinds of responses,i fa ny,they proposed. Basing my inquiry on examples from prominent Protestant publications,¹⁵ Ia rgue five interrelated  Caitlin Carenen, The Fervent Embrace: Liberal Protestants,E vangelicals,a nd Israel (New York: New York University Press,2 012), 1-47.A longside Ariel and Carenen, David Rausch defended fundamentalist journalist Arno C. Gaebelin'sreporting on the plight of Jews in Nazi Germanyand the Holocaust,a rguingi tw as both anti-Nazi and pro-Zionist.M ore recently, Timothy Padgett has assessed Gaebelein and his magazine, Our Hope,alongside other conservative publications likeMoodyMonthlyand Christian Herald, findingamixtureofsympathyfor and criticism of Nazi Germany, concern about anti-Semitism, calls to evangelize Jews,worries about Nazi attacks on Christianity,a nd interest in Zionism and its relationship to Christian eschatology. Matthew Bowman argued much the same thing, notingt hat fundamentalist Protestants remained politicallym arginalized sincet he Scopest rial in the 1920s, but followed events in Europeclosely, condemningHitler and searching for eschatological clues in the turmoil surrounding the Jews.F inally, TimothyW eber contendedt hat conservative,p remillenialist Christians lined up politicallya sa llies of the Jews,f or eschatological reasons,a nd religiouslya se nemies of the Jews,because of the Jewish rejection of Christ.David A. Rausch, "Our Hope:AnAmerican Fundamentalist Journal and the Holocaust,1 937-1945," Fidese tH istoria 12:2( 1980): 89 -103; idem, Arno C. Gaebelein,1861-1945: Irenic Fundamentalist and Scholar (New York: Edwin Mellen, 1983); TimothyPadgett, "Warmongers?: Continuity and Complexity in Evangelical Discourse on United States ForeignP olicy" (PhD diss., Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, 2016), 28-70;Matthew Bowman, "Persecution, Prophecy, andthe Fundamentalist ReconstructionofGermany, 1933 -1940," in Mazzenga, ed points: 1) thatmainline Protestant spokespersons viewed Nazism with great foreboding,s ensing crisis in the air;2)t hatt hey were primarily concerned with the Nazi persecution of Christians;3 )t hat they also cared about the persecution of Jews; 4) that they both condemned and perpetuatedf ormso fa nti-Semitism in the United States; and 5) that,a bove all, they understood the challengeo fN azism in terms of acosmic battle between Christianity and irreligion -abattle liberals and conservativesu nderstood somewhat differentlyfrom one another,asI will show.

Sense of Crisis
First and foremost,what is most striking about the U.S. mainline Protestant periodicals in 1938 is theirp rojection of as ense of crisis. The demagoguery of Hitler,the brutality of his Nazi regime, the dangers of anti-Semitism in Europe and America,and the breakdown of the international order combined to castadark shadow over the church press in this study. Here astriking example can be found in as ingle issue of the Congregational weekly Advance,f rom February 1, 1938. Arthur E. Holt, Congregational church leader and Professor of Christian Social Ethics in Chicago, openedt he discussion by lamenting the decline and indeed absenceo fd emocracyi nt he non-Western world and in much of Europe, on account of the rise of communism, fascism, and National Socialism. Next,H enry Smith Leiper,missionary,member of the Federal Council of Churches,and Executive Secretary of the AmericanS ectiono ft he Universal Christian Councilf or Life and Work, worried about racism in America, Bolshevism in Europe, and "the manifold evils which threaten even civilization itself." In this regard, he quoted ac ommonwealth political leader who declared that politics was failing and "the world is drifting towards catastrophe." Finally, Alfred Schmalz, Congregationalist minister and prominent Christian social activist,a ssertedt hatG erman grievances relating to the Treaty of Versailles had producedHitler and Nazism. Givens imilar resentments in Italya nd Japan, international tensions were rising,a nd Schmalz predicted that the outcomeo ft he "economic conflict between the world'sg reat imperialistic powers," if not checked, would be "world war."¹⁶ Other articles throughout 1938 bemoaned "aworld in the grip of violence odist weeklypublished in Boston and edited for over twodecades by LewisOliverHartman, who would go on to win election as the American Bishop of the Methodist Churchi n1 944.  Arthur E. Holt, "Shall Protestantism Implement Democracy?" Advance( February 1, 1938): 57-8; Henry Smith Leiper, "The Stateo ft he Church," Advance (February 1, 1938): 62;A lfred Schmalz, "Peaceful Change -The Alternative to War," Advance (February 1, 1938): 63. and the threat of war,"" the impression of as trange, demonic, and dangerous power" in Nazi Germany,t he "death" of the Leagueo fN ations, and the fact that "everyone expects war,m anye xpect it soon."¹⁷ In the wake of the Munich Agreement,which handed the Czech Sudetenland to Hitler,Guy Emery Shipler, editor of TheC hurchman,a nE piscopal biweekly, noted the "moral bankruptcy of Hitler" and described the German Führer as a "psychopathic individual." Twoweeks later,hewonderedhow "anyone […]should place anytrust in Hitler's word," adding that eventuallyp eople would understand that bothH itler and Mussolini were "but ranting pygmies."¹⁸ That same week, Clifford Phelphs Morehouse,e ditor of TheL iving Church,a nother Episcopal publication, averred that "The main issue is still whether or not the totalitarian heresy is to dominate the world." He went on to describet otalitarianism (whetherN azism, Fascism, or Communism) as "ad enial of the individual worth and dignityo fm an […] the negation of the liberty for which our forefathers foughtand […]aphilosophy of blood and hate as opposed to ar eligion of mercya nd love."¹⁹ Newsr eports and editorialss uch as these filled the pages of mainlineP rotestant periodicals, attestingt ot he dismayw ith which U.S. Protestant spokespersons -manyo f them prominent church leaders -viewed the expansion and exercise of Nazi power in the prewar period.

Attackso nC hristianity
In their response to Hitler and Nazism, writers and editors in the mainlineP rotestant periodicals analyzedi nt his chapter zeroed in most ofteno nt he grave danger to Christianity posed by Nazism and the manyattacksagainst Christians and churches,p articularlyi nG ermany. In January 1938, Advance reportedt hat Hitler had jailed 1300 pastors between 1934 and 1937.Two months later,the editor William E. Gilroy brooded about various totalitarian threats to religion. "In Russia, Germany and Italy, alike," he wrote, "the Christian is under the heel of NaziR acism, American Anti-Semitism, and Christian Duty pagan dictatorships that flout the Christian faith and idealism and run roughshod over the Christian consciencea nd the Christian will."²⁰ TheC hurchman also offered regular reports on anti-Christian policiesa nd events in Germany. In March 1938 alone, articles and editorials called the Nazi religious program "neo-pagan" and praised Confessing Church pastor Martin Niemöller as "ac hampiono fr eligious liberty," claimed that Niemöller'sa rrest was as ign thath eh ad inspired fear among the Nazis, and drew attention to the fact that manyo therc lergyw erea lso in prison or forbidden to preach.²¹ The plight of the German churches was broadcast throughout the year in terms thatare well encapsulated in the title of an article that came out in November: "CaesarPresses His Claims in the Reich: The Trappings Change, But the Plot is the Same." Attempts to Nazify the Sermon on the Mount and rewrite John's gospel were depicted as an effort "to bring Christianityi nto conformity with Nazi nationalism -that absurd and abominable compound of 'race,b lood and soil.'" The article'smain point was that "The central forceinthe drive to destroy the ChristianityofG ermanyi si nt he mind and personality of Hitler.H ei s the chosen and idolizedleader of those who hate the church. He himself has ordered the illegal and violent repression of thosew ho have dared to speak the truth."²² Among the most energeticC hristian writers commentingo nN azi attacks against Christianity was Henry Smith Leiper,who wrotefor several publications. Reporting on the German church scene at the close of 1938 for TheLiving Church, Leiper noted a "clear intention" among National Socialists "to liquidate any Church which does not show itself entirelyi na greement with the proposal that it prostitutei tself unqualifiedlyt ot he 'positive Christianity' of Mr.H itler and Mr.R osenberg." He documented the steadyp rogress towards the subjugation and corruption of the Church "so thati tm ay become merelyt he ecclesiastical arm of the [Nazi] revolution." In support of this,h ec laimed the arrest of over 10,000 Christian leaders and "the destruction of the Church educational system," which would, in turn, he asserted, corrupt the future leadership of the church. The banning of Bible teachingi ns chools, the charging of clergy who prayed for peace with treason, and the cutting off of the payofoppositional clergy werejust some of the other measures citedbyLeiper as evidence of afull- scale offensive against ChristianityinGermany.²³ Manyofhis fellow writers and editors in these U.S. Protestant periodicals analyzedi nt his chapter concurred with this assessment,s oundingacollective alarm regarding the danger for the Church.

Concern forJ ewishR efugees
Though U.S. Protestant spokespersons were primarily concerned with Nazism's impact on the Christian churches of Germany,the plight of Jews did not escape the notice of at least some members of the church press in this study. By 1938, the Jewishr efugeec risish ad reachedacritical level. Between 1933 and the outbreak of war in September 1939,r oughly2 82,000 of the 523,000 German Jews abandoned their homeland and found refuge abroad, in the United States,P alestine, Great Britaina nd other Commonwealth countries,C entral and South America -even China and Japan.²⁴ By 1938, Hitler was ratchetingupinternational tensions through his annexation of Austria in March, his demand for Sudeten Czech territory in the spring and summer,and his occupation of vital Czechoslovak territory in October.T his too spurred Jewish emigration. No fewer than 117, 000 of the 174,000 Jews in Austria departed between the German annexation in March 1938 and the beginning of wari nS eptember 1939.²⁵ And although 85,000 Jewish refugees reached the United States during this eighteen-month period, manym oret ried and failed: no fewer than3 00,000 Jews applied for the 27,000 visas available under the U.S. immigration quota system.²⁶ At first,the mainline periodicals here analyzed weref airlyt epidi nt heir response to the refugeec risis. One earlya rticle by Hubert C. Herringo fAdvance thanking President Roosevelta nd Secretary of State Cordell Hull for proposing an international meeting at Evian-les-Bains, France, whereH erringb elieved "that international action [would] be taken to provide refugef or German and Austrian refugees from Adolf Hitler." He added that, "The United States,the rich- est nation, can afford to drop the bars and let substantial numbers in. Letusurge that this will be done."²⁷ While Advance had little else to sayabout the matter, TheC hurchman advocated stronglyonbehalf of Jews, covering closelythe Nazi persecution and consequent Jewishr efugeec risis. On January 1, 1938, in an article entitled, "Anti-Semitism: 24 Christian Faiths Sympathize with Jews," editor Guy EmeryS hipler reported on astatement by the Episcopalian Home Missions Council, remarking on the growth of "exaggerated nationalism" and explaining how "the rise of anti-Semitism in manyl ands has cast ap all of gloom over the Jews of the world." The report went on to reject anti-Semitism, demand its eradicationi n North America, and call upon Christians to recognize their special obligation to the Jews.²⁸ What is striking about the discourse on Jewishp ersecution in TheC hurchman,h owever,w as how often it was linked to Christian persecution. Shipler's editorial writing is an excellent casei np oint.I na ne ditorial from April 1, 1938, Shipler introduced adiscussion of Hitler,Jews, and Christians with aquotation from Hanns Kerrl, the Nazi Ministerfor Religious Affairs: "Anew authority has arisen as to what Christ and Christianity are -Adolf Hitler." Shipler explained how "neighbor" had come to mean "blood brother" under Nazi rule, resultingin"such heart-breakingmisery that decent people are nauseated as they are forced to confessthat Adolf Hitler is technicallyahuman being." He then applied his critique of Nazi racial exclusivity to bothJ ews and Christians: No one whoi safollower of Jesus the Jew; no one in whose heart have sungt he words of Paul the Jewechoingf romt he thirteenth chaptero fh is first letter to the Corinthian Christians; no one whoh as ever been reallyt ouched by the meaningo fC hristian lovec an feel anythingbut revulsion and horror at the monstrous reversion to the junglerepresented by Hitler in his treatment of the Jews.H itler hatesC hristianityw ith am aniac'sh atred, as he hatest he Jew.²⁹ Similarly,i nJ une, as Shipler discussed an AmericanJ ewish Congress (AJC)p lan to work with Christian clergy to campaign jointlya gainst anti-Semitism, he affirmed his opposition to anti-Semitism: "We will support every constructive effort made against anti-Semitism; our record on that scorestands for anyone to read. We have fought against anti-Semitism and shall continue to do so." Immediately thereafter,however,heproceeded to relabel the anti-Semiticattacks as ageneral human rights crisis affecting both Jews and Christians -no doubt not quite what the AJCh ad had in mind. He wrote: As to the matter of Jewish persecution, we have long held the conviction that our Jewish friends would further their own cause moreeffectively if they would emphasize that persecution by such totalitarian states as GermanyisaChristian as wellasaJewish problem.
[…] The American public is still largely under the illusion that refugees from Germanya re entirely Jewish […]though thousands[of Christian refugees] have been forced to leave Germany and are without anym eans of livelihood. If we aret oh aveaunited front let it be not onlya gainst anti-Semitism but against persecution of both Jews and Christians.³⁰ Shipler'sr epeated reframing of the Jewishr efugee crisis in this wayi sn owhere more forcefullyd emonstrated than in the November1issue of TheC hurchman. There, al etter to the editor from W. Russell Bowie of the American Committee for Christian GermanR efugees outlinedt he dual Jewish-Christian nature of the refugeecrisis. Remarking that "the persecution of Christians is growinginextent and severity," Bowie explainedh ow Germany'sa nnexation of Austria had "greatlyi ntensified the refugeep roblem, especiallyi ncreasingt he percentage of refugees who are 'non-Aryan' Christians." In support of this claim, Bowie cited Americani ndustrialist and diplomat Myron C. Taylor'ss tatistics from the Evian Conference, claiming that, of the 660,000 people in Germany and Austria who needed to find homes in otherc ountries,a bout 285,000 wereP rotestants, 75,000 Catholics, and 300,000 Jews.³¹ As Bowiec larified, the German refugee problem was not exclusively aJ ewish problem. It "concerns every Christian throughout the world." Accordingly, Bowie asked clergy to seta side aS unday offering or congregational benevolent funds to support the AmericanCommittee for Christian German Refugees, so they could assist Christians (most of whom, of course, would have been Jewishi nt erms of Nazi racial law) attemptingt of lee Hitler'sR eich.³² Just af ew pages later, Shipler dedicated part of his multi-pagee ditorial to affirming Bowie'sl etter and urging support for his organization. After reiterating the number of Christians displaced as refugees, Shipler pointed out that Hitler'sseizure of the Sudetenland would onlyincrease the refugeepressure: "Here, surely," he exhorted, "is achallengetothe generosity of the Christian church in the United States." Once more, he restated the refugeecrisisasaChristian problem:  GuyE mery Shipler, "AJ ewish-ChristianC ause," The Churchman (June 1, 1938): 8.  Taylor'se stimates onlyi ncluded potential refugees who wereu nder the ageo f5 0.  W. Russell Bowie, "Victims of Nazism," The Churchman (November 1, 1938): 3.
Nazi Racism, American Anti-Semitism, and Christian Duty Hundreds of thousands of our fellow-Christians aref leeingb eforeN azi brutality.I ti si mpossible to exaggeratet heir suffering. They are victims of the ruthless philosophyo f " race,b lood and soil";aphilosophyw hich finds the religion of Jesus as tumbling block which must somehow,i fp ossible,b ee liminated.A nd let us make no mistakea bout it. The assaulto ft he Nazi on Christianityi sacarefullyp lanned program of extermination; it has not stopped short of the fearful barbarism of the concentration camp and all the terrors of exile.³³ With that,using languagew ea re more accustomed to hearing in the context of the subsequent events of the Holocaust,S hiplerr ecapitulated Bowie'sr equest for Americanchurches to give generouslyt othe AmericanCommitteeofChristian German Refugees.
Shipler'sl inking of anti-Semitism and the persecution of Jews to anti-Christianity and the suffering of Christian refugees typified U.S. mainline Protestant efforts to aid Jews. As Haim Genizi has shown, both Jewishand Christian leaders werereluctant to pushthe RooseveltAdministration to relax immigration quotas in order to save Jewish refugees, because they feared ap ublic discussion would "let loose aflood of bitter,anti-alien and anti-Jewish agitation, which will intensify inter-group antagonism in the United States."³⁴ Rather,prominent Christian leaders tried to assist Jews in peril by repeatedlyattemptingt oc onvince American Christians that the refugeecrisis was as much aChristian problem as aJ ewish one. The failureo ft his initiative betrayst he fact that the broader Protestant public was far more likelytoview Shipler'srefugees through the lens of Nazi racial ideology -as Jews -than it was to see the refugees through the lens of Christian theology -as brothers and sisters in Christ.
Other Protestantp ublications weres lower to enter the fray,b ut,l ike The Churchman,t he Episcopalw eekly TheL iving Church and the more conservative publications like TheP resbyterian and Zion'sH erald (Methodist) expressed clear sympathyfor the plight of Jewishrefugees, especiallylater in 1938, as con-ditionsinGermanyworsened. From time to time -though not often -Protestant sympathyalso included the contemplation of Jewish immigration to Africa, Australia, or the United Statesi tself.³⁵

Condemnation and Perpetuationo fA nti-Semitism
One important obstacle to U.S. Protestant sympathyfor Germany'sJ ews was the persistent prejudicials tream that rant hrough Americans ociety.I nterestingly, Protestant commentators in the churchp ress here analyzedi nteracted in different ways with the racism and anti-Semitism in U.S. society.Itwas not uncommon for editorialsand articles in mainline Protestant publicationstoacknowledge,as did William E. Gilroy,t he editor of Advance,t hat, "Our protest of Hitler'st reatment of the Jews is partlyi neffectiveb ecause the Germans have been well publicized concerning our treatment of the Negro.
[…]W ec annot speak with the powerful and authoritative moral voice of aclear conscienceoraclean record."³⁶ Gilroy went on to chastisehis readers about their lack of lovefor minorities, proclaiming that "if God'sl oveh ad been onlyf or white, one-hundred-per-cent Americans there would be no gospel worth proclaiming."³⁷ Similarly, TheChurchman featured condemnations of U.S. racism, such as aF ebruary 1, 1938, article which reprinted aF ederalCouncil of Churches' messageo nrace relations.Ini t, the FCC took issue with racism directed towards Mexicans, Orientals, and Blacks in the United States. "We in America have felt keenlya nd said much about the treatment of Jews in Germany," the text ran, adding that "Anyr eal solution of race relations requires that each nation face its own problems.B efore we in America can tell other nations what to do we must confront our owndistressing situation.
[…]E ach national group has made al asting contribution to our composite civilization." In particular, the FCC report singled out the "decidedlyu nchristiana nd unstatesmanlike" Oriental Exclusion Act, and asserted that "the churches cannot escape responsibility for such living conditions" as weree ndured by the "poor Mexicans" in their midst.³⁸ But if racism was an easy targetfor these Protestant writers and editors,anti-Semitism proved much more complicated. Likeracism,anti-Semitism was widespread in U.S. society,and even whenAmericanswerehighlycritical of the Hitler Nazi Racism, American Anti-Semitism, and Christian Duty regime, they remained antipathetic towards Jews. Opinion polls confirmed this time and again. Forinstance,aRoper poll from April 1938 found that48percent of United States citizens surveyedb elieved thatt he persecution of Jews in Europe was at least partlyt he fault of the victims, while 10 percent felt it was entirelyt heir fault.³⁹ In November 1938, just after the Kristallnacht pogrom, Roper polls found thatone-third of respondents believed thathostility towards Jews in the United States wasr ising,with manyb laming Jewish financial power,b usiness practices,and avarice. Moreover,77percent opposed allowing more Jewish exiles from Germanyi nto the United States,while 43 percent even opposed the U.S. government contributing "money to help Jewish and Catholic exilesf rom Germanys ettle in lands likeA frica and South America." And fullyt wo-thirds of thoses urveyedr ejected the proposed Wagner-Rogers Bill to permitr efugee children from Germanyt ob ea llowed into the country.Afew months later,i n April 1939,a lmost8 5p ercent of Protestants and Catholics opposed increasing immigration quotas for European refugees.I nf act,p olls conducted throughout 1938 and 1939 discovered that 12 percent of the Americanssurveyed consistently favored ac ampaign against Jews in America,w hile another poll takeni nJ uly 1939 found that 42 percent of Americans who werea sked wanted either to take measures to prevent Jews from gaining too much economic power in America, or (less often) to deport them as fast as humanelyp ossible.⁴⁰ While these members of the Protestant church press frequentlyc riticized Americana nti-Semitism,⁴¹ their writers and editors oftene mployed ac onfusing and contradictory discourse about Jews. Fori nstance,i nt he summer of 1938, Frederick C. Grant perpetuated aspects of traditionalC hristian anti-Jewish rhetoric in an article he wrotefor the journal Christendom,which was affiliated with the AmericanSections of the World Conference on Faith and Order and the Uni-versalChristian Council for Life and Work. Discussing the place of Jews in Christian history,h ep resented the long history of the Jews as as eries of crises, explaining how Jesus had offered the Jewish people ac hance to become "the church, ap eople of God, mixed like leavena mong the peoples of the earth, […]t he conscienceo fm ankind." This they refused.Grant continued: Idonot bringchargesagainst our brethren in the synagogue; but Icannot help feelingthat the long tragedyo fI srael'sw anderings, the bitterp ersecution even unto this day, might have been avertedh ad […] 'the proposal of Jesus' been adopted rather than rejected by his own people.
While Grant was actuallyt rying to use Judaism as an illustration for al esson Christians needed to learn, his assessment of the Jewish condition shows how even liberal Protestants intent on acting with good will towards Jews could not quite refrain from placing part of the blame for Jewish suffering squarely on the victims themselves.⁴² Although TheC hurchman was as trongo pponent of anti-Semitism in both Europe and the United States, like Christendom,i tt oo published material which reinforcedt raditionala nti-Semitic stereotypes. In ac ase of supremely bad timing,Alfred Artyn Gross,aformercleric, published "Mannersand Morals of Anti-Semitism: WhyDoW eDislike Our Neighbors?" in the November15issue of TheC hurchman. In this extensive article on anti-Semitism in America,G ross argued that Hitler'sp ersecution of Jews -he could not have known about the Kristallnacht pogrom when he wrote -reminded Americans of their own anti-Semitism problem. In an effort to explain contemporary rationalizations for anti-Semitism, however,G ross proceeded to discuss Jewishc ustoms -ways of eating,d rinking,a nd celebratingh olidays -which he felt were different,b ut not immoral. Then, he turned to Jewish business practices.H ereh ed id not entirelyreject the ideas that Jews tendedtowards dishonesty or that they dominated the learned professions,b ut blamed Christians for putting Jews in these positions: What about the responsibility the Christian world must face for makingthe Jews the sort of people they are? When did al ong history of persecution create ap eople of consistently noble characters?O ught we not to exulti nt hose Jews,w ho despitet heir handicaps, have achieved greatness of soul?[ … ]U ndoubtedlyt herea re unlovelyJ ews;i ti sd oubtful that unloveliness is aJ ewish monopoly.
Gross then brought up the old accusation that the Jews weret he Christ-killers, rejectingi tb yarguing that first-centuryJ ews acted as anymob might have,stirred up by "the priests and their satellites." Moreover,h eo bjected to the conflation of first-a nd twentieth-centuryJ ews: "To hold the Jews of 1938 responsible for the sins of the mob of the year 30 is repeatingt he mentality which brought about the tragedyo fC alvary.The world misunderstood Jesus and thought him dangerous.I te xecuted him. There have been Calvaries before and since."

NaziR acism, American Anti-Semitism, and Christian Duty
In the end, Gross put forward ahopeful solution: the curefor anti-Semitism "lies in the recognition of our common humanity." As he wrote: Am an is no bettera nd no worse than his neighbor because he views the eternal verities differently. He becomes better or worse as he translates his insights intoa ction. […] What is religion?J esus tells us it is very simple: "Love God. Lovey our neighbor." Jews fall within the category of neighbours.Y ou can call anti-Semitism ad enial to Jews of the status of neighbors. As anti-Semitism succeeds, religion must fail.
To be sure, writers such as Grant and Gross meant well, and soughtvigorouslyto combat anti-Semitic stereotypes. Still, they themselvesw ereu nable to avoid these very prejudices in their ownw riting.
Such mixed responses weren ot limited to the liberal wingofm ainlineProtestantism. Take, for example, ag uest article on "The Plight of the Jews" penned by Dr.Joseph Taylor Britan, co-publisher of Israel My Glory,for the fundamentalist Friends of Israel GospelM inistry,which appearedi nt he November1 0, 1938, edition of TheP resbyterian. ⁴³ (This is another case of terrible timing.P ublished on the dayo ft he Kristallnacht pogrom, the article was quiteo bviouslyw ritten beforehand.) Britan'sassessment of the Jewishsituation begins with compassion for Jews who had suffered persecution, even as it depicts them in ac ompletely undifferentiated manner: The Jews tands todayi nt he center of the world'ss tage.H ei sf requentlyi nt he headlines. What he does not onlyarouses the interest of the world, but what is done to him is no less important. He is still the man without acountry […]. Persecutedinmanynations,deprived of almost every economic, social, cultural and political opportunity,m anyo ft he greatest scientists,m erchants and professional men ared rivenf romt he land of their birth, their property is confiscated and they themselvesa re reduced to abject poverty and ruthless power.
Britan wrotedramaticallyofJ ewish misery,interms that both mirrored the Nazi raciali mageo fJ ews and grasped the Nazi intent to destroy European Jewry: No one knows the number of suicides amongt his race which have followed their persecution in certain nations in Europe. No one knows the number of innocent men, women and children starved to death or killed by the hostile powers which aredetermined to removeall Jews from their midst.R eliable authorities have estimated that manym illions have been starved and otherwise "liquidated" during recent years in twoo rt hreen ations in Europe.
Thousands,ifnot millions,ofJews aretoday beingdrivenfromone country to another with no placew hereon the soles of their feet mayp ermanentlyr est. ForBritan, these developments werea"reversion to the terrible racial antipathies of the Dark Ages," and he added that therewas "every indication that it will continue." Britan goes on to meld philosemitic sentiment and ab id for support on the one hand,with prejudicial stereotypes and supersessionist theologyonthe other. Surveying the "alleged reasons" for the present-day persecution of the Jews, he observed that the Nazis believed Jews to be the leaders of the Communist movement,while others believed in aglobalconspiracy of Jews to establish adictatorship. While he disparaged these ideas as false propaganda, he further opined that "The Word of God declares thatt he sufferingso fI srael are His judgments for idolatry and for their rejection of His son and their own Messiah." Immediatelyt hereafter,t hough, Britan pivoted away from the implications of this condemnation: "This, however,gives no nation and no individual the Divine permission to persecute the Jew; and the penalties promised to thosewho do persecute the Jews are certain to be visited upon offending persons and nations." From there, Britan turned to the danger of anti-Semitism in the United States and the scapegoating of Jews in U.S. society.Yet even as he defended American Jews from stereotypingunder the collective identities as communist or financier, he continued to draw on the very languageofcollective identity: "Even if it were discovered that all the leaders of Communism are Jews (a supposition contrary to fact), there still would be no reason to persecute the Jews as arace and make the trulypatriotic and righteous members of the race to suffer for the economic and political sins of the Jew." At this point in the article, Britan returned to the "dire need of the Jew" in foreign lands and the "ungodlyand un-Christian persecution of innocent Jewish men, women, and children over the face of the earth," commenting that Americans "would surelyr ise as one man and demand the cessation of persecution […]i ft he emotionsa nd sympathieso ft he world had not been deadenedb y the diabolical deeds of the World War." Having diagnosed the ills of anti-Semitism and persecution, Britan turned to address the question of cure. First,hemaintained, Christians should protest and work to educateA mericans so that anti-Semitism "mayf ind no place in American life." Pastors,Bible teachers,and leaders werethe keyfigures Britan claimed could erect "barriers against the evil tides of prejudice and persecution." The second response Britan advanced, and the one he spent the most time discussing,was financial and spiritual support for Jewishmissions. Enumeratingdifferent Philadelphia Presbyterian attempts to evangelize Jews, he observed both the eager interest of Jews and their reluctance to convert,which he blamed on Jewish spiritual blindness -" Fort he veil is stillo vert he eyes of manyJ ews […]"-and centuries of prejudicialt reatment at the handso fC hristians. ForB ritan, the "278,000 Jews of Philadelphia" constituted "one of the most neglectedm ission fields for evangelistic work in the city," important to undertake "if the powerful paganism of our dayi st ob em et and our Christian institutions preserved." While American Christians were supposedt or espond with protests against injustice, education for tolerance, and the evangelismofJews at home, they were not to forgettheir responsibility to Jews in Europe. Likeother Protestant writers, Britan reframed the suffering of Jews as the suffering of Christians and Jews: one and ah alf million "Hebrew Christians" in Europe required immediate aid, he specified, adding that British churches werealreadyhelping "Jews and Jewish Christians." He quoted aScottish churchman to arguethat "the non-Aryan Christians of Germanya re ap roblem sideb ys ide with the Jewish problem: or rather they are part of the problem, for no distinction is made on grounds of faith." Jews, Briton declared, were "completelya stounded" that Christians weren ot helping fellow Christians of Jewish origin, and deplored that "hardlya ny help has been forthcomingf rom Christian sources" to aid the tens and hundreds of thousands of non-Aryans who have never known of anyo therf aith thanC hristianity,evenaswordfrom Germany was thatthese people "are slowlyand inexorablyb eing annihilated." Britanc losed with an appeal for money and prayer, invoking the words of Jesus from the Gospel of Matthew: "Inas much [sic] as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren (the Jews), ye have done it unto me." It is hard to guess the conclusions drawnbyreaders who made it to the end of Britan'sa rticle. Would they have been swayedb yt he author'sp assionate defense of Jews from anti-Semitic prejudice and persecution, or,r ather,a bsorbed his manyt raditional anti-Jewishs tereotypes, supersessionist theology, and calls for Jewishc onversion?D ifficult to categorize, this article illustrates how Protestant publicationsmirrored the internal tension within 1930s U.S. conservative Protestantism, both condemning and perpetuating anti-Semitism, and the wayi nw hich Protestant support for persecuted Jews always took place under the theological and socio-cultural shadows of the long history of Jewish-Protestant relations.⁴⁴  Amongother examples of this mixtureofpositive and negative responses to Jews and Judaism in the context of Nazi persecution, see James C. Clark, "The Christian Church and the Jew," The Presbyterian (September 15,1938): 7-8.

The Cosmic Battle of Christianity and Irreligion
Finally, it must be said that although mainline Protestant leaders fought against anti-Semitism, decried the plight of German Jews, and worked to generate financial and practical support for Jewish (and Jewish-Christian) refugees, all of these concerns were subsumed by theirb roader preoccupation with the cosmic struggle between Christianityand irreligion, which emergedfrom aprofound sense of crisis related to both global political turmoil and religious upheaval. In the Protestant church press analyzed in this chapter,this battle of good and evil took two forms: liberal and conservative.
On the liberal side, these Protestant writers and editors warned their readers about the forces of barbarism, totalitarianism, and war which threatened to destroy civilization, democracy,a nd freedom.Time and again, they reinforced the link between religion, specificallyC hristianity,a nd democracy and civilization. An attack on anyo ne of these institutions was an attack on them all.
Arthur E. Holtcaptured this idea astutelyinhis article, "Shall Protestantism Implement Democracy?" published in Advance in February 1938: It will remainf or Protestantism to be the spiritual energizer of these democracies. Catholicism is not interested in the democratic process.
[…]Ifthe democracies of the world areto be spiritualized, energized, it will remainf or the Protestant churches to carry on the task. There is an interplayb etween Protestantism on the one hand and the democratic governments on the other.[…]These twomovements -democracyinpolitical life and democracy in religious life -reinforceeach other or die together.[…]Somethingterrible will happen to the world if the world givesu po nt he idea of livingb yp ersuasion, by social cohesion, by fellowship, by progress and by mutual exchange of ideas. That is essentiallyt he philosophy, it seems to me, of democracya nd Protestantism.⁴⁵ In the same issue, Henry Smith Leiper wrote, Efforts to avert war have onlyb een substitutes for religion. Peace must be grounded more deeplyt hat upon anythingt hat has as yetb een tried. We must go down deeper.Onlyr eligion can save us.T he churches must geto nw ith their job. The responsibility rests with them. Religion is peace.⁴⁶ In August,T .W.G raham argued that Christianitye levated individual human worth, which was as ignificant contribution to the Greek idea of democracy.
Nazi Racism,A merican Anti-Semitism, and Christian Duty "Areyou concerned for the opportunityfor the ordinary man to make judgments as to the common good?" he asked. "Then the world must be fashionedafter the mind of the great democrat of the ages: Jesus Christ.Thenwemustset ourselves to drive war out of the world. Then must yougivey ourselvesinevery areaoflife to make democracye ffective."⁴⁷ If Jesus was Graham's "great democrat of the ages," Wilbur Larremore Caswell of TheC hurchman presented Paul as the originator of ag reat liberal tradition that carries on into the twentieth century!⁴⁸ And, as former U.S. ambassador to GermanyW illiam Doddput it in aspeech to the Church League for Industrial Democracy, "If we abandon democracy,wec annoth elp but abandon Christianity,and then we will go into another system which reminds one of the autocratic rule of the late Middle Ages wherethe government was everything and the individual counted for nothing." Distressed, he described fascism as "the worst situation the world has ever known" and called on "Christians in democratic countries" to cooperate to save democracy,f reedom of speech, and freedom of the press.⁴⁹ Al etter to the editor on May1 st echoed these sentiments: "At first slowly, now suddenlya nd dramatically, the world, all who see and understand and hope for order and freedom and the survival of civilization, Christian, Jewa nd even non-believer,s eems to look to the great religions of the world to save it from suicide." After the failureofthe LeagueofNations and its membergovernments to maintain world peace, the world looks to "Christian or religious concepts of right and wrong,ofj ustice, freedom, peace and -our last and greatest hope -of human brotherhood."⁵⁰ More apocalyptic still was Sturgis Lee Riddle'sS eptember article entitled, "Civilization Takes Refuge in the Church," in which he argued: Now that self-sufficient humanism has run its course, sown its seed, now that science, undirected by Immortal Mind, is loosing an ew barbarism upon us,n ow that man'sf ive-century-old determination to live untohimself alone is turningthe world againinto aplaceof horror,t he church of God is once morec alled upon to assume the trusteeship of civilization.⁵¹ If liberals tied the salvation of Western civilization to the strength of Christianity, conservativesh oned in on apolitical Christian spiritual renewal and prayer as remedies for the world'si lls. Forexample, in November1 938, TheL iving Church publishedapublicaddress delivered by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Francis B. Sayre, in which the politician outlinedt he task of Christianityi nt he face of "the increasinglya cute human need and the growingw orld problems which press in upon us from every side." After depicting the collapse of "old institutions, old beliefs, old standards," and "the "prodigious change[ which] everywherea ffects the very foundationso fo ur life," Sayre urgedC hristians to "take stock of their own beliefs, to evaluateand formulate their own faith and, if theirs is to be ac onqueringf aith, to reach some kind of agreement on ap rogram for action."⁵² ForS ayre, this program included faith in God rather than physical force; "the freeg iving of oneself to otherp eople, irrespective of race, nation, or creed," rather than selfish "material acquisition;" and international human brotherhood rather thann ational rivalries. What wasr equired was ar eturn to "ar evitalized and purified Christianity." Sayre propounded belief in the goodness and loveofGod at work in the world, and stated, "We believethat actually the world cannot function effectively until men learn to put Christ at the centre of their lives." In terms of aprogram of action,Sayre called for "athoroughgoing loyalty to all mankind beyond the narrow confines of class, nation, or race." He went on to petition for the cessation of war,t he creation of aj ust social order, and the elimination of "race, color,orcreed discrimination." Allofthis, though, was an appeal for individual Christian belief and action, not apolitical buttressing of Western civilization by institutional Christianity.
Prayer as ar esponse to the crises of totalitarianism and irreligion was ar ecurring themei nTheL iving Church. As aS eptember article on "The Clouds of War" proclaimed: "It is atime for Christians of all nations to pray without ceasing -and to endeavortoraise up atrulyChristian generation thatmay be able to build abetter world than that of which the present generation has made such a mess."⁵³ And in mid-December, the editors printed "APrayerfor the Oppressed" from am inister in Colorado.I tr ead: those whow ould array brother against brother in racial strife. Restore to all men everywhere the blessingofreligious freedom. Fill our hearts and inspire our minds with adesire firmlyt oe stablish peacea nd justice, liberty and fraternity,t hroughout the world; for His sake whos uffered for all mankind, ThyS on Jesus Christ,o ur Lord. Amen.⁵⁴ Similar calls for individual spiritual renewal weret ob ef ound in TheP resbyterian,w herep leasf or prayer also appeared. In as triking example, Dr.M ark A. Matthews, pastor of the largest Presbyterian churchi nt he United States, asked readers, "Have YouF orgottenH ow to Pray?" He warned of "aw orld on fire," totalitarian attacks on liberty,individual rights, and democracy,and acoming war for "the preservation of liberty and the right to exist." His response was this question: "Have we forgottenhow to pray,why we should pray,and when we should pray?"⁵⁵ One week later,A rthur Burd McCormick reported on the manycalls to prayer,prayermeetings,and intercession services which had recentlytaken place in response to the Czech Crisis and Munich Conference. In this context,h et oldo f the requestofawomen to her pastor that the ministerial association set aside its meeting to pray,and that churches around the city of Philadelphia be opened to prayer meetings. Within the hour,a rrangements had been made, and even city hall and some schools stopped their work for prayer. "Things liket his were going on all over the earth," McCormick wrote. "Who daresay that those prayers had nothing to do with the settlement at the eleventh hour and fifty-ninthm inute."⁵⁶ ForM cCormick and others in the conservative wing of mainline Protestantism, spiritual renewal was key to combatting the evils of the current age. As he argued: The onlyremnants of internationalism left in the world aretobefound among the churches (including synagogues). This new emphasis on Aryanism, race, blood, nation; this new resort to brute force; this new policyofterrorism;this absolute denial of freedom, justice and love; this disregard of decency and common morality;t his settingofg overnments outside of the idea of law -all this is areturnonaworld scale to the ruthlessness of the tribal clan or the cry of the wolfish pack. We have witnessed Mussolini'scontemptuous indifferenceto the Church. We have seen the Nazi attempt to create ap agan-Christian church which will give blind support to the government. HereMcCormick gave examples of Nazi attacksonboth Christians and Jews, and asked: Is it not therefore evident that the time has come for all whobelieveinspiritual religion, for all whoa re opposed to totalitarianism, for all whop rize their freedom to gett ogether and present ac ommonf ront against this new savagery that threatens the destruction of all we hold dear?J ews,Catholics and Protestants face acommon foe: whyn ot face it together? ⁵⁷ Other conservative appeals for spiritual renewal and devotional activity as the weapon with which to defeat the forces of irreligion appear in the Methodist weekly Zion'sHerald. Forinstance, during Easter 1938, an article entitled, "Looking for the Resurrection" explored the meaning of the resurrection of Christ in the context of the modern totalitarian state. When dictatorships dominate the manyd omains of life, then "Jesus Christ,t he living Jesus Christ,h as once more been crucified and placed in at omb whose entrance has been doubly sealed,l est He should escape and once more proclaim hope and freedom and faith to men." As the states make power their god, as they suppress human freedom, "the pagans are having theirday." Observingthe persecution of Christians in Germany, the author declares: "The scene is not new.Nero -Hitler; catacombs -prison camps; Colosseum -execution grounds.Adifferent year,afew changes in costumes,a nother location -that is all. History is repeatingi tself."⁵⁸ Most conspicuous in this article, as in so manyo ther cases, is not so much the emphasis on Christian suffering rather thanJ ewishs uffering as the contest between the spiritual power of Christ over and against the paganism of totalitarianism. As the author continued, There aresignsthat the tomb […]isbeginningtocrack. There areevidences of newness of life […]f or the livingC hrist cannot be bound in the grave-clothes of pagan power. [ … ] [T]herei saflush in the east,a nd little streaks of light that proclaim the advent of an ew dayo fl ovea nd righteousness.B eo fg ood cheer.C hrist shall rise again -herea nd now in this sin-distracted world.⁵⁹ Twom onths later,a nother article, entitled "Witness-Bearing -1938," advised Christians how to participate in the spiritual subversion of totalitarian irreligion. Witness-bearing, the author counseled, must go beyond personal religious devotion. "In this twentieth century of confusion when men have gone so far astray in their wider relationships," the author called for witness-bearingright across the  Ibid.  "Looking for the Resurrection," Zion'sH erald (April 13,1938): 464.  Ibid.
Nazi Racism,A merican Anti-Semitism, and Christian Duty world.⁶⁰ But what wereC hristians supposed to bear witness to?T he answer: "First of all, to the sovereignty of God. This is not Hitler'sw orld, Mussolini's world, the Mikado'sw orld, the politician'sw orld, the capitalist'sw orld, the labor leader'sw orld. It is God'sw orld. We are to do His will first,l ast,a nd always,and let consequences be what they will." Next,Christians weretobear witness to the significanceand purpose of life and to the supremacy of love, and to do so through the proclamation of the gospel. "Preach the word! Preach the word -not empty words." And laypeople had ar olet oo, to speak out,work in committees,p ass resolutions, and "seek to put the principles of the gospel to work wherever youh avet he opportunity."⁶¹ This was as piritual renewal to defeatt he forces of irreligion with spiritual weapons: The church cannot and should not attempt to operateg overnments, settle economic problems,dictatel abor policies,pose as an expert in the technique of industry,drawu pt rade agreements,point out in concrete detail all the proper relationships among the nations.The church'sb usiness is to bear witness,t oi nsist upon the application of gospel principles to all life. When it does this it livesinChrist; when it fails to do this it dies, though the empty forms of its organization mays urvive for years.⁶² In another case, Charles M. Laymon, ap rolific writer of biblical commentaries and practical theology, published in August 1938 an article about how pastors should preach apocalyptically. In times of wickedness,p reachers ought to proclaim the breakthrough of an ew work of God. Thish ea pplied to the present time, first noting the economic uncertaintyi nt he United States,a fter which he turned to the international scene: From pressa nd radio come reportso fe veng reateru ncertainty abroad.The chess-game of European politics is beings peeded up with dizzyingr apidity.N oo ne would predict with confidencet he national boundary lines of Central Europe twelvem onths hence. This is the type of soil that grows apocalyptic thinking. Culture seems to have failed. Self-interest has cocained [sic] reason. Man is not sureh ec an trust himself, and less suret hat he can trust his brother.Ifthe world is to be saved, God alone can save it,and because He must,He will!⁶³  "Witness- Bearing-1938," Zion'sH erald (July6 ,1938: 868.  Ibid.  Ibid.  Charles M. Laymon, "Preachinga nd Apocalypse: Today'sN eed for aT riumphant Faith," Zion'sH erald (August 3, 1938): 991.
Laymon further explained the elements of what he called an apocalyptic spirit: ac onviction of the purpose of history which willb er ealized in God'su ltimate judgment,asense of urgency, ag reater sensitivity to "the reality of the 'Unseen,'" and at riumphant faith that God will ultimatelyw in the day.⁶⁴ Later in the fall, in the wake of the Czech Crisis, Zion'sHerald published an article entitled "The Four Horsemen"-another reference to the apocalypse, or the end of the world. In the article, however,t he four horsemen refer to the four political leaders who negotiated the dismemberment of the Czechoslovak state. Decrying the Munich Agreement as abreakingofagreements and an abandonment of ethics,t he writer interpreted the pact as ad emonstration that: […]t he onlys olution of the world'sw oesi st he practice of Christianity. Not Communism with its shifty ethics and appeal to force, not Naziism [sic]or Fascism with their sword-rattling and their blatant denial of morals, will save the world […]. Turn away from Munich and look at Calvary. In the crucified Christ is the honest word of God, love, truth, integrity, peace, justice, which must prevail not through bruteforce but by example and persuasion. He can delivert his sin-sick world from destruction.H ea lone can do it.There is none beside.⁶⁵

Conclusion
In 1938, against the background of Germanracism, American anti-Semitism, and agrowingJewish refugeecrisis, the writers and editors of the mainline Protestant church press examined in this chapter understood their Christian duty as ac all to respond to ap rofound sense of crisis. Democracy,c ivilization, Christianity, and all religion wereunderattack from the forces of war,totalitarianism, racism, and paganism. Clergy writing in mainline church periodicals responded by naming the evils of war and totalitarianism, in particulart he threat thatH itler and Nazi Germanyp osed to the civilized world. They also fought against anti-Semitism and tried to aid Jews, though not withouts lipping into the languageo fe nduringanti-Jewish prejudices,and alsonot without reframingthe persecution of Jews and the Jewishrefugee crisis as the persecution of Christians and Jews, and the Christian and Jewishrefugeecrisis. Of paramount importance to these mainline Protestants, however,was the affirmation that it was Christianity,and Christianity alone, that had the power to rescue civilization, save democracy,and preservet he world from self-destruction.