# Setting the Context for this Review For some time, "Christian Nationalism" has been growing in the spotlight on the national stage in America. In bygone years, the church has largely taken a back seat to politics, under the ideas of a "spirituality of the church" and a "separation of church and state." In more recent years, the untenableness of these ideas is becoming harder and harder to deny. With national upheaval on the rise through tyrannical COVID lockdowns, unmitigated immigration at the national borders, and ineffective and politically polarizing presidential administrations, many Christians are being left dissatisfied with the answers their institutions are giving them. Five years ago, I would have never thought that I'd hear the words "Christian Nationalism" on any news network in America, yet Doug Wilson, labelled as a Christian Nationalist church leader from Moscow, Idaho, appeared on an interview with Tucker Carlson to hundreds of thousands of viewers.[^1] Some churchgoers in the midst of these calamities are returning to a view of the church and state relation that is more grounded in the historical and confessional Reformation. This may be a natural maturity resulting from a resurgence in the Reformation doctrines of salvation, or the "doctrines of grace." The wealth of knowledge available from our Reformed forefathers is readily accessible to those who spend even slight effort looking for it. There is also no shortage of pastors who are able and willing to preach "to the times" from this historical and Reformed perspective. The idea that a nation's civil laws should have their morality grounded in what we can read in the Bible may have been a somewhat fringe idea several years ago, but now it doesn't seem so unreasonable considering where the alternative is rapidly taking us. All this being said, there is also a resurgence of a darker side of supposed Christian Nationalism, that takes the search for what is good for a nation in a more historically taboo direction. The boogeyman of a Ku Klux Klan neo-Nazi with Confederate flags on his wall used to be something you might only see on the news after reports on some deranged lone gunman after a mass shooting. However, with the forementioned calamities becoming more turbulent, some in the church are turning to similar racial propaganda and justifying it with the Bible as a solution to the nation's problems. One such effort is by Sacra Press.[^2] Sacra Press' website states that *Sacra Press is an eclectic book publishing company established in 2023, with a flexible focus upon Reformed, right-wing, and classic books.* Their stated mission is *To renew the Christian West by publishing the sacred truth for a new day.* Out of the six projects that this publisher has released or has announced on the website, five of them seem generally sound and orthodox, and come from Puritan and Reformed authors. The sixth book, however, is the book this review is about. ***A screen capture of Sacra Press' portfolio as of July 15th, 2024:*** ![[Sacra Press Armory.png]] # The History I could not find any historical information about Cajus Fabricius besides the fact that he wrote this book. In one sense, this is a mark against it. With historical works, I think it is important to have some knowledge of what kind of person the author was, and how the general course of their life went, to give some deeper insight into why they produced the work that they did. Fabricius lived to see the end of the war, so it would be interesting to have his perspective on this subject after the fact. As it stands, this work must be judged on its own merits. The phrase "Positive Christianity" is not merely referring to a "positive" view of Christianity in the Third Reich. "Positive Christianity" was an explicit policy of the National Socialist Party. This book was published in February of 1937, but the National Socialist Party Program,[^3] delivered by Adolf Hitler in 1920, states in Point 24, *We demand freedom of religion for all religious denominations within the state so long as they do not endanger its existence or oppose the moral senses of the Germanic race. The Party as such advocates the standpoint of a positive Christianity without binding itself confessionally to any one denomination. It combats the Jewish-materialistic spirit within and around us and is convinced that a lasting recovery of our nation can only succeed from within on the framework: THE COMMON INTEREST OVER INDIVIDUAL INTEREST.* The discerning reader will see already from the Point quoted that the "Christianity" promoted by the National Socialist Party was really a pluralistic Christianity which must take a back seat to the politics of the party, rather than being an orthodox Christian establishment like what was seen during the Reformation. More will be discussed on this point in the course of the book review. While some noble intentions can be found, the seeds of xenophobia and Jew hatred can also be seen in these 25 Points, but that is outside the scope of this review. # The Review ## Positives I'm sure it's off-putting to consider that there may be "positives" in a book that has been labelled as Nazi propaganda, but anyone doing historical reading must read critically and be able to evaluate without going to extremes. For someone willing to criticize and question a publisher's interest in republishing such a work, sometimes it is important to read it themselves and create an informed opinion. Since the book is in the public domain,[^4] one need not wait for Sacra Press to bring it to light. It is not difficult to see why much of the content appeals to the Christian Nationalist. When the author speaks of Christian doctrine in several places, it does not seem overtly unorthodox. Considering also the grand hyperbole of the triumphing German race on the cusp of realizing their greatness in overcoming heavy obstacles (a genuine historical reality), it seems almost inspiring when looking around at the troubles facing American conservatives in 2024. The author states that the Party Program would disallow other religions and goes to great length to discount claims that the Party was involved in some kind of resurgence of paganism. The reader may disagree, but it is my opinion that tolerating religions of any and all stripes is a death knell for a cohesive culture. The author also rejects any form of "rationalistic" religion, and says this is one of the primary distinctions between National Socialism and Marxism (communism). The Party also promoted many positive social values, such as a restoration of the unity and preservation of the family as the backbone of a nation. The author speaks much of striving for world peace and love for neighbor. These are indeed Christian virtues. The problem that arises here is that all of these Christian values can be found in systems that are not tainted by the many, many negatives (to put things lightly). ## Negatives One need look no further than just a few years after the work was published to see the fruit of the National Socialist Program. A mere 21 months later, the Nazi Party will execute the "Kristallnacht," or, the "night of broken glass," where thousands of Jewish homes, hospitals, businesses, schools, and synagogues were ransacked by German soldiers. Dozens of people died. A little over 2 years later, Germany would invade Poland alongside the Soviets, officially marking the beginning of World War II. A death toll of millions, with Hitler himself being one via suicide, as an outcome of the Nazi's foreign policy hardly seems to be the picture of Christian peace that the author insists upon. > But a peaceful building up of international relations is being striven after so as to promote peace, and allow great nations to exchange their best goods both spiritual and material, without any traces of jealousy. This would be in perfect and complete harmony with the idea of Christian love, indeed the world-peace which the Christian Churches are striving after will perhaps be furthered more by the world-policy of our Fuhrer, Adolf Hitler than has hitherto been done by the numerous international conferences held in the name of mankind. > *(page 59)* This is getting a little ahead of ourselves. Let us first walk through the different themes of the book and see how they measure up to a true biblical version of Christianity. ### Christian Religious Pluralism Throughout the work, it is clear that being biblically principled (or anything-principled) must take the second row behind the national identity enshrined in the Party. Hitler himself states as much, speaking about the "Positive Christianity" of the Nazi Program. >Moreover, as a further explanation of his statement, Adolf Hitler declared that by Positive Christianity, he meant the Christianity of the two great Churches the Evangelical and the Roman Catholic, both of which are represented in Germany. >*(page 8)* The author states that there must be no emphasizing of *differences between individuals and between various groups*, not even in religion. He touts the fact that there are individuals from conservative to progressive within the Evangelical church, but as long as they agreed on fundamentals between themselves, and with the Roman church, there need not be any concern or emphasis on disagreements. He assures that matters of *personal piety* would not be suppressed, *in so far as they do not sow discord, or cause confusion of mind and so prove a menace to the spirit of unanimity prevailing in the Volk* \[people]. Surely this couldn't mean that a pastor could no longer say anything that might cause a negative view of false faiths or of any evil act by the government, could it? Well, that is exactly what it means, and many pastors were arrested for doing just that in the subsequent years, to the point that a new church emerged, called the Confessing Church, that explicitly resisted the Party's influence on the church. Those familiar with the arguments for a true establishment of Christianity know that, while the magistrate has authority to take order that the peace of the church be preserved, the right of free assemblies and determinations of church councils should be left free for the church to determine in it's own courts, not handed down to them from a civil authority. This is exactly what the "Christian Nationalists" in 17th century Scotland were fighting for under civil persecution. In the chapter "What We Affirm," the author goes to great lengths to continue this ecumenical encouragement between Protestants and Papists. He states that it is not the responsibility of the Party to take upon itself *the task of pronouncing a limited and special type of Christianity to be its religion*. Considering the multitudes of blasphemies and idolatries that exist in the papal church, it is quite far fetched to say that it shares a common religion with Protestants. Is this the "Christian Nationalism" that Christian fascists want? The author states that the two churches *must so exercise their influence that the duality of the Churches should not be prejudicial to the inner peace of the nation. Let there be liberty of religious discussion, but at the same time care must be taken to see that freedom is united with love and dignity, to the avoidance of malice, slander and suspicion, and that even the most important debates be carried on as between experts and in a brotherly spirit.* Again, historically "Christian Nationalists" utterly rejected any unity with Rome, and even ratified this in ecclesiastical covenants and civil laws. While it is certainly true that *the servant of the Lord must not strive* (2 Tim. 2:24), and we must be *laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings* (1 Pet. 2:1), it is also true that our stand for the truth in Christ will bring us in opposition to all that is false. *And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them* (Eph. 5:11). *A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject* (Tit. 3:10). The author states that these differences in religion should not divide professors, but should rather make them respect one another as a Christian brother. How can this be? *And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols* (2 Cor. 6:16)? Finally, the author states that *The appointment of a Ministry for Church Affairs in the summer of 1935 was a propitious beginning* for the maintenance of the unity among Christians. We have already spoken of how such unity is impossible, but how much more impossible was it after the Reich Minister of Church Affairs stated that *Christianity is not dependent upon the Apostle’s Creed... True Christianity is represented by the party, and the German people are now called by the party and especially by the Fuehrer to a real Christianity... The Fuehrer is the herald of a new revelation.*[^5] ### Love For Neighbor There is a recurring theme of the nation being "set free" from the powers of Judaism so that real love for neighbor can flourish. This was also seen in the Party Program quoted above. The author states, *Out of kinship with God arises love for one's neighbour*. It is clear that the author only intends to mean his fellow Aryan Germans to be his neighbor. >Moreover, we have liberated our *Volk* from the dominating power of Judaism, and are constantly on the defensive against all attempts to renew this supremacy. >*(page 19)* >This attitude preserves forthwith from every kind of excess in the sensual life, indeed from every "revaluation of all values" whereby the Christian grading of values professed by National Socialism is reversed. In this sense our Programme declares: "We combat the Jewish materialistic spirit within and without us." >*(page 40)* Even if many Jews were exercising some kind of evil power over the German people, I struggle to understand how such things are unique to Jews, or if it is a *Jewish-materialistic spirit* within people that produces it. Christ did not say that sinful acts proceed from Jews, *But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies* (Matt. 15:18-19). The scriptures call out sins of the Jews (often labelled "the circumcision"), but it also states that "greed" is a sin of the Gentiles. *This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness* (Eph. 4:17-19). Moreover, the bible speaks in many places of our duties to our neighbors. It even gives us direction on how to determine who our neighbors are. It was the sin of the lawyer in Luke 10, *willing to justify himself*, to constrain his neighbor to only those of his own common race, culture, or religion. Christ says that being a true neighbor is showing mercy to anyone, including those not of your own race, in the parable, it is the "Good Samaritan" who acts as a neighbor, even though Samaritans were a "mixed-race" people group that the Jews despised. Paul teaches that loving your neighbor is a summary fulfilling of the moral law of the ten commandments. *For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law* (Rom. 13:9-10). If our neighbor must be limited to those of our own race or nationality, then this must mean that we are only obligated to keep the moral law toward some people, and not all. Even if that was granted, Christ himself teaches that we are not only to love our neighbors, but even our enemies. *Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust* (Matt. 5:43-45). I don't think Christ envisioned loving one's enemies as systematically sending them to hard labor in camps before their final relief in the gas chambers. ### Hitler As A Christian Hero The author places much faith in the *Fuhrer*. Hitler had led the German people out of the social sufferings of the Weimar Republic, and he was about to lead Germany still further into a worldwide Christian utopia. >He said too, in speaking of his personal experiences that he had three unusual friends nearly all his life: In his youth, poverty, then sorrow at the collapse of his People, and finally anxiety for the Reich. This is the Fuhrer's unchanged attitude, one conforming both to a Christian and a heroic figure. >*(foreword)* The final chapter makes some bizarre parallels between the work of Redemption described in the bible and the rise of the German people. He compares the *National Corruption* of Germany under Weimar to the fall of man and the corruption of sin. He then compares the regeneration of the new man with new life in Christ to the rise of the German people under National Socialism. He even states, *And it may be that the national awakening will lead to a real religious awakening as has already been the case so many times in history when political revolutions have been accompanied by earnest religious revivals*. Lastly, he compares the work of Adolf Hitler in Germany to the work of Christ in Redemption. Thankfully, he says *never do National Socialists think of confusing the Fuhrer with the Redeemer*, but, perhaps more concerningly, he says *Christians ought all the more readily grasp the fact of the Fuhrer, and National Socialists more easily than that of the Redeemer*. What? Christians should have less of an apprehension of Christ than of a political leader? This is simply blasphemy. Paul's highest aim is to see Christ, *And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead* (Phil. 3:9-11). The author in several places makes sure to point out the antithetical nature of Christianity and Marxism, and how Hitler will defend the Christian principles of Germany against such "liberalism." This begs the question, why then would the supposed Christian nation of Germany ally itself with the Soviet Union to begin its military campaign in Europe? His infatuation with Hitler as a Christian prince is nothing more than abject foolishness. The reader can determine if such stated idealisms line up with the historical testimony. > By defending with a strong hand the spiritual heritage of the German nation against the powers of darkness, he also protects our most sacred possession, the Gospel, guaranteeing moreover, the further spread of its power. > *(page 71)* # Conclusion It will be objected that the victors write the history, and the reports of the evils of the Third Reich have largely been exaggerated. It should be the duty of Christians to not bear false witness of these things. The response is, what then should we do with the historical reports of the Nazis themselves? The Holocaust is perhaps the most well documented evil carried out by a government administration that has ever been recorded. Comprehensive evidence even contains names of individual victims. The duties of the 9th commandment (or the 8th if you're a Lutheran) include receiving the truthfulness of evidence such as this. It would require the belief in a conspiracy on a massive scale to deny all the evidence for these things, a sin rejected under the 9th commandment. It might also be objected that the National Socialist Party started as a Christian institution, but was then corrupted. The response is, corrupted by who? The National Socialist government was an absolute dictatorship under the guidance of the Fuhrer, and the national identity was very cohesive throughout the war. Again, this would require belief in a conspiracy theory with no evidence. The only question remaining for me is, why would Sacra Press decide to devote the resources to popularizing this work? This is not merely one small project among many others. This represents 17% of Sacra Press' portfolio. It seems obvious that they feel this work represents *sacred truth for a new day* in the *Christian West*. I am urging Sacra Press to immediately cease the work on republishing this. In the case that they do not, I am urging Christians to cease any promotion of Sacra Press' work, or associating with them in any way, lest we bring a reproach on the name of Christ. *But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. **And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.** And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not* (2 Pet. 2:1-3). [^1]: https://tuckercarlson.com/the-tucker-carlson-encounter-doug-wilson [^2]: https://www.sacrapress.com [^3]: https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/artifact/pamphlet-outlining-the-national-socialist-party-25-point-program [^4]: https://archive.org/details/positive-christianity-in-the-third-reich-by-cajus-fabricius_201906/mode/2up [^5]: https://archive.org/details/B-001-014-606/page/239/mode/1up