INQ-120 | Theologians Under Hitler

Full Title: Theologians Under Hitler: Confusion, Collaboration, Resistance

Topic Description:

In this course, we will study the various stances adopted by Protestant theologians to the rise of Adolph Hitler with his Nazi conception of the ‘good’ life, making note of concurrent responses by Catholic and Jewish theologians. We will explore how theologians, with their own ideas of the ‘good’ life,’ were perplexed, engaged, enthralled, and/or alarmed and motivated to resistance by Hitlerism. We will role play the parts orally of these theologians and engage in debate with others about how Christians in Germany of the 1930s should take Hitler and his movement. We will write a research paper on a theologian of our choice from this period, exploring his stance in depth and give an oral presentation on it to the class. Finally, we will generalize from this study to reflect on theological conceptions of the good life and how they ought to intersect with other conceptions.

Counts as Global? No

Topic Approved: October 2009