“Shadows Fall Over An Era”

"The darker the shadows fall over an era, the greater the longing for the light of individuals whose bourgeois equanimity has been robbed by the shadowy nature and sacrilege of their present. The longing for light and enlightenment has led us to the only bright spot that remains for us: Christ. And that will remain for us. He is our entire background, our guide, and our goal."

~ Hans Scholl (of The White Rose anti-Nazi student protest group, Munich, 1942)

In these weeks I have immersed myself in the study of one of the most violent, suffocating, dehumanizing social orders that has ever existed in human history: Hitler's National Socialist totalitarian Party-State. The lies of Nazi propaganda fed a misconceived national patriotism and people's genuine fears of being overrun by Stalin's Communist totalitarian system from the Soviet Union. All of this combined with the natural human desire for economic security and a comfortable life, the pressure to conform, and the fear of expressing any criticism or opposition to Hitler or his regime. 

German people remained bound to the Nazis — whether through hollow enthusiasm or crushed silence — in a kind of psychological and spiritual paralysis of various and complex origins. There were numerous factors, including a combination of escalating terror, lingering wishful thinking about economic success and “social order,” and the desperate hope of escaping Soviet Communism through a neopagan revival of mythical Teutonic strength. It was difficult to avoid the trap of active collaboration (or at least the passive complicity of being dragged along) with Hitler’s “triumphant” war, even though it was carrying out a racist program of genocide and ethnic cleansing in the pursuit of a "Greater Germany" expanding into Eastern Europe and Ukraine.

The leaflet campaign of The White Rose was a brave and energetic effort to “do something,” and though it never stood much chance of political success, it did show Germany and the world that there was still a narrow space where the human conscience could shine. It was a witness to the transcendent human vocation for which these students were willing to give their lives. Above all, it was an experience through which they encountered Christ and grew in love for Him even in the midst of so many other activities and concerns. Ultimately the protagonists were able to embrace Christ through sharing in His death, which they faced with a serenity — even a joy — that shocked their executioners. Their joy promised something new even as their nation was falling apart all around them.

Looking at these people and these events as a citizen of the USA in the “Bloody Summer of 2025” rekindled hope in my own heart regarding our nation even though it too seems to be falling apart all around us in these days. The United States is fundamentally different from Germany in the Nazi era and faces different dangers. I don’t believe that the current regime is “just like Hitler,” no matter how much agitation is bound up with this comparison. It remains reckless and dangerous nevertheless. However, it is too often hounded by an opposition that is poisoned by its own recklessness, that aims at the very foundations of human dignity and seeks to undermine the basic principles of moral law written by God in the depths of every human heart.

We should all mourn the recent assassination of political and social activist Charlie Kirk. May his soul rest in peace and may God console his poor family. This was a heinous act of violence that must not be viewed a single iota “less horrible” by those who have disagreements with the substance and/or style of his expressed views. It was a horrifying murder! What we really need to do is repent from our own hearts, acknowledge the sins (yes, sins) by which we all participate in the spiral of violence in our country. And if we face the darkness — the shadows that we invite among us so as to hide ourselves from our own small-heartedness — if we face the darkness, we might glimpse the light of Christ who remains with us and shows His merciful love even if we are all fleeing from him.

Jesus Christ is the meaning and purpose of our lives, of nations, of the whole universe. This is what matters, and we must hold fast to him with greater firmness in these dark days as the shadows fall on us. His light is greater and burns more brightly in the growing darkness, and His grace works to awaken us and stir up within us that “longing for life.”