Barmen, Synod of

Barmen, Synod of
Meeting of German Protestant leaders at Barmen in May 1934 to organize Protestant resistance to Nazism.

Representatives came from Lutheran, Reformed, and United churches. Some church leaders had already chosen to limit their efforts to passive resistance, and others had been co-opted by the Nazi regime. The Pastors' Emergency League, headed by Martin Niemoller, was the backbone of active resistance. The Synod was of major importance in the founding of the Confessing Church by Karl Barth and others.

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▪ German history
      meeting of German Protestant leaders at Barmen in the Ruhr, in May 1934, to organize Protestant opposition to the teachings of the so-called German Christians (German Christian), who sought to reinterpret Christianity as an Aryan religion free from all Jewish influences. The German Christians were subtly supported by the Nazi government so that opposition to them could be understood as opposition to the government. The synod was of decisive importance in the development of the German Confessing Church (Bekennende Kirche). Representatives came from established Lutheran, Reformed, and United churches, although some of the church governments had already been captured by German Christians, and others had decided to limit their activities to passive resistance. The Pastors' Emergency League (Pfarrernotbund), headed by Martin Niemöller (Niemöller, Martin), was the backbone of the active opposition to the “heresy” of the German Christians. Various lay leaders and groups also rallied to the cause.

      At Barmen the representatives adopted six articles, called the Theological Declaration of Barmen, or the Barmen Declaration, that defined the Christian opposition to any interpretation of Christianity based on racial theories. The major theological influence was that of Karl Barth (Barth, Karl). The declaration was cast in the classical form of the great confessions of faith, affirming major biblical teachings and condemning those who were attempting to accommodate Christianity to National Socialism. It is treated as a confession by some denominations.

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Universalium. 2010.

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