Chapters 9 through 13 Summary and Analysis

"The Fuhrer Principle, 1933"

The election of Adolf Hitler as chancellor of Germany at the beginning of 1933 marked the official beginning of the Third Reich (see "Objects/Places"). The author describes how, by sheer coincidence, Bonhoeffer preached a sermon against one of the founding tenets of the Reich, the Fuhrer Principle (see "Objects/Places") just days later, without having known of the Reich's plans while preparing it. A further step to consolidate Nazi power was taken with the burning of the Reichstag, the seat of German government which the Nazis, according to many historical researchers, deliberately burned so they could accuse German Communists of the crime and gather the outraged support of the German people to the Nazi cause.

"The Church and the Jewish Question"

The author describes how Nazi authority continued to gain strength with the implementation of The...