only by the individual's
complete identification with the State, the Party and the superior Aryan race.
An instructive illustration of this shift from theology to ideology is to be
found in the circular letters (Rundschreiben) and in the speeches of the
Reichsorganisationsleiter Dr. Robert Ley, for example in his words of
26. June 1935:

"Strength through joy (Kraft durch Freude) is the embodiment of National
Socialism.
<V>
Over against sin we put discipline, over against penitence pride! Over
against the weak and their infirmities we put strength... " [6]

This doctrine was not mere Aryan propaganda; it became an integral part of
school studies and was systematically inculcated into the minds of the young.
The following is an example of a dictation given in 1934 to the third grade
of an elementary school:

"Just as Jesus redeemed mankind from sin and hell, so did Hitler rescue the
German people from destruction. Jesus and Hitler were persecuted; but whereas
Jesus was crucified, Hitler rose to be Chancellor... Jesus worked for
heaven, Hitler for the German soil..." [7]

This same pattern of reversing meanings was also applied by the totalitarian
Nazi regime to the basic concepts of western culture. Nationalism as an
historical phenomenon of a people with a common language and culture and
with the consciousness of a common destiny was raised to a mythical,
meta-historical plane. The essence of national unity was discovered to
reside in race and soil; the cultural and spiritual creations of the nation
were attributed to man's biological resources. Similarly, the State became
an end in itself, an ideal meta-historical entity that was identical with
the national spirit. [8]
This view was critically described by the Dutch Church as follows:

"... The whole cult of National Socialism finds its most powerful
manifestation in a State which claims to support, lead and fill in the
material and spiritual, educational, cultural and religious spheres,
the whole life of its subjects. Not only does the State order the life of
the individual, but it takes a creative part in it. It becomes the founder
of the true religion and the dispenser of the true philosophy; it furnishes
the data for knowledge..." [9]
<VI>
Mythical nationality in the totalitarian regime thus developed a monolithic