Good book: Hitler's Cross

Hitler's Cross by Erwin W Lutzer
foreword by Ravi Zacharias  (2012 edition)

***** book, ages 15+...Thorough explanation to the ideas that Hitler carried. Thought-provoking and convicting. Review below: (paragraphs in bold are quotes from the book)

   This book is all I expected it to be, and more. A weighty work by Erwin Lutzer, it brings to light the  evil belief system which drove Hitler as well as some of his predecessors and followers in their walk of sin. Although I knew the basics for Hitler's hatred of the Jews and Christians, and had studied his life somewhat about ten years ago, I had much more to learn. How he was rooted in occultism, loved Hinduism, believed in the caste system, set himself up as the fulfillment of Christ, (disgusting!) and led the majority of the German nation into sin.
   Reading this book is hard because of the blasphemous beliefs and words presented by Adolf Hitler and his followers. I'm not saying that I didn't previously know that Hitler was that dangerous...I just didn't fathom the depths from which the monstrosities he endorsed and carried out. It's easy to believe, if you don't read further into Hitler's belief system, that he was ''just'' an extremely power-hungry man, as many kings of the past have been, with a hatred of Jews...and Christians...and righteousness. But to realize that the murder of millions was just a portion of what he would have loved to have carried out...

  And to think that, without Christ we all are just as evil! Our ''little'' sins are just as condemning. It's eye-opening to ponder this thought. It would have been good if the author had dwelt on self-examination in this important book. Yet I understand that he had too much as it was to write in this good-sized paperback.
One thing he does tackle:An aspect which I did not expect in this book was the likening of pre-Hitler Germany to...America. Of course I have heard some about this similarity, but it just hovered at the back of my mind after the initial surprise.
 This book is an eye-opener and leaves no room for doubting. As the author explains at a point in the book...

''We can't help but wonder whether the church was warning people about this satanic occultism that swept Germany. The lie that Christianity can be combined with the esoteric mysticism of other religions is easily believed by those who are ignorant of the biblical warnings about such compromise. The apparent silence of the church about such rebellion is a warning to us who live in an age when these same ideas flourish in our country, albeit in a different form.''

The author explains that Germany as a whole, depressed by the outcome of World War 1 and it's the destruction left in its wake was especially open to 'false prophets' such as Hitler. They were steeped in occultism. And we end up with such quotes as these...

 Aug. 30 1933: Pastor Julius Leutherser stated 'Christ has come through Hitler...we have only one task, be German, not Christian.''

Thankfully, the author does also have a couple chapters on the faithful men of God in Germany at this time; namely Bonhoeffer, of course. 

The author quotes from Hitler's statements....''Christianity, by honoring mercy and forgiveness, has weakened the German nation''. In contrast, Hitler's religion would be a ''joyous message that liberated men from the things that burdened their life. We should no longer have any fear of death or a bad conscience.''

''What Christ began'', he said, ''I will complete.'' In a speech...he parodied the Lord's prayer, promising that under him a new kingdom would come on earth....

In Nuremberg, a giant photo of Hitler was captioned with the words ''In the beginning was the Word.''

So blasphemous.
We need to examine our own hearts...
  ''Those of us who live in America think that suffering for Christ is somehow fundamentally inadmissible; it is un-American and contradicts the notion that ''I should do what is best for me''

I repeat, this is a thought-provoking book packed with hard truths. It is so easy to ignore the facts of the past, to assume that a war such as world war 2 will never again happen. But author Erwin Lutzer explains the importance of studying the problems and sins of the past so that we may avoid them in the future.


I received this book free from Moody Publishers as part of their Moody Publishers Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255