From liberal theology to Völkisch Christianity? Heinrich Weinel, the Volkskirchenbund, and the church struggle in Thuringia

For much of his career, New Testament scholar and systematic theologian Heinrich Weinel promoted theological pluralism, progressive politics, and humanitarian ideals. However, near the end of his life he gave qualified support to the Deutsche Christen, a movement that sought to establish a "German Christianity" informed by Nazi ideology. Examination of Weinel's published works, unpublished manuscripts, and private correspondence reveals that his support for the Deutsche Christen was a strategic compromise, driven by situational factors and limited ideological affinity rather than a thoroughgoing embrace of völkisch (populist/racist) Christianity. Weinel's story represents one of many paths to complicity within the German churches during the Third Reich.