Year 135

Here lie the roots of true religion, the link to divinity! There are those poor creatures, bending their knees and wringing their praying hands before carved wooden figures, and those great hypocrites hoodwink them into believing that, thanks to this behavior, their souls will sizzle a few days less in the fires of hell. But the true link to God, the elevated consciousness of being a divine creature — that is driven out of them and forbidden them! Here is where I see the Logos  of St. John, which Luther unfortunately translated as ‘word.’ Goethe tried to rectify the error with the critical lines: ‘I cannot possibly place such a high value on the word, I must translate it differently,’ and he said: ‘In the beginning was the deed.’ But I say: ‘In the beginning was the urge!’ And the urge existed from eternity! And the urge was a creation of God, and God himself was this urge. And the urge was the spark of life, which resides in us as well.

-excerpted from “Hitler, Memoirs of a Confidant” by Otto Wagener (1976)

***

Do you believe in God?’ I asked, gazing at him directly. Hitler looked at me in surprise, then smiled and said: ‘Yes – I believe in a divine power, not in the dogmas of the Church, although I consider them necessary. I believe in God and in a divine destiny.’ He turned away then and, folding his hands, gazed into the distance. ‘And when the time is ripe, a new Messiah will come – he doesn’t have to be a Christian, but he will found a new religion that will change the world.’

-excerpted from “Memoirs” by Leni Riefenstahl (1987)