Der Fuehrer - Hitler's Rise to Power (1944) - Heiden

634 DER FUEHRERprevailing among large masses. The church-weariness and faithlessnessof considerable sections of the Protestant church membership,especially in the big cities, was clear from the emptiness of thechurches. But the beer halls and sport stadiums could no longer hold allthe people who thronged to political meetings.Yet in the spring of 1933, the Catholic Church was able to demonstrateits appeal to great masses in Germany. In the city of Trier, for thefirst time in many decades, a remarkable relic, contested even in churchcircles, was put on exhibition: the so-called 'holy mantle,' which Jesussupposedly wore on the cross; for days throngs of Catholics streamedinto the moderate-sized city and followed their priests to the cathedral,where they passed six or eight abreast before the holy relic. TheNational Socialists could not have staged a more impressive massspectacle; perhaps this demonstration of Catholic strength helped tomake Hitler more receptive to a concordat with the Holy See,negotiations for which had been in progress for some time.The aim of the Vatican in these 'concordats' was to lend the Churchthe protection of an international treaty. Up till then the Catholic Churchhad concluded its treaties with the German states, consciouslyexploiting the political division of Germany; obviously, it could obtainmore favorable conditions from predominandy Catholic Bavaria thanfrom Protestant Prussia. Now, under Hitler, new negotiations werebegun. One thing that was definitely expected from a treaty between theThird Reich and the Pope was to prevent the Vatican — that is, aforeign power — from concluding a treaty with a separate Germanstate; even if the existing concordats with the states could notimmediately be eliminated. Kaas in Rome was urging conclusion of theReich Concordat, with the idea that in this case Hitler would be forcedto give one of his promises in writing — and not in an unsent letter, asin the case of his promise to collaborate with the Center Party. Papen,the Catholic nobleman, went to Rome as chief negotiator.Hitler's idea was that the Reich Concordat would mean the definitedisappearance of the Church from German political life. The Churchwas no doubt ready to adjust itself to a non-parliamentary state. Hitlerhad once contemptuously predicted: 'I see the time