At the end of June 1934 and well into July, murder and terror scourged the German landscape as hundreds; perhaps thousands of citizens were murdered by officials of the German government. No formal accusations were filed against any of the victims, no trials were conducted to ascertain the guilt or innocence of the murdered individuals; they were just summarily shot or knifed to death. Later, German government lackeys would proudly announce that those killed were planning a revolution to overthrow the government and had to be immediately eliminated. That was the official explanation; that members of the paramilitary group were determined to overthrow the government and must be eliminated…permanently. Yet there was no evidence, not then or now decades later, that such a revolution was actually being planned, much less being on the verge of implementation.
While the populace was indeed filled with terror at the wanton murder, its response was acceptance. The prevalent attitude was that the leaders of the paramilitary group were indeed disliked, even detested, so good riddance to them. There was no widespread condemnation of the ruthless and violent nature of the murders or the indiscriminate manner in which those murdered were selected for “elimination.” There was no outrage over the killing of a former Chancellor and his wife, or the music critic, or the catholic politician, or the speech writer and appointment secretary for another politician, or for the countless others who had nothing in common with the paramilitary group or any revolutionary movement. The government murderers were eliminating anyone who might oppose them in their pursuit of absolute power. But the populace was not concerned with these “accidents that can happen in revolutionary times.” In fact many welcomed the apparent destruction of individuals who might challenge the stability that was starting to be imposed on the country. It was as if, “A little evil can be accepted for the ultimate good.” A little evil – thousands of innocent human beings were killed…a little evil. (Oh, yes there were a few in Germany who were disturbed by the killings; also several foreign countries were dismayed, but all remained quiet, either out of fear or negligence.)
As we all know that ‘little evil” created the conditions for a much greater evil, which led to the deaths of over 70 million people throughout the world. Any evil that is left unchallenged will eventually lead to a greater and more destructive calamity.
A thousand murders in a short period of time by government officials exclaiming that they were necessary for the peace and safety of the nation were tolerated and even, in some circles, condoned. In the early 21st century we like to believe that the killing of innocent humans would be quickly condemned and that such a “little evil” would be challenged. We should not be so cocksure of ourselves. Each year in the United States alone there are more than 1 million killings of innocent human beings; each and every one done without criminal charges being brought against them, without a trial for the condemned, and with the approval of the government. All were done in the name of a distorted view of freedom and choice; certainly not the freedom and choice of those innocents who are killed. Many Catholics fail to condemn these killings, while others even support them through financial contributions and political votes.
If the “little evil” of the state sanctioned murder of a thousand led to a calamity far worse in Germany, one has to wonder what more significant calamity awaits the current world as it accepts this current evil as an acceptable, even desirable practice.