Mission at Nuremberg

by Tim Townsend

  243 some congratulations in return: Fritzsche, Sword in the Scales, p. 324.

  243 a bizarre press conference: Persico, Nuremberg, p. 402.

  243 “ . . . the Spiritual Councilor . . .”: Gerecke and Sinclair, “I Walked the Gallows.”

  243 “took the verdicts like soldiers . . .”: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  243 rode the elevator up to the dock: Reactions of the defendants to their sentences are drawn from Persico, Nuremberg, p. 403, and TMWC, Vol., 22, pp. 588–589.

  244 it sounded abstract: Speer, Spandau, pp. 3–4.

  245 Forty-five minutes after: Taylor, Anatomy of the Nuremberg Trials, p. 598.

  245 cell doors were left open: Fritzsche, Sword in the Scales, p. 325.

  245 “It is a terrible thing . . .”: Tusa and Tusa, Nuremberg Trial, p. 473.

  245 Keitel refused to allow: Davidson, Trial of the Germans, p. 342.

  245 frank admission of weakness: Smith, Reaching Judgment, p. 186.

  245 “ . . . no surprise to me . . .”: Keitel, Memoirs, p. 237.

  246 “I will willingly . . .”: Ibid., p. 238.

  246 Goering’s bravery: Taylor, Anatomy of the Nuremberg Trials, p. 601.

  246 or that he be shot: Ibid., p. 602.

  246 “ . . . and not for being soldiers”: Ibid., p. 607.

  246 he became emotional: Kelley, 22 Cells at Nuremberg, p. 124.

  247 “shunning his own personal responsibility”: Keitel, Memoirs, p. 235.

  247 Despite his depression: Tusa and Tusa, Nuremberg Trial, p. 485, and Kelley, 22 Cells at Nuremberg, p. 126.

  247 “One has only a bunk . . .”: Keitel, Memoirs, p. 31.

  247 “I regret nothing . . .”: Ibid., p. 237.

  247 “in the name of humanity”: Fritzsche, Sword in the Scales, pp. 180–181.

  248 a gradual distancing: Childs, Introduction to the Old Testament, p. 154.

  249 “will suffer a sevenfold vengeance”: Genesis 4:15, NRSV.

  249 In Hebrew folk etymology: Rosenberg, “Genesis: Introduction,” p. 10.

  249 a tribe of metalworkers: Miller and Hayes, History of Ancient Israel and Judah, p. 80.

  249 he wanted to connect the history: Westermann, Genesis 1–11: A Commentary, p. 318, cited in Volf, Exclusion & Embrace, p. 93.

  249 “The logic of sin proves stronger . . .”: Volf, Exclusion & Embrace, p. 96.

  250 “The story about a murderous ‘them’ . . .”: Ibid., p. 93.

  250 Jesus’s suffering on the cross: Ibid., p. 26.

  250 “ . . . why have you forsaken me?”: Mark 15:34, NRSV.

  250 armor to protect him: Lapide, Von Kain bis Judas: Ungewohnte Einsichten zu Sünde und Schuld, cited in Volf, Exclusion & Embrace, p. 98.

  250 “ . . . Cain’s scanty offering . . .”: Volf, Exclusion & Embrace, p. 98.

  251 “away from the presence of the Lord”: Genesis 4:16, NRSV.

  251 not whether they should: Volf interview, 26 August 2010.

  CHAPTER 10

  252 “Good is opposed to evil . . .”: Mackie, “Evil and Omnipotence,” p. 1.

  252 almost day and night: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  252 a walk up and down: Taylor, Anatomy of the Nuremberg Trials, p. 607.

  252 no more chapel services: Gerecke and Sinclair, “I Walked the Gallows.”

  252 four or five times a day: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  252 “What an effect . . .”: Speer, Spandau, pp. 6–10.

  253 Ribbentrop read his Bible: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  254 if they could take cold showers: Conot, Justice at Nuremberg, pp. 502–503.

  254 “My God, give me the strength . . .”: Goering, My Life with Goering, pp. 156–158.

  255 He had died when: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  255 Until December 1947: “U.S. Army Trials in Post-War Germany.”

  256 hanged twenty-eight men: Unless otherwise noted, the description of the execution preparations is drawn from Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, pp. 40–49 and pp. 111–113.

  258 Speer was irritated at first: Speer, Spandau, p. 10.

  258 The team blacked out: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 124.

  258 their final instructions: Ibid., p. 128.

  258 the chaplains went from cell to cell: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  258 Andrus had summoned: Persico, Nuremberg, p. 417.

  258 he hadn’t heard anything: Ibid.

  259 refusing to leave his cell: Swearingen, Mystery of Hermann Goering’s Suicide, p. 68.

  259 “What time are the executions . . .”: Persico, Nuremberg, p. 420.

  259 Eggers had been surprised: Swearingen, Mystery of Hermann Goering’s Suicide, p. 157.

  259 “Is there money in it?”: Ibid., p. 158.

  259 he began writing a letter: Ibid., p. 70.

  260 Gerecke returned to Goering’s cell: In writing about these final meetings with Goering, Gerecke’s own affidavit to the military’s investigators of Goering’s suicide is at odds with his later telling of the tale. In later writings, he conflated two separate meetings on the final two nights of Goering’s life into one meeting on the final night. In describing it here, I’ve restored the two-night sequence under the logic that what the chaplain told investigators in the hours immediately after the events was more accurate than what he wrote down from memory years later.

  260 He would watch Gerecke pray: Persico, Nuremberg, p. 420.

  260 more depressed than he had earlier: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  260 “Surrender your heart . . .”: Report of the Board Proceedings in Case of Hermann Goering (Suicide), Nuremberg, Germany, October 1946.

  260 to make fun of the creation story: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  261 “This is what Jesus said . . .”: Gerecke, Toastmasters.

  261 “ . . . When one is dead, . . .”: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  261 “Pastor, I believe in God . . .”: Stokes, “St. Louis Chaplain Tells of Rushing.”

  261 Gerecke was astonished: Gerecke and Sinclair, “I Walked the Gallows.”

  263 “when a priest consecrates . . .”: David C. Steinmetz quoted in Lindberg, European Reformations, p. 186.

  263 “It is one thing . . .”: Martin Luther in Placher, Readings in the History of Christian Theology, p. 25.

  263 here’s what Christ said: Travis Scholl interview.

  264 “the Holy Supper the two essences . . .”: Book of Concord, VII.37.

  264 “Herr Reichsmarshal . . .”: Gerecke and Sinclair, “I Walked the Gallows,” and Gerecke, “Toastmasters.”

  265 Gerecke knew Goering was: Stokes, “St. Louis Chaplain Tells of Rushing.”

  265 wanted to go through the motions: The conversation between Gerecke and Goering is drawn from Gerecke and Sinclair, “I Walked the Gallows,” Gerecke, “My Assignment,” and Gerecke, “Toastmasters.”

  265 Goering read in bed: Unless otherwise noted, the narrative of Goering’s suicide is drawn from the Report of the Board Proceedings in Case of Hermann Goering (Suicide), Nuremberg, Germany, October 1946.

  266 and felt for a pulse: Stokes, “St. Louis Chaplain Tells of Rushing.”

  266 “The blood of Jesus Christ . . .”: Gerecke, Toastmasters, and Gerecke and Sinclair, “I Walked the Gallows.”

  267 “He’s dead . . .”: Tusa and Tusa, Nuremberg Trial, p. 483.

  267 Within an hour: Swearingen, Mystery of Hermann Goering’s Suicide, p. 92.

  267 “denied every fundamental doctrine . . .”: Gerecke, “Monthly Report of Chaplains,” October 1946.

  267 pastors later criticized Gerecke: Hank Gerecke interview, 2 February 2008 and 30 June 2011.

  268 “If I blundered . . .”: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  268 “Would that I be shot!”: Goering, “To The Allied Control Council,” 11 October 1946.

  268 “I have always kept the poison capsule . . .”: Ibid., “To the Commandant,” 11 October 1946.

  268 “My heart’s o
nly love”: Ibid., “My heart’s only love,” 11 October 1946.

  269 “ . . . I had to do it this way . . .”: Ibid., “Dear Pastor Gerecke,” 11 October 1946.

  269 The Russians were especially suspicious: Hank Gerecke interview, 4 January 2008.

  269 Goering’s suicide was a “craven” act: Gerecke and Sinclair, “I Walked the Gallows.”

  269 briefly considered carrying Goering’s body: Swearingen, Mystery of Hermann Goering’s Suicide, p. 79.

  269 At 11:30 P.M.: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 129.

  269 If they wanted to witness: “Army Takes Bodies.”

  270 Guards had been given orders: Tusa and Tusa, Nuremberg Trial, p. 482.

  270 Andrus ordered a guard: Andrus and Zwar, I Was the Nuremberg Jailer, p. 156.

  270 It was a cold night: Tusa and Tusa, Nuremberg Trial, p. 482.

  270 checked each person’s pass: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, pp. 130–131.

  270 without handcuffs: Tusa and Tusa, Nuremberg Trial, p. 485.

  270 would hold the prisoner: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 131.

  271 Death by the rope: Conot, Justice at Nuremberg, p. 505.

  271 “Ribbentrop!”: Speer, Spandau, p. 10.

  271 Gerecke entered the cell: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  271 “Follow me . . .”: Andrus and Zwar, I Was the Nuremberg Jailer, p. 158.

  271 reverberating in the corridor: Speer, Spandau, pp. 10–11.

  271 Andrus led Ribbentrop out: Persico, Nuremberg, p. 425, and Gerecke and Sinclair, “I Walked the Gallows.”

  271 “It was a long walk . . .”: Andrus and Zwar, I Was the Nuremberg Jailer, p. 158.

  271 Ribbentrop returned the gesture: Persico, Nuremberg, p. 425.

  271 dusty, grimy room: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 132, and Tusa and Tusa, Nuremberg Trial, p. 482.

  271 He had overseen these prisoners: Persico, Nuremberg, p. 425.

  272 sitting at the eight folding tables: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 132.

  272 “I’ll see you again”: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  272 Woods pulled the hangman’s lever: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 133.

  272 Gerecke and O’Connor walked out: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  272 “Keitel!”: Speer, Spandau, p. 11.

  272 “my friend”: Gerecke, Toastmasters.

  272 “ . . . drenched with his tears . . .”: Gerecke and Sinclair, “I Walked the Gallows.”

  272 hummed the melody: Gerecke, Toastmasters.

  273 Keitel dropped . . . Keitel was pronounced dead: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, pp. 133–134.

  273 “ . . . Good luck, Germany”: Taylor, Anatomy of the Nuremberg Trials, p. 610.

  273 complexion pasty: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 134.

  273 “No, thank you”: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  274 a cloud of smoke: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 135.

  274 from the service of Christ: O’Connor, Letter to Norman Frank, 21 October 1946.

  274 nearly fainted from the stress: Hank Gerecke interview, 21 October 2009.

  274 “for the kindness . . .”: Taylor, Anatomy of the Nuremberg Trials, p. 610.

  274 “May Jesus have mercy . . .”: O’Connor, Letter to Norman Frank.

  274 “Heil Hitler . . .”: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 135.

  275 “For God’s sake, Julius . . .”: Hank Gerecke interview, 21 October 2009.

  275 Streicher screamed instead: Taylor, Anatomy of the Nuremberg Trials, p. 610.

  275 Woods had adjusted Streicher’s noose: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 136.

  275 “I felt I could not go on”: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  275 Sauckel fell through the trapdoor: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 137.

  275 as if addressing his troops: Harris, Tyranny on Trial, p. 487.

  275 the final man, Seyss-Inquart: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 137.

  275 guards brought Goering’s body: Ibid., p. 138.

  276 “committal prayers”: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  276 photographing the bodies: Conot, Justice at Nuremberg, p. 507.

  276 No photographs of anyone: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 138.

  276 astonished them: Gerecke, Toastmasters.

  276 breaking their noses: Taylor, Anatomy of the Nuremberg Trials, p. 611.

  276 a final blessing: Gerecke, Toastmasters.

  276 a special Mass for mourning: O’Connor, Letter to Norman Frank.

  276 the favor Keitel asked of him: “Chaplain Gerecke Urges Aid to Europe.”

  276 and at 4:00 A.M.: “Army Takes Bodies.”

  276 army six-by-six trucks: Persico, Nuremberg, p. 429.

  276 The trucks left Nuremberg: “Army Takes Bodies.”

  277 breaking down the gallows: Tilles, By the Neck Until Dead, p. 139.

  277 instructed them to clean: Speer, Spandau, p. 11.

  277 “the gross hates and cruelties . . .”: Gerecke, “My Assignment.”

  277 “a blessing to the world . . .”: Gerecke and Sinclair, “I Walked the Gallows.”

  277 “died as penitent sinners . . .”: Gerecke, “Monthly Report of Chaplains,” October 1946.

  277 Gerecke thought about: Gerecke, Toastmasters.

  277 “something marvelous happened”: Goering, My Life with Goering, p. 159.

  278 O’Connor wrote back: O’Connor, Letter to Norman Frank.

  278 “Father, forgive them . . .”: Luke 23:34, NRSV.

  278 the core theological and ethical concept: Williams, Forgiveness, p. 31.

  278 “And forgive us our sins . . .”: Luke 11:4, NRSV.

  278 eleven million noncombatants: Snyder, “Hitler vs. Stalin.”

  279 forgiveness requires that: Dorff, “Religious Perspectives,” p. 20.

  279 They must take an active role: Rosen, “The Concept of Forgiveness in Judaism.”

  279 “Then I acknowledged my sin . . .”: Psalm 32:5, Tanakh.

  279 “Because that people . . .”: Isaiah 29:13–14, Tanakh.

  280 that the wrongdoer earn: Dorff, “Religious Perspectives,” p. 32.

  280 “ . . . proclaimed as a general truth . . .”: Bonhoeffer, Cost of Discipleship, p. 43.

  280 the tables are turned: Dorff, “Religious Perspectives,” p. 23.

  280 relationship between Jews and Germans: Ibid., p. 36.

  281 “Are you a Jew?” she asked: Wiesenthal’s account is taken from his book, The Sunflower: On the Possibilities and Limits of Forgiveness.

  287 children of light: Volf interview, 26 August 2010.

  288 relatives had a right: Tusa and Tusa, Nuremberg Trial, p. 486.

  288 “dispersed secretly”: Schmidt, “11 Nazis Cremated.”

  288 “to destroy absolutely . . .”: Ibid.

  288 “the crematorium was fired up . . .”: Conot, Justice at Nuremberg, p. 507.

  288 Ostfriedhof Cemetery: Swearingen, Mystery of Hermann Goering’s Suicide, p. 81.

  288 Goering’s was marked: Persico, Nuremberg, p. 429.

  288 eleven aluminum cylinders: Swearingen, Mystery of Hermann Goering’s Suicide, p. 81.

  289 home of a wealthy merchant: Persico, Nuremberg, p. 429.

  289 they smashed the aluminum cylinders: Ibid.

  CHAPTER 11

  290 “Christ died for . . .”: NRSV.

  290 Gerecke received orders: Suchara, Orders, Chaplain (Captain) Henry F. Gerecke.

  290 “sincere devotion to his faith . . .”: “List No. 86, Control Approval Symbol SPXOM–6-PO.”

  290 “to continue his ministrations . . .”: Andrus, Letter to Chaplain Miller.

  291 Hank had been severely injured: Hank Gerecke interview, 13 July 2011.

  291 “I won’t need them again”: “Nuernberg Nazi Leaders Urged St. Louis Chaplain.”

  291 to debrief the Office of the Chief of Chaplains: Gerecke, “Monthly Report of Chaplains,” December 1946.

  292 before a c
rowd of six hundred: Ibid., January 1947.

  292 held in Gerecke’s honor: “Reception. Chaplain ‘Major’ Henry F. Gerecke.” Program.

  292 “ . . . some aid to the little folk . . .”: “Nuernberg Nazi Leaders Urged St. Louis Chaplain.”

  292 “How very happy . . .”: Roschke, Letter to Henry F. Gerecke, 27 December 1946.

  293 “For all my own blunderings . . .”: Gerecke and Sinclair, “I Walked the Gallows.”

  293 “Lord, lay some soul . . .”: Gerecke, Toastmasters.

  293 His work with most: Gerecke, “Monthly Report of Chaplains,” July and August 1948.

  293 urged them to attend synagogue: Ibid., March 1947.

  293 doing what Gerecke called “homework”: Ibid., June 1948.

  293 “ . . . whom the world wanted to forget”: “Pastor Henry F. Gerecke, 1950–1961.”

  294 “Youth for Christ” Bible study: Gerecke, “Monthly Report of Chaplains,” November 1947.

  294 he began a bus service: Ibid., January 1948.

  294 during his free time: Ibid., April, May, and June 1947, and February 1948.

  294 “ . . . that impressed me so much . . .”: Butch, Letter to Henry F. Gerecke, 10 May 1947.

  294 had pieced together a report: Henry F. Gerecke, Letter to Chaplain Matthew Imrie, 26 March 1947.

  294 “ . . . is too personal to divulge . . .”: Imrie, Letter to Henry F. Gerecke, 10 March 1947.

  295 “revealed intimate confidences . . .”: Ibid., Letter to Alfred P. Klausler, 22 April 1947.

  295 resubmitted it to the War Department: Ibid., Letter to Henry F. Gerecke, 17 April 1947.

  295 Gerecke fumed at the hypocrisy: Hank Gerecke interview, 30 June 2011.

  295 the War Department approved: Edgerton, “Report entitled ‘My Assignment with the International Military Tribunal as Spiritual Advisor to the High Nazi Leaders at Nurenberg, Germany, November 1945 to November 1946.’ ”

  295 even though he was pursued: Brian Jordan interview.

  295 served as vice president of Siena: Davies and Meilach, Provincial Annals.

  296 both preacher and confessor: B. Hess, “Franciscan Mission.”

  296 confessions of two murderers: Brian Jordan interview.

  296 strain of being on his feet: Maguire, Letter to “Brothers in St. Francis.”

  297 took place on a Sunday evening: Gordon, “Heritage Sunday.”

  298 John Dillinger’s gang: “Frank Sinclair Dies; Reporter.”