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The actual campaign is usually called the Holocaust.

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There are many questions wrapped up in this. How did Hitler and the Germans come to hate the presence of Jews? How could they deceive themselves on the beliefs, ideals and history of Jews? How did Hitler proceed to exterminate them? His plan is stated in his autobiography, Mein Kampf. He was himself one-quarter Jewish, consulted a revered Jewish family doctor and was in physical appearance far from the model Aryan type. As a young man, he failed to gain admittance to art school, and blamed intriguing, including by Jews, against him. Like many Germans, he also sought a scapegoat for Germany's defeat in the First World War. A widely read piece of forgery presented the Jews as members of a worldwide conspiracy to dominate the world. This combination of factors fed a dangerously disturbed mind.

Hatred of Jews, jealousy and resentment against Jewish success, and opportunistic looting of Jewish property has recurred throughout European history. England in the 13th century committed the first European pogrom against them. Nazi Germany was the worst but not the last instance of the phobia against Jews. The German aim to cleanse their country's supposed racial purity extended to proscription of other races, like gypsies and Slavs, and to the mentally handicapped. It was based on ignorance. Hitler was atheistic but the church leaders were mostly tolerant of his antics, since the Catholic Church had not overthrown the hints in The Bible that Jews should forever bear responsibility for the death of Jesus. Of course, this is a false, wicked and indeed absurd, doctrine.

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15y ago

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