Hitlers Junger und Gottes Hirten: Der Einsatz der katholischen Bischofe Osterreichs fur ehemalige Nationalsozialisten nach 1945

Even if Austria’s Catholic Church suffered severely from the persecution by the Nazi regime, the bishops were already campaigning for former National Socialists in the immediate post-war period. They fought to soften the denazification laws and demanded amnesties for prisoners of war. Nazis who had left the church were welcomed back with open arms. The dealings of the bishops with their priests were ambiguous. Collaborators among the clergy were forced to leave their posts, but returning concentration camp priests were denied an honor for their heroism. They, in particular, felt alienated by the pandering to the formers . Did the bishops want to hide the fact that they were not courageous enough even during the Nazi era?