Operation Valkyrie - At What Cost Salvation?

“Ich betreibe mit allen mir zur Verfügung stehenden Mitteln den Hochverrat…”

("I run with all my available funds to high treason ...")

-- Claus von Stauffenberg (1907-1944), on his plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler

There are only three quotes, I can find, attributable to Claus Philipp Maria Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg, a German army officer, Catholic aristocrat, and self-appointed assassin and savior of Germany.  He "was one of the leading members of the failed 20 July plot of 1944 to assassinate Adolf Hitler and remove the Nazi Party from power" during the operation known as Valkyrie.

The "Count of Stauffenberg," as he was titled, was a practicing Catholic who shunned membership in the Nazi Party. His Catholic guilt was triggered by what was happening to the Jews and religion under the rule of the Nazi Party.  He "basically approved of the racial principle of National Socialism, but considered it to be exaggerated and excessive."  Stauffenberg's sense of morality and justice would soon lead him to take action to defend the millions he saw suffering under the inhumanity of Nazi rule, action he would excuse as his right under Naturrecht (natural law).

We took this challenge before our Lord and our conscience, and it must be done, because this man, Hitler, he is the ultimate evil.

-- Claus von Stauffenberg

I always tout the benefit of remembering history because I have faith in the well-known statement by Edmund Burke (1729-1797), "Those who don't know history are destined to repeat it."  Maybe this is why I find Stauffenberg's story the stuff of faith; his faith in Germany, his military, his comrades in arms, himself, and his Christianity.  I see him as an unwitting savior of his country and, like Jesus, he finds himself embroiled in his plot and left holding the bag by his own cowardly, traitorous Judas,  his co-conspirator, Generaloberst Friedrich Fromm, who would have his fellows arrested and condemned to death.

We Americans are also revisiting the past with the recent attacks on the American right to keep and bear arms.  "A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."  Again, one might ask what this has to do with my discussion.  To wit:  

"This year will go down in history.  For the first time, a civilized nation has full gun registration.  Our streets will be safer, our police more efficient, and the world will follow our lead into the future."

-- Adolf Hitler, 1935

History will record the actions taken by Claus von Stauffenberg as a heroic.  It would seem our own political parties are at odds with history, however.  One party would let the 2nd Amendment of our Constitution stand and, through much work, strive to accomplish the same laudable goals, stated by Hitler, of safer streets, efficient policing, and the respect of the world.  The other party would seem content to cancel the 2nd Amendment, have full gun registration or ban guns ownership altogether, and take us down the Hitler's Nazi path of National Socialism.  Both parties have to walk a tightrope of public opinion in our country lest they ignite another Civil War of brother against brother while also sidestepping another Holy Crusade against the radical terrorists infecting Islam.  I equate this last quote of Stauffenberg, below, to the current state of the American government:

If our most highly qualified General Staff officers had been told to work out the most nonsensical high level organization for war which they could think of, they could not have produced anything more stupid that that which we have at present.

-- Claus von Stauffenberg

What do we, as individuals, have to be willing to sacrifice for our social, political, religious, spiritual, and personal salvation?  I suppose this depends on how much of your freedom you value, and how much you also value your own sense of morality and justice.  Claus von Stauffenberg saw his duty to Germany, himself, and his Catholic faith.  He knew, all too well, what sacrifices probably would be required and what the consequences of his actions might be.   As far as political correctness is concerned, faith is one freedom which exists in the mind and, like free will, it cannot be taken away.  Our choices will always be the precursor of our consequences.

I'm just saying.

Stauffenberg memorial at the ruins of the Wolf's Lair, near Kętrzyn, Poland

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we do afterward, and what we learn from the experience.

Pastor Tony spent 22 years with Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, and instructor. He is founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance and author/editor of the Congregation's official blog site, "The Path," which offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination.