Religion: Church Militant

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A famed Protestant youth leader, Dr. Jo Eijkman was thrown into concentration camp for denouncing the Nazi policy, scoring the persecution of Jews as unChristian, and writing: "If we do not compromise, if we are willing to suffer for our faith, we will find the path to the heart of our people. There are in Holland more than 7,000 who do not want to bow before Baal. And behind these 7,000 and more, stand millions who are united today in one common creed. This union needs no demonstrations. One demonstration is made by them each week, every Sunday morning, when they go to church." To the Nazis' annoyance, Dutch churches still pray for "Her Majesty Queen Wilhelmina, other members of the Royal Family and The Netherlands Government." A typical Calvinist leader is outspoken 71-year-old ex-Premier Hendrikus Colijn, editor of the Standaard. At a mass meeting recently at Scheveningen he said: "Whoever knows anything about our people knows that we will have nothing to do with imported extremism. . . . We have shown the occupying Power that we cannot shed our national characteristics in choosing the political path we wish to follow. . . . Nobody can lift the veil of the future, but those who take the Bible and the history of the Dutch people as their guide can have confidence that The Netherlands will rise again."

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