The Religious Appeals for Churchill and Goebbels

Joseph Goebbels’ “Nation, Rise Up, and Let the Storm Break Loose” and Winston Churchill’s “Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat” speeches may contain similar structures and appeals, but an appeal on religion establishes a significant difference between these two speeches.  Yes, these two pieces both make a point on religion and I reason why to fight, but both take very different approaches to the appeal.  Despite the different pathways, both speakers are able to use rhetoric to convince their audience and fight for their particular country prior to World War II. 

In a speech before the public before WWII, Winston Churchill stated, “what is our policy? I will say: It is to wage war, by sea, land, and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us; to wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark and lamentable catalogue of human crime.”  In this sentence Britain’s new Prime Minister use God as an appeal on why the English should make sacrifices and be prepared to fight in a great war.  He directly uses God’s name and indirectly mentions the devil when referring to Germany as “a monstrous tyranny…etc.”  Nearby, in central Europe Joseph Goebbels made a similar speech on why Germany should fight against all enemies in the coming war.  He states: “International Jewry is the devilish ferment of decomposition that finds cynical satisfaction in plunging the world into the deeper chaos and destroying ancient cultures that it played no role in building.”  Omitting the fact that this statement is a complete fallacy, it takes a slightly different approach to religion by directly accusing Judaism as the devil and indirectly claiming that Germany would be God (in his mind). 

The morals of the Allies and the Axis were on opposite ends of the spectrum when it came to the war.  This is extremely significant when you look back on the two speeches.  Churchill directly referenced God in his speech and, as a result, took a more positive approach to the war.  He rarely downplayed Germany; he primarily promoted his own country.  Goebbels directly referenced the devil in his speech and made significant attacks on England, Judaism, “Bolshevism”.  As a result, his argument became primarily negative.  It is quite a coincidence that, if you look back on the Second World War, the Allies’ moral practice of war overcame the Axis’ immoral practices.  Fighting for the moral right surfaced on top while fighting to commit mass genocide plundered inevitably.