Reply #226: Since when is a person's explicitly stated religious preference invalidated by speculation as to the

[D23MIURG23]

sincerity of their beliefs?

I'm not trying to argue that Hitler was a good representative for Catholicism, I'm arguing that he was demonstrably a member of the Catholic church, and demonstrably used Christian religious content in his rhetoric. I do realize that people can say one thing and believe another, but I think it's typically considered dishonest to classify a person as a member of a group with whom they never explicitly or materially identified.

On the question of whether Hitler actually believed what he very clearly claimed to believe, I lack insight and so do you. The point is that he played the part of a catholic, enjoyed the credibility that bought him with the German people and the clergy, and was only branded an atheist later, after he authorized genocide. Is it equivalently ok for me to argue that Stalin was really a scientologist, on the grounds that he might have secretly found Xenu on his deathbed, despite his consistent anti-religious stance?