I was browsing through some stories on the internet, and after a couple of clicks, I came across the story of Helmuth Hübener. To say that I was shocked and inspired at the same time would be an understatement. Hübener was a German boy who found himself in a war against tyranny. It started when he was 10, and was forced to join the Hitler Youth. What Hübener heard everyday from those around him was that the Nazis were gloriously winning every battle, giving righteous praise to their objectives. However, he was soon going to discover the real truth.
One day Hübener was listening to his brother’s short-wave radio. He had to listen in secret because the Nazis prohibited anyone to listen to any news that came from an outside source. This day he had tuned into the BBC, and he could not believe what he was hearing. What the broadcaster was saying was completely different from what the young boy heard from friends, family and co-workers. Apparently, Germany was not succeeding as well as they purported.
When Hübener turned 13, he quit the Hitler Youth after they played a part in Kristallnacht, a night in which Nazi sympathizers destroyed synagogues and set fire to Jewish property. This would prove to be a sign of things to come when Hitler directed the deaths of millions of Jews in the Holocaust. By the way, Whoopi, it was about race.
Enlightened by truth, Hübener began talking to others about what he had heard and how he felt. He discovered that others felt the same way. With the help of a few friends, he printed pamphlets based on information obtained from the BBC broadcasts, leaving them in phone booths and on bulletin boards. He did this, all while knowing the risk of being discovered. And that is exactly what happened.
A co-worker in the social administration saw him writing the pamphlets and turned him in to Nazi party officials. He and his friends were arrested and thrown into the Plötzensee prison. For the next ten weeks they were tortured while they waited for their trial. Refusing to back down, he confronted the judges about the atrocities the Nazis were committing. When the trial ended, Hübener was found guilty and sentenced to death. His friends were sentenced to labor camps. Hübener had the opportunity to speak before his sentencing. Hübener told them, “I have to die now for no crime at all. Your turn is next.” On October 27, 1942, Hübener was beheaded. He was 17.
As I wrote at the beginning…I was both shocked and inspired by Hübener’s story. Shocked that a tyrannical organization would execute a 17-year old. Yet inspired that someone so young would stand up to a very powerful force. We often hear the expression, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil, is for good men to do nothing.” Hübener chose to do something, even when it was immeasurably easier to do nothing.
History has a unique way of repeating itself. It may not be the 1940s, and we may not be talking about Nazi Germany today, but Europe is facing another crisis that seems eerily familiar. Russia is on the move, crossing borders and taking land that belongs to others. Hitler is long dead, but tyrannical leaders are not. Putin and his ilk will always be. Fortunately for the world, Hübeners will always be as well. We desperately need more Hübeners…those that witness abuses, barbaric acts, violations of human dignity, savagery…and refuse to stay silent. Let me close with this final thought. The Apostle Paul summarized it best, when penning a letter to the church in Rome, he wrote, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Eleven words so aptly reflected in the life of 17-year old Helmuth Hübener.
Faith, Leadership, and History 