Deutsche Glaubensbewegung in Sweden?: Jakob Wilhelm Hauer’s Swedish Connections and the Evolution of “German Belief” During the Interwar Period

Abstract This article aspires to contribute to the understanding of the transnational dynamics of the Deutsche Glaubensbewegung, a core actor in the völkisch-religious movement in the early years of Nazi Germany. The aim is to analyze its leader, Jakob Wilhelm Hauer’s Swedish connections, how they evolved over time, and how they were part of the evolution of “German belief,” as interpreted by the Deutsche Glaubensbewegung. The article presents three main points. First, Hauer’s attempt to spread the ideas of his movement to Sweden relied on the Swedish contacts he made in the 1920s, mostly through an unofficial German–Swedish network of academic liberal theologians. Second, Hauer’s ambition to implement the ideas of his movement in Sweden failed primarily due to theological rather than political differences. Third, Hauer’s Swedish connections illustrate the necessity of considering transnational and non-national context categories in the study of radical-nationalist milieus. In extension, the article demonstrates how the binary between religion and politics could be transcended in transnational exchanges in the European political climate of the 1930s.