--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In a certain sense the Holocaust can be…" description: "\"“In a certain sense the Holocaust can be seen as an expression of an almost religious fanaticism, and at the same time as a wilful blindness, a deep, c..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c6/geert-mak-29334_holocaust_in-a-certain-sense-the-holocaust-can-be_2743028.jpg" --- # In a certain sense the Holocaust can be seen as an… ![“In a certain sense the Holocaust can be seen as an expression of an almost religious fanaticism, and at the same time as a wilful blindness, a deep, collective moral lapse. This is not a popular explanation. It is, after all, much more disturbing than all the theories that grasp at anti-Semitism…” quote by Geert Mak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c6/geert-mak-29334_holocaust_in-a-certain-sense-the-holocaust-can-be_2743028.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c6/geert-mak-29334_holocaust_in-a-certain-sense-the-holocaust-can-be_2743028.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c6/geert-mak-29334_holocaust_in-a-certain-sense-the-holocaust-can-be_2743028.jpg) > ““In a certain sense the Holocaust can be seen as an expression of an almost religious fanaticism, and at the same time as a wilful blindness, a deep, collective moral lapse. This is not a popular explanation. It is, after all, much more disturbing than all the theories that grasp at anti-Semitism and the evil of the German Nazi elite. It implies that a similar mass persecution, using the current technology, bureaucracies and systems of repression and manipulation, could take place again tomorrow in a different place and against a different group. The technocrats will remain. In Haffner’s words: ‘This is their age. We shall be rid of the Hitlers and the Himmlers, but the Speers, whatever happens to them as individuals, shall be with us for a long time.”” [Geert Mak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geert-mak/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The Holocaust illustrates how fanaticism and collective moral blindness can enable mass cruelty, suggesting modern bureaucratic systems could repeat such atrocities. **In simple terms:** Fanaticism plus moral blindness can cause huge cruelty, even today. Key Takeaway Beware institutional cruelty and moral blindness. Themes history ethics politics human rights technology mass violence Mood cautious somber reflective Type analytical warning historical When to use this quote - government policy - corporate governance - media regulation - education curricula - civil society vigilance Key Concepts collective moral lapse fanaticism bureaucratic repression technocratic power Questions to Reflect On - How do modern institutions guard against collective moral lapses? - What role does individual responsibility play in preventing mass persecution? A Different Perspective Such analysis may overlook individual agency and specific historical contexts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Holocaust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holocaust/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) ## Related quotes > [“After mentioning these and other examples, Modris Eksteins correctly observes that the Holocaust was not exclusively a German affair. 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I think we even watched a graphic video about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-soloway/i-remember-learning-about-the-holocaust-when-i-was-in-kindergarten/) [Jill Soloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-soloway/) > [Miami Beach - that's where I grew up, in a middle-class Jewish family led by my maternal grandfather. Me, my great-grandmother - a Holocaust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brett-ratner/miami-beach-that-s-where-i-grew-up-in-a-middle-class-jewish-family/) [Brett Ratner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brett-ratner/) > [Arab youth are taught to wonder, 'Since the Holocaust was a European affair, why are the Palestinians being forced to pay for the creation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-bronfman-sr/arab-youth-are-taught-to-wonder-since-the-holocaust-was-a-european/) [Edgar Bronfman, Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-bronfman-sr/) > [“I do not know where Viktor and Rudolf were taken. I cannot find the records. I never Elisabeth or Iggie. 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Prothero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-r-prothero/) ## More by Geert Mak > [“After mentioning these and other examples, Modris Eksteins correctly observes that the Holocaust was not exclusively a German affair. Hitler may have found ‘willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geert-mak/after-mentioning-these-and-other-examples-modris-eksteins-correctly/) [Geert Mak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geert-mak/) > [“The retaliation came in all varieties. One variety came largely from the Soviet soldiers. When they entered East Prussia in January, their propaganda officers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geert-mak/the-retaliation-came-in-all-varieties-one-variety-came-largely-from/) [Geert Mak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geert-mak/) > [“The disaster at the Chernobyl plant, along with the war in Afghanistan and the cruise-missile question, is generally seen today as the start of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geert-mak/the-disaster-at-the-chernobyl-plant-along-with-the-war-in-afghanistan/) [Geert Mak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geert-mak/) > [“It was Thucydides who described the dealings between states as a world in which the strong do as they like and the weak put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geert-mak/it-was-thucydides-who-described-the-dealings-between-states-as-a/) [Geert Mak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geert-mak/) > [“Jonge meisjes gingen er prat op pervers te zijn; als men vermoedde dat je op je zestiende nog maagd was, had dat in die…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geert-mak/jonge-meisjes-gingen-er-prat-op-pervers-te-zijn-als-men-vermoedde-dat/) [Geert Mak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geert-mak/) > [ “\[Over Basken\] Hun taal knarst als een spijkerschrift” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geert-mak/over-basken-hun-taal-knarst-als-een-spijkerschrift/) [Geert Mak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geert-mak/) > [“During the Second World War 70,000 Jews were murdered in Latvia, 30,000 of them by summer 1941. 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In fact, large parts of the population supported that regime…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geert-mak/hitler-s-regime-maintained-its-generally-accepted-authority-in/) [Geert Mak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geert-mak/) > [“A few days later, from a wall along the river, Martha Gellhorn watched the Soviet troops move on. ‘The army came in like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geert-mak/a-few-days-later-from-a-wall-along-the-river-martha-gellhorn-watched/) [Geert Mak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geert-mak/) [Explore all 13 Geert Mak quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geert-mak/) ## More Holocaust quotes > [There are many more traits that the climate deniers share with the creationists and Holocaust deniers and others who distort the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-r-prothero/there-are-many-more-traits-that-the-climate-deniers-share-with-the/) [Donald R. 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Me, my great-grandmother - a Holocaust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brett-ratner/miami-beach-that-s-where-i-grew-up-in-a-middle-class-jewish-family/) [Brett Ratner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brett-ratner/) > [I remember learning about the Holocaust when I was in kindergarten and being terrified. I think we even watched a graphic video about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-soloway/i-remember-learning-about-the-holocaust-when-i-was-in-kindergarten/) [Jill Soloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-soloway/) > [“Oskar is the fruit of those fantasies -- the idea that what needed to be saved was not just lives but hope.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-simon/oskar-is-the-fruit-of-those-fantasies-the-idea-that-what-needed-to-be/) Richard Simon > [Every two, three years there is a movie about the Holocaust because they want you to remember and they want you to be reminded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-foxx/every-two-three-years-there-is-a-movie-about-the-holocaust-because/) [Jamie Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-foxx/) > [The Jew always lives from the blood of other peoples, he needs such murders and such sacrifices. 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