English Translation

6tV copy. The Reichsminister Berlin, 24 March 1939. for the ecclesiastical affairs II 1325/39, I To the Lord Reich Protector in Bohemia and Moravia, Reich Minister of Neurath, z.Zt. Berlin-Dahlem, Rheinbabenallee 23. Dear party comrade of Neurath ! As I take from Article 5 of the decree of the Führer of March 1, 1939 on the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, the Imperial Protector in Prague will have to monitor, among other things, that the measures of the autonomous Czech administration do not contradict the politics of the Reich government. In this context, the observation of Czech measures in the field of church policy will be particularly important because, in addition to school and association, the churches are likely to be a major area for Czech cultural autonomy. For understandable reasons, I am particularly interested in the fact that in your authority, you are entrusted with the tasks of church policy, for which, to my knowledge, various unprofessional positions are already of interest in Prague, with a subject worker who knows the church policy principles of the Reich, the church political conditions in the former Czech Republic and the Czech state church quite well and knows the Czech language. If necessary, this officer should be informed by all the Czech State authorities dealing with ecclesiastical matters and be able to give them advice and guidance on how to deal with these matters, as well as by my Minister for the Activities of the Czech authorities in this area and on the political situation in the Church in general. I don't know.