Hitler’s Religious Views

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I don't think any of the above suggests he was disingenuous in his speeches nor even challenges that he held some Christian faith by the time he became Chancellor and beyond, even if raising questions about his own unique or modified interpretation thereof. We can assume he was only saying it for votes, or we can assume he was telling the truth. Given his record of honesty, I'm inclined to accept the latter.

Except I don't just make an assumption. I backed up my claims that Hitler was willing to lie to the public from the Goebbels and Hewel diaries, and a letter from Rudolf Hess.

Questioning the world critically is a sign of intelligence. Many people, including myself, have cast doubt and disdain upon Christianity, its beliefs, and its history (I spent a decade as a very militant atheist, debating and ridiculing every Christian I would come across). None of this suggests that 5, 10, or 20 years later, that person will hold the same beliefs. Hitler's own words are the best indication of what he believed at the time of his speeches.

Can you give me the timeline of when you think Hitler was a Christian and when he wasn't?

On a separate note, the Table Talks are not a credible source of evidence for specific claims. They should only be considered cautiously as a supplementary source for a given topic or question that is first confirmed elsewhere.

All sources should be "used cautiously" and all sources should be supplemented when possible. The table talks aren't unique in this regard. The fact that they aren't stenographic notes is not really relevant. Plenty of sources used by historians are not stenographic notes. Goebbels diaries are not stenographic notes, yet they are still used. The Table Talks are not any less reliable than any other source written after a comparable timeframe. They are certainly more reliable than memoirs written much later. So they are not even the "worst" source by any means. And some sources are of course more reliable than the Table Talks.

[Callafangers]

I don't think any of the above suggests he was disingenuous in his speeches nor even challenges that he held some Christian faith by the time he became Chancellor and beyond, even if raising questions about his own unique or modified interpretation thereof. We can assume he was only saying it for votes, or we can assume he was telling the truth. Given his record of honesty, I'm inclined to accept the latter.

Except I don't just make an assumption. I backed up my claims that Hitler was willing to lie to the public from the Goebbels and Hewel diaries, and a letter from Rudolf Hess.

The assumption is that he was being deceptive in 100% of his uses of "God", "Lord", etc. It's a very big assumption which evidence about specific lies in unrelated topics doesn't substantiate.

Can you give me the timeline of when you think Hitler was a Christian and when he wasn't?

I think there is a period from the 1920s (when his speeches and writings first became widely known) until circa 1942-43 (when problematic religious leaders cost many additional German lives) in which Hitler was overtly respectful and admiring toward Christianity, even toward Jesus Christ, whom he regards [accurately] as a warrior against the Jewish tyrants and schemers of His day. Whether or not Hitler was a "Christian" depends on how one defines this term but there is indisputable evidence that he supported and defended Christianity (certainly Christians) in many contexts, as reflected in my earlier quotes here.

All sources should be "used cautiously" and all sources should be supplemented when possible. The table talks aren't unique in this regard. The fact that they aren't stenographic notes is not really relevant. Plenty of sources used by historians are not stenographic notes. Goebbels diaries are not stenographic notes, yet they are still used. The Table Talks are not any less reliable than any other source written after a comparable timeframe. They are certainly more reliable than memoirs written much later. So they are not even the "worst" source by any means. And some sources are of course more reliable than the Table Talks.

The Table Talks have numerous problems which are documented throughout the book cited. They are not only not stenographic notes; they simply cannot be taken as Hitler's exact words on any matter, period. At best, we might sometimes infer the "essence" of actual statements has been captured, but there is no guarantee. Without independent confirmation that Hitler was anti-Christian, especially given the evidence (both in terms of policy and his actual words) that he was pro-Christian, there is not much the Table Talks can offer here. Regardless, as mentioned, the 'Talks' excerpt you provided doesn't even specify Hitler's later views toward Christianity, just hearsay about what Hitler allegedly quoted himself from memory having said as a child (and even then, the statement -- "I do not believe that the dear God has an interest if a pupil prays!" -- implies a belief that God exists).

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The assumption is that he was being deceptive in 100% of his uses of "God", "Lord", etc. It's a very big assumption which evidence about specific lies in unrelated topics doesn't substantiate.

I don't think he was deceptive in all of his uses of "God", "Lord", ect. He did believe in God. My position is that he was deceptive in his uses of those when relating it to Christianity or making professions of a Christian faith. Belief in God is not the same as being Christian. One example where I believe he was very genuine is Mein Kampf where he says:

The Jewish doctrine of Marxism rejects the aristocratic principle of nature, substituting for it the eternal privilege of force and energy, numerical mass and dead weight. Thus it denies the individual value of the human personality, and impugns the idea that nationhood and race have primary significance. In doing so, it takes away the very foundations of human existence and culture.

If this doctrine were ever accepted as the foundation of the universe, it would lead to the disappearance of all conceivable order. Adopting such a law would provoke chaos in the structure of the greatest organism that we know–and the inhabitants of this earth would vanish.

If the Jew, with the aid of his Marxist creed, were to triumph over the people of this world, his crown will be the funeral wreath of mankind. And this planet will once again follow its orbit through the ether devoid of humanity, just as it did millions of years ago.

Eternal Nature inevitably avenges those who violate her commands.

Hence today I believe that I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator: In defending myself against the Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord

He connects acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator with Eternal Nature (using "hence"). Thus I believe this is likely referring to belief in a deified Nature or pantheism. This is a genuine expression of faith and not a deception.

And I do think I have substantiated the claim that he is willing to lie specifically on religion. Goebbels saying that he said they would have to pretend to be a more positive Christian (lying). And Rudolf Hess saying that Hitler would have to keep his true views quiet. While Hewel gives us evidence that he is willing to lie in general as a politician. The first two explicitly substantiate his willingness to lie on religious matters and the third a general willingness to lie as a politician. If this isn't "substantiation" I don't know what is.

I think there is a period from the 1920s (when his speeches and writings first became widely known) until circa 1942-43 (when problematic religious leaders cost many additional German lives) in which Hitler was overtly respectful and admiring toward Christianity, even toward Jesus Christ, whom he regards [accurately] as a warrior against the Jewish tyrants and schemers of His day. Whether or not Hitler was a "Christian" depends on how one defines this term but there is indisputable evidence that he supported and defended Christianity (certainly Christians) in many contexts, as reflected in my earlier quotes here.

This is contradicted by Mein Kampf which I already quoted above. Richard Weikart comments:

Hitler’s anti-Christian sentiment shines through clearly here, as he called Christianity a “spiritual terror” that has “afflicted” the world. Earlier in the passage, he also argued Christian intolerance was a manifestation of a Jewish mentality, once again connecting Christianity with the people he most hated. Even more ominously, he called his fellow Nazis to embrace an intolerant worldview so they could throw off the shackles of Christianity. He literally promised to visit terror on Christianity. Even though several times later in life, especially before 1934, Hitler would try to portray himself as a pious Christian, he had already blown his cover.

The Ziegler quote from above was from sometime around 1930. Again Weikart:

Hans Ziegler, who edited a Nazi newspaper in Thuringia in the 1920s, had a private conversation with Hitler about religion sometime around 1930. Hitler confessed, “You must know, I am a heathen. I understand that to mean: a non-Christian. Of course I have an inward relationship to a cosmic Almighty, to a Godhead.”

January 1937, Goebbels diaries:

The Führer thinks Christianity is ripe for destruction. That may still take a long time, but it is coming.

This contradicts your position that he was a Christian during this period.

The Table Talks have numerous problems which are documented throughout the book cited. They are not only not stenographic notes; they simply cannot be taken as Hitler's exact words on any matter, period. At best, we might sometimes infer the "essence" of actual statements has been captured, but there is no guarantee.

Yeah, this is fine. Most history isn't about getting their "exact words". We can get the likely gist of what he said and that's fine. We can't be certain either, but history is not about certainties, but probabilities. I acknowledged that the Table Talks are not perfect sources because no source is. It's not a big deal.