German pastor discovers his grandfather was Holocaust architect Heinrich Himmler

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One summer evening last year, couples therapist Henrik Lenkeit, 49, was watching a TV documentary about German Nazi SS master Heinrich Himmler, architect of the Holocaust.

After the show ended, Lenkeit poked around the Internet for information about Hedwig Potthast, Himmler’s rather gruesome mistress featured in the documentary. Suddenly, Lenkeit saw his grandmother’s face in an image of Potthast posing with Himmler.

“I looked up and saw Himmler’s mistress — my grandmother — in the picture with Himmler,” Lenkeit told The Times of Israel.

After months of amateur genealogical research, Lenkeit and German newspaper Der Spiegel concluded Lenkeit was the notorious SS chief’s grandson. The process included consulting with political scientist Katrin Himmler, great-niece of the late Reichsführer-SS.

Beginning in 1936, Potthast — Lenkeit’s grandmother — was Himmler’s private secretary and starting in 1938, his mistress. She gave birth to two of Himmler’s children, including Lenkeit’s mother, Nanette-Dorothea, in 1944.

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Throughout her lifetime, Lenkeit’s mother, who died in 2019, diligently kept the secret of her paternity. But those efforts were upended by Lenkeit’s investigation last year, particularly when the therapist uncovered his mother’s birth certificate — signed by Himmler.

Growing up in Germany, Lenkeit was not close with his parents, he said.

“Back even then, I had some issues with my parents. They were quite distant with me,” said Lenkeit.

The Holocaust and Nazi rule could not be avoided in school, said Lenkeit. His parents showed him the film “Schindler’s List” when he was in school and neither of them appeared to be Nazis. In fact, Lenkeit’s father expressed admiration for Israel, he said.

“But they never told me I was Himmler’s grandson,” said Lenkeit.

“My mother believed in her way. A traditional believer, like many in God are. My father was an atheist. He was a very hard man. I didn’t know about Jesus [while growing up],” said Lenkeit.

Since going public with his discovery, some of Lenkeit’s relatives have cut off communication with him.

“My uncle said not to call anymore,” said Lenkeit. Other people from his mother’s side of the family followed suit, said Lenkeit, who pointed out his own struggles since learning about his blood ties to Himmler.

Lenkeit called the past year a “mourning process. I sort of lost my identity. You go to God, because who else do you go to? It was tough for me to pray,” he said.

Himmler committed suicide shortly after being captured by the Allies. As the man Hitler tasked with implementing Germany’s genocidal policies, Himmler toured Holocaust death camps and has been called “second in actual power” by historians.

During his clandestine relationship with Potthast, Himmler sent her more than 200 letters. In one of them, he wrote: “I’m going to Auschwitz. Kisses, your Heini.”

Being open about his family’s past did not come immediately to Lenkeit, who said the revelation led to feelings of despair and meaninglessness. Soon, however, Lenkeit found purpose and clarity regarding his mission, he said.

“If you could bring people back from the dead, I’d grab my grandfather and give him a good hiding,” said Lenkeit.

‘Don’t hide from your past’

A Christian pastor, Lenkeit lives in southern Spain with his Mexican-born wife and three children. Both Lenkeit and his partner are certified life coaches who conduct seminars on identity and finding life’s purpose.

Lemkin’s faith journey has not been linear, he said. After failing to find Jesus in the Lutheran Church of his boyhood, the evangelical pastor was an atheist for several years. An invitation to attend church services as a young adult ignited Lenkeit’s faith, he said.

“I started to work on the Lord and gave my baggage to him; there’s always baggage. It’s always a process,” said Lenkeit.

Lenkeit said he hopes more Germans come to terms with the actions of family members during Hitler’s 12-year rule. Descendants of Nazi perpetrators should not feel guilty, said Lenkeit, but they should take responsibility.

“Sometimes you lie to yourself. It’s a protection mode. Eighty or 90 percent of the people believe their parents were in the resistance,” said Lenkeit. “My mother had her own shame and guilt. In my family, there was a lot of low-profile,” he said.

“For me, it is important to speak out about it,” said Lenkeit. “To say, for example, ‘Himmler was our ancestor, but we’re not Himmler.’ My mother bears no guilt — she was born in 1944. Nor does my uncle, who was born in 1942. So why all this shame?”

Lenkeit said parts of his homeland never fully confronted what took place during the Third Reich.

“There’s never been a cleaning,” said Lenkeit. “The ideas that justify hatred or exclusion never die completely. That’s why I speak, because staying silent is exactly what my family did,” he said.

The surge of far-right political party AfD in eastern Germany serves to underscore Lenkeit’s point, he said.

“I’m angry about Christians who vote for these parties,” said Lenkeit. “The Bible taught me to be gentle to foreigners. We put ourselves in the victim mode when we blame others,” he said.

When asked about widespread hostility for Israel in Spain, Lenkeit said he was “shocked” to witness the Spanish government’s vitriol for the Jewish state.

“As a Christian, I learned to love Israel and the Jews even though I’ve never been there,” said Lenkeit. “I loved Israel all my life unconditionally. I go against those who go against Israel,” he said.

Since identifying Himmler as his grandfather, Lenkeit has been writing a book about shame and guilt.

“The book is about the loads we carry and the process of letting go,” said Lenkeit, who is looking for a publisher.

“Don’t hide from your past. Many traumas are passed from one generation to another. But you don’t need to be the grandson of a mass murderer to go through this process,” said Lenkeit.

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