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See more of the story As a young P-47 Thunderbolt pilot in World War II, Bill Schleppegrell flew more than a dozen combat missions in Europe before he was shot down by Nazis and imprisoned for the final months of conflict. Echoes of that long-ago life are sounding again as Schleppegrell sees Nazi symbols and chants being invoked by a resurgent white supremacy movement that recently took to the streets of Charlottesville, Va. “I’ve seen this coming,” said the 93-year-old former Hibbing High school teacher . That same unease is gripping Holocaust survivor Judith Meisel of St. Louis Park. After Charlottesville, she couldn’t sleep because she was so upset by the images of KKK hoods and Nazi flags. “I’m back in Germany,” she said. “This is something that is unbelievable.” In the aftermath of the melee in Virginia, many political, religious and business leaders in Minnesota and across the country have responded with outrage and condemnation. But no one may be feeling more anger and fear...

In the footsteps of  500 Years of Reformation October 31 st , 2017 will mark the 500 th Anniversary of the world changing event when religious reformer Martin Luther nailed his arguments against the practices of the Catholic Church , his “95 Theses” to a church door in Wittenberg, Germany beginning the Protestant Reformation. I recently took a trip to follow in the footsteps of the monk turned protestant icon , and wondered how to frame it. It’s a complex story, but how to begin? And like a sentence in German where you don’t know the meaning until you get to the verb at the end, I didn’t know how to shape it until the last day of my journey when two stark threads came to together. Wartburg Castle For the traveler, following the trail of the famous reformer can be a fascinating way to explore a beautiful country, but also a journey through history and culture. Luther spent much of his life in what is for the most part in the former East Germany, which provides its own paradoxes. And...