Yet his reputation in the German religious community is mixed, said the Rev. "In terms of honor and morality, it is important that even in that dark period of time, a few very courageous people held up moral ideals. In Germany, Bonhoeffer is generally known for his role in the resistance, said Ekkehard Brose, press counselor at the German Embassy. The Confessing Church, which emerged in reaction to the state-sanctioned Protestant church and of which Bonhoeffer was a part, eventually would hide "in excess of 1,000 Jews" from the Nazis, said Sybil Milton, senior historian at the U.S. In the early 1930s, he was one of the first Germans to acknowledge publicly that Hitler's rise to power meant war in Europe and certain danger for the Jews. "I know which of these alternatives I must choose but I cannot make this choice in security."īonhoeffer's concern extended beyond Christianity. "Christians in Germany will face the terrible alternative of either willing the defeat of their nation in order that Christian civilization may survive, or willing the victory of their nation and thereby destroying our civilization," he wrote to theologian Reinhold Niebuhr. But after a torturous month of introspection in New York, he decided to return. When it appeared that Bonhoeffer's life might be in danger in 1939, American friends helped him leave Germany.
Because of his death, though, he became a modern exemplar of the devout person weighing his religious convictions in acting against perceived evil. Floyd Jr., director of the Bonhoeffer Center at Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. Much of Bonhoeffer's appeal is a result of his martyrdom for conspiring to kill Hitler, and "he might not be remembered in quite the same light if he had not died for his convictions and his actions," said Wayne W. Most recently, evangelical Christians have looked to Bonhoeffer's intense piety and, unlike some modern theologians, his frequent references to biblical texts. His ideas on religion working through society have been invoked by American civil rights leaders, liberation theologians in Latin America and leaders in the fight against apartheid in South Africa. Tomorrow, Palm Sunday, marks the 50th anniversary of the execution of Protestant theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer by the Nazis, and special services this weekend and beyond will commemorate his death and his contribution to 20th century theology.īonhoeffer's letters and meditations have made him a favorite source for individuals struggling with personal faith journeys. This holiday season brings more than the commemoration of events from two millenniums ago.
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