Written by Bonhoeffer Scholar:
Dr. Brant Himes. Associate Professor, Los Angeles Pacific University. PhD, Theology (Fuller Theological Seminary and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)
Who Was Dietrich Bonhoeffer?
Bonhoeffer was a German pastor and theologian during the rise of Hitler and Nazi Germany. He was a brilliant thinker and writer and earned his doctorate degree at the young age of 21. He also had a passion for the church. And as Hitler and the Nazis tried to overtake more and more aspects of German life—including the German churches—Bonhoeffer led the way in resisting Hitler. He declared that Jesus, not Hitler, was Lord over all.
And living out this conviction that Jesus is Lord would eventually cost Bonhoeffer his life.
Watched by the Gestapo, Recruited as a Spy
Bonhoeffer’s resistance soon caught the attention of the Hitler’s Gestapo henchmen, and before long he was banned from teaching and writing. This only steeled his resolve as he went “underground” to train seminarians for service in the Confessing Church, which was the opposition church Bonhoeffer and others had established in order to safeguard the integrity of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Eventually, Bonhoeffer’s seminary was shuttered by the Gestapo, and more and more of his students were being called up for mandatory conscription into the war efforts. As Bonhoeffer’s time for enlistment neared, he knew he could not in good conscience join the Nazi army. But to register as a conscientious objector would mean death by firing squad.
Bonhoeffer’s colleagues and friends in America arranged for him to come to the States in the summer of 1939, right before war broke out. But once in New York, Bonhoeffer knew that he could not stay. He wrote that he would have no place to help rebuild Germany if he did not return.
Back in Berlin, Bonhoeffer was given the opportunity to join the German Military Intelligence unit and use his international contacts to spy for Germany. His real job, however, would be to work with others inside the German military to stage a coup against the Nazis by assassinating Adolf Hitler. Bonhoeffer was now a double-agent.
Imprisoned and Killed
In 1943 Bonhoeffer was arrested and placed in a military prison in Berlin. The Nazis suspected treason, but they did not yet have concrete evidence against him. While in prison, Bonhoeffer continued to write and explore new theological ideas, and also to court his new fiancé, Maria. Bonhoeffer and the other conspirators also continued to plot against Hitler and coordinate their stories through secret code that was passed on through markings in books and letters.
In July 1944, a third assassination attempt on Hitler failed—but this time the bomb actually detonated. It did not kill Hitler, but it enraged him. Soon, files were found that implicated Bonhoeffer and his co-conspirators in the attempted coup.
In the fall of 1944 and winter of 1945, Bonhoeffer was moved around to various prisons and concentration camps. The Allied Forces were rapidly advancing, and Bonhoeffer was being shuttled around the country, waiting and hoping for the war to end before an order came for his execution.
But in April 1945, just a few weeks before the end of the war, Hitler ordered Bonhoeffer’s execution. He was sent to the gallows at dawn on April 9th at Flossenbürg concentration camp. His last recorded words were: “This is the end; for me, the beginning of life.”
His last recorded words were: “This is the end; for me, the beginning of life.”
We’re excited to announce the upcoming release of a new course on the life and faith of Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Bonhoeffer and the Life of Discipleship.
This course will take you on a journey together of learning, discovery, exploration, and application about what it means to follow Jesus Christ with all aspects of our lives. As we learn more about the life and thought of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, our hope is that you will encounter a deeper calling and connection to your own life of discipleship.
Study Bonhoeffer to See Christ
Just from this short glimpse into his story, we hope you can begin to see why a course on Bonhoeffer is so compelling. Not only is Bonhoeffer’s theology worth studying in its own right, but Bonhoeffer’s life itself is a moving example of what it means when a Christian lives into their deepest held beliefs about Jesus Christ and the church.
In other words, we study Bonhoeffer in order to learn more about what it means to follow Jesus.
In other words, we study Bonhoeffer in order to learn more about what it means to follow Jesus.
And that’s what this course is all about: who is Jesus for us today? What does it mean to grow in faith and in discipleship in our own unique context?
More than likely, we won’t face the dramatic historical circumstances that Bonhoeffer faced. But, each day we are each faced with our own dilemmas and choices, and we are confronted with the question of what difference does our faith in Jesus make?
Do we really live as if Jesus is Lord over everything?
As we study Bonhoeffer’s life and thought in this course, we are digging deeper into the implications for our own discipleship. Jesus is calling each of us to follow him, in all aspects of our life and living. Alongside Bonhoeffer, we have an invitation to trust, discern, and take concrete steps of discipleship each and every day.
This article is a short sample of what you’ll study in the course Bonhoeffer and the Life of Discipleship, by Bonhoeffer scholar Dr. Brant Himes.
Register now for early access and an exclusive offer: $20 Off the $49.95 enrollment fee.