My Dearest Dietrich

A staggering love illuminating the dark corners of a Nazi prison Renowned German pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer is famous for his resistance to the Nazi regime and for his allegiance to God over government. But what few realize is that the last years of his life also held a love story that rivals any romance novel. Maria von Wedemeyer knows the realities of war. Her beloved father and brother have both been killed on the battlefield. The last thing this spirited young woman needs is to fall for a man under constant surveillance by the Gestapo. How can she give another piece of her heart to a man so likely to share the same final fate? Yet when Dietrich Bonhoeffer, an old family friend, comes to comfort the von Wedemeyers after their losses, she discovers that love isn't always logical. Dietrich himself has determined to keep his distance from romantic attachments. There is too much work to be done for God, and his involvement in the conspiracy is far too important. But when he encounters a woman whose intelligence and conviction match his own, he's unprepared for how easy it is to give away his heart. With their deep love comes risk--and neither Dietrich nor Maria is prepared for just how great that risk soon becomes. Based on detailed historical research, this true love story is at once beautiful and heartrending. My Dearest Dietrich sheds new light on a world-famous theologian . . . and the woman who changed his life.

Best-selling historical fiction now in paperback! Discover the true love story of the world-famous theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer--and the incredible woman who changed his life. Maria von Wedemeyer knows the realities of war. Her beloved father and brother have both been killed on the battlefield. The last thing this spirited young woman needs is to fall for a man under constant surveillance by the Gestapo. Dietrich himself has determined to keep his distance from romantic attachments. There is too much work to be done for God, and his involvement in the conspiracy is far too important. But when they encounter each other, they discover that deep love can happen unexpectedly--and can bring great risk as well. Based on detailed historical research and including photos from both Maria's and Dietrich's lives, this is a true love story at once beautiful and heartrending. Barratt humanizes eminent German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer in this gripping historical romance. . . both dramatic and tragic. . . . [This] moving romance will appeal to readers of Bonhoeffer as well as fans of WWII espionage thrillers. --Publishers Weekly As beautiful as it is brave. . . . This is a multifaceted story of the highest stakes and the deepest loves." --Jocelyn Green, award-winning author of A House Between Two Shores

Winner of the 2021 Christy Award for Historical Fiction Inspired by the incredible true story of a group of ordinary men and women who dared to stand against evil The ideal of a new Germany swept up Sophie Scholl in a maelstrom of patriotic fervor--that is, until she realized the truth behind Hitler's machinations for the fatherland. Now she and other students in Munich, the cradle of the Nazi government, have banded together to form a group to fight for the truth: the White Rose. Risking everything to print and distribute leaflets calling for Germans to rise up against the evil permeating their country, the White Rose treads a knife's edge of discovery by the Gestapo. Annalise Brandt came to the University of Munich to study art, not get involved with conspiracy. The daughter of an SS officer, she's been brought up to believe in the Führer's divinely appointed leadership. But the more she comes to know Sophie and her friends, the more she questions the Nazi propaganda. Soon Annalise joins their double life--students by day, resisters by night. And as the stakes increase, they're all forced to confront the deadly consequences meted out to any who dare to oppose the Reich. A gripping testament to courage, The White Rose Resists illuminates the sacrifice and conviction of an unlikely group of revolutionaries who refused to remain silent-no matter the cost.

Winner, Christianity Today 2015 Book Award in History/Biography Shortlisted for the PEN/Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award for Biography In the decades since his execution by the Nazis in 1945, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German pastor, theologian, and anti-Hitler conspirator, has become one of the most widely read and inspiring Christian thinkers of our time. With unprecedented archival access and definitive scope, Charles Marsh captures the life of this remarkable man who searched for the goodness in his religion against the backdrop of a steadily darkening Europe. From his brilliant student days in Berlin to his transformative sojourn in America, across Harlem to the Jim Crow South, and finally once again to Germany where he was called to a ministry for the downtrodden, we follow Bonhoeffer on his search for true fellowship and observe the development of his teachings on the shared life in Christ. We witness his growing convictions and theological beliefs, culminating in his vocal denunciation of Germany’s treatment of the Jews that would put him on a crash course with Hitler. Bringing to life for the first time this complex human being—his substantial flaws, inner torment, the friendships and the faith that sustained and finally redeemed him—Strange Glory is a momentous achievement.

If Protestants had saints, Dietrich Bonhoeffer--martyred under Hitler on April 9, 1945 just days before the Allies reached his concentration camp--would be one of the first canonised. Not just his unsought martyr's death, but his life's movement from privilege to growing identification with the suffering, his courageous return from the safety and beckoning success of the US to Germany, his work with the Confessing Church and, more controversially, with the underground resistance in the plot to assassinate Hitler, all argue his case for canonisation. Bonhoeffer is among ten twentieth-century martyrs above the Great West Door at Westminster Cathedral, where their portraits of ten tell more about the artists and their age than the saint and theirs, the movement of their lives and the movements they belonged to or founded. This is certainly true of Bonhoeffer and the Church of his anguished age. This collection of essays is from 'Down Under', for with the exception of the paper by UK theologian Keith Clements, are all the papers are by writers who live and work in the southern hemisphere. They include former Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, South African theologian, John de Gruchy, and a number of Australian writers. These include papers by historian John Moses, and theologians Gordon Preece, Brian Rosner, Bruce Barber, Max Chamption and Neil Holm. Kevin Rudd writes in this volume that 'Bonhoeffer is, without doubt, the man I admire most in the history of the twentieth century. He was a man of faith. He was a man of reason ... He was never a nationalist, always an internationalist'. For tormented twenty-first century humanity Bonhoeffer is still one of our best guides to that new humanity being birthed by the Spirit of Christ in the midst of those seeing from and suffering below.

The devil princess Maki wants Keita’s soul. Then there are the angels who want to “save” him and classmates who won’t leave him alone. How could things possibly get any worse? When the demon Miki teams up with the angel Sheeta to stop Maki, Keita realizes his problems have just begun! This hilarious story, enhanced by Maika Netsu’s wonderful artwork, shares the appeal of popular manga such as Love Hina and Onegai Teacher.

The first volume of a collection of short stories by Sean Dietrich, a writer, humorist, and novelist, known for his commentary on life in the American South. His humor and short fiction appear in various publications throughout the Southeast.

A new look at a beloved classic film that explores the philosophical dynamics of Casablanca Celebrating its eightieth anniversary this year, Casablanca remains one of the world’s most enduringly favorite movies. It won three Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay. It is still commonly quoted: “We’ll always have Paris” and “Here’s looking at you, kid” And who can forget, “You must remember this...a kiss is just a kiss.” Yet no one expected much to come of this little film, certainly not its blockbuster stars or even the studio producing it. So how did this hastily cranked-out 1940s film, despite its many limitations, become one of the greatest films ever made? How is it that year after year, decade after decade, it continues to appear in the lists of the greatest movies ever produced? And why do audiences still weep when Rick and Ilsa part? The answer, according to Casablanca’s Conscience, is to paraphrase Rick, “It’s true.” Much has already been written about the film and the career-defining performances of Bogart and Bergman. Casablanca is an epic tale of love, betrayal, and sacrifice set against the backdrop of World War II. Yet decades later, it continues to capture the imagination of filmgoers. In Casablanca’s Conscience, author Robert Weldon Whalen explains why it still resonates so deeply. Applying a new lens to an old classic, Whalen focuses on the film’s timeless themes—Exile, Purgatory, Irony, Love, Resistance, and Memory. He then engages the fictional characters—Rick, Ilsa, and the others—against the philosophical and theological discourse of their real contemporaries, Hannah Arendt, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and Albert Camus. The relationships between fictional and historical persons illuminate both the film’s era as well as perennial human concerns. Both the film and the work of the philosophers explore dimensions of the human experience, which, while extreme, are familiar to everyone. It’s the themes that resonate with the viewer, that have sustained it as an evergreen classic all these years.