The Collected Sermons Of Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Preaching, according to Bonhoeffer, is like offering an apple to child. The gospel is proclaimed, but for it to be received as gift depends on whether or not the hearer is in a position to do so. Offered here are thirty-one of Pastor Bonhoeffer's sermons, in new English translations, which he preached at various times of the year and in a variety of different settings. Each is introduced by Bonhoeffer translator Isabel Best who also provides a brief biography of Bonhoeffer. The foreword is by Victoria J. Barnett, general editor of the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Works, English edition, published by Fortress Press, from which these sermons are selected. In his preaching, Bonhoeffer's strong, personal faith--the foundation for everything he did--shines in the darkness of Hitler's Third Reich and in the church struggle against it. Though not overtly political, Bonhoeffer's deep concern for the developments in his world is revealed in his sermons as he seeks to draw the listener into conversation with the promises and claims of the gospel--a conversation readers today are invited to join.

In his preaching, Dietrich Bonhoeffer‘s strong, personal faith--the foundation for everything he did--shines in the darkness of Hitler‘s Third Reich and in the church struggle against it. Though not overtly political, Bonhoeffer‘s deep concern for the developments in his world is revealed in his sermons as he seeks to draw the listener into conversation with the promises and claims of the gospel-a conversation readers today are invited to join.

“The celebration of Advent is possible only to those who are troubled in soul, who know themselves to be poor and imperfect, who look forward to something greater to come. For these, it is enough to wait in humble fear until the Holy One himself comes down to us, God in the child in the manger. God comes. The Lord Jesus comes. Christmas comes. Christians rejoice!” —Dietrich Bonhoeffer Executed by the Nazis for his complicity in a plot to assassinate Hitler, Dietrich Bonhoeffer remains with us today through his writings—far-reaching ripples of deep thought, passionate words, and unflinching character. Including biographical insights, Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Christmas Sermons spans Bonhoeffer’s seventeen years as a preacher. This collection of vintage sermons and writings searches out the power and mystery of the Christmas season: its joyous riches and its implications for our lives. Also available Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Prison Poems Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Meditations on Psalms

This collection of inspirational writings from Dietrich Bonhoeffer is drawn from his many works and presented here as a series of daily meditations to last throughout the year. Organized under monthly themes, these prayers, sermons, meditations, letters, and notes offer readers a new glimpse at how Bonhoeffer understood the meaning of faith and discipleship. Featuring selections from classic works such as The Cost of Discipleship and Letters and Papers from Prison, this set of writings follows the church year, making it ideal for year-long devotional use by readers seeking to be challenged and enlightened by Bonhoeffer's call to find God at the center of their lives.

This important work explores the complex relationship between two of the twentieth century’s most formidable Christian thinkers—Karl Barth and Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Seizing on a much-discussed criticism that Bonhoeffer made of Barth’s theology in his prison letters—that Barth was guilty of a “positivism of revelation”—Andreas Pangritz challenges scholars who have used this statement, despite being left undeveloped by Bonhoeffer, as a wedge to separate the two theologians. Through a careful study of Barth’s and Bonhoeffer’s works, of their correspondence, and of Barth’s comments and revisions after Bonhoeffer’s death, Pangritz clarifies the close yet sometimes strained relationship between Barth and Bonhoeffer and cautiously makes the case that Bonhoeffer’s criticism has been overemphasized and did not mark a significant breach between the two great theologians. Much more than a study of a disputed discourse in historical theology, this engaging volume also raises concerns of continuing relevance regarding the role of theology in our secular society.

What did German preachers opposed to Hitler say in their Sunday sermons? When the truth of Christ could cost a pastor his life, what words encouraged and challenged him and his congregation? This book answers those questions. Preaching in Hitler's Shadow begins with a fascinating look at Christian life inside the Third Reich, giving readers a real sense of the danger that pastors faced every time they went into the pulpit. Dean Stroud pays special attention to the role that language played in the battle over the German soul, pointing out the use of Christian language in opposition to Nazi rhetoric. The second part of the book presents thirteen well-translated sermons by various select preachers, including Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Karl Barth, Rudolf Bultmann, and others not as well known but no less courageous. A running commentary offers cultural and historical insights, and each sermon is preceded by a short biography of the preacher.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was only thirty-nine years old when he was executed in a Nazi concentration camp in 1945, yet his courage, vision, and brilliance have greatly influenced the twentieth-century Church and theology. Particularly through his bestselling classic, The Cost of Discipleship, Bonhoeffer profoundly shaped such minds and movements as Martin Luther King, Jr., and Leonardo Boff, civil rights and leberation theology. A Testament to Freedom, completely revised and expanded for this edition, includes previously untranslated writings, excerpts from major books, sermons, and selected letters spanning the years of Bonhoeffer's pastoral and theological career. This magnificent volume takes readers on a historical and biographical journey that follows Bonhoeffer through the various stages of his life--as teacher, ecumenist, pastor, preacher, seminary director, prophet in the Nazi era and, finally, as martyr in pursuit of peace and justice.

What caused Dietrich Bonhoeffer-- a well-educated and philosophical pastor from Berlin-- to risk his reputation, his freedom, and finally his life to stand with others against the brutality of the Nazis? In this special collection of his writings, Bonhoeffer reveals his thoughts and struggles as he reflects on the Bible. This unique collection includes excerpts from Bonhoeffer's letters, meditations, expositions, sermons, lectures, and seminar papers-- with topics stretching from his thematic study of the historical critical method to his study of selected portions of Psalms 119, which he regarded "as the crown of theological life." Bonhoeffer's statements about the Bible-- and his struggle with those statements-- remain remarkably relevant today for individuals and churches, for Christians and non-Christians. He still challenges us to decide "whether we are willing to trust the word of the Bible or not."--Back of the book.