The Daily Prayer
THURSDAY, April 9, 2020
Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906—1945)
Dietrich Bonhoeffer studied theology in Germany and the United States and pastored a church in London before returning to Germany as a leader of the Confessing Church, which tried to resist Adolf Hitler. Though Bonhoeffer returned to Germany a pacifist, he became a resistance worker and was part of a failed plot to assassinate Hitler. But it was his evasion of the call-up for military service that led to his arrest. Perhaps he died because of his political convictions and not as a Christian martyr, but he would have said that there is no distinction between the two.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “Jesus Christ lived in the midst of his enemies. At the end, all of his disciples deserted him. On the cross he was utterly alone, surrounded by evildoers and mockers. For this cause he had come, to bring peace to the enemies of God. So the Christian, too, belongs not in the seclusion of a cloistered life, but in the thick of foes.”
Lord, reveal to us all that makes itself an enemy to the life you want for us. Help us hunger so deeply for the freedom of all your people that we risk walking among enemies who pervert justice. Reveal to us when we ourselves act as enemies to your kingdom of justice and peace. Amen.
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