Dietrich Bonhoeffer And Religion

Dietrich Bonhoeffer lived during the time of the Holocaust. He was interested in and influenced by religion from an early age. He always tried to live for God. He was a big part of the anti-Nazi movement. He continues to inspire Christians all over the world. Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a very influential theologian who dedicated his whole life to his religion.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was born on February 4th, 1906 in Breslau, Germany. He was one of seven children. Dietrich’s father was a university professor and a psychiatrist as well as a neurologist; his mother was before her time and also held a college degree (Dietrich Bonhoeffer. N.p., n.d.). Dietrich’s parents instilled in him many great qualities such as goodness, selflessness, fairness, and self-control. Dietrich’s family had a history of theologians. By the age of 14, he had already decided to study theology. Four years later, he attended Berlin University. By the age of 24, he became a lecturer in Systematic Theology at Berlin University (Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. The Cost of Discipleship).

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was one of the first and only people to realize that National Socialism was an awful attempt to make history without God, but with man. When Hitler came to power, Dietrich quit school and became a pastor in Germany (Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. The Cost of Discipleship). In 1933, when Hitler became the German chancellor, Dietrich voiced his opinion of this event to the listeners of the radio, but the German authorities cut off his microphone before he could finish his address . After Hitler’s rise to power, Dietrich went into hiding for two years. He traveled around German villages to help students in their forbidden churches. In January 1938, Bonhoeffer was banned from Berlin and ...

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...a man die so entirely submissive to the will of God.” ("Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Resistance and Execution.")

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a very influential and educated man. He dedicated his whole life to doing what was right and fighting for justice. To this day, he still inspires many Christians all over the world to put God first, even if it means risking their whole life. In the Gospel of Mark chapter 8 verses 36 and 37 Jesus said this: “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself, pick up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?” (English Standard Version). Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a rare Christian who actually lived his life by this scripture and willingly gave his life for Christ’s sake.