Life Together: Introduction

Hello again friends welcome back to the pastor talk podcast.
It is a joy to continue on with you
We’re starting a new series in our conversation today that we are calling life together
And that name is not been haphazardly chosen.
It actually comes from a book written by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
We’re gonna get into a little bit of his biography a very very sort of
Surface level biography of him and why he’s significant to the modern church
But we’re gonna be looking in this series starting more specifically in our conversation next time
About his book title life together and we’ll we’ll explain today how this book came into existence
And and these kinds of things it’s a little bit of a different format for us
But we’re excited to get to spend a little bit of time
I think we’re gonna have four chapters four conversations in this book following this one
And we’re excited to spend a little bit of time looking at the content of a more
Specific thing and see how that applies to our lives of modern faith as you said Michael a little bit of a different approach for us
We’ve not done a book study.
This is one of the beloved classics of the Christian faith
It is pretty accessible.
You do not need to be a theologian.
You do not need a seminary education to
Understand this book and I think resonate with it
If you are a person who reads this book is accessible,
we’ll put some links in the video description
You can find it just about anywhere.
It’s not expensive I think that you will enjoy it and I do think you’ll find it helpful not essential if you don’t get the book
You don’t read the book that you’ll still I think be able to follow along with our podcast
But I think you will appreciate the background of reading this and as I said,
it is one of the I
Think it is one of the shining
examples of
Faith development faith books theology made accessible to people,
you know Bonhoeffer didn’t write
commercially
but the things that he gets to in this book, I think are
Monumentally important and this book has really stood stood the test of time in a way that I think has made it a classic
And I think whether you listen about it or whether you interact with it,
you will appreciate it
Yeah, and that’s a really helpful start to an introduction to Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Clint because one of the things that makes him unique at least from my very limited
Estimation is the fact that he is writing things that would be
accurately described as relevant in the most
strong sense of that word
He’s writing about living as a Christian and doing so in the real world in which we live
But he’s doing that in such a way that anyone who has interest can engage in it
There’s not a whole lot of specific theological vocabulary
He doesn’t spend a significant amount of time pulling out ancient church mothers and fathers
I when he does that it’s it’s very thoughtfully chosen and it’s made to
Emphasize the point of how we now live in the current world
And what’s interesting is he’s doing this in the midst of complete turmoil
He’s really living out his professional life in the midst of World War two and Nazism and he’s a German who is in the midst of
Essentially resisting that Nazi order and and trying to do so from the vantage of the church
We’ll get into that a little bit.
But the point I want to make here is
What’s incredible about his theological work is you don’t necessarily need to be a trained
Theologian to really find the depth of wisdom within it and that is somewhat uncommon
I can think of a few other we were talking about before we hit record here a few other theologians who are sort of
Landmark 20th century theologians,
but a lot of them their work is almost exclusively read within seminaries or within
PhD programs there’s there’s not a lot of those figures who are writing with the same depth and
Accessibility at the same time and the fact that he’s doing this at such a pivotal moment and certainly his own
Country as well as really the world
I think is really instructive as we look to it today to find the wisdom that
Is in here for christian community not to be vague and I hope that I can convey this to people maybe who have
Not read a ton of theology or done seminary coursework
but
Bonhoeffer uniquely stands with a foot in two circles on one hand he’s a pastor on the other hand
He’s a theologian that that’s not an unusual combination,
but bonhoeffer does that
particularly well and He writes as a pastor who understands theology and I think as such he
What he comes up with is very translatable
It’s very understandable for people and and it seems to me
That part of the reason for that is he has a wonderful ability to use himself as a lens as he considers
Our theological ethics as he considers
Discipleship and what it means literally the cost of discipleship another of his great works
He puts himself in the equation and I think and doing so
He provides a level of humility
And a level of accessibility for people so when you read Dietrich Bonhoeffer
It is less about doctrines and theological tenets
And it’s more about living out the faith in the world in which we find ourselves and I think that makes him
Um,
I think that makes him pretty understandable.
I think
In a way that is unusual
At times for theology almost all of his writings have a devotional kind of quality to them
You read them and you feel like they speak directly
To your own life of faith not not in terms of doctrines and ideas
But in terms of practices and realities and I do think that makes him stand out for people
Yeah, very much.
And there’s some historical background reasons.
I think why he
Went that way in his life.
So let’s maybe start at the top here with Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
He’s born
February 4th 1906 in Breslau Germany what was Germany would now be in Poland and what is notable about him
Is that he was born into an academic family.
So his father is a psychiatrist
He also does study of neurology.
His father was actually quite outspoken against Freud and some of Freud’s writings.
Um, and
so Bonhoeffer actually goes to school.
He rides the bus with a number of
People who go on to be
novelists and Researchers and he lives in a very academic milieu
And so instead of following down the road of psychiatry he makes his way into theology
And what is striking about that is if you read Bonhoeffer’s works,
I would say ethics
Which I’ve done a little bit more reading than some of his other works
What’s interesting is you see how rooted he is in the physical reality of our lives to your point about it being devotional
there’s a sense in which
Bonhoeffer doesn’t see any earthly good for theology that doesn’t speak to people’s actual lives people’s actual concerns the stuff that we
Actually do and that does stand intention to some of our very contemporary
more
Emotive kinds of theologies that sort of I want to feel connected or I want to
Practice love of Jesus.
These are good things.
We want to have a meaningful relationship with God
But what Bonhoeffer I think would critique in some of our modern assumptions is
It’s not just about how you feel about your relationship with God
But ultimately what you choose to do how you choose to behave towards your neighbor
How you choose to act in the world in which you actually live and that
Has this real kind of human element to it a kind of groundedness that doesn’t allow us to talk about
spiritual dreams or things that might be out there
But rather life as we know it and the real choices that we make as Christians to be faithful in the midst of it
and so there’s a kind of
Scientific practicality is the point i’m trying to get to Bonhoeffer comes from a family that takes
The acquisition of knowledge very seriously.
And so when he sets his mind to discussing things of truth
Bonhoeffer insists that we must recognize that there is
supernatural truth there’s the things that we seek to point out and
See the revealed truth of Jesus Christ
But that revealed truth has implications for concrete actual lives lived and he’s never going to let those things sort of
Fall out of tension and I think that’s one of the really notable parts of his personality and the theological work that we’re going to read
He’s an interesting
Juxtaposition in some ways and i’m not i’m making statements that i’m not sure i’m qualified to make but on one hand
He is passionate, you know as a young child.
He’s a he’s one of seven
Kids
He he plays soccer.
He’s engaged in life
As a person of faith,
he has a deeply passionate faith he can
Speak about faith in a way that is emotional and emotive and yet he’s german
And so there’s this kind of stoicism that is also
at times Present I think in what he says and so he’s this very interesting combination of both hot and cold in some ways and
again, I think that
Is an interesting mix and as we consider his life we see both of those moments
And I think as we read through
There are times when one feels
Very passionate about the faith when one is filled
Filled with the spirit and driven and then there are times
When one has to slog through the difficult moments of just moving forward and doing the right thing and I think bonhoeffer
Honors that whole range of human experience really well
Yeah, and he is an academic who is able to hold his chops
He is incredibly intelligent as you’ll find within the first page if you choose to read this book with us
and so in 1930
He is essentially not quite old enough to be ordained but yet he is
Ready for a post-doctorate sort of work.
And so he actually goes from
Seminary in germany and he comes to the united states where he teaches at union,
which is a storied sort of mainline
Uh theological institution in the united states and it’s fascinating because there
He actually comes in contact with some african-american churches and some of the african-american tradition theological tradition in the united states
And in fact rather famously bonhoeffer brings back
Some spirituals that he learns here in the united states that he then takes with him when he goes back to germany
And really those some of those become hymns of the confessing church in germany and I just want to sort of point out
1930
bring back to memory what’s happening in 1930 right this this period between
the world the great war and all of the
national and international
Conflicts that are happening politically socially.
This is a very
tumultuous time and in the midst of this moment
Bonhoeffer is Being shaped and his understanding of who god is and what we as christians must see in the revelation of jesus christ
what we profess to be true and what’s striking is
As things get heated as it seems very clear that the world is once again making its way to the brink of
Armed conflict once again bonhoeffer is left with a choice.
He’s he’s active in ecumenical work
That means he’s doing theological work between denominations all across the country and the world
He’s already gaining some notoriety
And he chooses under his own volition to go back to germany a place where it’s almost clear even at that time
Is going very much towards conflict very much towards a sort of a political religious
Form of nazism and bonhoeffer feels convicted
He believes that his christian duty is to go and he’s invited to go be essentially a professor in a non
uh
What’s the world i’m looking for a seminary that’s not approved he goes to a
A seminary that’s sort of functioning outside of a formal church structure and and that is dedicated to the idea
Of a church that confesses jesus christ in opposition
To some of the political extremism that was happening within germany at the time
So bonhoeffer takes this extreme risk with his own life to go teach in this place
Because he feels convicted that that’s his christian duty in this world
I think there’s some background that may be helpful in terms of
in the early 30s as nazism begins to
Rise up there is this movement in german churches
That are loosely held together under this label
the national church and the national church and this state that being the rise of nazism begin
to move together and
Not necessarily partnership
But the national church stands in support of this movement within the government and that
Out of that grows
a contention
Among other pastors and churches that that’s the wrong way for the church to go they they say instead
The church should not support national leaders the church
They don’t really mention nazism per se in many cases
But they form this offshoot that they function under the label of confessing
church and the confessing church are those who kind of in
Some degree of uncertainty or opposition stand up to
The national church and the national movement of the government nazism and so this
Seminary that gets developed is called the underground seminary
By many and bonhoeffer
Because of his commitment to the confessing church begins to teach there now.
None of this is legal
It’s all kind of literally underground.
That’s where it gets the name
And he goes to work within this movement and we see this very early later in life
It becomes even more true.
You cannot tell the story of bonhoeffer without the nazis
germany and bonhoeffer are
Inseparably tied together because of the time and because of the situation in which he finds himself
In that country and so as he does this
That seminary functions about two years it opens roughly 35
37 it’s closed by the government and in 39 bonhoeffer takes this trip to america
The writing is kind of on the wall that he is not
A person in the good graces of the german government.
He has friends tell him look ride this out stay in america
It’s not safe for you here
But he instead says that’s my home
They need me and he returns and he continues kind of working underground in various capacities
Yeah, I I think he says it really well that this comes directly from him
He says I have come to the conclusion that I made a mistake in coming to america
I must live through this difficult period in our national history with the people of germany
To participate in the reconstruction of christian life in germany after the war
If I do not share the trials of this time with my people
That is an unbelievably
Faithful humble sort of statement from a pastor theologian and it’s that kind of
real conviction that brings him back and you just mentioned how you
Ultimately can’t tell bonhoeffer’s story without referencing nazi-ism because upon his return to germany
Bonhoeffer takes it a step beyond the confessing church beyond just his writing and his teaching
Which cut against the philosophy of nazi-ism.
He became an active
partner in the groups that were actually working both politically and in some cases through espionage
And and even some more military type actions to actually unseat nazi-ism bonhoeffer in some ways becomes a spy
actively working against a political regime
He’s doing that from the vantage of a thorough going pastor theologian and and he finds himself
By his own ethic and his own understanding of what is required of him
To be working against this thing
Even in means that he admits in his writings are in some ways against what he believes is right
But he feels convicted and compelled to do so what you find happening with bonhoeffer is you have an
unbelievably capable thinker everything that he does he can not only
Give you reasons for for how he got there.
But when he does it it is compelling in its writing
He’s an excellent communicator.
So not only do you have that on one side on the other
You have someone who recognizes and takes real risks in his life
He goes beyond the church to do what he feels is his christian duty
But it’s happening in a political even military type way and and that’s what
Makes bonhoeffer such a unique voice in the theology of the 20th century is because in some ways his journey
Took him through all of these different
What we would call sort of religious secular divides and and he really walks through them
Without feeling any of them being held from one another he holds them all in tension and he does so
With an unbelievably clear voice that helps us see the path that he took I think that’s what makes him
So historically notable that I think is part of what makes his books.
So
relevant and Cherished today is because they’re not just words.
He lived what he believed and there’s a sense that we see
The ultimate authenticity in his writing because the things that he professed
Were ultimately the things that drove his action
one of the things that makes his story so compelling to me at least is
that bonhoeffer stands at the intersection
of faith and action and
while there were many who
Would decry what was happening in germany there were many who would criticize the growth of naziism especially as
Details and practices emerged about what was happening with exterminating people the holocaust, etc
Bonhoeffer is compelled to act
He is moved by the idea
that
While prayer
And preaching and study are all essential
That not to engage in that battle against what he clearly sees as a movement of evil
That is working in the world,
but is influencing even the church
is is to be unfaithful and so
Bonhoeffer begins to transmit messages.
He begins to work in the underground he he begins to
Try to disseminate information and ultimately
Bonhoeffer is one of several who take part in
plotting An assassination attempt on adolf hitler which fails
and
I think what is amazing as we
Dissect that later is that bonhoeffer?
Does not justify that he doesn’t say
It’s right because this there’s this much wrong.
So we’re doing the right thing
He says to do nothing is wrong and to do this is wrong
And I have to choose one of them
And to let people suffer so this idea that faith is always neat and clean and and the idea that you know
God always provides a way out and bonhoeffer really stands in opposition to some of that as a man who is compelled to act
But also to act in ways that he knows
are not justified simply because they need to be done or because they he feels that that’s the only option and
It creates a very interesting tension in him and his writings.
Fortunately, he documented some of that in some of his other works and so
that that assassination plot fails and in 1943 bonhoeffer is imprisoned and
Does pretty well he starts off in camps
that are
Pretty tolerable and he he is known there as a pastor
In fact, there are there are documented stories that even the guards would sometimes take him to the cells of other prisoners
Who were struggling and he would minister to them
So he quickly gained a a kind of respect even among those who were his captors
Yeah, there were some stories that he was actually able to exchange correspondence outside of the camps
Because the guards were willing to allow that kind of exchange to happen
He was well thought of in some of the places where he was but as you can imagine a person caught in a plot to
Overthrow nazism to kill hitler
You can imagine that bonhoeffer was dangerous not just because of his theology or what the nazis would have called ideology
But he was dangerous because of the actions that he took and the charisma that he had in leading others forward
And so that leads to what is really
The dark historical irony of bonhoeffer’s life and that is that he was executed.
He was hung on april 8th
1945 and this is just a slim
Two weeks before the united states military came and liberated the camp where he was held
Just four weeks before the entire surrender of nazi germany
so he dies right at the end of this conflict and um,
whereas the as the conflict is nearing its end and
The part of this
is
really difficult
Because of the question that that leaves I think his martyrdom the end of his life
Really cuts off one of the brightest minds of christianity that we have coming from this era
If not the entire century and I think part of that has it is immortalized the question
Who would have?
Dietrich bonhoeffer been and who would have he raised up behind him?
Had this not happened for two weeks and he had been liberated from that camp there
There’s some question I think that leaves in everyone who has studied bonhoeffer of who he would have even become
As he could have led the church forward.
He could have led germany forward as he had hoped to do
um into a new understanding of the faith on the other side of the war there’s a kind of
A possibility that it will forever be missed and that’s part of maybe what makes the words that we have of his
So valuable is because they’re so scarce
Yeah, and there’s a very accessible.
I think a piece by bonhoeffer that you could get into so
If you take the time to google bonhoeffer
Look at a writing he did called who am I and it’s just a very short poem and I think
As you read that which was written from his incarceration.
I think you get a sense of
Kind of the heart of this man the nature of his struggle
The nature of the struggle of faith that we all wrestle with am I
The the child of god who puts my trust in jesus christ?
Or am I this person sort of stumbling through the world making mistakes as I go?
And not living up to my my invitation my calling at all
And and I think you’ll find that bonhoeffer in a masterful way is able to paint that picture
The book that we’re going to look at this
Little work called life together.
This comes from that sort of middle part of bonhoeffer’s
practice his his ministry
it’s
Really written kind of during that underground seminary period he lives intentionally with other christians.
They are
in a in a
Community together and as bonhoeffer puts his mind to that experience.
He begins to unpack
What does it mean to be in christian community?
What does it mean in the in the communal sense?
And what does it mean in the individual sense and how is it that we live on our life of faith?
among other people of faith and
As true for bonhoeffer once he sets his sights on that it becomes this rich fertile theological ground
and this book really
Springs up over those experiences out of those experiences.
It’s published in uh 39 and
it quickly becomes
Beloved it.
I think it gets translated into english in the mid 50s
and it has been a staple of seminary classrooms and
Churches and leadership ever since I I don’t know of a book
Maybe some some of c.s.
Lewis’s stuff
I don’t know of a book that has probably been as important to as many people at some point in their christian journey
As this as this little
Treasure here life together.
Yeah, I think i’m just going to be direct about it
This is why even if you’re not necessarily a reader
This is why I think you should pick up this book is because you’re not going to find a book
I can’t think of a book that I could recommend to you that is going to be
more accessible and more deep than this book as you see to
Live out what it means to be a christian in relation and fellowship with others because
What bonhoeffer does is he talks about the reality?
Of being brothers and sisters in christ and he doesn’t do that through rose-colored glasses
He’s not talking about kumbaya
And let’s let’s all gather around the fire and eat s’mores together and be nice to one another
I I mean some of those sentiments are here,
but never To those ends themselves what bonhoeffer does is chiefly?
To theologically start with jesus christ and say if jesus christ is lord as we believe he is
What does that mean about life together?
What does it mean to be in christ?
So if you went with us through
The roman’s bible study for instance a lot of that language is wrapped up into this what you need
you know luther’s writing from a lutheran context a reformation context and
He’s taking that In that history that legacy incredibly seriously
There’s no one who believes more
In the importance of life together than ditric bonhoeffer and yet you are never going to find a person
Whose eyes are more open to reality about people who are gossiping people who aren’t giggling along people who allow their own agendas and their own
Uh sort of innate sinfulness to get in the way of being life together bonhoeffer’s not afraid of that
He looks at straight in the face and he sees beyond it the good news of jesus christ.
So
You know, this is I think a wonderful primer as we seek to be people of faith
And I think it’s relevant that we chose to do this first
Attempt at a kind of book study in the podcast format.
I think it’s relevant that we do this book now
Because there’s a sense in which
We all now cannot take for granted life together in the physical sense
We’ve all had a season in which at some point or another
We came to the point of saying man.
I’m going to be grateful to be in a room with people again
I’m going to be grateful to be in a pew with my brothers and sisters in christ surrounding me and as we
Celebrate the return
the time together.
There’s really no better time to ask ourselves the question
But what is the end goal right?
What are we seeking to do as a body?
What does it mean to be in christ and what does that require of me?
And you know, this is a very a pregnant moment
It’s a beautiful opportunity to sort of look at some of those why questions and help us inform
Some of the more what things that we do
The why can help us change and keep in perspective the things that really matter as we celebrate life together
This side of covet.
I think the beauty and the difficulty of this book is
That it
It kind of
Uncovers
our natural tendency
To think of community as what we gain from it in what we get out of our experience of community
And maybe we’re a little short-sighted on what community asks of us and demands of us
And so we hear it within christianity all the time,
you know, love others love god.
Love your neighbor Love your neighbor as yourself
but we We sometimes don’t spend a lot of time
wrestling with how
Incredibly difficult that can be we tend to think of that as as binary something we do or don’t do
and I think where bonhoeffer helps us is to
Confess and admit with us that there are times not only do we not know how to do it
There are times we don’t want to do it and that loving others is not some
Thing that we just simply commit ourselves to and it’s over.
It is a daily struggle
That lives much more in our hearts than in the reality of the other we sometimes think oh they’re hard to love
For bonhoeffer, that’s a personal challenge.
It’s not a reflection on their sinfulness
It’s a reflection on our own sinfulness
And I think it just sets for us an incredible challenge and and I love that bonhoeffer
Seems so honest about the difficulty of doing a thing that we speak about simply
Yeah, so, you know
What what are we asking?
Well, I I think there’s really two things here
First of all, this is a little bit of an overview of bonhoeffer of how he fits into history and theology
I think maybe the thing that we’re asking is if you want to join us on this journey
Get this book right now.
We’ll put a link to where you can get in the description
But like clint said you’re going to be able to find it
used or wherever you get books
Feel free to look for life together by bonhoeffer the first chapter that we’re going to engage with next conversation next wednesday
Is going to be the first chapter.
That’s 39 pages I promise you if you set aside time to read even if you’re not a extensive reader you you can go eight
Pages at a time,
you know get your highlight or highlight a few things that make sense to you
If you want to journey through the book with us
Have that chapter read when you join our conversation next time and if you say, you know what
i’m happy to hear the conversation
I promise you
Even even clint and I can’t screw up some of the wisdom that bonhoeffer has said here
it stands on its own and so do join us for these conversations because just some of the
Insights that he offers.
I think
We could spend a lifetime processing not just what they mean and that’s the beauty of bonhoeffer
It’s not just thinking about it.
It’s about what it informs how we live
So what then must we do?
And so I hope you’ll join us for this experience in the next four weeks here
it’s easy to imagine when we think of a church or a community that it’s
its um
Identity has to do with who’s in it
But I I think you’ll find bonhoeffer is very
good
at challenging each of us to instead
investigate what do we bring to the identity of those groups particularly the church and
It’s challenging, but I think you will enjoy it.
I I know that you will gain an appreciation for
the insights of this wonderful christian leader and I hope you hope you will join us with it
Thanks for joining us for this introductory conversation.
We look forward to seeing you next wednesday as always
Feel free to contact us if you’ve got any questions or any thoughts
We’d love to engage that conversation with you
You can find a link to our contact form in the description of this video and or podcast and as always friends
Thanks for taking time.
I’ll spending time with us as we seek to engage the faith together and grow as disciples.
Thanks so much