Friend 1:

I find Bonhoeffer’s dilemma to be a wonderful example of the way frail humanity must attempt to do God’s will in the full knowledge that their choices may be wrong. As I understand it Bonhoeffer was a confessed pacifist who chose to do violence against Hitler because of the weight of the atrocities he was aware of. Nevertheless, he sensed that his decision may have been subject to God’s judgement and he took that risk. There are many other stories of men and women who resisted Hitler’s regime without the use of violence. All are stories of people wrestling with what the will of God was in that situation. For my part I do not think Bonhoeffer stopped being a pacifist when he made the decision to participate in the plot against Hitler. I think he was a Christian offering himself up, taking the risk of being subject to God’s judgement himself for the sake of the Jews. Whether that makes any sense to anyone I do not know. What I do know is that for me he is an example of extraordinary courage and pacifist conviction.

Friend 2:

That’s my understanding of the situation too. People often resort to Bonhoeffer’s choice to justify their violence, but rarely recognise that even he believed it to be wrong.

I often contrast Bonhoeffer with the story of Franz Jaegerstatter. Jaegerstatter was a Christian who was drafted into the German army when Austria was annexed, but refused to join. With a wife and two young children, everyone (including his bishop) begged him to make the pragmatic choice and at least serve in the kitchen or some other non-combat role, as refusal would result in the death penalty. But Jaegerstatter knew that supporting the army was supporting evil, and refused. His wife supported him wholeheartedly.

In his last letter to his family before he was beheaded, Jaegerstatter wrote: ” …It was not possible for me to free you from the pain that you must now suffer on my account. How hard it must have been for our dear Savior when, through His sufferings and death, he had to prepare such a great sorrow for His Mother — and together They bore all of this out of great love for us sinners….. And now your husband, son, father, son-in-law and brother-in-law greets you once more before his final journey. The heart of Jesus, the heart of Mary, and my heart are one in time and eternity….” Jaegerstatter was a true martyr – one who “bore witness” to the cross of his Saviour by his participation in it.

Jaegerstatter was recently beatified by the Catholic Church for his stance – a staggering decision in the face of the actions (or largely inaction) of the whole Catholic Church during the war. I think it’s a recognition that these stories need to be celebrated and seen as formative for the faith of Christian people. There’s a movie called “The Refusal” based on his life if you’re interested.

Bertrand Russell wrote, “There will be wars so long as there are young men willing to give their bodies to fight those wars.” What if all Christians refused to be involved, as so many of our Baptist forebears did, and Quakers and Mennonites and others still do? More than that, what if we threw the same amount of effort, resources, discipline, etc into nonviolent peacemaking?

The other story of faithful Christian action in the face of Nazi oppression is that of Hans and Sophie Scholl and the White Rose. A movie about it won an Oscar a couple of years back, called The Final Days of Sophie Scholl. I highly recommend it.

These are stories of tremendous courage – and I dare say courage that I may not have, but continue to pray for.

Incidentally, the most potent anti-war resistance coming out of the US at the moment is from ex-servicemen and women…organisations like Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) and Stand Fast (the Australian version)

are increasing in numbers daily. That’s an interesting development.

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