Bonhoeffer's Theology in Historical Context (CT3725W)

Content

Beginning with his early philosophical theology and concluding with his radical prison writings, this unit will explore the dynamic interaction between Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s leading theological ideas and his engagement with the changing religious, social and political context of Hitler’s Third Reich.

Learning outcomes

Unit sequence

30 points in CT and 15 points in CH

Pedagogy

lectures, seminars, discussion forums

Indicative Bibliography

• Bethge, Eberhard. Dietrich Bonhoeffer: A Biography. Translated by Eric Mosbacher, Peter Ross, Betty Ross, Frank Clarke and William Glen-Doepel. Revised ed. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2000.
• Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. Discipleship. Translated by B. Green and R. Krauss. Dietrich Bonhoeffer Works. Edited by G. B. Kelly, J. D. Godsey, B. Green and R. Krauss. Vol. 4, Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 2000.
• ———. Ethics. Translated by Reinhard Krauss, Charles C. West and Douglas W. Scott. Dietrich Bonhoeffer Works. Edited by Clifford J. Green. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 2005.
• ———. Letters and Papers from Prison. Translated by John Bowden. London: SCM Press, 2002.
• ———. No Rusty Swords: Letters, Lectures and Notes 1928–1936 From the Collected Works, Volume I. Translated by John Bowden and Eberhard Bethge. London: Collins, 1970.
• Clements, Keith. Bonhoeffer and Britain. London: Churches Together in Britain and Ireland, 2006.
• Clements, Keith. W. The SPCK Introduction to Bonhoeffer. London: SPCK, 2010.
• de Gruchy, John W., ed. The Cambridge Companion to Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. (recommended for purchase)
• Green, Clifford J., and Michael P. DeJonge, eds. The Bonhoeffer Reader. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2013.
• Pugh, Jeffrey C. Religionless Christianity: Dietrich Bonhoeffer in Troubled Times. London: T&T Clark, 2008.
• Schlingensiepen, Ferdinand. Dietrich Bonhoeffer 1906–1945: Martyr, Thinker, Man of Resistance. Translated by Isabel Best. London: T&T Clark, 2010.
• Scholder, Klaus. The Churches and the Third Reich. Volume 1: Preliminary History and the Time of Illusions, 1918–1934. Translated by John Bowden. London: SCM Press, 1987.
• ———. The Churches and the Third Reich. Volume 2: The Year of Disillusionment, 1934 – Barmen and Rome. Translated by John Bowden. London: SCM Press, 1988.

Assessment