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International Holocaust Day of Remembrance
Image by Mary Kessel, 1945 Holocaust Remembrance Day The Holocaust, the world’s unparalleled human catastrophe, began with the simple passing of a law by a new majority in the German national legislature. This law, which forbid individuals with a Jewish bloodline from holding government jobs, went largely unnoticed, and few citizens were bothered by this seemingly…
Read MoreQuestions and Answers
“Searching For You,” by Mihaela Ionescu Questions and Answers Dietrich Bonhoeffer celebrated and wrote about reality. He was suspicious of magical thinking and fanciful flights of imagination, particularly when it involved religion. Dietrich’s father, Karl, an enormous influence in his life, was a man of science—a psychiatrist and researcher; his mother was trained as a…
Read MoreExperience the Gift of Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Experience the Gift of Dietrich Bonhoeffer! Still looking for the perfect last minute Christmas gift for the Bonhoeffer fan in your life or looking for a way to treat yourself this holiday season? Look no further than our special list of Dietrich Bonhoeffer themed gifts! Featuring books, music, movies, and art, our list invites everyone…
Read MoreIntervening in America’s Suicide Crisis
Gbenga Offo (Nigerian, 1957–), “Fervent Prayer,” 2015. Acrylic on canvas, 121 × 173 cm. Suicide Prevention and Gun Violence Every year, almost one million people take their own lives. In the United States, the annual number of suicides has been steadily climbing toward 50,000. These deaths, along with many unsuccessful attempts, have rippling and long-lasting…
Read MoreAct Now to Remove the Moscow Patriarchate from the WCC!
Act Now to Remove the Moscow Patriarchate from the WCC! Over the past three weeks, we have watched Vladimir Putin’s megalomaniacal attempt to expand his repressive empire by invading one of the world’s newest democracies, Ukraine. His victims are mostly unarmed, non-combatant civilians, including children and elderly people. We’re visited daily by terrified, separated, displaced,…
Read MoreWomen’s History Month and Bonhoeffer
The Bonhoeffer family, March 1943, five days before Dietrich’s arrest. Photo: Christian Kaiser Verlag Source: ushmm.org Celebrating Women’s History with Bonhoeffer From birth to death, Dietrich Bonhoeffer was surrounded by loving, devoted, fascinating, high-achieving, and brave women. This Women’s History Month, TDBI remembers some of the many women who formed, inspired and supported Dietrich’s life and…
Read MoreStand With Ukraine 🇺🇦
A Bonhofferian Response to Russia’s Invasions For one of the first times in history, the world is watching, in real-time, an invasion of a free and peaceful country by a cruel, war-mongering despot. Thanks to the internet and cell phones, we are vicariously experiencing the suffering of Ukrainians with up-to-the-moment detail. Of course, Ukraine is…
Read More“Introducing Christian Ethics: Core Convictions for Christians Today”
Introducing Christian Ethics: Core Convictions for Christians Today Every few decades, a philosopher enters the annals of history after promulgating breakthrough ideas. Just as often, those historic contributions are only posthumously recognized because contemporaries either dismiss them or under-appreciate their value. Fortunately, neither has been the case with Professor David Gushee! Since achieving well-deserved notoriety…
Read MoreStart Lent with Dietrich Bonhoeffer
The Savior by Henry Ossawa Tanner, ca. 1900–1905 Lent is Near For many Christians throughout the world, the season of Lent starts this week. Since the seventh century, Lent has been a forty-day penitential exercise, corresponding to the forty days Jesus spent in the desert. Beginning with Ash Wednesday, it leads to the celebration of Christ’s…
Read MoreWhy Black History Month?
Why Black History Month? Rev. Dr. Van Gayton No people can be healthy and mature without knowing their own history. According to Berea College, sankofa is an African word from the Akan tribe in Ghana that means know history. The symbol is a mythic bird and the literal translation of the word is “it is not taboo to…
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