Yet today we can so easily speak of the church with pessimism, disgust, and dissatisfaction. We should be thankful for living in Christian community.įrom the first pages of Life Together, Bonhoeffer bluntly states that “it is not simply to be taken for granted that the Christian has the privilege of living among other Christians.” After all, many believers must live in isolation - as Bonhoeffer would experience first hand years later.

Bonhoeffer’s words remind us that we should view ministry less as a public role of leadership or spiritual stature - but more as a humble means to serve others in unspectacular ways.ģ. Bonhoeffer even tempers his discussion of church authority by emphasizing that it is less about personality than about faithfulness. Yet for Bonhoeffer, ministry is primarily about helping others, in unglamorous ways, through “holding one’s tongue,” meekness, listening, helpfulness, suffering alongside a brother, and speaking difficult words to another. When you hear the word ministry, you may think of pastors, institutions, and church leaders. Your can engage in ministry simply by serving others. Community and solitude are both important for the Christian life because communal fellowship “will be unfruitful without the day alone.” In an age in which we focus so much on our individual spiritual growth, Bonhoeffer’s message can spur us to remember that spiritual growth within community is just as important.Ģ. In chapters two and three of Life Together, Bonhoeffer presents a sample regimen for a day spent in community with other believers or a day spent in solitude, along with practical spiritual practices that can edify you in both scenarios. You need both individual and communal spiritual growth. The book raises these four challenges that still resonate today.ġ. He then explains how you can practically minister to your brethren, and he concludes Life Together with the importance of confession and communion.ĭietrich Bonhoeffer’s Life Together is short, but its brevity does not diminish its richness. The subsequent two chapters describe a typical day both in community with others and in solitude.

To achieve this goal, he first defines community.

In it Dietrich Bonhoeffer gives you practical suggestions for how you can live in Christian community with others. Oddly enough, Life Together is more relevant today than when Bonhoeffer wrote it.ĭietrich Bonhoeffer’s Life Together is a brief but rich treatise on Christian community. In his honor, I’d like to reflect on his classic work on Christian community - and one of the most life-changing books I’ve ever read - Life Together. Today marks 70 years since Deitrich Bonhoeffer was killed in a Nazi concentration camp.

Dietrich bonhoeffer's life together