Here are some of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s most famous quotes, reflecting his deep theological insights and commitment to living out his faith:
1. On discipleship:
“When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”
— The Cost of Discipleship
2. On costly grace:
“Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves. Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, communion without confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”
— The Cost of Discipleship
3. On faith and obedience:
“Only he who believes is obedient, and only he who is obedient believes.”
— The Cost of Discipleship
4. On suffering and faith:
“Suffering, then, is the badge of true discipleship. The disciple is not above his master. Following Christ means suffering because we have to suffer. Discipleship means allegiance to the suffering Christ, and it is therefore not at all surprising that Christians should be called upon to suffer.”
— Letters and Papers from Prison
5. On community:
“The person who loves their dream of community will destroy community, but the person who loves those around them will create community.”
— Life Together
6. On prayer:
“A day without morning and evening prayers and personal intercessions is actually a day without meaning or importance.”
— Life Together
7. On silence and solitude:
“We are so afraid of silence that we chase ourselves from one event to the next in order not to have to spend a moment alone with ourselves, in order not to have to look at ourselves in the mirror.”
— Meditations on the Psalms
8. On action and responsibility:
“Action springs not from thought, but from a readiness for responsibility.”
— Ethics
9. On truth and love:
“The ultimate test of a moral society is the kind of world that it leaves to its children.”
— Ethics
10. On hope in dark times:
“The essence of optimism is that it takes no account of the present, but it is a source of inspiration, of vitality, and hope where others have resigned; it enables a man to hold his head high, to claim the future for himself, and not to abandon it to his enemy.”
— Letters and Papers from Prison
Bonhoeffer’s life and writings are a testament to his courage and steadfastness in faith, even in the face of great personal sacrifice.