Gerhard Sauter, To Give an Account of Hope: „Dogmatics is accused of closing all discourse instead of opening it. But carefully investigated, dogmatics relies on tried and tested experiences in thinking to be thought through again and developed further. It is a movement in thinking that is addressed by God’s immense, tireless, and often disturbing actions and blessed with the abundance of God’s promises.“

To Give an Account of Hope By Gerhard Sauter I was born on May 4, 1935, in Kassel (Hesse), in … Mehr

Georg Froelich (1500-1575) as the first Protestant advocate of religious tolerance in his writing ‚Whether Secular Government Has the Right to Wield the Sword in Matters of Faith‘ (March 1530): „Christians, Jews, Anabaptists, etc., all would be free to establish and observe without hindrance those doctrines and ceremonies which they regard as right and by which they hope to come to God, but in separate places, namely the Christians in their churches, the Anabaptists and Jews in their designated houses or synagogues.“

In general, Sebastian Castellio (1515-1563) is regarded as the first Protestant scholar who had spoken out for comprehensive religious tolerance. … Mehr

Reinhold Niebuhr about Karl Barth „Why Is Barth Silent on Hungary?“ 1957: „Some of the political framework of Barth’s judgments is furnished by his ill-disguised anti-Americanism and by what he regards as our “worship of the dollar.” Some of it is given by his belief that the struggle is not between communism and democracy but between Slav and German.“

Why Is Barth Silent on Hungary? By Reinhold Niebuhr THE WHOLE WORLD has been thrilled by the spontaneity and the … Mehr

David J. Bosch, The Vulnerability of Mission (1991): “Only if we turn our backs on false power and false security can there be authentic Christian mission. Of course, this will lead to opposition, perhaps even suffering, persecution and martyrdom.”

The Vulnerability of Mission By David. J. Bosch THE STORY OF FR RODRIGUES One of the most moving and at … Mehr

Sophie Scholl on Praying 1941: „When I try to pray and reflect on whom I’m praying to, I almost go crazy, I feel so infinitely small. I get really scared, so the only emotion that can surface is fear. I feel so powerless in general, and doubtless I am. I can’t pray for anything except the ability to pray.“

Diary: Draft of a letter intended for her sister Inge but never sent, Blumberg, undated [November/December 1941] I’ve received four … Mehr

Hans Scholl’s Letter on Prayer (January, 1942): „I’ve no idea what will happen to us when the semester ends in a month’s time, nor do I care in the least. I’ve dropped anchor, come what may, and nothing can really trouble me from now on.“

To Rose Nägele, Munich, January 25, 1942 Dear Rose, My promise was a rash one. Several weeks have gone by … Mehr

Heinrich Vogel, Christ the Centre. The Christological Centrality of the Barmen Declaration (1984): „I myself confess to a doxological orthodoxy, that is, to the acknowledgement of the truth revealed to us in the Holy Scripture, the truth whose name is Jesus Christ. Even if we fail in our attempts to recognize this truth, unable to transcend our limitations, then and there, in our failure, we are called to adoration.“

Christ the Centre. The Christological Centrality of the Barmen Declaration[1] By Heinrich Vogel I must begin with a confession. It … Mehr

Federico José Pagura’s Appeal „Missionary, go home . . . or stay“ from 1972: „If you are not able to love and respect as equals those whom one day you came to evangelize as “lost”, MISSIONARY, GO HOME.“

Missionary, Go Home . . . or Stay By Federico José Pagura, then Bishop of the Methodist Church in Costa … Mehr

Reinhold Niebuhr, Why the Christian Church Is Not Pacifist (1940): „A simple Christian moralism is senseless and confusing. It is senseless when, as in the World War, it seeks uncritically to identify the cause of Christ with the cause of democracy without a religious reservation. The fact is that we might as well dispense with the Christian faith entirely if it is our conviction that we can act in history only if we are guiltless. This means that we must either prove our guiltlessness in order to be able to act; or refuse to act because we cannot achieve guiltlessness. Self-righteousness or inaction are the alternatives of secular moralism.“

In seinem lesenwerten F.A.Z.-Essay „Der Umschlag des Pazifismus in sein Gegenteil“ hat Mark Siemons ausgiebig auf den folgenden Text von … Mehr