(For those unfamiliar with him, Bonhoeffer was a German Lutheran pastor and theologian who resisted the rise of Nazism. He helped found the Confessing Church that stood against the hatred of that political system. He was arrested by the Nazi regime for helping Jews escape to Switzerland, and was killed just before his prison camp was liberated by the allies at the end of the war in Europe.)

Now, normally I would be pleased about Bonhoeffer having a moment, as I feel his complex theological and social voice is muted in contemporary discussions about how Christians are to live. His witness against racism, xenophobia, and antisemitism, his call for people of faith to stand in resistance to unjust political power, and his insistence on putting the Way of Jesus before everything else has so much to teach us who are living in a time that rhymes jarringly with 1933 Germany.

One of my favorite Bonhoeffer quotes sums up the depth of his faith: Your ‘yes’ to God requires your ‘no’ to all injustice, to all evil, to all lies, to all oppression and violation of the weak and the poor.

Unfortunately,  Bonhoeffer is having a moment because because of the release of a new film about his life called Bonhoeffer: Pastor. Spy. Assassin. The film is described by its makers as a  a “historical drama thriller.”  It is described by critics (including most Bonhoeffer scholars, the International Bonhoeffer Society, and almost all of Bonhoeffer’s descendants) as historically inaccurate, misleading in its claims, and cynically misusing the legacy of Bonhoeffer to promulgate the talking points of the modern Christian Right.

The book is based on a 2010 biography penned by Eric Metaxas that was also widely panned by Bonhoeffer scholars, but enthusiastically received by a conservative evangelical audience.  The movie’s producers hope to broaden that audience with a well-financed release of the film.

Conservative Christianity Today, a long-standing voice of evangelical Christianity, heavily critiques the film.  The Christian Century, a more progressive, mainline religious magazine, gives a scathing review.  You can read both of them here:

https://www.christianitytoday.com/2024/11/bonhoeffer-movie-review-angel-studios/

https://www.christiancentury.org/features/new-bonhoeffer-movie-isn-t-just-bad-it-s-dangerous

To be clear: I’ve not yet seen the film, which is officially to be released on November 22.  I will go see it, probably over the Thanksgiving holiday, as will many others.  Perhaps you will, too.  If you do so, I encourage you to read these articles first, to help you view the film with a discerning eye.  Perhaps we can have a special Adult Forum or Wednesday Study class to talk about our experience with the film.

My hope is that what comes out of this “Bonhoeffer Moment” is that more people will look behind the right-wing cartoon action figure of Metaxas’ book and Angel Studios’ film. They will read “The Cost of Discipleship”, “Life Together”, and “Letters and Papers from Prison.” My hope is that they meet the person Victoria Barnett says we should read “because his is the story of one decent human being who understood better than any of us that in evil times, we must remain faithful—if only for the sake of future generations, because we are creating for them the foundation from which they can do good in this fallen world.”