A Book Review: Letters and Papers from Prison

The life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer is a remarkable tale of faith, resiliency and surrender, and nowhere is this more evident than in Letters and Papers from Prison. This book is a compilation of many of Bonhoeffer's letters, poems and sermons written from his arrest in 1943 to his execution by the Gestapo in 1945. As we read, we are offered glimpses of Bonhoeffer's relationship with his family and friends, his personal interests, his theological musings and his struggles of faith.

The first letters in this volume are written to Bonhoeffer's family, and give a somewhat softened glimpse of his life in prison. In fact, all of his correspondence with his family generally keeps a light and cheerful tone and the topics usually stick to family, acquaintances, personal interests and the hope of soon being reunited with them. Bonhoeffer also wrote many letters to his fiance, Maria Von Wedemeyer, but these are collected in another book entitled Love Letters from Cell 92.

His letters to his good friend Eberhard Bethge and his poems take on a different tone. It is here that Bonhoeffer reveals his doubts and struggles. It is also here that Bonhoeffer begins to explore many theological themes, especially "religionless Christianity", themes that he, unfortunately, would never be able to fully develop. It is also here that we are offered a more realistic view of his life in prison; air raids, mistreatment and death all make appearances.

Despite its rather unhappy ending, this book offers much encouragement to us today. One of the most encouraging aspects for me was Bonhoeffer's commitment to learning. As tempting as it must have been to simply curl up in his cell and wallow in self pity, he never did this. His letters are full of requests for books, thoughts on literature, music and art, as well as theological musings. How many times do we find ourselves in spiritual "prisons" or "deserts", and all we feel that we can do is sit and stagnate? Bonhoeffer's example shows that even in these dry periods, we can continue to learn and grow so that when these periods come to an end, we will be stronger for them. The other encouraging aspect that this book reveals is that though Bonhoeffer struggles with doubt and fear like all of us (especially evident in his poems), he never allows them to completely overcome his faith. His final letters show his strength in the face of death and his great hope for life everlasting.

This is a thought provoking and inspiring book and I highly recommend it. While some of the theological material is rather deep, it is still pretty easy reading, especially compared to The Cost of Discipleship. I hope that you will also find encouragement from the life and writings of this remarkable man.

For more on Dietrich Bonhoeffer, see my post on him here: http://apeculiarpeople87.blogspot.com/2008/02/daring-to-be-peculiar-dietrich.html