Bonhoeffer’s Theology of Resistance in the Context of Global Justice

Abstract

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German philosopher and theologian whole lived during the Nazi Germany era, was a “lone voice in the wilderness” whose work on the theology of sociality advocated for a community which he calls the “visible community” and was “beyond all earthly ties”. In the Nazi Germany context, it ran counter current to the German nationalist propaganda of the volk which had aggressively made its way into all aspects of the German society including the church. Bonhoeffer’s theology of sociality opens up the possibility of Christianity as not merely a religious institution but a movement towards inclusivity. The study of Bonhoeffer’s theology of sociality becomes significant in formulating a new concept of community for contemporary times. The foundation of communities formed along earthly ties whether be it religious, political, cultural, social and in our context caste or ethnic almost always inevitably turn into oppressive powers. This radical demand of renunciation of earthly ties, yet the call to live for the sake of the ‘neighbour’ and to bear the ‘cost of discipleship’ is counter-intuitive to contemporary individualistic and consumerist impulses, which therefore opens up the question of how one is to live in the modern world in the face of modern powers. This opens up the possibility of exploring the relationship between the individual and the community and the ethical responsibility that this community must fulfil towards the oppressed and the suffering. In the context of global justice, an understanding of Bonhoeffer’s theology of sociality offers the articulation of an inclusive community that does not discriminate or oppress