Waiting for Gospel, by Douglas John Hall

Chapter 10 – Dietrich Bonhoeffer & the Ethics of Participation

*I have to admit, this chapter left me disappointed.  It was slow and arduous reading, with very little in the way of good discussion material.  So, let’s touch briefly upon the major points and see what we can get out of this chapter together.  ;-)

1.  Bonhoeffer is the contemporary champion of Luther’s “theology of the cross.”  Hall divides his chapter into four distinct sections as he flushes out this theology.  First, we have, “The Theology of the Cross as the Link.”  While few of us share in the scholarly concern over Bonhoeffer’s earlier versus later works, we can all benefits from the common appreciation of his life-story.  “There are not two Bonhoeffers, only one.”

I have no idea why Hall includes this information in this introduction…do you?  Did I miss something?  Please jump in!

2.  Next, Hall asks, “What is the Theology of the Cross?”  In this instance, it is the “essential thread” that runs through the complex tapestry of Bonhoeffer’s life and work.  Hall then proceeds to discuss at great length the various interpretations of this theology by myriad theologians over the centuries.  This is a lot to take in! 

As you consider Hall’s eight terse observations (only seven are numbered), did any of them interest you?  Did you connect with one or more in any meaningful way?

3.  Next, Hall discusses, “Bonhoeffer’s Theology of the Cross.”  Finally, it gets interesting!  As Visser ‘t Hooft writes, Bonhoeffer insisted that “the church must stop defending itself and its particular “religiosity” and simply be present in the world for others, as Jesus Christ was.”

“Instead of pursuing a God who carries us off to some ecstatic supranatural sphere, discipleship means pursuing the God who penetrates more and more deeply into the life of the world…that is, among the abandoned, the abused, the suffering, the marginalized.”

How do you draw a distinction between Christian faith and “religion,” per se?  Where was Bonhoeffer headed with this?

4.  Fourth, we have, “The Ethic of the Theology of the Cross.”  Basically, Hall directs us from a world-oriented theology of the cross to an ethic of the cross, which is participatory in character.  “Bonhoeffer’s contribution is to envision and embody a community of the cross with an ethic of imitation, or participation, as the church’s societal vocation and presence.”  Hall suggest we move from social to personal ethics as a means of engagement (invoking sexual orientation as an example).

What does it mean for us to engage in Christian ethics, and where “in the world” are we called to participate?