Col. Tim Mallard, chaplain in the US Army, spoke about Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s theology and lessons for today at the Christianity and National Security Conference.

The views expressed in this video are those of the speaker and not of the US Army or Department of Defense. The following is a transcript of the lecture. 

Thank you, Mark. Although daunted by speaking at the end of the day and being the only thing standing between you and your evening plans, I’ll do my best to keep your attention. As Mark said, I’m Timothy Mallard, I teach at the United States Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, near Messiah. As an active-duty Army Officer and Chaplain, I must say, even though I’m in civilian dress, the views I express are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the official policies or positions of the U.S. Army War College, the U.S. Army Chaplain Corps, the Department of the Army, the Department of Defense, or the United States Government.

My intent is to raise these views into the scholarly discussion around these topics. You might ask, why Bonhoeffer at a conference on Christianity and realism? This goes back to what Eric Patterson said earlier—the Augustinian ideal of the common good. I think Bonhoeffer can help us discern a way ahead in what often feels like exile in a post-religion, religionless Western modernity. After 34 years working in the public square, many people of faith—Christians, Jews, Muslims—feel we are living in a post-religious Western modernity.

I want to borrow an analogy from the Army. In land navigation, you use a lensatic compass. The most important task is picking your azimuth, your direction. Then you create waypoints on the route to course correct and stay on track. I think Bonhoeffer offers us an azimuth for building up the common good. But I’ll counter your thoughts about Bonhoeffer: I don’t believe the azimuth we should follow is to look first at his conspiracy and martyrdom. Instead, the proper azimuth is to focus on his theology. I’ll offer seven waypoints from Bonhoeffer’s theology for navigating the public square in a post-religionless modernity.

Let’s discuss sources. If I had two to recommend: Schlingensiepen’s book, still the finest readable one-volume account of his life, and the accumulated 17 volumes of Bonhoeffer’s works. The book on the right is one of those volumes, Discipleship, originally Nachfolge in German. It’s not The Cost of Discipleship—that was a 1950s American translation. Now, I’ll pull seven points from Bonhoeffer’s corpus.

If we could proceed to the next slide, please. I’m often asked about sources and can discuss more in Q&A. Now, about the Kirchenkampf in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. You’ll see some images that are arresting—rightly so—of the National Socialist Party’s co-opting of religion. This led to the Holocaust, codified at the Wannsee Conference, resulting in over six million Jewish deaths and countless others, including political prisoners and dissenters.

At the bottom, you see Bonhoeffer navigating this environment. He led the Finkenwalde seminary in Pomerania, shut down by the Gestapo, and worked with the Confessing Church. His failure to reform led him to conspire against the Third Reich. This is not the primary focus today, but we can discuss it in the Q&A. I’m not drawing a direct parallel between Nazi Germany and the U.S. today. However, Bonhoeffer knew what it meant to live as a foreigner in his own land, addressing a remnant of the faithful within the Confessing Church.

Two key points: First, allow Bonhoeffer to speak for himself. Do not impose theological, ecclesial, or political biases. Bonhoeffer was not a 21st-century American evangelical; he was an early 20th-century Confessing Church Lutheran pastor navigating National Socialism. Second, we must understand Bonhoeffer’s biblically grounded, historically anchored, socially attentive ecclesiology and Christology. The challenge is overcoming our theological deficits. Bonhoeffer’s accumulated works—17 volumes—reflect his brilliance. He completed his PhD dissertation in Berlin at age 21, continuing to write even amid National Socialism.

Next slide, please. The conspiracy and martyrdom images: George Bell, Bishop of Chichester; Admiral Canaris; Colonel Hans von Oster; Bonhoeffer’s cell in Tegel Prison; his fiancée Maria von Wedemeyer; and Flossenbürg concentration camp, where Bonhoeffer was hanged in 1945, alongside Oster and Canaris, the day before liberation by American forces.

Now, seven theological waypoints: First, all theology begins with the Incarnation. Bonhoeffer, breaking from Luther’s theology of the cross, starts with the Incarnation, rooted in the rupture of divine-human relations at the Fall. Second, from Sanctorum Communio, the church is the earthly presence of Christ, both tangibly and mystically. Third, the Christian’s duty to the state hinges on allegiance—penultimate to the state or ultimate to God. This concept was central to Bonhoeffer’s 1933 Berlin radio address, two days after the Nazis came to power.

Fourth, discipleship requires the death of self. When Christ calls a person, He bids them come and die. Fifth, Bonhoeffer distinguishes costly grace from cheap grace, leading to obedient discipleship and, if necessary, suffering. Suffering is God’s call, not a personal choice. Obedient discipleship extends into free, responsible action for others.

Sixth, Bonhoeffer reclaims the Lutheran concept of orders of creation, reframing them as orders of preservation or mandates: marriage, family, church, and work. These mandates, grounded in Luther’s two-kingdom taxonomy, remain countercultural. Seventh, Christ is the mediator, the “Stellvertreter”—vicarious representative actor. As the church embodies the crucified Christ, we too are called to be mediators for the world.

Finally, Bonhoeffer’s ultimate hope lies in the redemption of creation through Christ’s return. This eschatological hope anchors his theology and mission.

I’ll stop here. There’s much more to discuss, including conspiracy and martyrdom, but I wanted to offer this snapshot of Bonhoeffer’s rich theology. I hope it provides a meaningful azimuth toward engaging in the public square with a focus on the common good. Thank you. I’ll take your questions.

Q&A

Question: [undetected]

Answer: No, thank you. Having lived 10 years in Germany, I can say it’s not only fun to learn, but exceptionally hard, particularly depending on where you are. Bavarian Deutsch is completely different from Deutsch in the Rhineland-Pfalz by dialect. Bonhoeffer’s German is theological German, which magnifies the scholarly task of studying him. The Dietrich Bonhoeffer Werke, published by the International Bonhoeffer Society, has been translated by capable German and Bonhoeffer scholars. The English translation is faithful and includes Bonhoeffer’s original footnotes, footnotes from the immediate postwar German translation, and footnotes from the English translators. Some pages can be tedious, but the richness of Bonhoeffer’s original German offers concepts that don’t fully translate into English. Thank you. Yes, please.

Question: I’m from Liberty University and Lutheran, so this is very interesting. You said Bonhoeffer didn’t necessarily agree with Martin Luther’s ideas on the incarnation. I was curious about Bonhoeffer’s beliefs on the five solas.

Answer: It’s not that he didn’t agree with Luther; he wanted to advance Luther’s theology. He was a champion of Lutheran theology but sought to broaden it, particularly back to Genesis. Regarding the five solas, Bonhoeffer intersected with Reformed theology, often allied with the solas. He upheld them but wasn’t shy about critiquing Calvin or even Luther where he saw flaws. By the same token, he critiqued Roman Catholic theology. He traveled abroad, engaging with Roman Catholic theology and American social gospel theology, particularly Walter Rauschenbusch. His time at Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem deeply informed him, encountering African American theology and descendants of slaves. Though widely read and conversant with various religious expressions, he remained Lutheran and held critiques of Reformed ecclesiology. Thanks, great question. Yes, sir, in the back. Please speak up; my hearing isn’t the best.

Question: I’m Roman Catholic. What did Bonhoeffer dislike most about Roman Catholicism, and what did he appreciate most?

Answer: I wouldn’t make a value judgment on what he liked or disliked most. He appreciated the balance between word and sacrament and the lived ecclesiology of the Church, particularly its care for the poor grounded in theology. As a Lutheran, he didn’t hold to papal authority but appreciated the historical role of the papacy in Europe, particularly Germany. Today, Bonhoeffer is appreciated within contemporary Roman Catholic ecclesiology and Christology, with scholars writing on his ecclesiology and Christology. Thanks, good question. Others?

Question: [undetected]

Answer: Yes, sir. I’ll try to relate this to Bonhoeffer’s experience in the conspiracy. Bonhoeffer worked with Karl Barth and Martin Niemöller in the Kirchenkampf. Failing that, he went to America but returned after six weeks, believing he couldn’t stand with Germans post-war if he left before the war began. Already under suspicion as a Confessing Church pastor, he applied to become an army chaplain, which was denied. He then used his role as a Vertrauensmann (confidant) to travel abroad and connect with ecumenical church leaders, using these connections to subvert the Third Reich. He believed the Third Reich was beyond reform and advocated “throwing a spoke in the wheel.” This led to his arrest, initially part of a power struggle between the Abwehr and SS. Only later did the discovery of his name in Abwehr files reveal his role in the conspiracy, leading to his execution.

In prison, Bonhoeffer faced the implications of his theology, accepting suffering and martyrdom as part of his calling. He wasn’t a pure pacifist but believed in biblical injunctions against violence. However, he held that Christians could act against the state in extreme circumstances, which he chose to do. This decision remains a key debate among Bonhoeffer scholars. Thanks, good question. Yes, sir, Dallas, right?

Question: Yes. I’m also Roman Catholic. Bonhoeffer’s context in 1930s Germany mirrors issues in the Catholic Church at the time. Do you think papal difficulties, like Benedict XV’s, influenced his social teachings in Germany?

Answer: There’s no record that papal encyclicals directly influenced him, but he was informed by Roman Catholic resistance through teaching, preaching, and social action, particularly in Bavaria. Bonhoeffer found haven in the Ettal Monastery outside Oberammergau, where he worked on his Ethics. The brothers there honored him with a plaque. In Bavaria, where Catholicism was staunch, Catholics and Protestants like Bonhoeffer found common ground against the Nazi state. That’s probably the best answer I can give. If you want to discuss further, we can talk offline. Other questions?

It’s been my pleasure to be here. I’ll be around during the break and tomorrow for private discussions. Thanks so much.