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Political action means taking on responsibility. This cannot happen without power. Power is to serve responsibility.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

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Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Age: 39 †
Born: 1906
Born: February 4
Died: 1945
Died: April 8
Pastor
Philosopher
Poet
Resistance Fighter
Theologian
Breslau
Bonhoeffer
Happens
Cannot
Serve
Power
Taking
Without
Happen
Mean
Responsibility
Means
Action
Political

More quotes by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

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How can God entrust great things to one who will not thankfully receive from Him the little things?
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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The essence of grace, we suppose, is that the account has been paid in advance and, because it has been paid, everything can be had for nothing.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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God has reserved to Himself the right to determine the end of life, because He alone knows the goal to which it is His will to lead it. It is for Him alone to justify a life or to cast it away.
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Gratitude changes the pangs of memory into a tranquil joy.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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Possessions are not God's blessing and goodness, but the opportunities of service which he entrusts to us.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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Being free means being free for the other, because the other has bound me to him. Only in relationship with the other am I free
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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Prayer does not mean simply to pour out one's heart. It means rather to find the way to God and to speak with him, whether the heart is full or empty.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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The future of modern society depends much more on the quiet heroism of the very few who are inspired by God. These few will greatly enjoy the divine inspiration and will be prepared to stand for the dignity of Man and true freedom and to keep the Law of God, even of it means martyrdom or death.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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The limitation of the ethical phenomenon to its place and time does not imply its rejection but, on the contrary, its validation. One does not use canons to shoot sparrows.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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It is much easier for me to imagine a praying murderer, a praying prostitute, than a vain person praying. Nothing is so at odds with prayer as vanity.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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The essence of chastity is not the suppression of lust, but the total orientation of one's life towards a goal. Without such a goal, chastity is bound to become ridiculous. Chastity is the sine qua non of lucidity and concentration.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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We must be ready to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God.....We must not.....assume that our schedule is our own to manage, but allow it to be arranged by God.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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The wars of Israel were the only 'holy wars' in history... there can be no more wars of faith. The only way to overcome our enemy is by loving him.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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It is not your love that sustains the marriage, but from now on, the marriage that sustains your love.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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One who loves his community destroys community one who loves its members builds community.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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Christianity without the living Christ is inevitably Christianity without discipleship, and Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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The responsible person seeks to make his whole life a response to the question and call of God.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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Nothing can fill the gap when we are away from those we love, and it would be wrong to try to find anything.....It is nonsense to say that God fills the gap he does not fill it, but keeps it empty so that our communion with another may be kept alive, even at the cost of pain.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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In Jesus, the service of God and the service of the least of the brethren were one.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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Time is the most precious gift in our possession, for it is the most irrevocable. This is what makes it so disturbing to look back upon the time which we have lost. Time lost is time when we have not lived a full human life, time unenriched by experience, creative endeavor, enjoyment, and suffering. Time lost is time not filled, time left empty.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer