or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
 
Express Checkout with PayPhrase
What's this? | Create PayPhrase
Sorry!
X
More Buying Choices
84 used & new from $4.89
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
Letters and Papers from Prison
 
 
Share your own customer images
Search inside this book
Tell the Publisher!
I’d like to read this book on Kindle

Don’t have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here.
 
  

Letters and Papers from Prison (Paperback)

~ (Author) "I wanted to send you a greeting from us to tell you that we're always thinking of you..." (more)
Key Phrases: field post number, warmest greetings, wedding sermon, Eberhard Bethge, Old Testament, Confessing Church (more...)
4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
List Price: $16.00
Price: $11.21 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
You Save: $4.79 (30%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

Want it delivered Monday, November 16? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details
39 new from $9.00 45 used from $4.89

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
  Hardcover -- -- $19.44
  Paperback $11.21 $9.00 $4.89
  Mass Market Paperback -- -- $7.44
  Unknown Binding -- -- --

Frequently Bought Together

Letters and Papers from Prison + The Cost of Discipleship + Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community
Price For All Three: $32.08

Show availability and shipping details

  • This item: Letters and Papers from Prison by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Ethics

Ethics

by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
4.6 out of 5 stars (13)  $10.88
Dietrich Bonhoeffer: A Biography

Dietrich Bonhoeffer: A Biography

by Eberhard Bethge
5.0 out of 5 stars (6)  $25.74
Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community

Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community

by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
4.7 out of 5 stars (44)  $10.07
A Testament to Freedom: The Essential Writings of Dietrich Bonhoeffer

A Testament to Freedom: The Essential Writings of Dietrich Bonhoeffer

by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
5.0 out of 5 stars (9)  $18.71
Psalms: The Prayer Book of the Bible

Psalms: The Prayer Book of the Bible

by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
3.8 out of 5 stars (6)  $8.99
› Explore similar items

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Letters and Papers from Prison is a collection of notes and correspondence covering the period from Dietrich Bonhoeffer's arrest in 1943 to his execution by the Gestapo in 1945. The book is probably most famous, and most important, for its idea of "religionless Christianity"--an idea Bonhoeffer did not live long enough fully to develop, but whose timeliness only increases as the lines between secular and ecclesial life blur. Bonhoeffer's first mention of "religionless Christianity" came in a letter in 1944:
What is bothering me incessantly is the question what Christianity really is, or indeed who Christ really is, for us today. The time when people could be told everything by means of words, whether theological or pious, is over, and so is the time of inwardness and conscience--and that means the time of religion in general. We are moving towards a completely religionless time; people as they are now simply cannot be religious any more. Even those who honestly describe themselves as "religious" do not in the least act up to it, and so they presumably mean something quite different by "religious."
The pleasures of Letters and Papers from Prison, however are not all so profound. Occasionally, Bonhoeffer's letters burst into song--sometimes with actual musical notations, other times with unforgettable phrases. Looking forward to seeing his best friend, Bonhoeffer writes, "To meet again is a God." --Michael Joseph Gross


Review

"'No one who reads these letters can fail to be struck by the health and humanity of their author, and no one who thinks that there may be something in God after all can fail to be moved by Bonhoeffer's positive evaluation of the earth and his patent, if inexplicable ability to hold God and the world together in a way which is uncharacteristic of large tracts of Christian thinking.' Glasgow Herald 'On any showing, the book is a great Christian classic. Reading it is, in itself, a religious experience. I like it the better because the stance of heroism is one that Bonhoeffer eyes with suspicion; he is in all things human and for that very reason, in the end sublime.' Malcolm Muggeridge 'The advantage of this abridged version is that it contains all the important passages relating to Bonhoeffer's so-called 'new theology' while omitting much of the not so important material contained in the larger edition.' South Africa Religious Education" --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

  • Paperback: 448 pages
  • Publisher: Touchstone; Updated edition (July 1, 1997)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0684838273
  • ISBN-13: 978-0684838274
  • Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 1.3 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #22,227 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

    #4 in  Books > Religion & Spirituality > Authors, A-Z > ( B ) > Bonhoeffer, Dietrich
    #68 in  Books > History > Europe > Germany
    #76 in  Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Church History

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

More About the Authors

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:
Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
I wanted to send you a greeting from us to tell you that we're always thinking of you. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
field post number, warmest greetings, wedding sermon, many greetings, war court
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Eberhard Bethge, Old Testament, Confessing Church, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Jesus Christ, New Testament, Paul Gerhardt, Gesammelte Schriften, Hans von Dohnanyi, Good Friday, Klaus Bonhoeffer, Lehrter Strasse, Maria von Wedemeyer, Martin Niemöller, Reich War Court, Roman Catholics, Sergeant-Major Meier, Ascension Day, General Oster, Hartmann's Systematic Philosophy, Holy Spirit, Hugo Wolf, Iron Cross, Karl Barth, Reich Security Head Office
New!
Concordance | Text Stats
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 12 books:
See all 12 books this book cites
 
100 books cite this book:
See all 100 books citing this book

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Letters and Papers from Prison
80% buy the item featured on this page:
Letters and Papers from Prison 4.7 out of 5 stars (20)
$11.21
The Cost of Discipleship
11% buy
The Cost of Discipleship 4.6 out of 5 stars (92)
$10.80
Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community
5% buy
Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community 4.7 out of 5 stars (44)
$10.07
Ethics
2% buy
Ethics 4.6 out of 5 stars (13)
$10.88
Explore similar items

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 
(7)
(4)
(3)
(2)
(2)
(2)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
See all 13 tags...

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more
 

Customer Reviews

20 Reviews
5 star:
 (15)
4 star:
 (4)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.7 out of 5 stars (20 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
139 of 142 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Poignant, connected, universal, January 27, 2000
Dietrich Bonhoeffer's Letters and Papers from Prison show the reader the thoughts of a man who wrote with immense insight under circumstances fraught with the deepest despair. Prior to the war, Bonhoeffer had established himself as a visionary, if somewhat moderate, young Christian theologian. His imprisonment by the Nazis in the wake of the failure of the conspiracy to assasinate Hitler gave rise to this series of letters, ranging from the trivial to the most profound, reflecting the thoughts and ideas of a man whose ideas continued to evolve, even as hope dwindled. It is tempting to see Bonhoeffer as a sort of modern Christian saint "set-piece" of a man, or a Spielberg movie waiting to be made. Such an interpretation of the man would trivialize the flesh and blood reality of his life, as these letters demonstrate. Collections of letters typically suffer from one of two defects--either they are inanely trivial and gossippy, or they spend far too much time on being "literary" for posterity, and not enough time giving real insight into the writer. Bonhoeffer's letters avoid both of these traps. Although the letters collection is not overly burdened by the confessional, letters to his parents and fiance help us understand in very human terms the horror of imprisonment by the Nazis, notwithstanding their careful phrasing to avoid the censor's pen. The letters do contain some of the intentionally "literary"--Bonhoeffer writes poetry which is reasonably spare and connective and sometimes writes for the hypothetical future reader. But the real tour de force is Bonhoeffer's analysis of the evolution of his theological thought in light of the changes wrought by modernity and made apparent to him through his experiences. In several reasonably succinct but incredibly sweeping letters, he outlines a new vision of Christianity, a form of post-Christian Christianity if you will, which has generated a half century of debate and provided inspiration to Christian and non-Christian alike. In this age in which "liberal" religion has been sadly equated by some with "flaccid" religion, we see through these letters a deeply disciplined thinker outlining the way for Christianity to remain relevant in a world all too ready to try to "outgrow" the faith. Although his thinking is complex, and in some instances he assumes a base of knowledge of late 19th C and early 20th C. Christian theology the 21st C. casual reader may not have, the letters are quite accessible and profoundly human. This is not a man building a neat construct out of his dissertation. This is a condemned man hinting at the blueprint for the transformation of a faith. Although it is tempting to suggest that this is a "Christian masterpiece" of 20th C. faith, the suggestion is a disservice. This is a masterpiece of literature which transcends genre or faith. In the interminable list of intellectual heroes of the 20th C., we rarely see Pastor Bonhoeffer among the honorees. But this book is a powerful argument that this man, who saw the need for religious people to use religion less as a crutch and more as a transformation, should be included prominently in our intellectual heroes list.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
52 of 53 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The cost of discipleship, July 30, 2002
From April 1943 to April 1945, Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a prisoner of the Gestapo. Suspected of participating in a plot against Hitler, he was eventually executed in the closing days of World War II. This book is a collection of letters he wrote from prison to his family, his fiancee Maria, and his dearest friend Eberhard.

Bonhoeffer was in his late 30s when he was arrested. He was a Lutheran theologian, who had publicly questioned the rise of fascism and anti-Semitism in Germany and was systematically silenced by Hitler's government, unable finally to publish any of his writings or to preach in any pulpit. Along with other members of his family, Bonhoeffer secretly participated in an effort led by officers of Army Intelligence to undermine the war effort. Attempting to build a case against him, the Gestapo kept him a prisoner, awaiting trial. Incriminating evidence did not emerge until after the July 1944 attempt on Hitler's life. And at this point the letters stop, as Bonhoeffer was transported to another prison and eventually to a series of concentration camps.

The letters in this volume describe in detail the routines of prison life. And they offer a glimpse of life lived by ordinary civilians during months of aerial bombardments, as the fabric of daily life slowly crumbles. They also reveal the thoughts and emotions of a man whose faith in God and trust in survival are put to the severest test. While he is remembered by those who knew him in his last months as a fiercely brave, courageous, and selfless man, we see in the letters his inner turmoil, his fear, loneliness, and sense of isolation in a world his theology never imagined.

Included in the collection are polite and cheerful love letters to the young Maria von Wedemeyer, to whom he has proposed marriage. And more deeply moving still are his heart-felt letters to Eberhard Bethge, a fellow clergyman and dearly loved friend. It was Bethge, many years later, who collected these letters and published them; he has also written an extensive biography of Bonhoeffer. (The letters to Maria von Wedemeyer have been published separately as "Love Letters from Cell 92"). A collection of Bethge's essays on Dietrich Bonhoeffer was publisehd in 1995 under the title "Friendship and Resistance." They portray Bonhoeffer's friendship with Bethge and describe how the prison letters between them survived.

Bonhoeffer's life should have been that of a theologian much respected in his own time who, in a large body of work, advanced an understanding of God for a modern, secular world. His years cut short, we can only guess what his final contribution would have been. But the letters are an inspiring testament to a life lived without compromise or despair, in the face of overwhelmingly destructive forces.

Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
41 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Bonhoeffer's last great writing, October 11, 2000
By E. Johnson (El Cajon, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   
If nothing else, you just have to admire Dietrich Bonhoeffer for the stand he made for the truth. Whether or not you agree with his role in the murder plot of Hitler, you have to salute the German theologian for his honesty in this book, which is comprised of letters sent mainly to Eberhard Bethge and his parents. An appendix includes letters that he penned to his fiance Maria. If you want to read this book for pure theology sake, then I would probably turn to The Cost of Discipleship first (which, he mentions in one letter, he wrote partly out a false hope to acquire faith by trying to live a holy life, a very honest admission). But if you want to better understand the man and what he was truly made of in the time of his last two years of life, then this book is very insightful. I don't think anyone can do better to get into the head of this great theologian than to read Letters and Papers From Prison.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars An Imperfect Lens


Dietrich Bonhoeffer Letters & Papers from Prison

Heil Hitler:
Yours Faithfully
Dietrich Bonhoeffer

The Christian Church... Read more
Published 3 days ago by Philip S Roeda

5.0 out of 5 stars Talk about walking the walk!
Not all the letters are all that interesting but the situation makes them worth reading. Bonhoeffer was the rare preacher who not only preached the Gospel but also sacrificed his... Read more
Published 10 months ago by andris virsnieks

4.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring
At times hard to read, this book gives some insight into the man Bonhoeffer. His relationship with God, and the sheer intelligence of the man are most impressive. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Thomas C. Hamilton

5.0 out of 5 stars "I Am Yours".
help but feel a sense of impotent rage as this man chosen for martyrdom writes thinly disguised pleas to his 18 year old fiancee, begging for news of her every smile and the... Read more
Published 12 months ago by J from NY

4.0 out of 5 stars A book of hope
Reading his words, we are saddened in knowing he is soon to die a martyr at the young age of 39 by the Nazis. Bonhoeffer fought for biblical truth, and against appeasement. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Scott Walker

5.0 out of 5 stars Insightful and moving letters that transcend human created myth.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer's Letters & Papers from Prison was a most edifying read, primarily because it stripped away the mystery and mythical aura that surrounded him, before and after... Read more
Published on May 10, 2007 by Christian Engler

5.0 out of 5 stars An Example of Faith
Dietrich Bonhoeffer's "Letters and Papers from Prison" is the account of an extremely intelligent German theologian and pastor who was thrown into prison during WWII. Read more
Published on February 5, 2007 by Adam Saatkamp

4.0 out of 5 stars Journal of a Christian
I bought the book looking to know more about Bonhoeffer's theology..and ended up learning more about my own. Read more
Published on October 27, 2005 by Str8outa

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic Story of Resistance
I read this book several years ago at the behest of my Pastor when I was still a man of faith. And although I've essentially fallen out of that faith in the last few years, I... Read more
Published on June 19, 2005 by P.K. Ryan

5.0 out of 5 stars A Tragic Historical Record
I bought this book not knowing what to expect. What I found was an odd mixture of thoughts of a man in a horrible position. Read more
Published on September 1, 2004 by Tedd Steele

Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
The Christianity community
Latest activity 1 hour ago
24,424 customers have contributed 26,928 products, 1,023 discussions and more...
› Explore the community
The Inspirational community
Latest activity 1 hour ago
14,283 customers have contributed 9,235 products, 1,075 lists & guides and more...
› Explore the community
The Spiritual Journey community
Latest activity 2 hours ago
551 customers have contributed 400 products, 26 lists & guides and more...
› Explore the community
Explore more

Product Information from the Amapedia Community

Beta (What's this?)

Look for Similar Items by Category

Look for Similar Items by Subject

Search Books by subject:























i.e., each book must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...
 

Feedback

If you need help or have a question for Customer Service, contact us.
 Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
Is there any other feedback you would like to provide?

Your comments can help make our site better for everyone.


Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.