Sunday, January 23, 2011

Bonhoeffer Warns Against Idealism

Rick posted a great  Bonhoeffer quote on his blog (Dry Creek Chronicles):
Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, in Life Together:
God hates visionary dreaming; it makes the dreamer proud and pretentious. The man who fashions a visionary ideal of community demands that it be realized by God, by others, and by himself. He enters the community of Christians with his demands, sets up his own law, and judges the brethren and God Himself accordingly. He stands adamant, a living reproach to all others in the circle of brethren. He acts as if he is the creator of the Christian community, as if his dream binds men together. When things do not go his way, he calls the effort a failure. When his ideal picture is destroyed, he sees the community going to smash. So he becomes, first and accuser of his brethren, then an accuser of God, and finally the despairing accuser of himself.

1 comment:

This scrapbook is created for keeping our memories alive as God allows more surprises along the way. said...

Interesting. Is it the visionary part that God hates, or the pride that accompanied it? Dreaming with a humble and loving spirit might yield different results, one would hope anyway. :)