Instructor: Randall Engle
Course Time: TR 1:00-2:47
General Education: Western Civilization
Term: Summer II - 2013

DESCRIPTION:

Among the greatest atrocities of the modern world is the holocaust. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, author, political critic and Lutheran minister, is aptly called the “prophet of the holocaust” as he devoted his life to the cause of justice and peace—ultimately risking his life in an assassination plot against Adolf Hitler, an action for which he was apprehended and executed. This honors course traces the life, times, ethical vision and moral lessons of Bonhoeffer, particularly through his experiences and subsequent quest to sustain hope for humanity in its ever-elusive task to build a just and humane society. Students journey with Bonhoeffer by aid of lecture, documentary and film, but principally through his own writings which include Letters and Papers from Prison, Life Together and The Cost of Discipleship and the recently-published biography by Eric Metaxas: Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy. Beyond the inspiration of Bonhoeffer’s own life journey, a study of Bonhoeffer opens to students the larger context of the political milieu of that time, and thus this course deepens the understanding of Hitler, Nazism and the Second World War. Evaluation will be based on two papers and a take home final exam.

Proposed texts:
Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Letters from Prison
Dietrich Bonhoeffer: The Cost of Discipleship
[Optional: Life Together]
Eric Mataxas: Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy