Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Maria von Wedemeyer

Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Maria von Wedemeyer came from urbane, highly educated families. By 1933, when Hitler came to power, Bonhoeffer had earned his doctorate, traveled widely, served a church in Spain, and had taken a position as lecturer and student chaplain at the University of Berlin. He was twenty-seven years old. Two days after Hitler's inauguration, Bonhoeffer preached a radio sermon condemning the German leader's policies. The transmission was interrupted. In 1935, Bonhoeffer was appointed head of an underground seminary at Finkenwalde. The Gestapo closed the school two years later, but Bonhoeffer's resistance activities continued. Bonhoeffer had met Maria von Wedemeyer years before, but when they became acquainted again in 1942 they fell in love. Shortly after their engagement in early 1943, he was arrested. Dietrich and Maria would never see each other again outside prison walls. But through their correspondence their relationship grew deeper, more affectionate, and more passionate. Volumes have been written about Bonhoeffer the theologian and martyr, but none of these works reveals the side of the man known by his fiancee. As we read these letters, we glimpse hopes, dreams, longings, and fears - and we witness a timeless love story.

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