Descendants of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and a number of Bonhoeffer scholars have signed letters denouncing Eric Metaxas and other Christian nationalists they say are twisting the German theologian’s writing to serve their cause.
“From Project 2025 to violent political rhetoric, the legacy of German pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer is being invoked this election season on behalf of Christian nationalism,” the letter from scholars begins. “It is a dangerous and grievous misuse of his theology and life. As an international group of Bonhoeffer scholars, we warn against it.”
A separate letter from 86 of 100 adult descendants of the Bonhoeffer siblings was made public Friday, Oct. 18.
“We are horrified to see how the legacy of Dietrich Bonhoeffer is increasingly being distorted and misused by right-wing extremists, xenophobes and religious agitators.”
“We are horrified to see how the legacy of Dietrich Bonhoeffer is increasingly being distorted and misused by right-wing extremists, xenophobes and religious agitators,” that letter begins. “As direct descendants of the seven siblings of the theologian and resistance fighter executed by the Nazis, we can testify based on what we learned from our families that he was a peace-loving, freedom-loving humanitarian. Never would he have seen himself associated with far-right, violent movements such as Christian nationalists and others who are trying to appropriate him today. On the contrary, he would have strongly and loudly condemned these attitudes.”
Eric Metaxas
The family letter calls out specifically Metaxas, an ardent Christian nationalist and darling of conservative evangelicalism who wrote a highly contested biography of Bonhoeffer in 2010.
“In the book, he ignored the historical context and misrepresented Bonhoeffer as a fundamentalist evangelical. Metaxas, now a right-wing Trump supporter, regularly compares U.S. President Biden to Hitler, speaks of ‘total war’ and posts photos of a gun on a Bible: ‘So we can now finally clearly see that Biden is our Hitler. … See my Bonhoeffer book for details. The parallels are staggering and increasingly obvious. Pray for this nation. PRAY.’”
Further, the family laments that “the right-wing evangelical production company Angel Studios has secured the rights to a new Bonhoeffer movie, and this is now their advertisement on X: ‘The battle against tyranny begins now. Watch Bonhoeffer: Pastor. Spy. Assassin.’ The accompanying image shows Dietrich Bonhoeffer holding a gun. The history-distorting biopic, which turns Bonhoeffer into an evangelical saint, is scheduled to hit theaters shortly after the U.S. presidential election.
“Those who invoke Dietrich Bonhoeffer to justify anti-democratic, xenophobic aspirations are either misinformed or malicious.”
“Dietrich Bonhoeffer was not a lone fighter. The Bonhoeffer family was a tight-knit unit and worked together closely during this time,” the letter explains. “Dietrich’s brother Klaus and his brothers-in-law Hans von Dohnanyi and Rüdiger Schleicher were executed for their resistance activities, just like Dietrich. They were driven by the search for truth, honesty, humanity and the struggle for freedom, the rule of law and democracy. They repudiated religious zealotry, nationalism, militarism and blind obedience. Those who invoke Dietrich Bonhoeffer to justify anti-democratic, xenophobic aspirations are either misinformed or malicious.”
The family warns Bonhoeffer’s “quotes have been taken out of context and reduced to set pieces for all kinds of occasions. More recently, they have increasingly been used by many whose intentions are diametrically opposed to Bonhoeffer’s thoughts and actions; ranging from Project 2025 — the Heritage Foundation’s proposed program for Trump — to the German right-wing extremist Björn Höcke.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
The family letter concludes: “We descendants can bear witness to the attitude passed on in the family. We grew up listening to frequent talk and debate about resistance to National Socialism, its motives and consequences. At a time when intolerance, antisemitism and other forms of racism and xenophobia, nationalism and authoritarianism are on the rise around the world, we believe it is important to clarify publicly: Dietrich Bonhoeffer fought narrow-mindedness, oppression, and exclusion throughout his life. The abuse of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s legacy by Christian nationalists and others is of such cynicism that we are unlikely to convince these demagogues. But we call on American voters in particular: Do not be deceived. Look carefully at history. Only by working together, in the spirit of freedom and concern for others, will we be able to solve our problems. This is what Dietrich Bonhoeffer stands for.”
Bonhoeffer scholars and leaders of the International Bonhoeffer Society add in their letter: “In the United States, this dangerous rhetoric and the weaponization of Dietrich Bonhoeffer are most prevalent among those who also espouse Christian nationalism. Christian nationalism uses the symbols and language of Christian faith to gain power and control over others. While it is not unique to the United States, the virulence of American-style Christian nationalism was on full display in 2021, during the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. That day showed that American Christian nationalists do not shy away from violence in their contempt for their political opponents and our democratic institutions.”
“He recognized the dangers of Christian nationalism and spoke against it as early as 1930.”
Christian nationalists in America “misuse Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s resistance against (the Nazi) regime to serve their own political agendas and appeals to violence, but they should not. Dietrich Bonhoeffer promoted justice and care for the neighbor, especially those who are suffering. He recognized the dangers of Christian nationalism and spoke against it as early as 1930.”
Yet “even Bonhoeffer’s own words have not stopped a public distortion of his life and witness,” they lament.
These scholars cite Metaxas’ distortion of the Bonhoeffer legacy and a citation of Bonhoeffer in the foreword to Project 2025.
“His theological idea of ‘cheap grace’ is used prominently in the foreword of the document to discredit protection of refugees and care for the environment. This perfidious appropriation of Bonhoeffer is a cheap trick and should be recognized as such.”
They also take aim at the upcoming film mentioned by the family.
“Any attempt to invoke Dietrich Bonhoeffer and his resistance against Hitler as a reason to engage in political violence in our contemporary context must be strongly opposed,” the scholars say. “Moreover, while Bonhoeffer supported the coup, he refused to offer a Christian or theological justification for it. He understood the dangers of such a rationale.”
Signers of the scholarly letter include Lori Brandt Hale, president of the International Bonhoeffer Society, English Language Section; Florian Höhne, president of the International Bonhoeffer Society, German Language Section; Victoria J. Barnett, general editor of the English edition of Bonhoeffer’s works; Wolfgang Huber, general editor of the German edition of Bonhoeffer’s works; and Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, founder of the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Research Center for Public Theology at the University of Bamberg.
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