Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a “Living Dead” in Africa

Abstract

Bonhoeffer’s life and thought have brought about radical social reformation in Africa as a whole and South Africa in particular. By and large, Bonhoeffer’s life and theology have the power to transform life. Whoever reads Bonhoeffer’s witness theology without radicalizing his or her life and thinking has not really read Bonhoeffer. Hardly anyone engages Bonhoeffer’s life and thought and remains the same! This is what Bonhoeffer is up to as a “living dead.” He impacts not just theological thinking and sociopolitical situations, but also lives in South Africa and beyond. But it is not simply Bonhoeffer as a living dead who continues to transform lives, but the living Christ himself through Bonhoeffer’s life and thought.