Dietrich Bonhoeffer (German, 1906-1945)

German resistance With You There Is Light

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German theologian, pastor and political resistance activist involved in Berlin’s July 1944 plot to kill Hitler.  Bonhoeffer assisted in providing intelligence that led to the uprising. Executed before the war’s end, he left behind diaries and letters written while in prison that testify to an enduring and unwavering faith. Here below is one of his prayer poems translated by the author in remembrance for those who died and were injured in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 1, 2017, the deadliest massacre in U.S. modern history.

 

Gott, Zu Dir Rufe Ich am fruehen Morgen

God, to You, I call in the morning

hilf mir beten und meine Gedanken sammeln;

help me to pray and to collect my thoughts

ich kann es nicht allein

I cannot do it alone

In mir ist es finster, aber bei dir ist Licht

In me it is dark, but with you there is light

Ich bin einsam, aber du verlaesst mich nicht

I am alone, but you don’t leave me

Ich bin kleinmuetig, aber bei dir ist Hilfe

I am afraid, but with you there is help

Ich bin unruhig, aber bei dir ist Geduld

I am restless, but with you there is patience

In mir ist Bitterlichkeit, aber bei dir ist Geduld

In me is bitterness, but with you there is patience

Ich verstehe deine Wege nicht

I don’t understand the way

aber du weisst den rechten Weg fuer mich

But you  know the right way for me.

Vater im Himmel,

Father in Heaven

Lob und Dank sei dir fuer die Ruhe der Nacht

Praise and thankfulness to you in the quiet of the night

Lob und Dank sei dir fuer den neuen Tag

Praise and thankfulness to you for the new day.

 

Dietrich Bonhoeffer Christian resistance to Hitler