The Church Beyond the Wall

From 1949 to 1989, Germany was divided into West and East Germany. While West Germany became an ally of Western democracies, East Germany was allied with the Soviet Union and was governed by Marxist Communism. What was it like to be the church in East Germany? Hanfried Muller was a professor of theology and a committed Marxist. Johannes Hamel was a pastor who tried to minister in this environment. How did the two differ? This book examines the contrast between the two men and the struggle many pastors and Christians endured as they lived and worked in a hostile environment. Furthermore, it raises the question of how Christians everywhere deal with the issue of the relationship between church and state and what the Christian's responsibility is in that relationship. James Currie's book warns us of how easily political passions can distort faithful theological reflection. His careful analysis of church and theology in communist East Germany will be of interest not only to church historians, but also to scholars of Barth and Bonhoeffer--and to anyone who is interested in the challenges of faithful Christian witness under conditions of political repression.--John Burgess, Professor of Systematic Theology, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, and author of The East German Church and the End of Communism and Holy Rus': The Rebirth of Orthodoxy in the New RussiaCurrie's excellent study furnishes a nuanced and provocative look into the difficulties and realities of finding (or not finding) an adequate mode of operating theologically in a highly controlling ideological environment. Christians surviving on today's university campuses will find much of interest here, even as they may be prompted to ask whether 'the confession that Jesus is Lord' (p. 80) can conceivably be taken as compatible with any continuing connection with the contemporary American university.--John Stroup, Harry and Hazel Chavanne Professor of Religion, Rice UniversityJames S. Currie is a retired Presbyterian pastor living in Bee Cave, Texas. He is the author of three other books and the translator of two. He and his wife, Jo Ann, have four children and three grandchildren. He has earned degrees from the University of Texas at Austin (BA), Indiana University (MA), Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary (MDiv and ThM), and Rice University (PhD).