- Caitlin B.
- Tuesday, July 12, 2022
An unassuming pastor struggles to reconcile his faith in God with the terrifying reality of Nazi rule in Germany, ultimately deciding that stopping Hitler by any means necessary is the only choice.
The Faithful Spy is a great addition to any middle grade curriculum about World War II and an amazing resource for any young person who is looking for a fuller picture of Germany prior to WWII and role of individuals in resisting Hitler while in Germany. Told through interwoven handwritten text and art, this carefully researched biography is a story of German resistance. Hendrix’s forward and author’s note emphasize the magnitude of destruction caused by Hitler and his cronies from his rise in the 1920s through his rampage of destruction in the 30s and 40s cumulating in the Holocaust. Without centering him directly as Hitler’s moral foil, Hendrix paints a clear picture of how Bonhoeffer’s faith in God and love of his country moved him to decry Hitler and the Nazi Party’s actions.
Bonhoeffer was born in Breslav, Germany—now Wroclaw, Poland—in 1906, to a Lutheran family, one of eight children. His father, Karl, was a well-known psychologist and neurologist who took pride in shaping his children’s intellectual lives and his mother, Paula, was a homemaker and the social planner for the family whose deep faith and interest in science and knowledge influenced each of her children. Dietrich’s five older siblings were all very intelligent and studious particularly in science and often teased Dietrich for his love of God and passion for theology. Dietrich was, however, unwavering. He studied theology first in Berlin, where he pondered the question ‘what exactly is the church?’ and observed people in joyful worship, concluding that theology was “no longer merely academic…it was alive with possibility!” (p. 23) and that “the true church of God would not always agree with the world it inhabited, and so it must be revolutionary!” (p. 23).
The book outlines Germany’s story following World War I: the effects of the Treaty of Versailles on Germany’s economy (think: massive inflation) as well as the morale of its citizens. Detailed also is the terrifying rise to power by Adolf Hitler who used nationalist propaganda and a struggling economy to bolster support and legitimize the Nazi political movement, gaining 12 of 491 seats in the Reichstag, Germany’s legislative party. Bonhoeffer, meanwhile, continued studying theology in the United States, at Union Theological Seminary in Harlem. It was his friend and fellow student, Frank Fisher, who helped him recognize and understand similarities between segregation and the Jim Crow laws of the US and Hitler’s nationalist rhetoric in Germany. Bonhoeffer began conceptualizing theology and faith as “convictions that demanded action” (p. 34) and used what he learned from the Civil Rights Movement to think about how to stand up against Hitler.
The bold turquoise and red splashes of color and the way that Hendrix weaves illustration and text make this book nearly impossible to put down. The Nazi Party’s insidious rise to power is clearly defined, folded cleverly in with Bonhoeffer’s personal growth and development, ultimately defining his role in the Abwehr (pronounced UP-far), the German spy agency. It was this agency that attempted to assassinate Hitler, first with Operation Flash, set to strike Hitler on his plane ride back from the Eastern war front in 1943. Thanks to a daring rescue of a dud bomb, the conspiracy was saved from disaster: examination of the faulty detonator showed the bomb had misfired but failed to injure Hitler or anyone he traveled with. The next plot, a would-be suicide mission for the man who volunteered, would have been successful had Hitler remained at a planned half-hour tour of captured Russian weapons, instead of leaving after eight minutes. Bonhoeffer and other members of the Abwehr were arrested two weeks after the failed plot, becoming prisoners of the Gestapo. The members were careful, however, to conceal their true identities and developed elaborate stories that explained that their suspicious activity as a money-laundering scheme. Bonhoeffer's nature allowed him 'perks' during his imprisonment such as receiving and sending mail--which in turn allowed him to communicate with other Abwehr members on the outside--thus he was able to assist in the most daring assassination plot of all.
The final plot, Operation Valkyrie, even more complicated and dangerous, included a successful explosion, but not one that would kill Hitler. Operation Valkyrie’s failure ultimately cost the members of Abwehr their lives as Hitler’s rage targeted them directly. Bonhoeffer’s faith, while tested, never truly faltered. What makes this story unique is Bonhoeffer's ability to evolve his beliefs and be an ethical leader of faith, rather than a cowardly follower, like many around him. Bonhoeffer’s life and actions are an important part of history for all, secular or not, as his is a story of bravery and trusting one’s gut, no matter what.