Particularity, Incarnation, and Discernment: Bonhoeffer’s "Christmas" Spirituality

Dietrich Bonhoeffer has a “Christmas” spirituality, an incarnate spirituality immersed in the complexity and particularity and messiness of the world â where the God who becomes flesh lives. In his writings he is not primarily interested in the triumph of Easter but in the deepening incarnation precisely into God’s own poverty, darkness, emptiness â and joy, mercy, sweetness, love â met for Christians in Jesus Christ. In a world today where Christians in our context too often tend to see ourselves in the place of the victor, the divine agent, the conqueror in the name of “God,” his is a refreshingly humble and open perception of divine reality, curious about the world as it is and eager to find precisely in the faces and alterity of every other the very face of God

Spirituality and sexual abuse: issues and dilemmas for survivors

Sexual abuse profoundly affects survivors to the extent that they are unable to maintain previously held viewpoints or ways of being, including those relating to their spirituality. Certainly the experience has considerable potential to complicate the spiritual lives of survivors. For Christian survivors, this may include how they perceive and relate to both themselves and God as well as affect participation in sacraments such as eucharist and reconciliation. Spiritual traditions often promote the embracing of silence, but this may be problematic for survivors who have been silenced and unable to give expression to their experiences. Similarly, socialization resulting in beliefs that Christians should always forgive and/or never be angry needs to be overcome. While negotiating these pitfalls may result in explorations of spirituality being even less straightforward for survivors of sexual abuse than it is for others, a transformative spirituality within a Christian framework can be realized.<br /