Our expectation of God’s coming shall become an active readiness to stretch out our hands to him and be crucified with him – a readiness to be humbled by him, to lay down all our own power so that he alone has power over us. For in the midst of the days of wrath and judgment it is all the more important that the heart of Christ shine forth in the world and in world history.
- Eberhard Arnold, 13 July 1933
Selected Reading
The Church Comes Down to Us
Eberhard Arnold
Eberhard Arnold always emphasized Gemeinde – the living congregation of believers – over Kirche, the church as an institution or establishment. In a series of talks given in response to a letter from his friend, the Swiss Religious Socialist Leonard Ragaz, Eberhard talks about this question.
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Called to Burning Light
Eberhard Arnold
“We are called to burning, life-giving light, but can we conquer the freezing cold and deadly darkness? Will we survive in the struggle against this dangerous power, which constantly besets us from within and without?” A meditation for Pentecost written in opposition to the spirit of Nazism.
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The Danger of Prayer
Eberhard Arnold
What is the true meaning of prayer, and how can it have power to transform our lives? In this devotion, Eberhard Arnold describes the kind of prayer that pleases God, and he challenges us to rediscover the prayer that can change our lives and our world.
Quick Quotes
Whoever receives the Holy Spirit receives his power. Whoever tastes his joy and the peace of his unity lives in full expectation of God’s future, because the power of the Holy Spirit is in him. Through this Spirit the church grows strong in the person who loves, because it receives the riches of God’s majesty as the radiance from his ruling throne.
- Eberhard Arnold
We are convinced that there is One who will create peace and social justice for everyone. We expect him and thus long with a humble spirit that his rulership is recognized in every country. and when this happens, he will turn bloody weapons into tools for work, and we shall become true brothers and sisters. The Messiah King of peace and justice, the world ruler of love and joy will reign! This was the expectation of old, and this is what we think of when we approach the season of Jesus’ birth.
- Eberhard Arnold