At the age of 39 years, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German Lutheran pastor, paid the highest price for his faith. In the context of a country under the oppressive rule of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party, he offered an anti-Nazi, radical, and non-compromising ministry. Accused of his association with the 20 July conspiracy to oust Hitler’s authoritarian rule, he was killed by hanging on 9 April 1945.1 The Journal of Ecclesiastical History accounts of his death in these words: ‘On 8 April 1945 Bonhoeffer was abruptly separated from the other prisoners [. . .]. The next day he was hanged at Flossenburg [. . .]. An SS doctor saw the execution, and was struck by the religious devotion, and the spiritual trust of the victim.’2
The cross is not the terrible end to an otherwise god-fearing and happy life, but it meets us at the beginning of our communion with Christ. When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.
April 2024 marked seventy-nine years since Dietrich Bonhoeffer was hanged. It is interesting that he is best remembered for one main sentence which we shall do well to remember as we seek to accelerate the work of world evangelization, a concern for the over 5,000 participants gathered on-site at the Fourth Lausanne Congress in Seoul Incheon, South Korea. Understanding the context will be helpful:
‘The cross is laid on every Christian. The first Christ-suffering which every man must experience is the call to abandon the attachments of this world. It is that dying of the old man which is the result of his encounter with Christ. As we embark upon discipleship we surrender ourselves to Christ in union with his death—we give over our lives to death. Thus it begins; the cross is not the terrible end to an otherwise god-fearing and happy life, but it meets us at the beginning of our communion with Christ. When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.It may be a death like that of the first disciples who had to leave home and work to follow him, or it may be a death like Luther’s, who had to leave the monastery and go out into the world. But it is the same death every time—death in Jesus Christ, the death of the old man at his call.’3
Through the rumbles of threats, wars, detention, and fear, we witness one lady’s incredible story of courage.
Syria in a Civil War
Syria, located on the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea in southwestern Asia, is an area that includes the territory in the Golan Heights, occupied by Israel since 1967. Since 2011, Syria has been experiencing major economic challenges due to the civil war and western sanctions.
We are tempted to pay attention only to the actors and stories of brutalities, decay, and deaths going on in Syria. But God, who is Lord of the floodwaters, has been working through his people. Meet Ruba*4 a pastor’s daughter and the first of five sisters. She is from a family involved in missions, discipleship, and humanitarian aid support. Ruba serves as a dentist by profession and CEO of a Syria-based humanitarian organization that focuses on trauma healing and counseling. Her clients are people who are experiencing trauma due to the civil war and its attendant social crisis—hunger, homelessness, and all imaginable evils. In addition to other programs, Ruba’s organization has been providing mental health support for the vulnerable. She doubles up as the national leader of a university student ministry.
Meaningful Living
In Ruba’s context, many people were fleeing. So why did she stay? In fact, she tried to run like everyone else, until her plans were interrupted by God. God seemed to have blocked all the multiple opportunities to flee that were available to her. God’s voice was clear to Ruba, as she explains: ‘I started to understand that he wanted me to stay there because of the great need. And that he had a calling for me through these hard times. There was a need to be there.’
As a dentist with a thriving private practice before the war, Ruba sensed God’s call to serve the victims of war through free access to dental and medical care. She employed another doctor to meet the rising needs. ‘So, this experience made me realize how God was calling me to be a part of this community, to support these people using my skills and abilities. So, I don’t regret leaving. I feel blessed that the Lord closed those doors. I was able to stay and use my profession to support the people and the ministry.’
Ruba’s decision to stay has not just helped medically, but it has influenced other younger professionals to do the same, as well as bringing meaningful jobs to the young graduates through a two-year internship initiative. These university graduates now run the clinic in the mornings as dentists and doctors, affording Ruba the opportunity to balance her time between the practice and the NGO. With a staff team of three dentists, three medical doctors, and a secretary, Ruba’s NGO continues to serve her community.
Unlike many other university students movements, Ruba serves with a lean staff of three, one of them working part time, although there are several committed volunteers who get things done.
Divine Calling Amidst Challenges
One of the major challenges is the local church. Although the local churches have a good reputation within Syria, the young people are not attracted to them. They feel unwelcome, and this is made worse by the fact that the churches lack discipleship structures that would make it easier to work with these young people.
The second major challenge is access to funds. Consequently, life-changing camps and conferences cannot be organized. The lack of funds has eventually negatively affected the attraction and retention of youthful human resources to work for the ministry.
A Call to the Global Church for Prayer and Support
Pray for Ruba’s Family
Ruba requests that the global church pray for her family. She is doing ministry in such a difficult context at great personal cost. Her family had to flee Syria for their safety, but God called her to stay and she did. Therefore, she asks for prayer to stay steadfast and faithful.
Pray for Ruba’s Ministry
Ruba’s NGO is expanding in service and its needs. A lot of financial support and human resources are needed. There is a Macedonian call: ‘Come to Syria to help us!’ She is hopeful that God will send to Syria an influx of volunteers and missionaries. She pleads, ’Come in and help us rebuild because we cannot do it alone and we need the global church with us.’ Will you respond?
Pray Against Economic Sanctions
Syria is under economic sanctions, especially in the healthcare sector. Through this medium, we appeal to all influential voices to speak up to ensure these sanctions are lifted because the hospitals lack medical resources.
‘Please know that we are victims and we don’t want it this way,’ Ruba laments. ‘We don’t want the ministry to be suffering like this. We want to be a part of the global church. We don’t choose to be isolated and in the dark as a country. We want to be a part of the things that the church is doing. We want our voices to be heard. We want you to know that there is a ministry that is happening, that things are changing, that people are coming to Christ. It is not by choice that we are hiding this from you, but we want our voices to be heard in the global church, that we need you and that things are changing in our country.’
We want you to know that there is a ministry that is happening, that things are changing, that people are coming to Christ.
Conclusion
God is working in Syria. With many becoming disillusioned about Islam, God is raising a new generation of young people who are questioning, seeking truth and answers to their bewildering questions. There is an opportunity to reach and serve them with the gospel and through humanitarian efforts. Once, when Ruba’s team had prayed over food before serving them to a group of Muslims, they said in appreciation, ‘We need that spiritual food as much as we need the food that you are giving us.’
Syria may be a difficult place to fulfill God’s call, but Ruba’s story demonstrates the possibilities and joys that await anyone ready to experience indelible and divine impact. Will you go or flee?
Endnotes
- John Piper, “Dietrich Bonhoeffer Was Hanged Today”, https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/dietrich-bonhoeffer-was-hanged-today, accessed 24 September 2024.
- “The Death of Bonhoeffer”, Journal of Ecclesiastical History, Volume 45, Issue 3, Cambridge University Press, accessed 24 September 2024.
- Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship.(New York, NY: Touchstone,1959).
- A pseudonym.