Chapter 5, Confession and Communion Summary and Analysis

In addition to the human organization of community rules, Bonhoeffer makes another compromise with the humanity of divine reality that community in Christ is. There are occasions in which a brother will fall short of obedience to the rules or performance of the ministries. When a brother makes a mistake as humans regularly do he needs some way to restore himself to community. The need of forgiveness from God is recognized in scripture but humans need evidence from the community as well. Support for a brother's return to fellowship is provided because sin has negative effects on both the brother and community. Throughout this section Bonhoeffer uses the expression "breaking through" to describe the sinner moving forward to another level of community understanding.

An act of sin makes the sinner feel alone. The sinner is...