Dietrich Bonhoeffer of “The Ministry of Listening” (Part Three)

In his book, Life Together, Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes that in the church there is not enough listening. He goes further and points out that listening is a ministry that we can offer to our brothers and sisters in Jesus…

There is a kind of listening with half an ear that presumes already to know what the other person has to say. It is an impatient, inattentive listening that despises the brother and is only waiting for a chance to speak and thus get rid of the other person. This is no fulfillment of our obligation, and it is certain that here too our attitude toward our brother only reflects our relationship to God.

It is little wonder that we no longer capable of the greatest service of listening that God has committed to us, that of hearing our brother’s confession, if we refuse to give ear to our brother on lesser subjects…But Christians have forgotten that the ministry of listening has been committed to them by Him who is Himself the great listener and whose work they should share. We should listen with the ears of God that we may speak the Word of God (98-99).