The fresh, critical translation of the volume is now available in paper. Act and Being, written in 1929-1930 as Bonhoeffer's second dissertation, deals with the questions of consciousness and conscience in theology from the perspective of the Reformation insight about the origin of human sinfulness in the "heart turned in upon itself and thus open neither to the revelation of God nor to the encounter with the neighbor." Here, therefore, we find Bonhoeffer's thoughts about power, revelation, otherness, theological method, and theological anthropology.

Justice and Peace. Contributions to Political Ethics] According to Protestant doctrine, providing justice and peace by means of the threat and exercise of force is a primary and ethically justifiable task of the State (Barmen V). At the beginning of the 21st century the lines of conflict between justice and law, peace and violence, religion and politics have sharpened. They are the subjects of controversial discussions that point out basic problems of political ethics. The contributions of this volume contain analyses of the traditional Protestant understanding of law and peace and develop the vision of a just peace based on the notion of human rights. They address controversial issues concerning the legitimate use of military force and a liberal legal order of the relationship between state and religion. Durch Androhung und Ausubung von Gewalt fur Recht und Frieden zu sorgen gehort nach evangelischer Lehre zu den eigenstandigen, jedoch ethisch zu verantwortenden Aufgaben des Staates (Barmen V). Am Beginn des 21. Jahrhunderts haben sich die Konfliktlinien zwischen Gerechtigkeit und Recht, Frieden und Gewalt, Religion und Politik verscharft. Sie sind Gegenstand kontroverser Debatten, die auf Grundprobleme politischer Ethik verweisen. Die Beitrage dieses Bandes enthalten Analysen zu Traditionen des protestantischen Rechts- und Friedensverstandnisses und entwickeln das Leitbild eines auf die Menschenrechtsidee gegrundeten gerechten Friedens. Sie behandeln strittige Fragen des legitimen Einsatzes militarischer Gewalt, aber auch einer freiheitlichen rechtlichen Ordnung des Verhaltnisses von Staat und Religion.