Dorothee Soelle on Christ’s Need for Us

Yesterday we saw how Dorothee Soelle believed that love is revolutionary; and love is what Jesus and the “kingdom of God” that he preached is all about; and love is often missing in our institutions including our religious ones.

AFSC marks a century of connecting movements resisting militarism, racism, and materialism. American Friends Service Committee

She sees a cure for this—and it is us responding to our authentic vocations and work and choices. 

Consider her poem called “When he came.”

He needs you
That’s all there is to it
Without you he’s left hanging
Goes up in dachau’s smoke
Is sugar and spice in the baker’s hands
gets revalued in the next stock market crash
he’s consumed and blown away
used up
without you


“God and Suffering: Dorothee Soelle” Professor Wendy Crosby of Siena Heights University reflects on Soelle’s reframing of Christ’s suffering and the work of his followers. Theology with Dr. Crosby

Help him
that’s what faith is
he can’t bring it about
his kingdom
couldn’t then couldn’t later can’t now
not at any rate without you
and that is his irresistible appeal.

Soelle returns to her belief in Jesus: He is needy. He needs us to accomplish the work of compassion. “That’s all there is to it.” Otherwise the death camps return; he goes up “in dachau’s smoke” and all the evil of humanity to others that that symbolizes and reminds us of. 

He is part of what blows up when stock markets crash — unless we participate in redefining finance and economics. “Help him / that’s what faith is.”

“Homeless Christ” Icon by Kelly Latimore, commissioned by Alex Spenik. Used with permission.

Faith is action, a participatory action. Jesus dead or alive cannot do it without us. No kingdom without our work — never was, never will be. And that, for Soelle, is what constitutes Jesus’ “irresistible appeal.”  He did not do it all for us, rather we are invited to do, live, resist, gather, love, act like he did.

Do you find this belief irresistible also? Do you believe that Jesus needs you, or that you need Jesus? What requires more “faith”–believing in his message or that his message can’t live “without you”?  That our work and citizenship and choices truly matter. 

That saving the Earth as we know it is worthy of our work and commitment?  That choosing truth rather than lies in politics matters?

That living lives of gratitude and care rather than exploitation matters?


Adapted from Matthew Fox, Christian Mystics: 365 Readings and Meditations, p. 273.

To read the transcript of Matthew Fox’s video teaching, click HERE.

Banner Image: The Good Samaritan: kind hands and a drink of water. Photo by Sarwer e Kainat Welfare from Pexels

Queries for Contemplation

Do you find people whether identifying as Christian or not who find an “irresistible appeal” in the person and story of Jesus?  Why do you think this is so?  Do you agree that “he needs us.”  How does that influence your life and work?

Recommended Reading

Christian Mystics: 365 Readings & Meditations

As Matthew Fox notes, when an aging Albert Einstein was asked if he had any regrets, he replied, “I wish I had read more of the mystics earlier in my life.” The 365 writings in Christian Mystics represent a wide-ranging sampling of these readings for modern-day seekers of all faiths — or no faith. The visionaries quoted range from Julian of Norwich to Martin Luther King, Jr., from Thomas Merton to Dorothee Soelle and Thomas Berry.
“Our world is in crisis, and we need road maps that can ground us in wisdom, inspire us to action, and help us gather our talents in service of compassion and justice. This revolutionary book does just that. Matthew Fox takes some of the most profound spiritual teachings of the West and translates them into practical daily mediations. Study and practice these teachings. Take what’s in this book and teach it to the youth because the new generation cannot afford to suffer the spirit and ethical illiteracy of the past.” — Adam Bucko, spiritual activist and co-founder of the Reciprocity Foundation for Homeless Youth.


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12 thoughts on “Dorothee Soelle on Christ’s Need for Us”

  1. Richard Reich-Kuykendall
    Richard Reich-Kuykendall

    Matthew, Yesterday we saw how “Dorothee Soelle believed that love is revolutionary; and love is what Jesus and the “kingdom of God” that he preached is all about; and love is often missing in our institutions including our religious ones. She sees a cure for this—and it is us responding to our authentic vocations and work and choices.” Then you share with us Soelle’s poem: “When he came.” But back to our “authentic vocations and work and choices.” When you wrote: The Reinvention of Work: A New Vision of Livelihood for our Times–and you later made a school where you could put this philosophy into practice. That is in taking our work–whatever it may be and live your life; working with a sense of spiritual purpose and in service to others. “Whatever your work is, it can be your vocation. And you showed us that in having a doctoral program that accepted people with masters degrees from every discipline, they could take what seemed a purely secular career and make it a spiritual practice of love and service. And as you say in the meditation: “Faith is action, a participatory action. Jesus dead or alive cannot do it without us. No kingdom without our work — never was, never will be. And that, for Soelle, is what constitutes Jesus’ “irresistible appeal.” He did not do it all for us, rather we are invited to do, live, resist, gather, love, act like he did.” Amen Matthew !!!

  2. A trauma therapist named Peter Levine describes trauma as the as the separation of body and soul. The people who have the ability to help people heal from trauma are often wounded themselves. I wonder if wounded healers have a part to whole relationship with a healing quality or principle in the universe. When I hear the word “Jesus” nowadays I’m on red alert for signs of rape culture and fascism. I read a book titled Catholic Discordance and the author discusses psuedotheologians who profess that the “market” is evil, salvation is available through financial transactions but not in this life. The consumer will be rewarded after death. This nonesense is pure evil but it passes as wisdom in American churches and it is starting to pass in the form of legislation and could lead to a theocracy which outlaws healing and personal integration.

  3. Excerpt from today’s Daily Meditation Jan 11 / 23 – “… and love is often missing in our institutions including our religious ones.” … “He did not do it all for us, rather we are invited to do, live, resist, gather, love, act like he did.”

    Excerpt from my comment posted Jan 9 / 23 –
    “Is not all the change then to come from outside the ‘formal church’ that is beset with problems and inertia? Were the Rabbis, Pharisees and other religious leaders of Jesus day, not surprised as well that they were not the answer, when up to then the entire faith revolved around everything they said and did?

    To be like Jesus then is to walk like Jesus then is it not. When did we start to think that we would not be given the opportunity to ‘walk in HIs shoes’ and experience His Life and Cross? Is that opportunity not now? — BB.

    1. Richard Reich-Kuykendall
      Richard Reich-Kuykendall

      Bill, You conclude your comments today with three questions:
      1) “To be like Jesus then is to walk like Jesus then is it not”– Yes! Of course !!!
      2) “When did we start to think that we would not be given the opportunity to ‘walk in His shoes’ and experience His Life and Cross?”–I don’t think that this has ever even been an issue.
      3) “Is that opportunity not now?”–Yes! Of course !!!

  4. “Deep action, not reaction,” it is these words that grab hold of me. Often I’ve seen reaction in the beginning stages of revolution throughout the history of humanity. Mainly emotional reactions of anger and rage about the painfilled injustices suffered, errupting often in violence. However if one enters into the depths of one’s emotional reactions rising to the surface… it is there… beneath the anger, the rage, the violent eruption, the pain; that one begins to listen and hear a sound that calls oneself into responding to all of this suffering from a much deeper and sacred evolutionary action, which emerges from the molten magma of love, compassion and mercy.

    The mystics and the prophets know how to enter into the depths of this mystery, for obedience is redefined as deeply listening and then actively responding, in faith, hope and trust; to that which already lies there within the depths of oneself, within the sacred heart of one’s being.

    The image that arises is the biblical scene of the story of the three whom were placed in the firey furnace, but we’re not burnt, but rather transformed.

    1. Richard Reich-Kuykendall
      Richard Reich-Kuykendall

      Jeanette, You begin today with: “’Deep action, not reaction,’ it is these words that grab hold of me.” Then you write that “The mystics and the prophets know how to enter into the depths of this mystery, for obedience is redefined as deeply listening and then actively responding”–here you show how the mystics and the prophets knew how to enter into the depths–where the ways of “Deep action, not reaction” can be found. Then in speaking about all of this you end with the story of the “fiery furnace” in the book of Daniel where: “The image that arises is the biblical scene of the story of the three whom were placed in the fiery furnace, but we’re not burnt, but rather transformed.”

  5. Yes, Beloved Christ and Beloved Holy Spirit~Sophia are within and among us calling us to Divine Love~Wisdom~Truth~Peace~Justice~Healing~Transformation~Creativity~Beauty~Joy~
    Compassionate Service~Loving Diverse Oneness… in our Sacred Mother Earth to help manifest/bring about God’s Loving Kingdom~Queendom on earth as it in Heaven in the Sacred Process of the Eternal Present Moment….
    🔥💜🌎🙏

  6. Gloria Jeanne Anderson

    I met Dorothee Soelle years ago when she came to a Methodist Church in Madison, Wi. She was so authentic. I need to reread some of her books.

  7. Thank you for the video of AFSC. They are always in the forefront of social action in peace, putting their bodies on the line to help the ongoing work of Christ. It is serendipity to me that I was just reading over my notes on the presentation by the Rev. Dr, Jacqui Lewis at the CAC Universal Christ (or Cosmic Christ) Conference a few years ago. Her topic was “Christ Crucified”, and she listed some of the ways that it happens every day, including racism, sexism, white nationalism, etc. All injustice is Christ crucified, and we are called to “…resurrect the crucified body of Christ wherever we encounter it.” We are the hands and feet of Jesus in the world, and, as Jaqui says, we have to love the hell out of those who fear and hate and scapegoat.

  8. I notice that while you restrict the readers’ comments to one per day, Richard Reich-Kuykendall is the excepcional reader who comments at will. 4 x today, for example. Like an oversoul, or the official spokesman for Matthew Fox. Please answer my question, and thanks for all your work!

    1. Phila Hoopes

      Thank you for reaching out, Paula.
      Richard is the comment moderator and spokesman for the DM team.

      We have given long and careful thought to the framework of this very active comments board, as there were initially readers who would comment at extreme length or many times in succession, effectively making the comments board a personal podium. After a trial-and-error process, we found that setting a limit of 1000 words, once a day, seemed to be the fairest solution for all. As Matthew is fiercely busy with many commitments as an author, speaker, and educator, he couldn’t possibly respond to every comment, so Richard volunteered for that “community relations” role. Matthew does watch the comments, however, and will occasionally respond to specific questions.

      I hope this helps!

      Appreciation,
      Phila Hoopes
      Blog Coordinator

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