J Heinrich Arnold-Freedom from sinful thoughts.pdf

FREEDOM FROM SINFUL THOUGHTS - T H E A U T H O RArnold himself felt the call to follow Christ at the ageof eleven. Later, as a young man, he committed himselfto life-long membership in the church community,known by then as the Bruderhof, or “place of brothers.”In 1938 he was chosen a “servant of the Word” (pastor),and from 1962 until his death he served as elder for thegrowing Bruderhof movement.The flock in Arnold’s care was not what one could calla typical church, and he was anything but a pastor in theconventional sense of the word. He did not have a charismaticpersonality, and he had no formal theologicaltraining. He was a true Seelsorger, or “spiritual guide”who cared deeply for the inner and outer well-being ofthe communities entrusted to him. And he served hisbrothers and sisters in the first place as an equal whoshared their daily lives in work and leisure, at communalmeals, business meetings, and worship services.Arnold was called on to address every aspect of spirituallife, personal and communal. But there is a visiblethread that runs through all he wrote: Christ and hiscross as the center of the universe. Again and again, heinsists that without meeting Christ personally – withoutbeing confronted by His message of repentance andlove – there is no possibility of a living Christian faith.Arnold’s Christ-centeredness gave him an unusualcourage to confront sin. He could not tolerate indiffer­78