Tuesday, June 23, 2009

The Final Days of Sophie Scholl


Sophie Scholl was a Lutheran who saw through the veneer of Hitler's nationalistic pride to the true evil lurking below. Along with her brother Hans and a friend she was put to death for printing and distributing leaflets calling for the peaceful resistance of the Nazi madness. On February 22, 1943 they were convicted and a few hours later beheaded at Munich's Stadelheim Prison.

The movie is all in German with English subtitles. There is a lengthy and somewhat tedious interrogation... but I suppose that is realistic. The most interesting aspects of the film for me were Sophie's tenacious grip on the truth regarding the evil of the Third Reich and her firm faith in God. The prison pastor's blessing just before her execution was powerful and very Christ centered.

The movie made me think about the evils of my culture. Am I truly aware of them, and am I doing anything about them?