Discipleship

Editorial Note
This article is an abridged and slightly revised republication of Müller, Sabrina, Art. Nachfolge (als freiheitliche und lebensfördernde theologische Praxis), in: WiReLex, 2022 (https://doi.org/10.23768/wirelex.Nachfolge_als_freiheitliche_und_lebensfrdernde_theologische_Praxis.201049).

Links to other media and further information regarding this topic can be found in the German version of this article.

1. Introduction

Throughout history and global Christianity, discipleship (German: Nachfolge) plays an essential role.¹The thirteenth global missions conference of the World Council of Churches held in Tanzania in 2018, for example, was titled: Moving in the Spirit. Called to Transforming Discipleship; see Anders, Christoph et. al. (Eds.), Vom Geist bewegt – zu verwandelnder Nachfolge berufen. Zur Weltmissionskonferenz in Tansania, Hamburg 2018. To this day, however, the topic is avoided in contemporary (predominately German speaking) practical theological and systematic theological debates. This could be due to the fact that the term has several strong connotations that could make it difficult to integrate into one’s own concepts: on the one hand, it is associated with one of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s  central works written within the context of the Third Reich; on the other hand, discipleship, sometimes referred to as Jüngerschaft, is taken up in literature that is more Evangelical in character.²This is particularly evident in praxis oriented Evangelical literature, for example in courses on the faith; see, for example, chapter 4 in Müller, Sabrina, Art. Nachfolge (als freiheitliche und lebensfördernde theologische Praxis), in: WiReLex, 2022 (https://doi.org/10.23768/wirelex.Nachfolge_als_freiheitliche_und_lebensfrdernde_theologische_Praxis.201049), accessed on 10.06.2025. Furthermore, the term plays a central role in Catholic theology in the context of concepts of liberation theology, which will be discussed in more detail later in this article.

In what follows, the concept of discipleship will be examined briefly in the New Testament and from a systematic theological perspective.

Discipleship is then applied to late modern society and discussed as a concept of Christian empowerment that is also compatible with practical theology.³See Müller, Nachfolge, for the practical theological and religious educational consequences.

2. New Testament Perspectives

Jesus’s ministry is inseparably linked with his call to discipleship, just as Christian discipleship always points back to him. He calls women (Mark 15:40–41; Luke 8:1–3) and men alike into his circle of disciples.⁴Cf. Luz, Ulrich, Ortsgemeinde und Gemeinschaft im Neuen Testament, in: Evangelische Theologie 70 (2010), 404–415, 407. His call is independent of gender, usually direct, and demands an immediate decision. The Gospels tell of people who leave everything behind (Mark 1:16–18) as well as those who do not follow the call (Matt 8:18–20). Two dimensions of discipleship can be distinguished in the New Testament:⁵Cf. Luz, Ulrich, Art. Nachfolge Jesu I, in: Theologische Realenzyklopädie 23 (1994), 678–686, 678.

1. The term ἀκολουθέω (to follow someone, to go with them, to be guided by them) refers specifically to the earthly relationship of discipleship to Jesus with respect to his close circle of disciples. This relationship is characterized by certain specific features: wandering, breaking with family ties, celibacy, poverty, and dependence on hospitality.⁶Cf. Kittel, Gerhard, Theologisches Wörterbuch zum Neuen Testament 1, Stuttgart 1966, 214. At the same time, it refers to the imminent kingdom of God with its harbingers (miracles, healings, exorcisms, and raising the dead; cf., e.g., Mark 1:15).
2. In the post-Easter church, the concept of discipleship changed from a concrete, physical action to the more abstract concept of imitation Christi. This development is connected to the Gospels in which discipleship is already understood in abstract terms: “Just as ‘disciple’ became an ecclesiological term that was transparent to contemporary readers […] ἀκολουθέω also became transparent to the present and became the epitome of Christian life in general.”⁷Luz, Nachfolge, 683, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “Ähnlich wie ‘Jünger’ zu einem ekklesiologischen Begriff wurde, der transparent für die gegenwärtigen Leser und Leserinnen war […] wurde auch ἀκολουθέω für die Gegenwart transparent und zu einem Inbegriff des christlichen Lebens überhaupt.” This becomes especially clear in the act of bearing one’s cross in discipleship (Mark 8:34–35 par.), which is interpreted in terms of its historical impact as “communion with the suffering of Jesus.”⁸Roloff, Jürgen, Die Kirche im Neuen Testament, Göttingen 1993, 156, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. The aspect of imitating Christ dominates primarily the Pauline Epistles (cf. 1 Cor 4:16; Gal 4:12; Gal 5:1; 1 Thess 1:6).⁹Cf. Sim, David et al., Art. Nachfolge Christi, in: RGG Online, 2007 (https://doi.org/10.1163/2405-8262_rgg4_COM_024002), accessed on 10.06.2025.

3. Systematic Theological Perspectives

The understanding of discipleship has changed throughout the history of Christianity. It is evident in the willingness of martyrs to suffer and die; in monasticism with obedience, poverty, and chastity; in the Crusades; among followers of radical Reformation; and in the pietistic Pietism of Philipp Jacob Spener, August Hermann Francke, and Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf. Bonhoeffer  had a decisive influence on Protestant theology in the modern era, whereas in contemporary Catholic theology, liberation theological approaches in particular shape the discourse on discipleship.

3.1. Discipleship in Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Often, discipleship has had no specific place in Protestant dogmatics and ethics.¹⁰See the absence of the topic of discipleship (Nachfolge) in current introductory dogmatic works: Körtner, Ulrich, Dogmatik (LETh 5), Leipzig 2018; Härle, Wilfried, Dogmatik, Berlin/Boston ⁵2018. Riches, John K., Art. Nachfolge Jesu III, in: TRE 23 (1994), 699–710, 710, reaches a similar conclusion. Even Bonhoeffer’s  work is more edifying in nature than systematic. Nevertheless, he brought the concept of discipleship to the fore in a special way. One of his most widely read and influential works bears this very title (Nachfolge; the English title is The Cost of Discipleship). Published in 1937, the work is an expression of contextual theology. It responds to the historical situation of the church under National Socialism and can thus be regarded as a form of literary resistance.¹¹Cf. Tietz, Christiane, Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Theologe im Widerstand, München ²2019, 69–73; Schmitz, Florian, Nachfolge. Zur Theologie Dietrich Bonhoeffers, Göttingen 2013.

Bonhoeffer rejects the idea of “cheap grace”¹²Bonhoeffer, Dietrich, Nachfolge, in: Kuske, Martin/ Tödt, Ilse, Dietrich Bonhoeffer Werke 4, München ²1994, 29–30, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “billige Gnade.” a “grace without price and cost,”¹³Bonhoeffer, Nachfolge, 29, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “Gnade ohne Preis und Kosten.” and instead emphasizes “costly grace”: “It is costly because it calls for discipleship; it is grace because it calls for discipleship to Jesus Christ.”¹⁴Bonhoeffer, Nachfolge, 31, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “‘teure Gnade’: ‘Teuer ist sie, weil sie in die Nachfolge ruft, Gnade ist sie, weil sie in die Nachfolge Jesu Christi ruft.’” For him, grace is inseparably bound to obedience: “Only the believer is obedient, and only the obedient believes.”¹⁵Bonhoeffer, Nachfolge, 52, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “Nur der Glaubende ist gehorsam und nur der Gehorsame glaubt.”

His work has an ecclesiological focus: “If we want to hear his call to discipleship, then we must hear him where he himself is. Jesus Christ’s call is heard in the church through his word and sacrament.”¹⁶Bonhoeffer, Nachfolge, 215, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “Wollen wir seinen Ruf in die Nachfolge hören, so müssen wir ihn dort hören, wo er selbst ist. Der Ruf Jesu Christi ergeht in der Kirche durch sein Wort und Sakrament.” For the church, discipleship means a clear separation from worldly life, but at the same time responsibility for the world. Bonhoeffer demands that “the world be the world and the church be the church, and yet that the word of God go forth from the church to the whole world.”¹⁷Bonhoeffer, Nachfolge, 277ff., translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “Welt Welt sei und die Gemeinde Gemeinde und daß doch das Wort Gottes von der Gemeinde ausgehe über alle Welt.”

Karl Barth  also takes up the topic of discipleship, especially in his doctrine of sanctification. He adopts Bonhoeffer’s central ideas: “Discipleship arises from faith in order to immediately consist in the act of obedience performed by Jesus.”¹⁸Barth, Karl, Die Kirchliche Dogmatik. Die Lehre von Gott IV/2, Zollikon–Zürich 1955, 607, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “Die Nachfolge entsteht im Glauben, um sofort in der Tat des Jesus geleisteten Gehorsams zu bestehen.”

3.2. Feminist and Liberationist Theological Approaches in the Catholic Sphere

In Catholic theology as well discipleship is not a fundamental concept.¹⁹Examples from various theological disciplines in which discipleship does not appear in the index include: Haslinger, Herbert, Pastoraltheologie, Paderborn 2015; Merks, Karl-Wilhelm, Theologische Fundamentalethik, Freiburg 2020; Rahner, Karl, Hörer des Wortes, Sämtliche Werke 4, Freiburg 1997; Rahner, Karl, Geist in Welt, Sämtliche Werke 2, Freiburg 1996. Although Hans Küng  addresses the topic in his widely read work Christ Sein as an integral part of the Christian faith, this monograph sees itself less as a scholarly work and more as a catechetical work or “a small summa of the Christian faith” (Küng, Hans, Christ Sein, München 1976, 17, translation by Jacob N. Cerone). German: “eine kleine ‘Summa’ des christlichen Glaubens.” However, the topic is central to liberation theology and feminist theology. Jean Baptiste Metz  emphasizes: “Above all, by drawing on […] the motif of discipleship, this new political theology assured itself of the biblical roots of its discourse on God.”²⁰Metz, Jean Baptiste, Memoria passionis. Ein provozierendes Gedächtnis in pluralistischer Gesellschaft, Freiburg 2017, 230, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “Vor allem im Rückgriff auf […] das Nachfolgemotiv vergewisserte sich diese neue Politische Theologie der biblischen Wurzel ihrer Gottesrede.”

In these movements, understanding the term discipleship mostly depends on the specific liberation theological Christology, which approaches reflections on Christ from a “perspective of the victim.”²¹Sobrino, Jon, Der Glaube an Jesus Christus. Eine Christologie aus der Perspektive der Opfer, Ostfildern 2008, 29, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “Perspective der Opfer.” Christology is therefore pursued here less with a theoretical than with a practical interest, which should contribute to thinking about faith in a situation of political oppression. A political dimension of Christ’s actions should therefore be emphasized.²²Cf. Bussmann, Claus, Befreiung durch Jesus? Die Christologie der lateinamerikanischen Befreiungstheologie, München 1980, 60. Here, Christ is seen as the liberator who stands radically on the side of the poor, whose actions relate not only to the individual but also to the fight against social, structural, and political sin.²³Cf. Riches, Nachfolge, 701.

This is exemplified by Jon Sobrino , who emphasizes:

[…] it is important, however, to note that the christological texts not only speak about who Christ is. They also speak of how those who take a stance toward him are placed in an entire structure of realities toward which one must take a stance. Faith in Jesus Christ is more than just belief in him.²⁴Sobrino, Glaube, 28, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “[…] wichtig ist aber, dass die christologischen Texte nicht nur davon sprechen, wer Christus ist. Sie sprechen auch davon, dass, wer eine Haltung ihm gegenüber einnimmt, in ein ganzes Gefüge von Wirklichkeiten gestellt wird, dem gegenüber man eine Haltung einnehmen muss. Der Glaube an Jesus Christus ist mehr als der Glaube an ihn.”

This stance, which encompasses the whole of reality, lies in the specific understanding of discipleship as “a resurrected discipleship.”²⁵Sobrino, Glaube, 38, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “eine auferstandene Nachfolge”. Discipleship is intended to make visible “what exists in the resurrection in terms of victory over the oppressions in history.”²⁶Sobrino, Glaube, 41, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “was es in der Auferstehung an Sieg über die Unterdrückungen in der Geschichte gibt.”

The concept of discipleship has also been taken up in feminist theology in the work of Elsabeth Schüssler Fiorenza  among others. These scholars repeatedly pointed out that the spiritual authority of women must be regained. In her feminist approach to discipleship, Schüssler Fiorenza emphasizes aspects of justice and liberation, but also the recognition of women in their own individuality. Her reflection on the discipleship of equals or those with equal rights focusses on equality in diversity.²⁷Cf. Schüssler Fiorenza, Elisabeth, Discipleship of Equals. A Critical Feminist Ekklēsia–Logy of Liberation. New York 1993, 70.

As this brief systematic overview has shown, the interpretation of the concept depends on the contextual situation and current circumstances.

4. Discipleship as Theological Empowerment

In many Protestant churches, grace and justification are central concepts. However, anyone in continental Europe who emphasizes discipleship quickly comes under suspicion of being influenced by pietistic Evangelicals, of establishing spiritual hierarchies with primi inter pares, or of postulating works righteousness. But ignoring the issue would mean losing touch with global Christianity, in which discipleship remains central, as is also true in the New Testament and in Christian tradition.

The following discussion develops a late modern understanding of discipleship as theological empowerment that breaks away from a one-sided theological orientation. Discipleship is therefore understood as a collective and individual hermeneutical process that enables people to interpret their religious experiences and develop as mature subjects within the horizon of the priesthood of all believers.

Since the Reformation, the priesthood of all believers has centered on the conviction that every person can read and understand the Bible for themselves, thus emphasizing religious responsibility and theological maturity.²⁸Cf. Kunz, Ralph/Zeindler, Matthias (Eds.), Alle sind gefragt. Priestertum aller Gläubigen heute, Zürich 2018, 7. It is less about a specific knowledge than about accompanying theological and religious processes of faith, doubt, and searching.²⁹Cf. Müller, Sabrina, Discipleship. Eine kirchentheoretische Grundfigur in der Spannung von Bekenntnisorientierung und Deutungsoffenheit, in: Praktische Theologie 53/1 (2018), 34–37, 35. It is everyday, lived theology in which people’s construction of faith becomes visible and must be taken seriously.

In German-speaking countries, there is no established term for this lived theology, whereas in Anglo-Saxon countries there is a broad discourse on the subject. As early as 2002, Jeff Astley  pointed out the importance of everyday theology with the term “ordinary theology.”³⁰Müller, Sabrina, Gelebte Theologie. Impulse für eine Pastoraltheologie des Empowerments (Theologische Studien 14), Zürich 2019, 33–34. This lived theology does not provide the certainty of answers, but rather maintains the tension of a questioning existence between doubt and certainty. It is not a normative science but rather a discursive, practice-oriented and hermeneutic activity open to the possibility of transcendent existence.

Unlike lived religion or lived faith, which often describes pre-reflective moments,³¹A. Dinter  and G. Heimbrock  describe lived religion as an open process of experience in everyday life, which specifically involves attempting to come into contact with pre-reflective immediacy. They refer to everyday phenomena that are classified by the individual as significant but not explicitly religious. See Dinter, Astrid et al. (Eds.), Einführung in die Empirische Theologie. Gelebte Religion erforschen, Göttingen 2007, 73–74. lived theology refers to an experienced and reflective practice of faith that includes a critical moment of doubt and questioning: “Lived theology is grounded in the people’s experiences and the realities of their lives. It becomes theology when it finds reflective expression and meets with public resonance.”³²Müller, Theologie, 39, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “Gelebte Theologie gründet in der Erfahrungswelt und Lebensrealität der Menschen. Sie wird dann zur Theologie, wenn sie reflektierten Ausdruck findet und auf öffentliche Resonanz stösst.” Its form is not found in the certainty of answers “but rather a questioning existence between doubt and certainty.”³³Luther, Henning, Religion und Alltag. Bausteine zu einer Praktischen Theologie des Subjekts, Stuttgart 1992, 23, translation by Jacob N. Cerone. German: “sondern fragende Existenz zwischen Anfechtung und Gewissheit.” Within this horizon, theology is not primarily a normative and outcome-assuring science, but also a discursive, practice-oriented, and hermeneutical activity³⁴See, e.g., Tracy, Davi, Talking about God. Doing Theology in the Context of Modern Pluralism, New York 1983; Pears, Angie, Doing Contextual Theology, Abingdon/New York 2009; Storrar, William/Morton, Andrew, Public Theology for the 21st Century, London/New York 2004; Francis, Leslie J./Astley, Jeff (Eds.), Exploring Ordinary Theology. Everyday Christian Believing and the Church, Farnham/Burlington 2013. that is committed to the “etsi Deus daretur,”³⁵Dalferth, Ingolf U., God first. Die reformatorische Revolution der christlichen Denkungsart, Leipzig 2018, 52. i. e., the possibility of transcendent existence.³⁶Cf. Suhner, Jasmine, Menschenrechte – Bildung – Religion. Bezugsfelder, Potentiale, Perspektiven, Paderborn 2021,120–150. In this process of exchange, the individual’s theological vocabulary develops and individual and communal theological productivity can emerge. Theologizing addresses fundamental human orientations and questions that, in their existential dimension, are constructively critical hermeneutics of being human.³⁷“Revelation is the manifestation of what concerns us ultimately. The mystery which is revealed is of ultimate concern to us because it is the ground of our being.” (Tillich, Paul, Systematic Theology 1, Chicago 1973, 110). In this function, theology can have a catalytic effect by perceiving religious experiences³⁸For more details on this, see Müller, Sabrina, Religiöse Erfahrung und ihre transformative Kraft. Qualitative und hermeneutische Zugänge zu einem praktisch-theologischen Grundbegriff, Berlin/Boston 2023. that serve as intuitive knowledge and insight for the individual, highlighting them from a distance, searching for a language to describe these experiences, and critically examining them for mechanisms that promote or hinder life.³⁹Cf. Müller, Sabrina/Suhner, Jasmine, Eine Frage der Relation. Praktisch-theologische Annäherungen an die Frage nach Irrtum und Erkenntnis, in: conexus 2 (2019), 8–24, 9–10.

The mode of joint theological reflection described here relates to everyday life, religious experience, everyday lived religion, and the lived theology of the individual. It implies a permanent intertwining of experience and the practice of freedom,⁴⁰Hermelink, Jan, Art. Lange, Ernst (1927–1974), in: TRE Online, 2010 (https://www.degruyter.com/document/database/TRE/entry/tre.20_436_6/html), accessed on 10.06.2025. with the aim of stimulating life-affirming processes and leading to a “language school of freedom.”⁴¹Lange, Sprachschule. German: “Sprachschule für die Freiheit.” Discipleship in the sense of this joint theological reflection therefore depends on empowerment for personal everyday hermeneutics. Through participation and involvement, one’s existence can be perceived and transformed in the light of personal and sometimes pneumatological  horizons of hope.