Religion: The Higher Powers

The short grey beard, the cigar and the fierce twinkle of Berlin's Evangelical Bishop Otto Dibelius, 79, are second only to the face of Chancellor Adenauer himself as a symbol of resolution against the East German Communists. Toughness, as Dibelius well knows, is not all; he must protect the Christians in the Communist zone with plenty of canny compromise. But during the past few months, Bishop Dibelius began to feel that for the Evangelical Lutheran churches, it was all give and no get.

When the church softened its policy to permit "Youth Dedication" to the state, participation in these strictly secular ersatz...

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