Walls that Divide

The Brandenburg Gate and the Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie  loomed large through my teen years and into adulthood as a symbol of the great divide between democracy and totalitarianism in the guise of communism. I grew up during the Cold War between Soviet Bloc countries and the West and we learned about the secretive, repressive world which included East Germany. The Wall seemed insurmountable with sporadic, disastrous attempts to make it across the death strip which divided Berlin.  There were many books and films, spy thrillers, which drew on the ideological gulf between these realities, including as recently as 2015 with Bridge of Spies with Tom Hanks.



The Berlin Wall was demolished in 1989 and since then east and west have struggled to achieve reunification and equality, a task which hasn't ended. Since the Wall came down we've learned more about the courageous attempts by Christian churches to maintain a witness in the midst of repression. Even though the state benefited from the churches’ activities  running hospitals, old people’s homes, orphanages there was widespread discrimination against what was a shrinking church presence and  individual Christians with limited spiritual freedom.

Walls do work, for a time, but ultimately they come down. There is a grim irony to the fact that one of President Ronald Reagan's best known speeches occurred in West Berlin in 1987 in which he challenged Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev to "tear down this wall." 

Many Republicans revere Reagan yet today the Emperor Trump and his administration are spending billions to erect a wall across the border with Mexico with enthusiastic support from his followers. 

What a world.