Sophie Scholl (1921-1943)

Drawing by Emily Alexander, from the Bruderhof Peacemakers Guide

This year, we’ll be commemorating the 60th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. When it comes to momentous historical occasions like this, we tend to remember the big shots, like Churchill and Roosevelt. I want to tell you about someone else, who made the ultimate sacrifice for her resistance to the madness that engulfed Germany and all of Europe.

Sophie Scholl was a student in Munich when the war began. She and her older brother Hans were horrified at what was happening in their country under the Nazi regime, and along with a few friends and one of their professors, started a resistance movement called Die Weiße Rose (The White Rose). Although later known for their shared political views, the group also shared a passionate interest in art, music, literature, philosophy and the Christian faith.

As they met together to discuss what they should do about the Nazi dictatorship, they decided to print up and distribute leaflets. Each of these leaflets was an articulate condemnation of Nazi dogma, and in the political climate that existed, it was extremely dangerous to express these views, even privately. Here’s the very first paragraph from the First Leaflet:

“Nothing is so unworthy of a civilized nation as allowing itself to be governed without opposition by an irresponsible clique that has yielded to base instinct. It is certain that today every honest German is ashamed of his government. Who among us has any conception of the dimensions of shame that will befall us and our children when one day the veil has fallen from our eyes and the most horrible of crimes - crimes that infinitely outdistance every human measure - reach the light of day?”

They published six such leaflets over the course of 1942 and into 1943. It was while distributing the sixth leaflet at the University of Munich on February 18, 1943 that Sophie was arrested by the Gestapo, along with her brother Hans and their friend Christoph Probst. They were condemned to death on February 22nd and were executed by guillotine only a few hours later. Sophie Scholl was 21 years old.

Here’s a particularly moving quotation from Sophie: “The real damage is done by those millions who want to ’survive.’ The honest men who just want to be left in peace. Those who don’t want their little lives disturbed by anything bigger than themselves. Those with no sides and no causes. Those who won’t take measure of their own strength, for fear of antagonizing their own weakness. Those who don’t like to make waves or enemies. Those for whom freedom, honour, truth, and principles are only literature. Those who live small, mate small, die small. It’s the reductionist approach to life: if you keep it small, you’ll keep it under control. If you don’t make any noise, the bogeyman won’t find you. But it’s all an illusion, because they die too, those people who roll up their spirits into tiny little balls so as to be safe. Safe?! From what? Life is always on the edge of death; narrow streets lead to the same place as wide avenues, and a little candle burns itself out just like a flaming torch does. I choose my own way to burn.”

Further Reading:

The White Rose
Sophie Scholl entry in the Bruderhof Peacemakers Guide
Center for White Rose Studies
Excerpts from the diaries and letters of the White Rose