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Change of Allegiance  /  What If? Practical Questions About Nonresistance  /  Discussion Questions
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Question 6
The story of Bishop Cyril of Bulgaria describes Christians physically standing in front of Nazi power and identifying with Jews using Ruth’s words (“Where you go, I will go…”); what does that story teach about God’s heart and the church’s calling that goes beyond “not killing,” and what would “standing in the way of evil” look like in your city?
Another way to ask: What does the story of Bishop Cyril standing with the Jews teach about what God cares about and what the church is called to do beyond “not killing”? What could “standing in the way of evil” look like in your city?

Direct Answer Dean uses Bishop Cyril’s story to show the church’s calling is active identification with the suffering—taking a “Jesus approach” that risks our own lives to protect others. It goes beyond refusing to kill; it means stepping into danger, bearing witness, and standing between the oppressor and the vulnerable.

Support from Transcript:

  • Dean says the Bulgarian Christians “didn't have the arms, they didn't have a defense,” yet chose “a Jesus approach.”
  • Bishop Cyril leads “500 to 1,000” believers to the train station where Jews were to be deported to Auschwitz.
  • Dean recounts Cyril “pushed the machine guns away” and publicly identified with Jews using Ruth’s words: “Where you go, I will go. Your people will be my people….”
  • The posture was martyr-like: “stood there… we're going to die with them,” and one account says he put himself “in the way of the train.”
  • Result: “The Nazis finally gave up… all the Jewish people of Bulgaria was saved that day.”
  • Dean summarizes: “We are not going to kill the enemy, but we are going to identify with the suffering.”
Discussion Follow-ups Who are the vulnerable in our city that Christians avoid because it’s unsafe or controversial? What would it look like for a whole congregation—not just individuals—to “stand in the way” together?

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