Jean Lasserre (1908-1983) was an internationally renowned pastor and peace theologian. He studied at the Protestant Faculty of Theology in Paris before studying at Union Theology Seminary in New York. It is here he met Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who came to share in Lasserre's ardent pacifist beliefs. They continued to communicate through illegal letters during the Second World War. After the war, Lassere set up his pastoral ministry in working class communities, where the main cause of his life was the fight for peace. His book The War and the Gospel (1953) laid the foundations of a theology of nonviolence. Steve Hickey is Faculty Chair of Christian Ministries at Alaskan Christian College, USA.
"Someone might pick this book up because of an awareness of Lasserre’s role in bringing about a transformation in the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer regarding pacifism via the Sermon on the Mount. However, after one begins reading, one sees that this book is of immense inherent importance. For these are the mature reflections on Christians and violence by an active French Reformed pastor who gave a profound witness to shalom through a long, productive life. It is a wonderful gift to have these writings available in English. * Mark Thiessen Nation, Eastern Mennonite University, USA. Author of ""Bonhoeffer the Assassin?"" and ""Discipleship in a World Full of Nazis"". *"