The Hiding Place

Faith—particularly the way that faith upholds and strengthens people through challenges—lies at the heart of The Hiding Place. The book’s religious elements often lead to it being read more for devotional and inspirational purposes than for historical or literary interests. Corrie presents the story of her life within the context of her Christian faith. Her belief in God’s love, as demonstrated through the sacrificial death of Jesus, forms the crux of how she interprets events: “How could God Himself show truth and love at the same time in a world like this? By dying. The answer stood out for me sharper and chiller than it ever had before that night: the shape of a Cross etched on the history of the world” (92).

She does not see the Nazi occupation’s horrifying atrocities as representing God’s abandonment. Instead, she sees them as a demonstration of the world’s brokenness, into which God has fully entered through Jesus’s pain and death. Faith is Corrie’s way of interpreting and making sense of life. It allows her to persevere through her challenges.

The devout faith of the ten Boom family explains most of their actions. They believe that God loves all people, making the greatest possible sacrifice to redeem them; they feel compelled to represent that love to the world.