The Pastor's Wife

by Sabina Wurmbrand

Sabina Wurmbrand's husband had been taken, his fate unknown, and now their young son would be left alone as police arrested her. Sabina Wurmbrand's heart-wrenching story of her imprisonment in Romania speaks of the faithfulness of Christ in every situation.

Genres: Christian, Biography, Nonfiction, History, Biography Memoir, Audiobook, Memoir

217 pages, Paperback

First published May 4, 1970

About the author

Wurmbrand was born Sabina Oster on July 10, 1913 in Czernowitz, a city in the Bucovine region of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which became part of Romania after WWI, and since WWII has been part of Ukraine. Sabina graduated from high school in Czernowitz, and then studied languages at the Sorbonne in Paris. While working in Bucharest, she married Richard Wurmbrand in 1936. During a vacation that year, both Richard and Sabina were converted to the Christian faith, joining the church of the Anglican Mission in Bucharest.

During the occupation of Romania in 1940-43, Sabina and her husband were spared from execution through the intervention of the chief editor of Romania’s main newspaper and interest shown in their case by prominent religious leaders. During this time, Sabina was one of the founders of the Jewish-Christian Church in Bucharest.

She was arrested by the Communist government in 1951 and taken to a labor camp to build a river canal. She spent three years in prison, and was under house arrest for several years after release.

The Communist authorities promised to free her if she would divorce her husband and renounce her faith, which she refused to do. She and her family escaped Romania in 1966, traveling throughout Europe and America, speaking for Christian Mission to the Communist World, which became the Voice of the Martyrs in 1992.

She wrote The Pastor’s Wife detailing her testimony which continues to be published in six languages.

Source: Women of Christianity

Reviews

[Nadine Brandes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is heartwrenching and inspirational all at once. I'd always heard of Richard Wurmbrand and the persecution he suffered as a pastor in Romania. But his wife's story is just as powerful. I have no words other than these: Read it and be inspired for Christ!

Favorite quotes:

"Man's greatest privilege is the right to say Yes or No, even to God." (pg. 15)

"If it is dangerous to do God's work, how much more dangerous is it to leave it undone?" (pg. 216)

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a heart-wrenching, riveting, encouraging, and challenging auto-biography written by Sabina Wurmbrand. She has such a rich and robust faith, tested by the fires of persecution, but to my utter amazement, she has some weak theology and bad ideas which in turn are a bit pragmatic in the negative sense. Apart from that weakness, this is an incredible true story every Christian would find edifying to read, despite the horrors contained therein. God is gracious and longsuffering to us, and a beautiful reminder that He uses all of us where we are, no matter how much we do or do not know doctrinally, and doesn't always bring us to the same place in the end.

[Marcela Burchin · Rating 5 out of 5]

O mărturie adevarată despre adevărată față a comunismului în România, între anii 1948-1989.
Cei care mai tânjesc după vremurile comuniste, le-aș recomanda să citească, mai întâi această carte!

[Bethany Meadows · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal read. Not an “easy” read in regard to the content, however reading about Sabina’s conversion to Christianity and subsequent life experience was so inspiring.

Wife to Richard Wurmbrand, founder of Voice of the Martyrs magazine and ministry, her story is painful and hard. Yet, her faithfulness to her God is beautiful.

She spent years in a labor camp, then, after her release, years separated from her husband who was imprisoned for his faith.

Through it all, she worked relentlessly in the underground church, spreading the Gospel and building the kingdom of God.

Ultimately, her and Richard leave Romania and found Voice of the Martyrs ministry. It continues today to help countless persecuted Christians around the world!

Highly recommend this to all Christians! It is faith-building.

[ValeReads Kyriosity · Rating 5 out of 5]

10/25/2020

When I was very small, about five I think, I had a recurring dream about being unjustly imprisoned. I don't even know where I'd gotten some fledgeling understanding of such things. Perhaps in a Sunday school lesson.

I know it was in the church library that I found Richard Wurmbrand's book Tortured for Christ when I was in high school. When a Russian pastor (accompanied by hovering keepers) visited our church in the early '80s, I asked him (with a boldness not at all in keeping with my timid nature) to tell me about the underground church. He all but patted me on the head. Don't be silly. Christ's church doesn't need to be underground! I remember his nervousness...and the dandruff on his dark blue suit jacket.

In more recent years, I have followed the news of Early Rain Covenant Church in Chengdu, China, and prayed for the saints there. Pastor Wang Yi is certainly not the only Christian imprisoned for his faith these days, but he has served for me as a face for all as I have prayed for him.

I am grateful that the persecuted church is regularly remembered in our congregation's prayers during worship each week.

All this is just to say that God has reminded me often of His suffering people. I have not been as faithful as many of them, and I have not been faithful enough in praying for them, but God has not let me forget them.

If you have not forgotten, read this book. It will be precious to you. If you have forgotten, read this book and remember. In fact, whatever is the next on your reading list, bump it down a step and read this book. And name your next daughter Sabina. And pray for the persecuted church. And practice every small courage now so you will be prepared to practice big courage when that time comes.


10/24/2020

First, DO NOT START THIS BOOK WHILE GETTING READY FOR BED.

Second, I finally made myself turn it off.

Third, is it morning yet?

[Ebookwormy1]

Sabrina Wurmbrand's stunning autobiography documents how she supported her husband, and struggled to preserve the life of her child, while engaged in combat with the Romanian government that sough to eliminate her Christianity from its Communist experiment. Wurmbrand's courage is astounding and inspiring, her story triumphant. Whatever you are facing, in all your situational complexities and your own personal limitations, Wurmbrand will fire your soul to endure - just like she did her husband. Unforgettable.

See also her husband's account...
Tortured for Christ, Wurmbrand, 1967
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

For a glimpse of Romania after the Wurmbrand's are ransomed, see
Saving my Assassin, Prodan, 2016
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

For a theology of suffering developed by a Romanian, see
Suffering, Martyrdom and Rewards in Heaven, Ton, 2002
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[John R. Brusseau · Rating 5 out of 5]

In a world that has replaced the wisdom of experience with the wisdom of the hypothetical, the philosophical, Sabina's book shines out like a long flash of lightening.

She has been through torture, and mind-boggling loss, and has experienced God keeping her soul through it all.

I would rather read one book of hers than a million books by populars with a good way with words. And the thing is, Sabina is a very intelligent, philosophical, and articulate woman to boot.

Her book is a testimony written in blood, tears, and shuddering sorrow, that God is love, and faithful, and life changing.

My highest recomendation.

[R.L.S.D · Rating 5 out of 5]

A criminally underread book and, frankly, superior to her husband's better known works. The emphasis in the title should not be on "pastor", but on the Pastor's **Wife**.

Sabina's story is visceral and understated. She is an ordinary, particular woman in a particular marriage whose life becomes defined by the experience of physical and emotional pain in the Romanian gulag, and a credal Christianity that took her from one breath to the next. It was refreshing to read an honest and very female account of a relationship with Christ that did not see a need to expound a theology of gender. (She makes one wry reference to the contrast between the Western Church's gender obsessions and the irrelevance of that battle in her own context.) Some of her short "sermons" to fellow prisoners are among the most striking I've ever read. I don't agree with the Wurmbrands on everything and I don't care. I can't recommend this book highly enough.


(It should be noted that Sabina and Richard's son Mihai was fired a few years ago from his position at the organization they founded -Voice of the Martyrs- for requesting an independent investigation into the allegations of child abuse that precipitated the chairman of the board's suicide. As Sabina would say, what horrifying contradictions exist in the human heart.)

[Rebecca Beverly · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading this heart-wrenching account of Sabina Wurmbrand and her husband, Richard, I am once again convicted that we Christians should be doing more for our brothers and sisters in Christ who are being persecuted for their faith. We in the US have been blessed and protected for so long. Most of us have no idea what our fellow believers in restricted countries have experienced until we read a book like this one. We need to stay abreast of the happenings within the persecuted church; pray everyday for persecuted Christians and their families and for the closed countries and the leaders. And there are other actions that we can take to help the persecuted church....check out www.persecution.com, the website for the organization started by the Wurmbrands. This was a very informative and riveting read and I highly recommend it.

[Katie Larson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before you scroll by: This is not just a book about/for pastor’s wives!

Also, I wish I could give 8 out of 5 stars.

I picked up this book after reading this review: “I urge you, my fellow and dear saints who find nothing to fear in Marxism, to get your thick heads out of the sand and do some reading. Here is a great place to start.” From: The Sheologians Podcast (Instagram Post from June 25th, 2020).

This is Sabina’s account of her and her husband’s wrongful imprisonment in Soviet Russian war camp at the end of WWII. This was not that many years ago friends. It feels even closer to home and more timely with the first Canadian pastor being imprisoned this week for preaching to his church.

I have so many reasons to say—read this book. If not for mine, Sabina says, “But if it is dangerous to do God’s work, how much more dangerous it is to leave it undone.”

[Elida · Rating 5 out of 5]

,,Timpul și distanțele pot stinge o dragoste superficială, dar ele întăresc și mai mult o dragoste adevărată.”

[Paige · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reminded me quite a bit of The Hiding Place, as they both recount how God was good and faithful to strengthen imperfect people to endure immense suffering for His Name. Due to several areas of subject matter, though, I would only recommend it for adults or maybe mature older teens. Encouraging and inspiring.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's one thing to know about the persecution of Christians. It's another thing to put a name, a face, and day-to-day experiences to this thing that seems so far away. Sabina Wurmbrand is very real about her experiences, the temptations, the horror. But she also shares of courage and peace I cannot imagine in her circumstances. I'm amazed at the awful things human beings can do to each other, and at the tenacity of a human being to go on living in the midst of so much tragedy. Knowing a man who was "on the other side" of this story makes it that much more intense. I can't agree with all the theological conclusions she drew, but I deeply value the practical application of her Christianity. I admire her steadfastness in her roles as wife, mother, and chiefly Christian. She served as an ambassador for Christ in every place God put her. She spoke with truth with courage, even when she knew the potential consequences. She sets an example few (Americans, at least) ever see of Christianity in action at tremendous personal cost.

[Lisa Jacobson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story, written by the wife of Pastor Richard Wurmbrand, is an amazing testimony of faith under persecution. What I especially enjoyed was hearing the story from the perspective of his wife - who happens to be a lovely writer as well.
"The day's events encouraged me. I had a strong feeling of the divine presence in my solitary cell. God had given me the strength and wit to fend off questions about printing Russian Gospels and receiving relief funds. Perhaps the worst was over.
A piece of chalky plaster had worked loose from the wall. I picked it up and drew on the dark blanket a big cross, in thankfulness." ~ Sabina Wurmbrand

[E · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book isn't about being a pastor's wife. It's about suffering anti-Christian persecution at the hands of Communism. She and her husband were both arrested and tortured in Romania for 20 years after the war.

She's not a great storyteller, and her theology's a little off, but this book was insightful for understanding what life was like in post-war Eastern Europe. We all know intellectually that Communism was a disaster, but that's about it. This book fleshes it out in living color.

[Becky]

Probably 3 stars for the writing, and 4 or 5 for the content.

[Julie Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book!

[Anca Ciortea · Rating 5 out of 5]

„A trebuit doar să învăț o lecție profundă, anume să beau paharul până la capăt, să beau chiar și cele mai amare resturi; iar acum sunt plină de recunoștință pentru că am trecut prin această școală grea, de la care înveți să iubești cu o dragoste de cea mai înaltă calitate. Înveți să-L iubești pe Dumnezeu, chiar și când nu îți oferă nimic în afară de suferință." (pag. 218)

[Connie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not only did Richard Wurmbrand deal with persecution as a Christ-follower in Romania, but his wife bore indescribable pain - losing her husband to imprisonment for years, being under constant surveillance, seeing her son lose one opportunity after another because of the choices his parents were making, and bearing imprisonment herself.
Her description of sister prisoners was fascinating to me. There were not only women imprisoned for their religious beliefs, but also intellectuals, gypsies, prostitutes, and others - for being with the wrong person at the wrong time, for saying the wrong (often misinterpreted) thing.
She had personal life and faith struggles, but never wavered from her foundation in Christ Whom she shared readily while in prison and caring for the Underground Church.
I am grateful that this courageous pair founded The Voice of the Martyrs to keep us informed today, long after their deaths, of the suffering that continues around the world. Sobering and challenging.
"Martyrs don't make the truth. the truth makes the martyr."

[Jordan Carlson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this several times and always rated it 5 stars. I still enjoyed reading it and again found the story remarkable, and Sabina’s faith is very moving.

HOWEVER

Maybe I was really lacking some discernment prior or was willing to overlook a lot because of the incredible story? But there is a lot of bad theology here. And not just “different denomination” bad theology. At one point she implies that a Muslim woman is her sister, in a spiritual sense (completely contrary to her own witness). She seems to lump Jehovah’s Witnesses in with “various sects” rather than a cult. This is troubling to me. She also refers to women as pastors and uses poor reasoning (and no scripture) for that.

The courage of the underground church is thrilling to me. The faithful endurance in persecution is so admirable. The testimony of the growth of Christ’s church is very inspiring. Her emphasis on forgiveness is remarkable and humbling. It is an amazing time in history, full of very interesting insight into Romania and the ills of Communism. But…read with discernment.

[Denise Meyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paints a most realistic and personal picture of life under Communism- very different than how Communists portray themselves to the world. Sabina models forgiveness, urging Believers to press on in faith for Christ's kingdom, never giving up hope. Very inspiring to pray for our oppressed Brothers and Sisters around the world. [side note: I don't completely agree with some theological comments made, though, I am not sure Sabina was expressing her views so much as rambling thoughts or feelings of the people around her]

[Bryana Beaird · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gives a much more complete picture of the Wurmbrand family’s personal history and I especially appreciated how openly Sabina writes about their struggles, loneliness and isolation, as she tells a very real and honest story. Somehow the significance of their endurance becomes even more overwhelming as we hear about the darkness that veiled their sight all the way and sundered everything from everything else. I found their son Mihai’s story particularly gripping as he grew up relatively orphaned for several years and struggled not to lose his faith.

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I spent my childhood reading Tortured For His Faith by Haralan Popov, over and over. This story was similar, but not as powerful to me personally. I am astounded and inspired by the hardships people endured under the Secret Police in Romania and nearby countries. This story reminded me of the responsibility we free Christians have to those who are persecuted, tortured, and killed for simply loving our God. The Pastor's Wife is well worth reading, but I would recommend Popov's book over it.

[Louisa Black · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. How much can we glean from the book even though we may not experience the level of pain and suffering this lady and many others faced, their experiences speak volumes about how we can endure and over come situations we find ourselves in.
This book exposes the way people treat others violating the position they are in, it can be uncomfortable to read at times.
As honest as Sabine Wurmbrand's words are at times, she is in no way condemning anyone, fueled by hatred or bitter in this book.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Thanks, but I've sold myself already. The Son of God was tortured and gave His life for me. Through Him I can reach heaven. Can you offer a higher price than that?"

Sabina Wurmbrand is as aspiring and inspirational as Corrie ten Boom.

Her faith, her commitment to Christ and serving Him, blew me away. Her testimony was deeply moving and more than once I was awed by it.

[Bonnie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gut wrenching and hauntingly beautiful. There is not a careless sentence in the entire book. Each one is exquisitely crafted though the subject matter bends toward the horrific. I loved this book and hated for it to be over. I felt like I was right there with Sabina in prison.

[Bethany Hanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly amazing!!!! I found myself enthralled and riveted the entire time. Your jaw will drop, and you will need a box of tissues. You'll want everyone you know to read this book when you are done, because the knowledge you gain should be shared to the world.

Highly recommend!

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eye-opening book about Christian persecution in Romania. Many people suffered and were tortured yet the perseverance of Christianity and the believers is truly inspirational

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I should have read this ages ago. My husband's father fled Romania after spending several years as a political prisoner--some of that time in the same prison Pastor Wurmbrand was kept in, though not at the same time. After marrying my mother-in-law, having a little boy (my husband) and their second child on the way, he fled to freedom in order to secure a future for his growing family. A home where devotion to Christ and open worship with His people is not threatened by secret police. A place where mothers do not have to bribe their doctors to prevent forced tubal ligation. A place where earning your daily bread does not mean betraying friends and family to the State for interrogation and torture. My husband was a toddler during the revolutions. My in-law's stories bear so many similarities to the hardships and persecution the Wurmbrands faced in Communist oppression that I often heard their voices through Sabina's testimony, and wept. My husband was only two years old when his parents were reunited and able to come to America together. Often, we read about the horrors that Jews, Christians, and dissenters from the false god of the Red State suffered as if it was a thing far in the past. It was not so long ago. And the lies propagated by the tyrants who lived by them are still affecting families and poisoning youth around the world.


Janetta said: 'What is happening in the prisons is the lesser part of the tragedy. Hundreds of thousands of people, this whole generation and the generation conceived in these years, will bear the marks of what Communism has done to us.'


Richard was called to testify... 'One third of the world is entitled to one third of your prayers, of your concerns, of your gifts... In prison I saw men with 50lb. chains at their feet, praying for America. But in America you seldom hear in a church a prayer for those in chains in Communist prisons.'

[Teo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, this is embarrassing but I'm going to have to admit it. I was under the impression, rightly or wrongly, that this story provided context for her husband's book, Tortured for Christ. That one has been on my bucket list for a long time. So, I read this book to provide that context . . . and then I was kind of blown away. Sabina's story stands by itself. All of the books about people who have suffered for their faith are inspiring, but I felt like I was sitting at Priscilla's (Book of Acts) feet and learning from her in addition to being inspired. So I was inspired and humbled.

One highlight was about women in ministry. What's a woman to do when all the pastors have been put in jail? Reminded me of women on the foreign mission field where there are no pastors and the Bible women in India who aren't pastors. Also reminded me of David and his men going in, practically starving, and eating the bread meant only for the priests.

One additional note: Sabina observed that after she was released from prison people began to treat her 'more highly than they ought to have' (my words) because of her heroic suffering. I wonder if some of the very personal things she shares about her own struggles and temptations are a response to that. But this made me wonder what Jesus' mother, the Virgin Mary, would say and how she would react to the way people have treated her and the things they began to say about her even within a couple of hundred years of her life all the way up to the 1800s and now, because of her heroic life and suffering ("a sword shall pierce your own soul"). I can't help but think that she would also respond the way Sabina responded, that people began to make her into something she wasn't and that people began to attribute to her things that simply weren't true. My wonderings.