Stories of Faith and Courage From World War II (21 page)

Montgomery knew that in the fog of war it is easy to become cautious and to overestimate the enemy’s strength. He put this reminder before him that victory always requires a final push, that there is a point where a supreme effort is necessary to win the battle, as exemplified by Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul exhorts us to the same supreme effort to finish the race and to complete our work for the Lord.

I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me.

—Acts 20:24

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PRIL 6

The Führer

In November 1942 Field Marshal Erwin Rommel knew that the end was near for Germany’s forces in North Africa. The British 8
^th
Army had broken his line at El Alamein and was pushing relentlessly westward across Libya. A large American and British force had landed in Morocco and Algeria, and was advancing eastward toward Tunisia. Supplies of fuel and ammunition to his own army had been reduced to a trickle by Allied interdiction. Rommel returned to Germany for a meeting with Adolf Hitler on November 28. In a tense atmosphere the field marshal went over the details of the recent campaign. When he tried to point out the inevitable, he was astounded at the reaction:

Unfortunately, I then came too abruptly to the point and said that, since experience indicated that no improvement in the shipping situation could now be expected, the abandonment of the African theatre of war should be accepted as a long-term policy. If the army remained in North Africa, it would be destroyed… the mere mention of the strategic question worked like a spark in a powder barrel. The Fuehrer flew into a fury and directed a stream of completely unfounded attacks upon us.

There was no attempt at discussion. I began to realize that Adolf Hitler simply did not want to see the situation as it was, and that he reacted emotionally against what his intelligence must have told him was right.
¹²⁶

In many ways Adolf Hitler was a genius. He was a charismatic leader and master motivator. He had at his disposal one of the great military machines in history, led by a corps of supremely capable general officers. Fortunately for the Allies, he sometimes overruled these officers during his fits of rage. Anyone who becomes so obsessed with his own ego that he can’t listen to others is doomed to failure. This fatal flaw was a manifestation of evil in Adolf Hitler that played a large role in his and Germany’s eventual destruction.

They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills. Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence. From their callous hearts comes iniquity; the evil conceits of their minds know no limits.

—Psalm 73:5–7

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PRIL 7

God of the Free

Stephen Vincent Benet received the Pulitzer Prize in 1929 for his long narrative poem, “John Brown’s Body.” He is most famous, however, for his short story, “The Devil and Daniel Webster,” which appeared in the
Saturday Evening Post
in 1938 and was made into a movie in 1941. The story is about a New England farmer who, despairing over his bad luck, made a pact with the devil. When the final payment came due, Daniel Webster defended him before a jury of famous evil-doers. Even though these jurors were under the devil’s jurisdiction, Webster won the case by appealing to their innately American trait of independence. Benet’s feelings for American patriotism and freedom are major themes of the story. In 1942 he wrote a prayer for President Roosevelt reflecting these same themes. The president recited the prayer before the nation on Flag Day of that year:

God of the free, we pledge our hearts and lives today to the cause of all free mankind. Grant us victory over the tyrants who would enslave all free men and nations. Grant us faith and understanding to cherish all those who fight for freedom as if they were our brothers. Grant us brotherhood in hope and union, not only for the space of this bitter war, but for the days to come which shall and must unite all the children of earth… We are all children of earth—grant us that simple knowledge. If our brothers are oppressed, then we are oppressed. If they hunger, we hunger. If their freedom is taken away, our freedom is not secure. Grant us a common faith that man shall know bread and peace—that he shall know justice and righteousness, freedom and security, an equal opportunity and an equal chance to do his best, not only in our own lands, but throughout the world. And in that faith let us march, toward the clean world our hands can make. Amen.
¹²⁷

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

—Galatians 5:1

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PRIL 8

Ike

Dwight D. Eisenhower’s rise to major command can legitimately be described as meteoric. In 1940 “Ike” was a lieutenant colonel and had never commanded any sized unit in combat. By 1942, after four promotions, he was a lieutenant general in command of Operation Torch and all forces landing in North Africa. Even though most Army officers knew of his organizational talents, some considered his success extremely fortunate and some even thought it providential. George Patton privately claimed Eisenhower’s initials stood for “Divine Destiny.”

Gen. Dwight Eisenhower (Eisenhower Presidential Library)

On November 5, 1942, Eisenhower arrived in British-held Gibraltar to establish his headquarters for Operation Torch. As one historian noted, the British began to take his measure:

He was a true believer in Allied righteousness: “If (the Axis) should win we would really learn something about slavery, forced labor, and loss of individual freedom.” He took pride in being apolitical, as required of American Army officers, and he impressed others—as one British admiral later noted—as “completely sincere, straightforward, and very modest.” There was that incandescent grin, of course, said to be “worth an army corps in any campaign.” Both his face and his hands moved perpetually, and he exuded a magnetic amiability that made most men want to please him. Perhaps that was because, as one admirer asserted, they intuited he was “good and right in the moral sense,” or perhaps it was because, as a British air marshal concluded, “Ike has the qualities of a little boy which make you love him.”
¹²⁸

General Eisenhower was a complicated and uniquely gifted man. His open and sincere nature disguised a keen intellect, a broad range of knowledge, and an amazing capacity for hard work. I believe, however, that one of the greatest keys to his success was his essential “goodness” as a human being, which others sensed in his presence. This quality ensured the loyalty of many strong personalities under his command in spite of many contentious disagreements over strategy.

So he sent and had him brought in. He was ruddy, with a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the L
ORD
said, “Rise and anoint him; he is the one.” So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the L
ORD
came upon David in power.

—1 Samuel 16:12–13

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PRIL 9

An Orgy of Disorder

The Operation Torch landings were the first large-scale amphibious operations conducted at night. The confusion and resulting disarray were beyond anyone’s expectations. Gen. George Patton went ashore at Red Beach 1, near Fedala, to a scene of complete chaos. Instead of a four-mile beachhead, troops and equipment were scattered over forty miles of Moroccan coastline. Only five of seventy tanks had reached shore. To direct naval gunfire, nine fire control parties had landed, but only two were able to communicate with the ships providing support. Local civilians were out on the beaches pilfering supplies and discarded equipment.

Gen. George Patton (Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library)

Patton had once described combat as “an orgy of disorder.”
¹²⁹
What he found in his first actual exposure fully confirmed this view. Once ashore he had little information on what was happening anywhere other than on his own beach. He said, “My theory is that an army commander does what is necessary to accomplish his mission and that nearly 80 percent of his mission is to arouse morale in his men.”
¹³⁰
He did motivate those around him as he worked through the confusion to gain control of his units and to coordinate the advance.

George Patton had many great qualities as a military leader. Demonstrated here is the ability to live with ambiguity, or “the fog of war,” as it is called, and to function in spite of it. This is the norm in combat. In our daily lives we also experience confusing situations where the way ahead is not clear. Our best strategy is to constantly strive to deepen our relationship with the One who cares most for us. As we become more intimate with God, we will be better able to discern the difference between our own thoughts and his voice. When we understand and act on his will, the ambiguity in our lives will disappear.

For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.

—1 Corinthians 13:12 (KJV)

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PRIL 10

Grand Entrance

On the second day of the Allied landings in North Africa, the British flagship HMS
Bulolo
steamed into Algiers harbor. A group of French citizens waited on the jetty to greet the ship. Unknown to the captain on the bridge or the crew in the engine room, the engine order telegraph had been damaged earlier by a German bomb’s near miss. Since the telegraph transmits orders to the engine room from the bridge, a routine docking order for full steam astern went unheard. The result was almost catastrophic.

The French welcoming committee on the jetty watched with mounting alarm as the ship loomed nearer at twelve knots. Officers on the bridge debated whether Bulolo ’s masts would likely shear off forward or backward upon impact. Shrieking bysanders scattered; the captain yelled, “Everyone lie down!” to his crew; and the great bow heaved up onto a fortuitous mudbank, demolishing the seawall and nicking a waterfront house before settling back into the harbor, intact. Applauding spectators recovered their wits and agreed that the Royal Navy knew how to make an entrance.
¹³¹

In 1981 Ronald Reagan was about to have surgery for a gunshot wound inflicted by a would-be assassin. He looked around at the surgical team and commented, “I hope you’re all Republicans.”
¹³²
We’re always thankful for someone who can see some humor in an otherwise dire situation. This kind of humor can relieve the tension that tends to compound the problem. It also reflects an ability to live in the present moment and a faith that all will be well in the end. Such faith can be contagious, especially when it comes from an authority figure. We should always look for ways to lighten the burden of those around us with humor.

Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy.