Stories of Faith and Courage from World War II

by Larkin Spivey

  During the days that followed he was hidden in haystacks, barns, and basements. Every night he was moved and handed off to another Resistance group. Finally, the difficult arrangements were made for a light plane to pick him up in a field at night. After several failed attempts, he was successfully rescued and flown back to England. His experience gave him another new perspective on war and the dedication of the people who helped him:

  The Gestapo and German Army were always looking for downed American and British pilots. Whenever the Germans saw a parachute coming down or they found one of our planes wrecked but no body in it they would flood the area with search parties. If I got caught, I’d be sent to a POW camp. But if the Resistance guys got caught, they would be executed on the spot.277

  This is the measure of true commitment, to be prepared to give your life for a cause. Dying for our faith may be a remote possibility, but, if we are committed to our faith, we need to resolve how we will act when things get difficult. My Bible provides an essay with some pointed advice on this subject: “In essence, we must consistently choose to love and obey God, even when doing so is hard or mundane. Like a marriage partner, we choose to stick with God ‘for better or for worse.’ God blesses those who consistently come to him.”278

  “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.”

  —Psalm 91:14–15

  July 14

  Every Day Is Monday

  Whit Hill received his draft notice in September 1941 and promptly enlisted in the Army Air Corps. He was sent to sheet metal repair school to learn the skills needed to fix damaged aircraft fuselages. He went to England with the 91st

  Bomb Group and soon became a crew chief over seven other men charged with keeping a squadron of B-17 bombers in the air. As the tempo of bombing missions increased, so did the pressure on Hill and his crew.

  At the end of each mission the battle and mechanical damage of each returning aircraft was assessed and time to make necessary repairs was estimated. The planes requiring the least amount of work were the first to be repaired. Then there were many shot-up aircraft. The sheet-metal crews would help each other out. There were times when the sheet-metal crews did not get to bed for 72 hours. None of the men from the ground crew mechanics, electricians, prop specialists, bomb loaders, sheet-metal repairmen had any set daily working hours. Every day was Monday; it was ‘work until you drop’ and the password for requested tasks was ‘how soon?’279

  I was once amazed by a study showing the morale of postal workers highest during the Christmas season. This seemed counterintuitive at first glance. However, I have learned that most people do respond to a challenge. In fact, many thrive on difficult tasks and take considerable pride in seeing them through. This is a fact of human nature that we should remember in any leadership role. There are always those who thrive on the difficult assignments. They can accomplish great things only if challenged and given opportunities.

  Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give.

  —2 Corinthians 9:67

  July 15

  God, Get Us Out of Here

  Jon Schueler did not want to be on the mission. He was sick, but had been ordered to fly anyway. To make matters worse, he had to fill in as navigator for a crew he didn’t know. After a difficult bombing run over St. Nazaire, his B-17 Flying Fortress finally turned for home and then flew into a real calamity: 120 miles per hour headwinds. The formation seemed to inch toward home as enemy fighters constantly preyed on the struggling bombers.

  It seemed as though we would never get home. We waited for the Focke Wulfs and the Messerschmitts and we watched the Fortresses fall. Falling Forts. I wanted to hold them. I wanted to go down with them. I wanted to go home. I prayed. I prayed, please God… don’t make this go on and on and on… I can’t stand this boring repetition, please God, get us out of here and get this over with.280

  God did answer these prayers, and Jon Schueler returned safely from this mission. However, he was almost shattered by the experience. He was consumed with guilt and the thought that he was responsible for the deaths he had seen. He couldn’t sleep, started losing weight, and was eventually taken off flight status. This was a sensitive man who was affected deeply by what he experienced. It is not uncommon for anyone to feel guilt over his or her survival, or even success, when others are not so fortunate. I believe, however, that there is a better response available when things turn out well for us. We can be thankful, as we prayerfully work through these feelings of guilt. Thankfulness is a more positive attitude that will bring us closer to our Father in heaven, the ultimate source of forgiveness for our real and imagined flaws.

  Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.

  —Hebrews 10:22

  July 16

  I Will Pay It Gladly

  LaVerne Saunders was an airman and hero of World War II, earning the Navy Cross, Distinguished Service Medal, Distinguished Flying Cross, Silver Star, and Purple Heart. He commanded a bomber group during the Solomon Islands campaign in the Pacific. In one of his famous exploits he was a passenger in a B-17 when the pilot and copilot were seriously wounded by a Japanese fighter attack. Saunders coolly took the controls, ditched the aircraft near an island, and got the crew to safety.

  On Christmas Day 1942 he became one of the Army’s youngest brigadier generals and took over 7th Bomber Command. Later, he was a key figure bringing the new B-29 bomber into operational service. With 20th Bomber Command he took a B-29 wing to India and China in 1944 and led the first long-range strikes against mainland Japan. In that year he also wrote a moving prayer as an inspiration for military men and women serving around the world:

  Help Me to Do My Duty

  O God, most merciful and just, look upon this suppliant soldier and help me to do my duty in all things for love of Thee. Make me strong in conflict, brave in adversity, and patient in suffering. Make me vigilant to defend my country against her enemies and proud to carry her cause fearlessly into battle. I do not ask to be preserved free from all bodily harm, and if death is the price I must pay for my country’s freedom, I will pay it gladly, trusting in Thy infinite mercy that Thou wilt make a place for me in heaven, there to know peace and happiness for all eternity. Bless and protect my loved ones at home, and grant that my sacrifices on the field of battle may make me worthy of their trust and confidence, through Christ our Lord. Amen.281

  It is uplifting to see another great military leader of World War II humbly share his faith and help others turn to God for strength to endure whatever hardships lay before them.

  O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise. You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and contrite heart.

  —Psalm 51:15–17

  July 17

  Join Ups in the Dark

  The airmen of World War II had to face the terrible risks of fighter attack and anti-aircraft fire. Less obvious were the risks associated with accidents. Some of the most dangerous conditions were brought on by the simple phenomenon of darkness. A twenty-year-old B-17 pilot from Tennessee described the difficulty of organizing aircraft in the dark:

  Daylight joinups were easy. A predawn joinup, a low overcast that you had to climb until you were on top, sometime 18,000 to 20,000 feet and then try to join up was terrible. Scary! Imagine a thousand airplanes trying to line up in groups of thirty-six, spaced two minutes apart in pitch-black darkness and over an exact spot in the English Channel at a precise time, make the orderly, perfect formation envisioned by the men behind armor-plat
ed desks, you get a feeling for the high risk of collision… When it did happen, two 65,000pound, four-engine aircraft loaded with bombs and 2,780 gallons of high octane made a very untidy mess.282

  During my military service I was always amazed at how difficult it was to do anything in the dark. A simple task like navigating a small unit from point A to point B was challenging. Coordinating units maneuvering in the field could be fraught with confusion.

  There is a parallel here to our spiritual lives. When we try to live without God at the center of our lives, we experience a special kind of darkness. Simple things become complicated. Forgiving others for their mistakes should be easy and effortless. However, without God, we get wrapped up in our own hurt feelings. Without God’s light guiding our way, we stay confused within ourselves. Our own desires and motives lead us along truly dark and confusing paths. Only with God’s light can we see the straight path that we need to be walking with him.

  Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.

  —Isaiah 58:8

  July 18

  Ploesti

  The B-24’s flew “straight into a scene that resembled the background of a medieval painting of hell.”283

  Raging fires, black smoke, flak bursts, and tracers filled the air over the oil refineries of Ploesti, Romania. One hundred seventy-seven American bombers flew thirteen hundred miles from North Africa to attack the strategic target providing thirty percent of Germany’s oil. Flying at tree top level in daylight, under radio silence, the daring raid was difficult to coordinate and highly dangerous. Instead of arriving simultaneously over the six refineries, the B-24s came in a few at a time to face alerted anti-aircraft batteries and fighter opposition. On that day in August 1943 forty-four aircraft went down with the loss of almost five hundred men. Five earned the Medal of Honor.

  Twenty-one-year-old Capt. Richard Butler of San Diego, California, was a volunteer for the Ploesti mission. He and many others faced the unknown and their own fear with the most effective source of comfort known:

  I was the co-pilot of our B-24 and Walt Bunker was the pilot. Walt was anything but a religious man, so I was surprised, as we were going out across the Mediterranean, to see Walt pull out one of the small Bibles we were issued and start reading it. I always carried mine with me and I got it out and read some Psalms. I had read from the Good book on other missions, but I had never seen Walt reading from a Bible. That kind of gives you an idea about how serious we were taking this mission.284

  There are many psalms that reassure us during difficult times. Psalm 23 is the best known and most memorized. I have found the transcendent imagery of Psalm 91 a special source of encouragement when I am fearful: “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty”(Psalm 91:1). Scripture such as this enables us to turn our attention away from our earthly concerns and toward our Father in heaven. Even though the dangers that we face may not go away, we know from his Word that God, through his Son, has assured us of his eternal protection.

  You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.

  —Psalm 91:56

  July 19

  Redemption

  George McGovern was a famous member of the “Greatest Generation.” During World War II he was a bomber pilot with thirty-five combat missions to his credit. He later became a congressman and senator from South Dakota and the Democratic candidate in the 1972 presidential election.

  He expressed one regret about the war. As he pulled away from the target on one of his last missions over Austria he received word that a five-hundred-pound bomb was hung up in the bomb bay. The bomb was armed, making it impossible to land safely. Working feverishly, several crewmen tried to free the deadly projectile. Unfortunately, it came loose as the bomber flew over a small farm. McGovern looked down in horror as the bomb destroyed a cluster of houses on the farm.

  For forty years he lived with a sense of guilt over this incident. In 1985 he was lecturing at the University of Innsbruck and, in response to a question from a television reporter, described his regret about the accidental bombing of those farmhouses. That night an elderly Austrian farmer called the television station with a message for the senator:

  “Tell the American senator that it was my farm. We saw this low bomber coming, where all the others that had come over earlier were way up above. I got my wife and three daughters out of the house and we hid in the ditch, and no one was hurt. You can tell him that I despised Adolf Hitler, even though my government threw in with him.”285

  When he heard these words, George McGovern was finally able to sigh in relief. He said, “After all those years, I got redemption.”286 Every thinking person involved in war comes away with some sense of guilt. I believe that God honors such pangs of conscience and offers each of us a path to our own redemption.

  Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

  —Romans 8:12

  July 20

  The Wrong Seat

  George McGovern was the son of a Methodist minister and grew up in a household that took faith and morals seriously. After the war he attended theological seminary to pursue an interest in applying Christian ethics to practical life. He was a student minister for about a year, until he decided on a different career path that took him into teaching and eventually politics. In a 2003 article he talked about his service in the war and his ambivalence about God’s role in it:

  As a World War II bomber pilot, I was always troubled by the title of a then-popular book, God is My Co-pilot. My co-pilot was Bill Rounds of Wichita, Kansas, who was anything but godly, but he was a skillful pilot, and he helped me bring our B-24 Liberator through thirty-five combat missions over the most heavily defended targets in Europe. I give thanks to God for our survival, but somehow I could never quite picture God sitting at the controls of a bomber or squinting through a bombsight deciding which of his creatures should survive and which should die.287

  I agree with the observation that God doesn’t squint through bombsights or pick targets for destruction in war. The title of the book mentioned doesn’t necessarily imply that either, but is instead intended to convey the idea that God was there with the author, protecting him during his missions. Others, including myself, have also been troubled by the title of this book, but for a different reason. If God is our copilot, then the implication is that he is along for the ride, watching out for us and protecting us during dangerous moments. However, if he is the pilot, then he has the controls. The bumper sticker says it best:

  If God Is Your Co-pilot,

  YOU ARE IN THE WRONG SEAT

  “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

  —Jeremiah 29:11

  July 21

  A Prayer of Thanks

  Ed Brandt stared up at the German Me-262 diving directly toward him. From the nose compartment of his B-26 bomber, he had a clear view. The yellow-nose jet bore in straight at his aircraft and then passed close in front, without firing his cannon. There was little time to enjoy this “good fortune.” Ahead, another six-plane formation seemed to erupt as a B-26 exploded and crashed into two others. The intercom came alive with shouting gunners calling out enemy aircraft.

  On April 26, 1945, the 17th Bombing Group made an all-out effort to destroy the German airbase at Lechfield, home of the new German jet fighter, the Me-262. With an incredible airspeed outclassing Allied fighters, these aircraft were proving a serious threat. This raid was opposed by large numbers of the deadly Me-262s and proved to be the most costly of the war for the 17th. When his ship landed at home base Brandt learned tha
t most of his squadron had not returned. He and his crew said a prayer of thanks for having survived this battle, which turned out to be their last combat mission of the war.

  Years later Ed Brandt learned that one of the German pilots involved in the Lechfield battle had written an account of his part in the action. He described how he had dived on a formation of B-26s only to have his 20mm cannon malfunction when he pressed the trigger. This was probably the occurrence that saved Brandt and his fellow crewmen on that day. He could only reiterate his prayer of thanks to God for another miraculous occurrence that had enabled him to survive one of the most dangerous missions of the war.288

  When I was in great need, he saved me. Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord has been good to you. For you, O Lord, have delivered my soul from death.

  —Psalm 116:68

  P-51 Mustang fighter. (U. S. Dept. of Defense)

  P-47 Thunderbolt fighter. (U. S. Dept. of Defense)

  July 22

  Repetitive Training

  Chip Bork was on his second strafing run trying to knock out a German tank when “all hell broke loose.” Ground fire ripped through his P-47 fighter, wounding him severely and starting a fire in the cockpit. In a state of shock and semiconsciousness, he was only vaguely aware of the next few moments. His first clear recollection was a loud pop as he looked up to see his parachute open above him and himself floating free of his spiraling aircraft.