Stories of Faith and Courage from World War II

inserting my own feelings between the lines, feelings that harboured the fear that perhaps I might not be coming back at battle’s end. ”²²⁴

The lyrics of “Abide with Me” are meaningful no matter what our own situation may be.

Abide with me; fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens;
Lord, with me abide.

When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless,
O abide with me.

Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day;
Earth’s joys grow dim; its glories pass away.

Change and decay in all around I see;
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.

Come not in terrors, as the King of kings,
But kind and good, with healing in Thy wings,

Tears for all woes, a heart for every plea
Come, Friend of sinners, and thus bide with me.

I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless;
Ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness.

Where is death’s sting? Where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still, if Thou abide with me.

Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes;
Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies.

Heaven’s morning breaks, and the earth’s vain shadows flee;
In life, in death,
O Lord,
Abide with me.²²⁵

And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever.

—John 14:16 (KJV)

June 9 Family Roots

During the campaign through Italy, Frank Palilla had an enviable advantage. He spoke fluent Italian. Getting along easily with the natives, he was well supplied with fresh eggs, bread, and other food items. He also had a full canteen of wine most of the time. He shared all this bounty with his comrades, who repaid the favor by keeping him as safe as possible.

The highlight of his military service came when his unit was in a holding area near Bologna, and he was able to hitch a plane ride to Sicily. There he was able to visit Naro, the small Sicilian town where his parents grew up:

When I announced myself at the barbershop in the piazza the entire town turned out in minutes for a fantastic welcome. It was nothing but overwhelming festivity from there on. We stayed with my mother’s identical twin sister for the five days that we were there. The most emotional moments came when I visited the homes in which my parents had lived. In particular, in my father’s case not only was I in the room in which he was born, but I was in the presence of the very bed in which he was born. I experienced an unbelievable and everlastingly memorable emotion.²²⁶

This story is a great testament to the strength of family bonds that transcend time, distance, and even war. God ordained the importance of marriage and made family the foundational unit of society. He exhorted us to “ Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters”(Jeremiah 29:6). There are few activities more important to God than strengthening and sustaining the family unit.

[Jesus replied], “At the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female.’ ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”

—Mark 10:69

June 10 For Soldiers and Sailors

In 1941 the Episcopal Church of the United States published a small booklet for soldiers and sailors that could be carried in their pockets wherever they went. It included an Order of Worship, Holy Communion, prayers, psalms, readings, and hymns. All these were selected to meet the needs of military men and women of that time, and continue to be relevant and uplifting today:²²⁷

For the Army

O Lord of Hosts, stretch forth, we pray thee, thine almighty arm to strengthen and protect the soldiers of