Means of Grace, Hope of Glory

In two world wars, British and American chaplains risked their lives to bring a fleeting sense of peace and glory to soldiers on the battlefield.

This article appears in: December 2010

By Robert Barr Smith They carried no weapons, only holy books and rudimentary vestments, a crucifix or a Star of David and sometimes a little Communion kit. But they were towering figures on the battlefield, symbols of something eternally good in a pitiless world of cruelty, horror, and death. In two cataclysmic world wars, American and British military chaplains served everywhere the armies and navies went, bringing peace where there was no peace and security where there was no security. When