The McNulty Memo (Monthly Musings on Faith and Public Life)
Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of articles looking at Christian faith in the public square. This is part of the Institute’s Center for Faith & Public Life initiative.
There is no better example of the influence of religion in American public life than the pervasiveness of faith in military service. A visit to the beaches of Normandy, France reinforces this point. The graves of more than 9,000 fallen American soldiers are marked by white crosses and Stars of David. They are among the crosses and graves of more than 200,000 such heroes interred in U.S. cemeteries throughout the world. A total of 26 such military cemeteries, filled with the symbol of Jesus’ sacrifice, exist on foreign soil.
These stately fields of precisely placed crosses testify to the remarkable relationship between Christianity and the American military. The tie runs deep. In fact, religious belief permeates military culture. More than 3,000 chaplains serve our men and women in uniform, and nearly 16,000 military leaders are members of the Officer Christian Fellowship. And while some dismiss this reality as simply the vestiges of an unenlightened bygone era, such thinking fails to see the important role of faith in promoting courageous action, providing needed comfort, and producing principles of conscience for waging war.
“There are no atheists in foxholes” is a familiar aphorism for making the point that people frequently turn to God when encountering extreme danger and fear. Unfortunately, for soldiers reared in secularized societies, the foxhole may be too late for gaining any meaningful encouragement. But for those with eyes of faith, they rightly see God as sovereign over the affairs of men on and off the battlefield. This heavenly perspective provides a larger and empowering view of the soldier’s purpose.
On the eve of the June 6, 1944 D-day Invasion of Europe in WWII, Supreme Allied Commander General Dwight D. Eisenhower issued an “Order of the Day” to the awaiting troops. He concluded his message with these words of faith, “And let us beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.” This appeal to God’s blessing inspired and motivated allied forces.
In his historically insightful second Inaugural Address, President Abraham Lincoln observed that both sides in the Civil War, “read the same Bible, and pray to the same God.” Historian Ronald C. White Jr. reports that the American Bible Society distributed more than five million Bibles in different formats over the course of the war. Bible verses such as “Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13) have enhanced bravery and encouraged extraordinary self-sacrifice.
A soldier’s religious frame of mind offers a much-needed source of comfort to his or her family. This is evident in wartime correspondence. And I know this first hand. When my grandmother learned that my father had been severely wounded in the Battle of the Bulge, she was strengthened by the fact that my dad was a devoutly religious man. His celebration of Mass in Belgium battlefields deepened his faith. She knew her son was fortified for the ordeal and unafraid of death. Military families understand the significance of this.
Finally, the guiding principles for waging war in Western civilizations are rooted in a biblical worldview. Building on Romans 13:4 (government’s responsibility to wield the sword against wrongdoers), Augustine originated the “Just War Theory.” His fifth-century work established extensive criteria for going to war (jus ad bellum) and the right conduct in war (jus in bello). In addition, the Judeo-Christian ethical tradition has informed policymakers in the development of a robust system of military justice applicable to the behavior of soldiers. This faith-based education of conscience separates the American miliary from Islamic extremists who may gain courage and a form of comfort from their religious beliefs but are unbound by the ethical norms of the just war tradition.
In his essay “The Abolition of Man,” C.S. Lewis famously criticized educational systems focused on intellect (mind) and appetite (stomach) but not the moral formation of the heart. These institutions were producing “men without chests.” He said, “We make men without chests and expect of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honour and are shocked to find traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful.”
This insight by Lewis applies to military institutions as well. Soldiers can be equipped and trained for battle and offered practical incentives, but faith supplies the courage, comforts, and principles of conscience necessary for fighting with bravery and moral integrity.