"She was right that reality can be harsh and that you shut your eyes to it only at your peril because if you do not face up to the enemy in all his dark power, then the enemy will come up from behind some dark day and destroy you while you are facing the other way." These words from Frederick Buechner begin this chapter and I almost passed over them because I didn't feel they were fully relevant. It's been a hectic week in life, and therefore a slow week on the blog; but that may be a good thing because I'm not omitting this first section of the chapter.
John starts by talking about D-Day and the Allied invasion of France that took place at Normandy on June 6, 1944. And he shares how this crucial battle, the turning point of World War II began the night before the beaches were stormed. Paratroopers were dropped behind enemy lines to cut off reinforcements. It took guts and as John says, "It was a moment of unparalleled bravery ... and cowardice. For not ever trooper played the man that fateful night... One group took cowardice to a new level." And then he shares this account from that night.
"Too many had hunkered down in hedgerows to await the dawn; a few had even gone to sleep. Pvt. Francis Palys of the 506th saw what was perhaps the worst dereliction of duty. He had gathered a squad near Vierville. Hearing 'all kinds of noise and singing from a distance,' he and his men sneaked up on a farmhouse. In it was a mixed group from both American divisions. The paratroopers had found [liquor] in the cellar... and they were drunker than a bunch of hillbillies on a Saturday night wingding. Unbelievable."
I am willing to make the statement that D-Day was the most crucial moment in the Twentieth Century. If the Allies fail Hitler takes over all of Europe, and who knows where he goes from there. I've read lists that place the Moon Landing, Creation of Israel, Atomic Bombings, and Fall of the Berlin Wall above D-Day, but I have to ask, without D-Day how many of those take place? If D-Day is unsuccessful, Hitler wins, and the world as we know it does not exist.
Before the invasion began, General Eisenhower shared these words, which are written on the World War II memorial in Washington DC, with the men, "You are about to embark upon a great crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you... I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle." This moment was crucial,and yet during this event men who play a vital role are failing to fulfill it. As the eyes of the world are upon them, desperately needing them to do their job, they act as if nothing is wrong, like the threat is non-existent, and life back to normal.
"These men knew they were at war, yet they refused to act like it. They lived in a dangerous denial - a denial that endangered not only them but countless others who depended on them to do their part. It is a perfect picture of the church in the West when it comes to spiritual warfare."
These men put the future of the world in jeopardy by their actions, and if we refuse to be men, if we refuse to initiate boys into manhood, we do something very similar. And to move this forward into the next few posts, if we deny the enemy, if we close our eyes to his actions, we do something far worse because we put the eternal souls of ourselves, and everyone else, in danger.
I'm feeling the need to change the verse I post at the end of these.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
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