The Faith of a Father

I have a notebook that my dad carried with him during his service in World War II. This notebook contains notes from my dad’s Bible study during his war service. My dad was getting ready to apply to the university to finish his college degree when he was notified that he was up for the draft to serve in the war. When his draft came up, he packed his bags and headed for duty.

He was assigned to several different posts in the US before boarding a ship at San Pedro, CA. With little training, he and his comrades on the ship had to be soldiers, willing to do what they could to help turn the tide of war. While on the ship, he wrote about initiations that ended in knife fights. He told us that when the ship hit the open ocean, the deck and stairwells were flooded with men’s “throw-up.” Some of the soldiers became deathly ill from dehydration. As the ship passed the equator, men died from the heat. The men who died on board were buried at sea—meaning they were thrown overboard.

While on the ship he found some Christian soldiers who became close friends. They met on Sundays for church, and they studied scriptures together daily. This was when he purchased the notebook from the ship’s store and started to make his own “ready reference” of the Bible by topic. This was a set of topics he was interested in with relevant scriptures listed under each title. As he studied the Bible, he added scriptures to each topic that added understanding. The result is a wonderful view of God’s teachings. Here are a couple of lines he wrote:

"Christ, the Mediator: There is no name under heaven by which man may be saved. Acts 4:7-12. “For there is one God and one mediator between God and man—Jesus Christ. 1 Timothy 2:5.”

His ship stopped in Australia, and then continued up to India. When the ship finally docked, my dad was ordered to disembark. He wrote, “The commanding officer said that 14 of us were being sent to Army Post Office 625. ‘Where is it?’ we asked. ‘That is a military secret,’ he answered. ‘How do we get there?’ we asked. He wouldn’t tell us. ‘What if we don’t find it?’ He said we would be marked as deserters and shot.’ Dad and his comrades were put on a train and told to ask if it was APO 625 at every stop. After travel by train, ferry, and plane, he found himself in northern Burma, not far from the Chinese border.

My dad was blessed to be stationed far from the battles. However, for a man planning to be in college at this time in his life, his situation was not easy. For example, “…I was on duty one night in the radio dug-out handling air traffic calls. It was a quiet night. To help [stay awake] I had a tropical Butterfinger in my flight jacket pocket. They were made of soybean flour instead of sugar so they wouldn’t melt. About 2 am I reached for my Butterfinger…. My hand went into my pocket and a beast with fur ran out on my arm, up to my shoulder, then jumped to the ground. It was a rat.” He spent the rest of the night between traffic calls trapping and eliminating rats, using his Butterfinger as bait. He wrote that at another time the commanding officer called him in and said, “Taylor, I am sending you to Warazup. A tiger has killed five men there….”

When the war finished, my dad had completed four small volumes of his topical guide to the scriptures. He brought these home with him.

He wrote, “I was grateful for the preparation [of writing] a ready-reference of the Bible. Reading the scriptures, writing references, and the study involved was a great comfort and support for my spiritual well-being while serving in Burma.”

I grew up in the shadow and example of my father's mighty faith. By the time I was born, my dad's faith was strong and immovable. He called on the powers of Heaven to bless our family, and we were blessed. His home was filled with light and the peace of God "that passeth all understanding" (Phillippians 4:7). As his child, this peace was so comfortable and familiar to me, that I naturally avoided situations and places where it did not exist.

Today, we don't have to be on a distant ship in the middle of a war to find ourselves ungrounded. Turmoil, incorrect philosophies, and temptation are only a click away.

It is powerful to know that no matter what is happening around us, we can anchor ourselves to the power and peace of Jesus Christ. From my dad, I learned that when we are disciples of Jesus Christ, wherever we are can be a holy place.

Beth Wright is thankful for her family, believes in Jesus Christ, and loves being a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.