Lecture Series: Alex Kershaw—Patton’s Prayer: A True Story of Courage, Faith and Victory in WWII.

Alex Kershaw—Patton’s Prayer: A True Story of Courage, Faith and Victory in WWII.

General George Patton needed a miracle. In December 1944, the Allies found themselves stuck. Rain had plagued the troops daily since September, turning roads into rivers of muck, slowing trucks and tanks to a crawl. A thick ceiling of clouds had grounded American warplanes, allowing the Germans to reinforce. The sprint to Berlin had become a muddy, bloody stalemate, costing thousands of American lives.

Patton seethed, desperate for some change, any change, in the weather. A devout Christian, he telephoned his head chaplain. “Do you have a good prayer for the weather?” he asked. The resulting prayer was soon printed and distributed to the 250,000 men under Patton’s command. “Pray when driving,” the men were told. “Pray when fighting. Pray alone. Pray with others. Pray by night and pray by day. Pray for the cessation of immoderate rains, for good weather for Battle. . . . Pray for victory. . . . Pray for Peace.”

Educated at Oxford University, Alex Kershaw is the widely-acclaimed, prize-winning, New York Times best-selling author of twelve books.