Prayer for Clear Weather
On December 8, 1944, General George Patton directed that every man in the 3rd Army pray for cessation of the rains that had bogged down the Allied advance. A chaplain drafted the prayer that was then printed on two hundred fifty thousand three-by-five-inch cards and distributed to the troops:
Almighty and most merciful Father, we humbly beseech Thee, of Thy great goodness, to restrain these immoderate rains with which we have had to contend. Grant us fair weather for Battle. Graciously harken to us as soldiers who call Thee that, armed with Thy power, we may advance from victory to victory, and crush the oppression and wickedness of our enemies, and establish Thy justice among men and nations. Amen.468
I had always considered this prayer a little bit of semi-sacrilegious theater on Patton’s part, until I read the story of the man who wrote it. Col. James H. O’Neill was chaplain of the 3rd Army and knew General Patton well. He vouched for the sincerity of Patton’s religious belief and of this appeal for God’s help. He considered the general to be a man who, “had all the traits of military leadership, fortified by genuine trust in God, intense love of country, and high faith in the American soldier.”469
Two days after the prayer cards were distributed, the German 6th Panzer Army took advantage of the bad weather and poor visibility, launching their great last-ditch offensive through the Ardennes Forest. After stunning successes in the first few days, the fate of the German advance was sealed on December 20 when the weather cleared, allowing Allied air attacks to turn the tide of the battle. George Patton prayed for clear weather, and he got it at one of the most crucial moments of the war.
He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples.
—Luke 8:24–25
American troops advancing into Germany. (National Archives)
Crossing the Rhine in assault boats. (National Archives)