General Patton’s Prayer For Weather At Christmas

On the anniversary of my Father’s passing, (Three years ago today) I found myself thinking about the movie Patton. For those who have not seen it or know who General Patton was, he was one of the greatest army generals in the history of the United States. My Father was a Corporal in General George Patton’s Third Army during the war.

The movie followed Patton in the European theater during World War II as the alliance battled the German army. Many quotes and actions of Patton were portrayed in the movie but all of them were not entirely accurate. Take for instance the scene in which Patton, (Played by actor George C. Scott) asked the army Chaplin to write a prayer for weather so his army could get on with the war and kill the Germans.

The movie scene went something like this:
Patton: Chaplin, I’m sick and tired of the 3rd army having to fight the Germans in this ungodly weather. I want a prayer, a weather prayer.

Chaplin: Weather prayer sir?

Patton: Yes, let’s see if we can’t get God working with us.

Chaplin: It would take a pretty thick rug for that kind of prayer General.

Patton: I don’t care if it takes a flying carpet.

Chaplin: I don’t know how this is going to be received General, praying for good weather so we can kill our fellow man.

Patton: I can assure you, because of my intimate relationship with God Almighty, that if you write a good prayer, we’ll have good weather. I expect that prayer in an hour.

Chaplin: Yes sir…. As Patton leaves the army tent.

Scene Change: Patton standing outside the tent in the snow as men load equipment and drive army vehicles preparing for battle, Patton stops and takes out the prayer the Chaplin wrote. With the snow swirling, he reads the prayer. The next day, the sky is clear and the 3rd army advances further against the German army enjoying superior air support.

But, as entertaining as that scene was, it was not very accurate. Yes, Patton did request a weather prayer from the Chaplin, and yes, it was intended to have good weather so the army could push forward against the German army, but the prayer came about a little bit differently.

On Dec. 8, 1944, General George Patton made a phone call from his office to the Chaplain James H. O’Neill, the 3rd army Chaplin. Patton asked him if he knew of any good prayers for weather. Patton stated that if we are to win this war, we must have fair weather.

Chaplin O’Neill wrote the following prayer:

“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 hearken to us as soldiers who call upon 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.”

But there is more to the story. Researching the Patton prayer online, I found Chaplin O’Neills website and his first person recounting of the actual events that took place.

Chaplin O’Neill typed the prayer onto an index card, and on the front side he typed a Christmas greeting from General Patton to his men in the third army. O’Neill showed Patton both the prayer and the Christmas greeting and Patton was impressed with both. Patton ordered O’Neill to have 250,000 copies of the prayer and greeting printed and distributed to every man in the 3rd Army. Patton himself signed the index card.

The Christmas Greeting was as follows:

To each officer and soldier in the Third United States Army, I Wish a Merry Christmas. I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty, and skill in battle. We march in our might to complete victory. May God’s blessings rest upon each of you on this Christmas Day. G.S. Patton, Jr, Lieutenant General, Commanding, Third United States Army.

I have that postcard letter that my father received.
Rest in peace Father. I know the weather is perfect for golf where you are at.

For the complete version of the Patton Prayer, please visit Chaplin O’Neill’s Webpage. You will find it quite entertaining and informational.

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General George Patton Photo-Op

General Patton Relieving Himself

My Dad was a World War II veteran serving as a Corporal in General George Patton’s 3rd Army, 249th Combat Engineers. Dad passed away one year ago today. R.I. P. Dad.

One of the pictures in Dad’s files was the one above. My Dad did not snap the picture, however he was there and saw almost this exact viewing angle. He wrote on the back of the photo the following…

March 25th, 1945. Nierstein, Germany, on the Rhine River. General George Patton stopped to inspect the Treadway bridge constructed by the 249th Combat Engineers. Patton is on the left raising the level of the Rhine River a little. (Patton is relieving himself over the side of the river)

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R.I.P. Dad – 1923-2008 – Press On

R.I.P. Dad 1923-2008

My Father passed away Monday, December 22nd, 2008 from a massive heart attack. Dad was 85 years old. Mere words cannot describe the man he was or how he influenced me, our family, and the many he helped along the way.

Dad was the youngest of 7 children. (Just like me) Dad was preceded in death by his son George, his sisters, Sadie, Helen, Mary, Libbs, Aida, and his brother George.

He leaves behind his wife (Delores) of almost 60 years. Next month is Dad and Mom’s 60th wedding anniversary. Also, two sons, Jack, and Patrick, (Me) four daughters, Carol, Marilyn, Nancy, and Sally.
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Dad was a World War II veteran serving in General George Patton’s 3rd Army, 249th Combat Engineers. Dad saw action IN the Battle Of The Bulge, perhaps the bloodiest battle in the European Theater, the Rhine Crossing, and liberated several concentration camps.

Dad once told me that he and his unit would draw straws to see who drew first round to sweep for mines before the tanks would roll into new territory. That day it was Dad’s turn to be first out. It was also a day that Patton was touring the unit which was very rare. When Patton learned what the men were doing, (Drawing straws) he immediately donned the mine sweeping gear and took first sweep.

Dad and Mom made sure the children were well traveled. By the time I was 15, I had visited all 48 continental states. Most of the vacations we went on was via the car. Nine people (Yes, 9, Mom, Dad, and the 7 children) in a station wagon driving from coast to coast. On one trip out West to California, we had been driving over 600 miles in one day already. Our destination was Flagstaff, Arizona for the evening. About ten minutes later, we saw a sign that said, FLAGSTAFF, 180 MILES.

All the kids moaned knowing we had another 3 hours in the car and pleaded for Dad to stop. But we all knew Dad’s motto was to “Press On!” And press on we did. We made Flagstaff in under three hours. The next day, California.

Growing up, I butted heads with my father on plenty of occasions. We argued a lot. I felt I was right in my thoughts. Dad would always remind me to look at the big picture of life. Not just one moment in time. He explained that sometimes what may seem right and correct right now might not be the prudent course for the future. Dad was always right. It took many years to understand that his advice was always to benefit me in the long run. I find myself passing along the exact same advice and logic to my son. And at the age of 21, I believe he realizes my experience and advice benefits him.

Dad taught me to have faith, but not blindly believe. In both religion and politics. To love your family unconditionally, without exception. To help and offer charity, even when not asked. To respect the brave men and women in the military who have served and protected our country. To work hard, to know your job better than anyone else in the company. To listen what others have to say. To be a Vikings fan. To love God, pray hard. And to laugh out loud.

And he taught me to Press On.

An Irish Prayer
May those who love us, love us;
And those who don’t love us,
May God turn their hearts.
But if He doesn’t turn their hearts,
May he turn their ankles.
So we’ll know them by their limping.

Rest In Peace Father
Your Loving Son – Patrick

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World War II Ghost Story

This is a ghost story that my father told me when he was a soldier in World War II. Dad was a Corporal in General Patton’s army. As they were marching their way across Europe on one particular day, Dad and one of his best friends, (We’ll call him Sweeney) got separated from their unit during some heavy exchanges with the Germans. The unit was scattered as they sought cover from incoming shelling. When it was over, they could not find the way back to their unit.

As darkness settled in, a steady rain began to fall and they decided to hole up in one of the many abandoned bombed out buildings scattered along the road. They came to this one building, (Dad described it as looking like a mini castle.) They both ducked in out of the rain to rest. They would continue their search for their unit when the light of dawn came. Both men did a quick inspection of the place to verify that they were alone. There was scattered furniture, broken crates, boxes, and simple clutter on the floor. There were huge holes in the walls and ceiling where bombs had hit their target. The only thing that wasn’t completely destroyed was an old pipe organ leaning in the corner of the room.

As they opened their food rations they heard a sound coming from where the organ was. Dad went over to investigate. Nothing was out of the ordinary. They chalked it up to their imagination. As they sat back down, this time they knew they heard a sound. It was the damn organ playing. Dad and Sweeney went over to the organ and saw the keys moving up and down and heard the music playing. Sweeney thought at first that it was a player piano type organ but upon further inspection, they noticed that there were no guts to the organ, as the insides of the wood cabinet had been shredded to bits. There was no way that organ could be playing. Yet, there they were, listening and watching the organ play on.

Dad looked at Sweeney, and Sweeney looked at Dad, and after a few more bars played on the organ, Sweeney said he was getting the hell out of there. Sweeney said that it was a ghost and that the ghost didn’t want them in his building. Both ran out of the building and down the road and several minutes later ran right into their unit.

The Captain said that both men were extremely lucky that they found the unit. The unit had switched course and was heading in a more Northern direction. If they would have waited till morning as planned, the unit would have been long gone. Dad and Sweeney would have been left behind enemy lines and more than likely captured. Dad again looked at Sweeney knowing that the ghost that was at the organ playing that strange melody had saved their lives by making them leave at night instead of at dawn.

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