CV Newsfeed // The National World War I Museum and Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri, shares stories of chaplains who provided spiritual support amid the violence of the battlefield.
according to LeavenThe “Sacred Service” exhibition is scheduled to open on May 23 and run until September 2025, and will feature artifacts, films, personal testimonies and photographs.
The photographs in the exhibition depict worship services taking place in trenches, bombed-out churches, caves, field hospitals, ships, forests, mountainsides and wherever troops gathered.
Patricia Cecil, specialist curator of faith, religion and World War I, said chaplains got creative by building makeshift altars out of overturned wooden boxes, sandbags and other materials they had on hand.
“The sacrament of Holy Communion provided spiritual strength and hope to many Catholic and Christian servicemen serving away from home,” Cecil said, “and struck a deep chord with many who had been so close to the possibility of death.”
Visitors can also see the pastor’s personal materials, including worship items, journals, uniforms, vestments and portable communion sets.
One of the exhibits is a New Testament given to a soldier by a chaplain who often accompanied the soldier to battle during the war, and records show that the chaplain was killed in action a few days later.
“But the gift lives on and the inscription inside conveys the connection between the two men,” Cecil said.
Cecil said many people are unaware of the vital role chaplains played during the war, and the profound impact religion had on the conflict and its lasting impact that continues to resonate to this day.
She explained that the exhibition showcases how pastors provided invaluable service during a time of fear and terror.
