The War Prayer [B0171]

1968 HCDJ with worn/torn dust jacket and clean text pages. Written by Mark Twain during the Philippine-American War in the first decade of the twentieth century, The War Prayer tells of a patriotic church service held to send the town's young men off to war. During the service, a stranger enters and addresses the gathering. He tells the patriotic crowd that their prayers for victory are double-edged-by praying for victory they are also praying for the destruction of the enemy... for the destruction of human life. At Twain's request, the poem was not published until after his death - because he thought it would be considered sacrilegious.

From recent Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "Humankind's fundamental paradox. Is war or even lethal self-defense ever justifiable? The answer, according to one radical philosopher named Jesus, is no. How can we understand it, as it seemingly goes against all common sense? Perhaps only by faith."; "War may sometimes be a necessary evil. But no matter how necessary, it is always an evil, never a good. We will not learn how to live together in peace by killing each other's children.--Jimmy Carter. One of Twain's most thought provoking works. Highest recommendation."