War

December 20, 2023 07:00 AM MST
In the final months of 1938, the shadow of war was spreading across Europe. Meanwhile, a twenty-nine-year-old Nicholas Winton was preparing for a ski vacation in Switzerland, until his plans drastically changed.
6 Min Read
“At such times, our hearts ache for all victims of this atrocity.”
1 Min Read
April 07, 2023 01:30 PM MDT
“The Book of Mormon speaks of being poisoned by degrees, and I’ve always thought it to be representative of the way evil works: subtly easing us into extreme danger. I recently listened to Marie Vischer Elliott describe her family’s experience of becoming confined in a concentration camp, and I couldn’t stop thinking about this scripture.”
4 Min Read
April 06, 2023 07:00 AM MDT
80 years ago, a small plane carrying Latter-day Saint Joseph Tippets and 5 others crashed in the harsh Alaska wilderness. The tiny group of survivors spent the next 29 days in the dead of winter fighting for their lives.
9 Min Read
November 14, 2022 07:00 AM MST
Is it true that “if there is an Auschwitz, then there cannot be a God”? Does the Restoration convincingly address the problem of evil?
12 Min Read
September 28, 2022 02:36 PM MDT
When an unfamiliar woman came to Steven Collis’s book signing, he had no idea she would reveal an ending to the story more miraculous than he imagined.
8 Min Read
From the earliest hours of the crisis, the Church—through its members and humanitarian partnerships—has been actively involved in the relief efforts for refugees in Europe.
16 Min Read
May 05, 2022 09:14 AM MDT
Praying initially felt like a cheap way out: a way to feel like I was doing something without really doing anything. But President Nelson taught me otherwise.
5 Min Read
March 31, 2022 01:56 PM MDT
"Though the conditions are dire, we are not helpless. Our connection to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ can heal our wounds, our hearts, and the world," Elder Uchtdorf said.
1 Min Read
March 23, 2022 10:01 AM MDT
“I worked with refugees for years, but I never thought I’d be one.”
4 Min Read
The Church’s donations to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the World Food Program will help those displaced by the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.
1 Min Read
On Friday, the First Presidency said they are praying that “the controversies will end peacefully, and that peace will prevail among nations and within our own hearts.”
1 Min Read
February 09, 2022 01:50 PM MST
It’s been 175 years since the Mormon Battalion was formed, but only in the past year have historians discovered exactly who served with this historic group.
16 Min Read
December 09, 2021 06:00 PM MST
There were not enough parcels to give one to every man. So the commandant had come up with another solution—they would hold a raffle.
8 Min Read
December 07, 2021 06:00 AM MST
On Sunday morning, Dec. 7, 1941, Elder Wayne M. Winegar had just listened to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sing the words, “All is well.”
1 Min Read
November 11, 2021 09:00 AM MST
During WWII, one American bomber pilot single-handedly saved the lives of 90 men by listening to the promptings of the Spirit. That pilot was my grandfather, Ronald S Beckstrom.
11 Min Read
October 18, 2019 12:58 PM MDT
For Howard Wimberly of Greenwood, Florida, being friends with Albert Lane, a 97-year-old WWII veteran, has taught him one thing: It’s never too late in life to come unto Christ.
1 Min Read
September 30, 2019 09:00 AM MDT
*The following article previously ran on LDS Living in October 2015.
5 Min Read
September 23, 2019 03:32 PM MDT
I remember when a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles brought me to tears. He shed a few tears with me.
1 Min Read
July 08, 2019 06:00 PM MDT
Latter-day Saint women have always been able to hold their own. The doctrine and practices of the Church regarding women give us confidence born of the Spirit and teach us how to lead, teach, testify, rally others to a worthy cause, and express ourselves. And it has always been so. . . .
3 Min Read
These introductory paragraphs are excerpted from a 1995 manuscript by Herbert Kurt Ludwig and the author. Ludwig was an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints who served in the German infantry in World War II. His journey through World War II took him from the freezing steppes of Russia to the burning sands of North Africa, where he served as a motorcycle messenger in the headquarters of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel. Along with a 136,000 other Germans, he was abandoned by his country in North Africa, facing new dangers, opportunities, and challenges throughout the rest of the war.
18 Min Read
By  LDS Living
June 06, 2019 12:51 PM MDT
Sergeant Hugh Nibley was among the first to land on Utah Beach in Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944, exactly 75 years ago today. “My fate seems always to have been first in line. Our ship headed the convoy, and as if that were not enough, our party was to be the first ashore when contact was made with the division,” Nibley remembers of that day. In Meridian Magazine, Maurine Proctor recently compiled Sergeant Nibley's memories of D-Day in "Sergeant Hugh Nibley’s Surprising Memories of D-Day."
2 Min Read
May 27, 2019 09:25 AM MDT
Eveline Marie Charlet Kleinert was born at Pully, Vaud, Switzerland, on February 9, 1878, the daughter of Marc Louis Charlet and Delphine Catherine Vionnet. She was baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on October 1, 1896, at the age of 18, about a year and a half after her parents’ baptism.
7 Min Read
May 25, 2019 09:11 AM MDT
Latter-day Saints have a rich heritage of patriotism, going all the way back to the twelfth Article of Faith. Many have pledged their lives in military service as a part of that patriotism, and the Saints at War Project has collected the stories, photographs, and artifacts of their experiences. Here are just a few.
3 Min Read
November 29, 2018 05:03 PM MST
I met a former German soldier, Joseph F. Beuchert of Heidelberg, who was a young man when he was conscripted into the German army. He spent four years as a prisoner of war, an experience filled with physical deprivation. In hindsight, he came to regard one of the POW camps as a gateway to an abundant and fulfilling life. In that camp, he found one of his greatest blessings: knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
1 Min Read
November 24, 2018 12:13 PM MST
While carrying out a mission as a B-17 bomber pilot during WWII, Lieutenant Wendell Bradford Terry (Mike to his friends) and his crew flew through thick flak and antiaircraft fire while passing over the French coastline. The left wing of Terry's plane was hit by an antiaircraft shell, causing a large portion of the wing to break off and both of the left engines to stop functioning, sending the plane in a downward spiral. In addition, the wing caught fire and the flames moved toward the aviation fuel tank, which would cause a deadly explosion. It was then Terry rang the alarm bell and screamed into the intercom: “Bail out! Bail out! Bail out!”
7 Min Read
November 10, 2018 12:00 PM MST
Exactly 100 years ago, men from all over the world were fighting for a cause bigger than their own.
2 Min Read
November 09, 2018 09:02 AM MST
November 11, 2018, marks the 100th anniversary of the armistice that ended the fighting of the First World War, "the war to end all wars." At the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, the guns fell silent. Still, it would be another seven months before my grandfather, Samuel Thomas Roberts, received his discharge papers and his ticket home.
4 Min Read
By  LDS Living
November 06, 2018 03:26 PM MST
War has long been a difficult part of our human history. But you can find inspiration in these 11 books and DVDs that chronicle real-life and fictional characters and their search for faith, courage, and valor amidst some of the most difficult periods of history.
6 Min Read
November 06, 2018 12:40 PM MST
Veteran’s day is almost here, once again on November 11th, flags will fly and patriotic programs will prompt our remembrance of the service of our veterans. This year, Veteran’s Day coincides with the 100th anniversary of the close of the Great War, World War I. Touted to be the war to end all wars, World War I was one of the most terrible conflicts in history. At least nine million soldiers and nearly as many civilians died from war-related causes. This number does not include those who perished in consequence of the worldwide influenza pandemic near the end of the war.
4 Min Read
July 11, 2018 01:55 PM MDT
The following is an excerpt from President James E. Faust's April 2002 general conference talk, "The Lifeline of Prayer" during which he quotes from Elder Andre K. Anastasiou's October 1946 general conference address. We are grateful to Meridian Magazine for making us aware of this story. To read selections of the 1946 talk, you can read it on their site here.
1 Min Read
By  LDS Living
July 09, 2018 01:23 PM MDT
On a recent visit to Germany, Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorfmet with the German Chancellor in a historic meeting and attended a wreath-laying ceremony for Holocaust victims at the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. While reflecting on his experience at Sachsenhausen, Elder Uchtdorf shared a touching message on Facebook about a Latter-day Saint who was executed by the German government in 1942 along with an unforgettable message about the power of love:
1 Min Read
By  LDS Living
July 04, 2018 12:48 PM MDT
Shortly after arriving in Vietnam as an Air Force pilot, Larry Chesley looked around at the other airmen in his unit, his eyes stopping on a young man. “And the Spirit said, ‘He’s not coming home.’ And I dismissed it and I looked around the room and my eyes stopped on another man, and the Spirit said, ‘He’s not coming home.’
13 Min Read
July 01, 2018 10:00 PM MDT
After a reconnaissance mission in France during the closing years of World War II, Sergeant Benner Hall sat with his men along a small country road, waiting for his next assignment. A sudden feeling descended on Hall—a prompting to move his men out of danger.
6 Min Read
May 28, 2018 09:18 AM MDT
"And in that day shall be heard wars and rumors of wars, and the whole earth shall be in commotion" (D&C 45:26).
5 Min Read
April 24, 2018 12:20 PM MDT
During WWII, 17-year-old Albert Christman enlisted in the Marines, and after his service in the Pacific was awarded the Purple Heart.
1 Min Read
November 06, 2017 01:28 PM MST
What an inspiring story of missionary work, courage, and compassion.
1 Min Read
July 19, 2017 09:00 AM MDT
Warning: This article contains some war content that might be disturbing for some readers.
10 Min Read
May 26, 2017 12:03 PM MDT
"It is our heartfelt hope and prayer that they and many others have not sacrificed life in vain," LDS Chaplain Vernon A. Cooley wrote to then Elder Harold B. Lee. "In the present world-wide battles there have been some of our servicemen lost who were perhaps far more worthy than many of us who remain alive."
1 Min Read
Four months after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, President J. Reuben Clark Jr. read the First Presidency’s statement on war at the April 1942 general conference.
3 Min Read
May 20, 2017 08:49 AM MDT
There are examples of compassion all around us, but some are more obvious than others. And while extenuating circumstances such as war and depravation don’t seem likely places to find charity, one couple in Cedar City, Utah, has found a way to serve and love amidst tragedy and trials. They call it The Happy Factory.
8 Min Read
March 31, 2017 09:21 AM MDT
The first general conferences were more like sacrament meetings. Over time this changed, but an exception was made in October 1942.
1 Min Read
March 21, 2017 07:57 PM MDT
What an incredible story! It's amazing how these members worked together to restore something so personal to another family.
1 Min Read
February 22, 2017 03:28 PM MST
When Royce Fuhriman arrived home from World War II, he weighed only 95 pounds, an incredible contrast when compared to the 150 pounds he weighed when he left to serve as an 18-year-old. No doubt the war took a toll on Fuhriman, but he was never one to make a fuss about his service. "He never talked about the war, but as I grew up learning about the war and realizing what he went through, he's been my hero all my life," his daughter Patricia Eckman said.
1 Min Read
February 19, 2017 06:15 PM MST
World War II hero Saiji Zakimi courageously served the U.S. after Congress granted Japanese-American men the right to serve in the military—even as more than 100,000 Japanese Americans were being held in internment camps throughout the country. And since he found the gospel so many years ago, he has honorably served the Lord with the same commitment and integrity.
10 Min Read
February 06, 2017 03:42 PM MST
Col. Gail Halvorsen, a WWII pilot known for dropping candy rations from his plane for the impoverished children of war-torn Germany, was honored for his compassion and service by Utah lawmakers on Feb. 3.
1 Min Read
January 27, 2017 10:10 PM MST
Known as the bloodiest war in American history, the Civil War affected hundreds of thousands of lives. And even though they were removed from the main body of the United States, the Latter-day Saints living in Utah were not immune from all of its consequences. In fact, the Civil War was the first military conflict in which there were members of the Church on both sides, and the first American conflict in which a Latter-day Saint died from wounds received in battle.
6 Min Read
November 11, 2016 06:12 PM MST
"I picked up a stretcher and went around the beach picking up dead GIs. A bulldozer would dig a big hole, and we’d lay the bodies in there. The corpsman would take one dog tag and put it on his ring and leave the other tag on the body," Brother Darel Johnson recalls with tears in his eyes. “At night we slept on our bloody hammocks.”
1 Min Read
November 11, 2016 06:03 PM MST
Rachael Neff is a mother, a Mormon, and an officer in the Army. And that combination of things makes her a bit of an enigma.
7 Min Read
November 11, 2016 04:03 PM MST
We thank all the brave men and women who have served in militaries around the world to protect their countries.
28 Min Read