The War Prayer by Mark Twain. Short summary

5 seconds

On the eve of an army invading a foreign country, a priest said a prayer asking God for victory. A messenger from God came and specified what they wanted: to tear the enemy to shreds and make their wives and children orphans.

1 minute

The story was written during the American-Philippine War of 1905.

On the eve of the American troops’ march, a priest in a crowded church gave a sermon and then recited a prayer asking God to grant victory to the U.S. war effort. Just then a gray-haired man appeared in the church and silently ascended the pulpit and pushed the priest aside.

He said he was a messenger of God and wanted to clarify what the priest and everyone in the church had asked for. This prayer had a spoken and unspoken part. People had already heard about the expectation of victory. What did the unspoken part contain?

To kill as many people as possible. Let artillery fire drown out the groans of the wounded. Let widows cry their eyes out. Let orphans starve to death. Let the crowds of civilians wander the once flourishing homeland in search of food and find none. Is that what you want?

But the congregation unanimously acknowledged that the old man was a deranged lunatic.