Pocket Saints
“Has he not witnessed strange things away in the unimaginable world called 'The Front'? Things that one does not refer to in broad daylight, but which nevertheless obtrude themselves and haunt the mind when shadows fall…. he feels acutely the nearness of the Unknown and the strange, unaccountable chances of war.”
—The Globe, Nov. 18, 1916
In Christianity, and more specifically in Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, saints are holy people who stand as examples of goodness and grace. Catholics and Eastern Orthodox Christians also recognize The Holy Family (the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph and the Christ child) as powerful messengers for humans to God. Many servicemembers looked for divine help through saints and the Holy Family, aided by items that could fit in a pocket.
Prayer card, Prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel
United States
1917
Object ID: 1986.110.32
National WWI Museum and Memorial
Soldiers and sailors carried small and inexpensive cards to assist in prayer and serve as inspiration. 1st Lieutenant James Pendergast, nephew of Kansas City political boss Tom (T.J.) Pendergast, carried this prayer card featuring the Prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel while serving in France with the American Expeditionary Forces. St. Michael the Archangel is the patron saint of military personnel, in charge of protecting servicemembers, and the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel reveals a belief that the fight against evil is both a physical and supernatural act.
Handmade Eastern Orthodox icon
Bulgaria
c. 1914-1918
Object ID: 2023.59.1
National WWI Museum and Memorial
Icons in Eastern Orthodox Christianity are special religious images that act as “windows into heaven.” This handmade icon features the Virgin Mary and the Christ child on one side, and Saint Joseph and the Christ child on the other. Dried tobacco borders both images in decoration and veneration. For the Bulgarian soldier who lovingly crafted and carried this icon, its sacred images helped focus prayer to the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph and Christ in heaven.
Veneration is great respect and the act of honoring.
Pocket statue, Saint Benedict
France
c. 1914-1918
Object ID: 2023.55.1a-b
National WWI Museum and Memorial
Christian saints are a diverse group, and include martyrs, kings and queens, missionaries, priests and nuns, slaves, children, scholars, soldiers and people from almost every walk of human life. Many devout soldiers, pilots, and sailors found comfort in the knowledge that holy people shared in similar hardships and asked specific saints to pray for them. A French infantryman carried this pocket statue of Saint Benedict, the patron saint of students and Europe, while a German infantryman carried the pocket statue of the Infant Jesus of Prague (below), a statuette associated with the phrase, “The more you honor me, the more I will bless you.”
