Unbroken

I have been blessed by being directed to many good, informative, or eye-opening books in my lifetime. A book in that category, recently finished, would be Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption, by Laura Hillenbrand. It is an account of an American soldier in WW2 who was lost at sea, captured by the Japanese, and who suffered unthinkable atrocities in a prisoner of war camp. Though badly damaged, Louis Zamperini came through his ordeal ultimately ‘unbroken’ according to the author.

The book causes me to wonder how I would handle such a challenge. Could I do it? Would it be a moral imperative for me to struggle to do it? What would really be accomplished if I did it? What if I gave up?

These questions lead one to consider related questions: How valuable is mortal life, if shortened by evil men, when one believes, as I do, that life will go on on the other side of mortality? Is the struggle to eke out a few years more of earth-life worth the pain? And if imprisoned, as was Zamperini, what about ‘confessions’ or repudiations or renunciations obtained under duress? Are they not meaningless? Would submission or compliance with the demands of evil, if done only for the purpose of appeasing one’s captor to avoid extreme torture (yet not complied with in one’s heart) be wrong?

Maybe this scriptural expectation sheds light on the issue: “When I give a commandment to any of the sons of men to do a work unto my name, and those sons of men go with all their might and with all they have to perform that work, and cease not their diligence, and their enemies come upon them and hinder them from performing that work, behold, it behooveth me to require that work no more at the hands of those sons of men, but to accept of their offerings.”

Contrariwise, would the Old Testament examples of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and of Daniel provide examples of how we should not give up or were they just noble exceptions?

Finally, what about an answer given by God to one who was pure in heart: “My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; and then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes.” Yea,“…if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good. The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he: Therefore, hold on thy way…thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore, fear not what man can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever.”

Maybe our response to vicissitudes such as Louis Zamperini and countless other victims would depend on for whom/what we are enduring—whether we are “endur[ing] valiantly for the gospel of Jesus Christ,” or for a noble response to the ignoble (such as being a valiant example for the less stouthearted) or, conversely, for vainglory or pride and the praise of man—simply enduring to avoid being called a coward.

If we know these principles, I think in our extremity we will find out our appropriate response.