Dated 1942, this WWII era prayer book titled ‘My Military Missal’ was carried by Private Arthur Stevens (966538) serving with Battery “E” - 2nd Battalion - 14th Marines - 4th Division. Pvt. Arthur Stevens served with the 4th Marine Division fighting the Japanese in the Pacific Theater during WWII. During his service Pvt. Arthur Stevens carried this Bible with him as an escape From war, and a token of safety and faith. During his time in combat as a field artilleryman, Pvt. Arthur Stevens made four major amphibious assaults, in the battles of Kwajalein (Roi-Namur), Saipan, Tinian and Iwo Jima under command of V Amphibious Corps, under its command and control were the first Joint Assault Signal Company, suffering more than 17,000 casualties. It was awarded two Presidential Unit Citations and a Navy Unit Commendation, and then inactivated 28 November 1945.

Pvt. Stevens provided artillery fire support for advancing Marine and Army divisions in the Pacific while advancing on these various Islands. It was after providing artillery fire support on the black sand beaches of Iwo Jima (Operation Detachment) and advancing inland where Pvt. Stevens was ‘wounded in action’. This bible remained with Pvt. Stevens during combat, during his treatment in the field hospital, until then end of the war.

What makes this Bible so special is not only the amount of comfort  and protection that it provided this soldier while serving in the Pacific, but its various prayers for military men. Some of the prayers labeled specifically in this “Military Missal” are: Prayer for Soldiers, Prayer for Sailors, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen, and Prayer for Aviators.

This book and binding remain in overall good condition with signs of wear seen on the cover of the binning and ‘salty’ stains on the inside pages. The writing of Pvt. Stevens as well as his ‘WIA - IWO JIMA’ are still highly visible on the inside cover.