COLUMN: World War II enemies learned forgiveness through Christ

Jacob DeShazer, an American pilot who bombed Tokyo early in World War II, was shot down over China, captured, and imprisoned by the Japanese in 1942. A member of Doolittle’s Raiders, he has written about his violent hatred for his captors, who kept him in solitary confinement because they feared him.

Formerly an atheist, DeShazer asked his guards for a Bible and he began reading it in his cell. In that lonely place, he recalled finding life in Jesus Christ. The Japanese guards noticed a change in their prisoner, who began showing love toward his captors and even praying with them. He learned to speak Japanese in order to one day return to share the Gospel there.

Following the war, Jacob Deshazer’s story was published in a little booklet that was eventually given to a young Japanese captain, Mitsuo Fuchida. Fuchida had attended a military academy and he became one of Japan’s top Naval Air Force pilots. Japanese military leaders chose him to command the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.

Fuchida sent his aircraft carrier the message, “Tora! Tora! Tora!” signaling that the surprise attack was successful. He was named a staff officer Imperial Navy’s Air Operations Officer. On August 6, 1945, Fuchida was in Nara, Japan, where a new military headquarters was under construction, when he heard Hiroshima had been bombed. He was sent to investigate and report back to Imperial Command what he observed.           

After the war, Fuchida tells about reading the booklet with the story of DeShazer’s remarkable change of heart. Then he found a New Testament and began reading about the life of Christ. As Fuchida read the story of Christ’s crucifixion, he was moved by Christ’s words from the Cross, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34).

Mitsuo Fuchida realized it was humanly impossible for anyone to show love to his enemies and pray for those who persecuted him. He accepted Christ as his Lord and Savior and became an evangelist, telling the story of a love that can change human hearts.

Jacob DeShazer returned to Japan in 1948 as a missionary. He met Mitsuo Fuchida in 1950. DeShazer had just completed a 40-day fast for revival in Japan when Fuchida came to his home.

Fuchida shared a message of peace and forgiveness in his country and also Asian-American communities in the U.S. He wrote about his change of heart in his book, From Pearl Harbor to Calvary. He wanted to be remembered, not for destruction and war, but rather for peace. Mitsuo Fuchida died on May 30, 1976. Jacob DeShazer titled his booklet about his wartime experiences, “I Was a Prisoner of the Japanese.” He died on March 12, 2008.

December 7, 1941 is a day that will “live in infamy,” as President Roosevelt stated. There’s also a significant day in each of our lives. It’s the day when we experience the love and forgiveness of God and receive life eternal because of the sacrificial death of His Son. That’s the way to find true peace.

— Jan White has compiled a collection of her columns in her book, “Everyday Faith for Daily Life.”