A heartwarming account by Jim Linzey about a Christmas Truce in 1944 when a German woman refused to turn away any who came to her in need.

One of the most inspiring stories of peace through Christ among ardent enemies unfolded in a potentially volatile setting. Here is the World War II story of a German mother, her 12 year old son, three American soldiers, and four German soldiers—each of the three parties previously unknown to one another, and how they came together to celebrate Christmas in 1944 in the height of the Battle of the Bulge. This battle was the turning point of World War II on the Western Front.

American soldiers in the Ardennes Forest during the Battle of the Bulge.

On December 16, 1944, the Germans initiated a massive campaign against the Allies in the Ardennes Forest, a mountainous region extending throughout Belgium, France, and Luxembourg on the Western Front. Over 250,000 German troops mounted a blitzkrieg, attempting to divide the Allies in a major offensive from the Ardennes to Antwerp. This set the stage for the Battle of the Bulge. Heavy snowstorms erupted unexpectedly, forever changing the course of this infamous battle and possibly World War II, along with the individual lives of millions of people, and particularly nine individuals one Christmas Eve.

The soldiers were fighting in trenches, on the plains, and on the mountain sides. Supplies came to a devastating halt. In thousands of cases, no ammunition, no food, no medical help, no shelter from the elements, no field jackets, no gloves, wet socks and wet worn out boots, no heat, and separation from their platoons! Soldiers were using newspapers and curtains from the wreckage of houses and cabins that were bombed to wrap their feet in. Additionally, there was a lack of communication, broken morale, and a broken chain of command.

Disorientation prevailed. But eventually, the weather improved, and the Army Air Forces dropped supplies. The battle lasted until January 25, 1945. The Allies declared victory. But with more than 100,000 casualties on the American side alone by freezing to death or by shooting, and the 106th Division nearly destroyed, is this what victory looks like?. It seemed like the battle simply came to an end because the Germans ran low on fuel, ammunition, and manpower. The Battle of the Bulge has been called the most devastating battle of World War II. In contrast, out of it came forth an example of what peace through Christ looks like.

“After holding a woodland position all night near Wiltz, Luxembourg, against German counter attack, three men of B Company, 101st_Engineers, emerge for a rest.”

In the Ardennes Forest an American soldier was shot in the upper leg and was bleeding to death. Two fellow American soldiers tried to help him get behind the American line several miles away. Additionally, they were starving and freezing. There was deep snow on the ground, and a heavy snow storm erupted. However, the cold weather prevented infection from setting in the wounded soldier. But Disorientation set in. They wandered aimlessly in the Ardennes Forest for three days.

In the distance they saw a cabin and approached it. When they approached the cabin, the two lay their wounded soldier on the snow. They kept their speaking to a minimum and in a low tone of voice to try not to be overheard, but failed.

One of the soldiers knocked on the cabin door. Inside was a German mother named Elisabeth Vincken and her 12 year old son named Fritz Vincken. Their home was in Aachen, Germany. It had been partially destroyed when Americans bombed the area and hit their home and the family business which was a bakery. The Vincken’s were not injured when their house and bakery were badly damaged. Mr. Vincken sent his wife, Elisabeth, and their son, Fritz, to their cabin where they stayed when Mr. Vincken went hunting.

“For He is our peace, who has made both groups one and has broken down the barrier of the dividing wall” (Eph. 2:14).

Part of the Fruit of the Spirit series by Jim Linzey

The word peace as used in the gospels and in Ephesians means to bind together those things that were separated. Jesus made peace through the blood of His cross (Col. 1:20), thus binding together the believing sinner and the holy God. The Holy Spirit produces the fruit of peace in the life of that believer. This fruit is manifested in proportion to the believer’s yieldedness to the Spirit.

Isaiah told God, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You” (Isa. 26:3, MEV). The battleground is the mind—“To be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Rom. 8:6, MEV). The apostle Paul speaks to all of us when he tells the Colossians to “Let the peace of God, to which also you are called in one body, rule in your hearts. And be thankful” (Col. 3:15, MEV). And we are to remember that that peace comes from the Holy Spirit. Peace comes as we take everything to God in prayer with thanksgiving: “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will protect your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:7, MEV). The life of the believer shows proper growth and development when the power of the Holy Spirit enriches that growth in character.

The fruit of the Spirit is a manifestation of Christ’s nature in the life of the Christian by the Holy Spirit. The peace of natural man is very different from the scriptural definition of divine peace. In human concept, peace implies mental tranquility, absence of tension, or a settlement of disputes. Peace, the fruit of the Spirit, is the secure and confident repose of the soul in God himself. Believers have composure of spirit in all circumstances because they are divinely insulated by the Holy Spirit, not from trials, but from the anxiety of life.

Thankfully, that war never came. I followed God’s leading and my family background to become a Pentecostal pastor and theologian. Many years later I’m no less angry at the taking of those hostages, but I also understand that crisis came in the context of decades of missed opportunities to talk to each other dating back at least to a US-backed coup in 1953, the shooting down of a civilian airliner with nearly 300 passengers on board and Iran’s sponsorship of violent extremism across the Middle East.

I don’t know every single detail of the new agreement negotiated with Iran. But I do try to live by God’s call to “seek peace and pursue it” (Psalm 34:14). If, after decades of hostility and angry rhetoric, the international community has crafted a nuclear accord that helps keep Iran from the bomb and helps keep the United States from another devastating war in the Middle East, then we have much to celebrate. And even if we don’t trust the Iranians or even our own government entirely, we still ought to pursue the path of peace as vigorously and strongly as possible.

The new diplomatic agreement with Iran does not erase history or cause us to forgive or forget the taking of U.S. hostages or, I would guess, the Iranian people to forget the U.S. warship shooting down a civilian airliner. What the new agreement does do is establish a process for the international community to monitor Iran’s nuclear energy program and require the Iranian government to limit that program in ways that have not happened for the last decade. And in exchange, the international community will begin to lift sanctions on Iran. It also establishes a solid international process for monitoring Iran’s compliance with the restrictions on nuclear activity – a process much stronger and more robust than anything that has been in place before.

I’m not naïve enough to suppose that the Iran Nuclear Deal is perfect, or that tensions between these two nations will simply disappear. I recall the instructive words of Jesus for those sent out “as sheep in the midst of wolves” to “be wise as serpents and harmless as doves” (Matthew 10:16). Honestly, I struggle with balancing such obviously conflicting images in my mind. And yet… that’s what Jesus said. And I trust Jesus. I don’t trust human governments. I don’t trust politicians’ hidden agendas. But I trust Jesus. I trust Jesus completely.

The U.S.-Iranian relationship will likely continue to be defined by disagreements for some time, whether on crises in the Middle East, or on human rights and religious freedom issues. As one wise Israeli leader reminded us decades ago, you don’t make peace with your friends.  Jesus taught us to love those whom we consider to be our enemies. On this I may struggle to be a good Christian, but I again recognize the wisdom of Jesus words proclaimed from the Sermon on the Mount, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matthew 5:9).

Personally, I affirm the right and responsibility of sovereign nations to defend and protect themselves and their citizens. Protecting the people of both the US and Iran in this case clearly involves containing and deescalating the nuclear arms race. Paraphrasing Jesus, “All those that take up nuclear weapons shall perish by nuclear weapons” (see Mathew 26:52).

There are already voices in Iran and in the United States clamoring for our two countries to reject this agreement. My concern is that many in our country seem to have already made up their minds that this is a bad agreement that can’t be supported. To my mind, that would be a mistake of historic proportions. Why not at least give it a chance? Let’s take time to pray about it, think about it, talk about it; if it really isn’t any good, its flaws will show through soon enough. If it does turn out to be a positive tool for progress, we will not have missed the chance without even considering it.

For me, giving this agreement a chance to work isn’t about partisanship or political posturing. It isn’t about supporting the Obama administration or preparing for 2016 presidential elections. As a follower of Jesus, I feel called to speak out for the possibility of peace. The greatest danger here is that we don’t take a risk for peace, that we don’t pursue the possibility that an agreement with Iran could lessen the tensions between the international community and Iran and ultimately deescalate the potential for conflict in a region that is already suffering the effects of war and violence in ways unimaginable to most of us in the United States.

In the coming weeks, members of Congress in both the House and the Senate will vote on whether or not this agreement proceeds. Every lawmaker will cast a vote on whether to approve or reject this deal. The stakes on this matter have never been higher. That is why forty national organizations, including more than a dozen faith-based groups, wrote a letter urging lawmakers to vote in support of this deal. The groups noted that this “will be among the most consequential national security votes taken by Congress since the decision to authorize the invasion of Iraq.”

Our elected officials need to hear from pro-diplomacy constituencies, and hearing from people of faith in support of diplomacy could have a lot of sway.

This agreement is an opportunity to imagine a brighter future for us all—one in which Americans and Iranians are no longer condemned to live through another generation of animosity. At such a historic moment, we are reminded of our responsibility to seek peace and pursue it, whether in Washington or in our own communities.