As a young boy growing up in Lynchburg, Virginia, Desmond Doss attended the Seventh-day Adventist Church with his mother and siblings. Early on, he was particularly struck with a picture his mother hung on a wall in their humble home. It listed the Ten Commandments: “Thou shalt not kill” was illustrated by a picture of Cain, with a club, standing over a prostrate Abel. The little boy pondered the picture often, and asked, “How could anyone kill his brother?”
The young boy’s mind was also vividly impressed by seeing his father, who had a serious drinking problem, hauled off by the police for brandishing a gun and threatening his brother-in-law. In addition to making a serious commitment to all the teachings of the Bible, young Desmond vowed that he would never take up a gun of any sort.
When World War II began, the 20-year-old Desmond applied for conscientious objector status, but also was eager to serve his country in some capacity. He could have received full exemption from military service, but he felt that he should go where — if at all possible — he could save lives. He decided to serve as a battlefield medic.
He was assured, before he entered the military, that never — under any circumstances — would he be ordered to take up a weapon. Once in the military, however, and while training at several different army camps, Desmond faced all sorts of opposition, from fellow soldiers who thought of him as a coward because he was exempt from bearing arms, or a “holy Joe” because he quietly but openly read his Bible and prayed. But he also faced opposition from his commanding officers, several of whom tried by every means — argument as well as intimidation and threats — to coerce him to take up arms. Because of his religion, he was given daily passes each Saturday, to observe the “Sabbath” as he understood it — but then on Sunday, while other trainees were on leave, he was given the worst possible duties, such as cleaning all the latrines week after week. But nothing compelled him to go back on his pledge.
Once he was with his unit in the South Pacific, Doss won first a grudging and then a wholehearted respect from his fellow soldiers. Those who had ostracized and ridiculed him during combat training saw him show extraordinary character and courage on the battlefield. His selfless acts of bravery, in saving the lives of the very men who had mocked and shunned him, now earned him their respect and devotion.
On May 5, 1945, on the island of Okinawa, as American soldiers retreated from the 350-foot-high “Hacksaw Escarpment” under withering crossfire, Doss remained behind. Slowly and painstakingly, he crawled about for 12 hours under enemy fire, treating those who were wounded and left behind. Then, standing silhouetted as an easy target against the night sky, he lowered the wounded one by one with ropes from the summit to the other medics waiting safely below. During the battle, he was wounded twice — shrapnel remained in his body ever after. Later, he set his own severely fractured arm entirely by himself. When finally stretcher-bearers were carrying him to safety, he spotted another soldier who was wounded, rolled off the stretcher to check on his wounds, and asked the bearers to take the other soldier first. Then he crawled the final 300 yards to safety under his own power.
Disabled by his injuries, Doss returned home to accept the Congressional Medal of Honor, the United States’ top military award. The official citation stated that he had, at extreme personal peril, helped 75 soldiers escape a near-certain death on Okinawa. The way in which the number 75 was arrived at demonstrates the character of this man: the original citation stated that he had saved 100, but the quiet and modest young man objected on the grounds that he did not think he had saved more than 50 — thus 75 became the official compromise.
At the ceremony, President Truman said that presenting the Medal of Honor to Doss was a greater honor for him than becoming President.
In 2004 filmmaker Terry Benedict produced The Conscientious Objector, a critically acclaimed documentary that tells Doss’ story through his own words, and those of his comrades — some of whom he saved on Okinawa. Doss and the others returned for the first time to the sites of their training and the war itself, that they had known more than 50 years before.
Desmond Doss remained a faithful member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, reading his Bible daily and worshipping for many years at the same country church he had attended as a child. In March of this year he passed away at the age of 87.
For many years Hollywood has wanted to tell the story of Desmond Doss. However, he continually declined, hoping that — as long as he lived — he might spend his twilight years in relative obscurity with his wife on their small farm. Now that Doss has died, Benedict plans to cooperate with others to develop a major theatrical film that will tell his story to a far wider audience.
In the meantime, the documentary The Conscientious Objector is available (VHS or DVD) from www.desmonddoss.com and www.familyreunionmusic.com.
“Any man willing to go into war without a weapon has got to have real faith,” said one of the men whose life was saved on Okinawa. This was true of Desmond Doss.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One