This is a sequel to Don Stephens’ highly successful book War and grace (EP); it is essentially more of the same.
War and faith looks at the life story, conversion and subsequent Christian life of eight men and women whose lives were impacted by the gospel around the time of the Second World War. That these eight mainly came from different nations (one, in fact, fought for Germany) is compelling testimony to the power of the gospel to cross national boundaries and traditions.
Perhaps the most moving two accounts are those of Jane Haining, a Scottish missionary to the Jews in Budapest, who perished at Auschwitz; and Rachmiel Frydland, one of the few Polish Jews to survive the Holocaust, having been converted two years before the war.
One minor caveat: the arrangement and appearance of the text around some of the pictures is not as uniform as it should be. But, that said, the quality of picture reproduction is itself good.
This title has been painstakingly researched and there are helpful references at the end of each chapter for those wanting to read more about the individuals concerned. We are indebted to this author for his labours in this area of biographical writing.
There is surely more for Christian biographers and historians to unearth about the testimony and witness of evangelical Christians in occupied Europe, especially of those caught up in the Nazi persecution.
Roger Fay
Ripon
