Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor

Six a.m. 184 fighter planes take off from their carrier for a most unusual mission. They head toward Hawaii.

One hour and two minutes later Army operators identify the planes on the radar. They notify an officer who disregards the report, thinking the planes on the radar screen are American B-17 planes arriving from the American coast.

Thirteen minutes later, at 7:15 a.m., 167 more planes take off from the carriers, also heading toward Hawaii.

Naval officers at Hawaii are not on high alert. Senior commanders who studied the intelligence reports saw no reason to conclude the naval base was in serious danger. So, anti-aircraft guns were left unmanned, with ammunition boxes locked up. Aircraft are tightly parked on the airfields. Officers and crewmen enjoyed a leisurely morning, since it was Sunday.

Then they arrive. At 7:53 a.m. 51 dive bombers, 40 torpedo bombers, 50 high level bombers, and 43 Zero fighters attack the unsuspecting base.

As planned, the attack is a surprise. Airfields, battleships, shipyard facilities are bombarded until 9:45 a.m. Five battleships are sunk and three more are damaged. Three destroyers, three light cruisers, three other vessels and 188 aircraft are destroyed in the attack. The attackers suffer minimal damage.

(Photos from MSN)

The greatest loss, however, was not that of equipment and materiel. The greatest loss was the human life. America lost 68 civilians and 2,335 servicemen in the attack, with another 1,178 wounded. On one ship alone, the USS Arizona, 1,104 men were killed when a 1,760 pound bomb penetrated the ship and caused massive explosions. (http://www.historyplace.com/worldwar2/timeline/pearl.htm).

This event, the attack on Pearl Harbor, took place 70 years ago today. It is a day we have not forgotten, nor should we.

My great uncle, my grandfather’s brother, was there. Uncle George was one of the lucky ones to survive. But he said good-bye to many of his friends that day. Uncle George then spent the next four years avenging their deaths.

There are occasional events that are so big they define a generation. The attack on Pearl Harbor certainly did that for the Americans of the mid-twentieth century. Millions of lives were changed irrevocably by that attack and the series of events that unfolded in the years to follow. America was changed, and, in many respects, we are still grappling with some of those changes two-generations later.

If that were the only major event we had to recognize in December we could become a calloused people, calloused due to the scheming and violent inclinations of certain ones in power. We could also become fearful, fearful of other attacks that could come. Finally, we could also become self-satisfied, self-satisfied that we can handle any problem or evil that comes our way.

But, there is another great event that we recognize in December that takes away any reason to be calloused, fearful, or self-satisfied. “We bring you tidings of great joy! A baby is born - the savior!” ... “Glory to God in the highest, peace on earth to men.” (Luke 2:6-14)

Let’s never forget the first story. But let’s always actively remember the second story, allowing it to burn indelibly in our hearts, for that is where we find our hope, and our power for today.

WB