The War Prayer

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The Gods of War Patriots are the most bold people in the world. They volunteer to fight for the country that they live in, knowing that they could die in battle. But, this is to an extent. In the story “The War Prayer” by Mark Twain, he expresses that patriotism can be harmful as well as limiting and that it is the same all over the world. When the patriots were about to set off for war, many people gather and usually have a prayer session. The patriots go to fight for their country which means that they are participating in war and being in destructive, horrific acts. Whenever the patriots come back, everybody acts the same in all different places, they cheer for them and welcome them back. Also, when someone prays for victory, they pray for the devastating …show more content…

“If you pray for the blessing of rain upon your crop which needs it, by that act you are possibly praying for a curse upon some neighbor’s crop which may not need rain and can be injured by it” (2). If a person needs something and they ask for it, just by doing that, they could be asking for something bad to happen to someone else that does not deserve for it to happen to them and they can be deeply affected in a negative way by it. Also, people pray for a human to kill other humans which explains this. This explains patriotism because someone could be praying for something good to happen to their country which could affect another country in a negative way. This is an example of their good being someone else’s bad. Also, prayer can be a powerful thing. “Grant us the victory, O Lord our God! That is sufficient. The whole of the uttered prayer is compact into those pregnant words. Elaborations were not necessary. When you have prayed for victory you have prayed for many unmentioned results which follow victory” (3). This explains that when someone prays for victory, they also pray for all of the terrible things to happen to the other

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