In 1974, Rabbi Asher Wade, a US Army chaplain, befriended a Jewish officer named Stuart. Stuart did not appear to be a religious man, and so Rabbi Wade was surprised one day to see the American officer wearing a yarmulke. Upon questioning Stuart’s reasons for wearing this, Stuart told Rabbi Wade the fascinating story behind it:
As part of their first-year studies at West Point, cadets were enrolled in a course called “History of Military Tactics & Field Strategies,” which was taught by a three-star Lieutenant General who had a PhD in military strategy. The course surveyed the major battles in history, including those of the Ptolemies, the Romans, the Middle Ages, and down to the latest battles of our modern era.
During the final two weeks of the course, which were devoted to reviewing the material, Cadet Stuart raised his hand. “Why did we not survey any of the battles fought by the Jews, either of ancient times (i.e., Roman-Jewish wars) or of modern times (i.e., Arab-Israeli wars)?”
“The general snapped back with an order for me to see him in his office after class,” remembered Stuart. Upon entering the general’s office, Stuart was ordered to lock the door. “He would only answer my question in the privacy of his office,” Stuart explained.
“Do not think that the staff here at West Point has left the Jewish wars unnoticed,” began the general. “We have analyzed them, and we do not teach them here. According to military strategy and textbook tactics, the Jews should have been lost. You should have been swept into the dustbin of history long ago. But you were not. You won those wars against all odds and against all military strategies.
“This past year,” continued the general, “we hired a new junior instructor. During a private staff meeting, the Arab-Israeli wars came under discussion. We are puzzled at how you won those wars. Suddenly, this junior instructor chirped up and jokingly said, ‘Honorable gentlemen, it seems to be obvious how they are winning their wars. G-d is winning them for them!’
“Nobody laughed. The reason is, soldier, that it seems to be an unwritten rule around here at West Point that G-d is winning your wars, but G-d does not fit into military textbooks! You are dismissed,” concluded the general.
“I had never been so humiliated in my life,” said Stuart. “I felt about two inches tall. I had to come to West Point and find out how great my G-d is from a non-practicing Presbyterian three-star general. I said to myself, ‘Shouldn’t I know this on my own?!’ I went back to my dorm room and dug out from my sock drawer that yarmulke I threw on my head once a year. I said to myself, ‘This thing is going on my head, because I found, in essence, who I am and where I come from.’”
