A Deck of Cards
April 21, 2008 – 6:00 amThe following is from Lillian’s story in my book, We Knew We Knew We Were at War: Women Remember World War II. She carried these words in her wallet for over sixty years.
During the war, a group of soldiers arrived at a small village in France. The chaplain read a prayer and asked the men who had Bibles to open them. One of the soldiers brought out a deck of cards. He was arrested and taken to the commanding officer.
“Sir,” he said, “I have neither a Bible or a prayer book, but I hope I can satisfy you with the purity of my intentions.”
“You see, sir, when I look at the ace, it reminds me that there is only one God. When I look at the deuce it tells me the Bible is divided into two parts, the Old Testament and the New Testament. The three represents the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost.
‘The four calls to mind the four evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The five reminds me of the five wise virgins, the six is the days the Lord made heaven and earth, and the seven that He rested on the seventh day.
“The eight is the eight righteous persons God saved when He destroyed the earth by flood — Noah, his wife, their three sons and their wives. When I look at the nine, I think of the lepers our Savior cleansed and the nine that did not thank Him.
“The ten reminds me of the Ten Commandments.
“When I look at the king, I think of our Lord. The queen reminds me of Mary. When I see the jack, I think of the devil.
“When I count the spots on the cards, I see 365, the days in the year. The 52 cards in the deck are the 52 weeks in the year. The four suits are the four weeks in a month, the 13 tricks are the 13 weeks in a quarter. There are 12 picture cards, the 12 months of the year.
“So you see, sir, my deck of cards serves as a Bible, almanac and prayer book.”
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