Combat chaplain : the personal story of the World War II chaplain of the Japanese American 100th

328 Pages·2006·7.06 MB·English

by  Michael, Yost, Israel A. S., Monica Elizabeth, Markrich

YOST
A u t o b i o g r a p h y / m i l i t a r y h i s t o r y In OCTOBER 1943, twenty-
seven-year-old combat infantry chaplain Israel Yost arrived in Italy with the
100th Battalion, a little-known National Guard unit of mostly Japanese
Americans from Hawaii.Yost was apprehensive when he learned of his
assignment to this unusual unit composed of soldiers with whom he felt he had
little in common and C O M B A T
✙ ✙ ✙ ✙
who were mostly Buddhists. But this would soon change. Before long Yost
found himself living and working shoulder to shoulder with these men under
enemy fire in freezing temperatures and mountainous terrain. In the midst of the
difficulties and dangers, cOMBAT
he had many opportunities to experience and observe the generosity of the
soldiers toward himself and others, including the Italian peasants they
encountered. He wrote to C H A P L A I N
his wife of their obsession with finding fresh food to supplement their C-rations,
their largely unintelligible Island pidgin, and his friendships with Captain
Katsumi Kometani, the battalion’s morale officer and dentist; Captain Jack
Mizuha, later a Hawaii Supreme ✙
✙
✙
✙
✙
✙
✙
Court justice; and Lieutenant Spark Matsunaga, who would go on to serve many
Court justice; and Lieutenant Spark Matsunaga, who would go on to serve many
terms as a senator from Hawaii.
For the next nineteen months at the front—from Salerno to Monte Cassino to
Anzio T H E P E R S O N A L S T O R Y
to Bruyères, France—Yost assisted medics, retrieved bodies from the battlefield,
buried enemy soldiers, struggled to bolster morale as the number of casualties
rose higher and higher, and wrote countless letters of condolence, all in addition
to fulfilling his minis-cHAPLAIN
O F T H E W O R L D W A R I I C H A P L A I N
terial duties, which included preaching in the foxholes. Although his sermons
won few converts,Yost’s tireless energy and concern for others earned him
admiration from his O F T H E J A P A N E S E A M E R I C A N
fellow soldiers, who often turned to him as a trusted friend and spiritual advisor.
At war’s end, no other battalion would receive as many decorations and honors
as the 1 0 0 T H B A T T A L I O N
100th.Yost returned to Pennsylvania and the life of a small town pastor. Forty
years later, with the help of the letters he had written almost daily to his wife and
his field diaries, he wrote of his wartime experiences in the hopes that they
might one day be published as a record of the remarkable character and
accomplishments of the 100th. Combat Chaplain presents this heartfelt memoir
intact with the addition of photographs and subsequent letters and speeches by
Yost and other veterans.
✙ ✙ ✙ ✙ ✙
“Israel Yost was a man of faith who was also a man of courage and hope. His
memoir ✙ ✙ ✙ ✙
is a testament to his humanity, his integrity, and his unwavering support of
Japanese American soldiers who were not only fighting the enemy abroad, but
also social injustice at home. His personal account of his two years with the
100th Battalion provides the unique perspective of a military chaplain who
begins with no experience or understanding of Japanese Americans, but who
quickly forms an unbreakable bond with the Nisei soldiers he served.” — Daniel
K. Inouye, U.S. Senator ISBN-13: 978-0-8248-3082-3
ISBN-10: 0-8248-3082-2
Cover design: Liz Demeter
I S R A E L A . S . Y O S T
u n i v e r s i ty o f hawa i ‘ i p r e s s www.uhpress.hawaii.edu
h o n o lu lu, hawa i ‘ i 9 6 8 2 2 – 1888
M O N I C A E . Y O S T A N D M I C H A E L M A R K R I C H , E D I T
O R S
1yost_i-xvi 5/9/06 3:22 PM Page i C o m b a t
C h a p l a i n
1yost_i-xvi 5/9/06 3:22 PM Page ii 1yost_i-xvi 5/9/06 3:22 PM Page iii C O M
B A T
C H A P L A I N
T h e P e r s o n a l S t o r y o f t h e W o r l d W a r I I C h a p l a i n o f t h e J a
p a n e s e A m e r i c a n 1 0 0 t h B a t t a l i o n
I S R A E L A . S. Y O S T
Monica E. Yost and Michael Markrich, editors A L atitude 20 Book University of
Hawai‘i Press Honolulu
1yost_i-xvi 5/9/06 3:22 PM Page iv © 2006 Estate of Israel A. S. Yost All rights
reserved
Printed in United States of America 11 10 09 08 07 06
6 5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Yost, Israel A. S., 1916–
2000
Combat chaplain : the personal story of the World War II : chaplain of the
Japanese American 100th Battalion / Israel A. S. Yost ; Monica E. Yost ;
Monica E. Yost and Michael Markrich, editors.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-82483023-6 (hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8248-3023-7
(hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN-13: 978-0-8248-3082-3 (pbk : alk. paper) ISBN-
10: 0-8248-3082-2 (pbk : alk. paper) 1. Yost, Israel A. S., 1916–2000. 2. United
States. Army. Infantry Battalion, 100th. 3. World War, 1939–1945—Personal
narratives, American. 4. World War, 1939–1945—Chaplains—United States—
Biography. 5. United States. Army—Chaplains—Biography. 6. Japanese
American Soldiers. 7. World War, 1939–1945—Campaigns—Italy.
8. Chaplains, Military—United States—Biography. I. Yost, Monica Elizabeth,
1942– II. Markrich, Michael. III. Title.
D810.C36U69 2006
940.54'78092—dc22
2006007355
Maps in this book are from The Story of the 442nd Combat Team: Composed of
442nd Infantry Regiment, 522nd Field Artillery Battalion, 232nd Combat
Engineer Company.
Information-Education Section, MTOUSA, 1946.
University of Hawai‘i Press books are printed on acid-free paper and meet the
guidelines for permanence and durability of the Council on Library Resources
Designed by Liz Demeter
Printed by The Maple-Vail Book Manufacturing Group 1yost_i-xvi 5/9/06 3:22
PM Page v C O N T E N T S
Foreword
Monica E. Yost vii