Religion on the World War II Home Front

Manzanar Cemetery Monument, 1943. Master stonemason Ryozo Kado, a Catholic, and Buddhist minister Shinjo Nagatomi designed this iconic monument as a permanent tribute to the dead of Manzanar War Relocation Center, a Japanese American incarceration site during World War II.

Photo by Ansel Adams, 1943.

The Nazis’ persecution of Jewish people lies at the center of the story of World War II. But the history of religion and the world war stretches far beyond the Holocaust. On the home front, Americans turned to their diverse religious beliefs to make sense of the world. Many relied on their faith to guide their behavior during a time of upheaval.

Most American Christians supported the war. But some members of “peace churches” objected to military service on religious grounds. They registered as conscientious objectors with their local draft boards. Some served in the military as noncombatant medics or chaplains. Others, like the future civil rights leader Bayard Rustin, went to jail for their beliefs. Still more COs participated in a brand-new program known as Civilian Public Service. At places like Patapsco Camp near Baltimore, MD, they performed “work of national importance” for the NPS and other government agencies. The program allowed them to serve their country and stay true to their convictions.

American Jews were at the forefront of resistance to the Nazi regime. At Madison Square Garden in New York City, they opposed antisemitism with protest and public mourning. Some European Jews became Americans under dire circumstances as they fled persecution. About a thousand of them started their journey in the United States as the war’s only Jewish refugees. Housed at Fort Ontario in upstate New York, they found deliverance from death. But they also received an uneasy welcome from a nation still hostile to immigration.

Japanese American Buddhists experienced incarceration and persecution within the United States. American authorities viewed Buddhism with extra suspicion. Temple communities like Hawaii Shingon Mission in Honolulu survived harassment and even violence from non-Buddhist neighbors. Within camps like Minidoka and Topaz War Relocation Centers, Nikkei Buddhists stood up for their right to religious freedom. They created new forms of practice to address harrowing conditions.

These stories and more are part of the complex history of religion and the World War II home front. National Park Service programs recognize historic places that tell this story. Explore some of them on this page!

Religion on the Home Front

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  Jewish Refugee Experience

  Fort Ontario

  Ft. Ontario is a historic military installation located in Oswego, NY. From 1944-1946, it served as the only US shelter for Jewish refugees.

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  Jewish Refugee Experience

  (H)our History Lesson: Fort Ontario

  This lesson plan about Jewish refugees at Ft. Ontario helps students understand religion, foreign policy, & refugee policy during WWII.

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  Japanese American Religion

  Buddhism Under Japanese Incarceration

  In Japanese American incarceration camps, Buddhists preserved and adapted their faith despite prejudice and hardship.

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  Japanese American Religion

  Hawaii Shingon Mission

  Hawaii Shingon Mission is a historic Buddhist temple in Honolulu, HI. Amidst WWII anti-Buddhist prejudice, temples like it became targets.

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  Jewish American Resistance

  Madison Square Garden (1925-1968)

  Madison Square Garden III (1925-1968) was an NYC arena and the site of several political events where Jewish Americans protested the Nazis.

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  Christian Conscientious Objectors

  Patapsco Camp (Civilian Public Service)

  The Civilian Public Service program provided a chance for conscientious objectors to military service to perform meaningful wartime work.

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  Christianity on the Home Front

  St. Paul's Church in World War II

  Restoration work on the church during World War II cemented its reputation as a center for American values.

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  Japanese American Religion

  Haruko Takahashi

  Haruko Takahashi was a Shintō priestess who spent part of World War II imprisoned at Honouliuli Internment Camp on O’ahu, Hawai’i.