A metal-covered New Testament, originally a source of strength for a Sailor in World War II, is now providing a connection for a Sailor nearly seven decades later.

“My dad just approached me…a couple days before I was leaving to go back to fly overseas,” Chris Carson said. “He said, ‘You take the Bible with you, Chris. It’s important to have it with you to keep in mind the good Lord.’ My dad is pretty religious. I brought it with me.” 

He carried the Bible aboard the patrol ship Sirocco, which patrolled the northern Persian Gulf. Like his father and grandfather before him, Chris Carson doesn’t consider the pocket New Testament to be a good luck charm, but something that connects him with higher things.

Even today, trainees entering the US military can still get religious texts (from Korans to New Testaments), often in military camouflage but sans the metal lining.