An article from the Murray Ledger & Times, a local Kentucky paper, has an interesting perspective on the rise of the importance of religion in the military in the 1940s.  Dr. G. Kurt Piehler from the University of Tennessee spoke at Murray State University’s scholarship banquet:

Piehler spoke concerning “The Religious Life of the G.I. during World War II.” Primarily focusing on the introduction of an expanded chaplain service to meet the religious needs of American military service men and women…

“We never followed religion as seriously as we did in World War II,” Piehler said, pointing out the increase in religious focus was primarily spearheaded by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and U.S. Army General George C. Marshall.

“There was a very deliberate effort to promote religion,” Piehler added…

Along with promoting sexual morality,

Piehler said one of the reasons the effort was made was to assure parents that their sons and daughters would not be “corrupted” by service in the U.S. military, to prove that the war was “just” and to counter a German Nazi threat that religion would be abolished should Germany [prevail].