A Thousand Shall Fall: The Electrifying Story of a Soldier and His Family Who Dared to Practice Their Faith in Hitler's Germany

by Susi Hasel Mundy

Book Overview

Franz hasel, a 40-year-old pacifist, was drafted and assigned to Pioneer Company 699, Hitler's elite troops who built bridges at the front lines. His religious scruples did not endear him to his... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0828015619
• ISBN13: 9780828015615
• Release Date: June 2001
• Publisher: Review & Herald Publishing
• Length: 172 Pages
• Weight: 0.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

A Thousand Shall Fall: a Story of Hope and Courage in Hitler's Germany

Susi Hasel Mundy writes of her own family experience during the terrible years of Hitter's reign in Germany. She tells in her book A Thousand Shall Fall of her father's reluctance to fight in Hitler's war for empire. As a Seventh-day Adventist her father Franz Hasel wanted nothing to do with Hitler's promises of a new Germany. Franz Hasel's family life was suddenly turned upside down when he was drafted into Hitler's army. On the very day that Franz leaves in order to report for duty he bluntly informs his young son Kurt that Hitler was an evil man. "Hitler is an evil man," Franz tells him, "Never trust what he says. You must stay true to God and God only!" Franz then gathers his children and his wife Helene in the family living room and reads Psalm 91 to them: "Thou shalt not be afraid of the terror by night; nor of the arrow that flieth by day; ...a thousand may fall at thy side, and ten thousand at your right hand; but is shall not come nigh thee." The family then sings the hymn "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God." These few short moments sets the stage for the theme of the entire book. Indeed a God acted as a "Mighty Fortress" to the Hasel family. And indeed thousands died around them as Hitler's war wore on. Yet at the end God brought the Hasel family back together again. Hasel relates the story of her own birth during the war. She tells how hours after her birth an air raid forced her mother and three siblings to flee from their house to a bomb shelter. Her mother--having just given birth to child--was forced out of the home on a dark night. The family was forced to flee to a nearby air-raid shelter where they spent the rest of the night. Franz Hasel was often the brunt of jokes in the Nazi engineer regiment that he was in. They often mocked him for his Christian beliefs and absolute refusal to break his Sabbath. Being a Seventh-day Adventist Franz acknowledge the Lord's Day on Saturday--the same day as the Jewish day of rest. This of course created another problem in Hitler's Germany where any suspicion of being a Jew resulted in distrust and often worse. Franz was belittled by the mean Lieutenant Peter Gutschalk who tried many tactics to humiliate Franz. This book is ranked in my mind next to Corri Ten Boom's The Hiding Place in its distinctly Christian message. It is also interesting to read a real-life story about a family living in this tumultuous time in Germany. Our society often looks on the German army as the "bad guys",or at least Hollywood does. A Thousand Shall Fall gives its readers a glimpse at Hitler's Germany that is not often seen. It is the story of a fine Christen family and how God preserved them through the struggle of World War II. This book was indeed an adventure story well worth reading!

Wow! What a Faith Builder!

I read this fast moving book in 3 days and can't say enough good things about it. The story is about the adventures of a Christian man drafted into the German army in WW2, as well as the struggles of his wife and children to survive back home. Page after page, they are confronted with obsticals and assaults upon their Seventh Day Adventist beliefs, where they must either stand up for their faith and trust God, or roll over and deny all or part of it. Each act of faith is, in turn, followed by a confirming act of God's provision and protection. This would be a good book for teens, whether Christian, non-christian, Jewish - any teen, because it shows people standing up for what they believe is right, against what's popular and accepted by the masses, even though they must endure hardship and ridicule.

A captivating and inspiring story- proving a personal Jesus in the hell of Nazism

A gripping story that moves at a steady pace. It is well written and the narrative switches in a synchronised way back and forth, between the wife and young children living in blitzed Frankfurt, and the father who had been drafted into Hitler's army and sent to the front. Being a 'child of the blitz,' and having been raised on a diet of WW2 stories, I found this one to be different, in that it was about a Christ-centered family who were in the midst of the terror and violence of the war, but who defied the Nazi authorities believing that God would protect them. I stand in admiration of their decision to be faithful to Christ despite the threats and possible consequences. They were faithful to God and He proved His faithfulness to them. The divine interventions in time of crisis, were awesome. Read this book and be inspired never to compromise your faith for fear of men.

If it wasn't true you would never believe it

If the worth of a book is in how it effects you then A Thousand Shall Fall gets five stars. I read it three years ago, and it continues to affect my life. My children now 11 and 14 have each read this book through four or five times, and consider it one of their utmost favorites. It's impact in strengthening their resolve to do what is right continues. My wife reads a couple hundred books a year, but rates this has one of her all-time favorites.Based on the true story of a young German drafted into the Nazi army, an army and a nation that are in the wrong, he must follow God faithfully.If Schindler is valued for saving his population of Jews, Hasel deserves much more for the Jews he saved.You will be amazed at how God continues to work in miraculous and true ways even in the midst of World War II.

A Must-read for every Christian. You will not regret.

If you are a Christian you HAVE to read this book. Okay, lets imagine you have problems. No, I mean REAL problems. You're Christian, good.. But let's say you're a Christian in Germany at the beginning of WWII. HITLER's Germany!. Not too bad?? Well, how about if you are one of the first to get drafted into HITLER'S ARMY?? Not bad enough?? How about if your request to be a conciencious objector is DENIED. Bad enough yet? How about facing persecution for your beliefs? Most of us in Modern America can't understand what that is. But Franz Hazel knew well. Forced to be a soldier in the front lines of Hitler's army, he vowed to stay true to his beliefs and his God. What would you do if Hitler told you that you had to fight for him and his ambitions that you believe are evil, but your God says "Thou shalt not kill" What WOULD you do? How much would you risk to avoid going against your concience? Would you risk yourlife? Franz Hazel did when he threw away his gun so he wouldn't be tempted to kill in the heat of battle. And again when he went ahead of the Gestapo, warning the Jews of what was comming. He risked everything to stay faithfull to his God. But the awesome thing?? The more faithfull he was to his God, the more faithfull God was to him, protecting him, unarmed in the front lines of battle, and his family back at home as they face starvation and social persecution. This book will uplift your spirits and give you a greater faith in God. A book that you won't be able to put down once you pick it up, it is as exciting as any action flick while being 100% true. After reading this book, you'll understand what it really means to be a Christian. To risk it all and trust completely in God. Not to be missed!!