I believe in God and in my guns

He set out together with his friend, resistance member Václav Řehák, who went ahead. However, he never arrived for the meeting. Near the Prašný most tram station, the gestapo assaulted Řehák. 

Morávek saw the whole situation from a distance and didn’t want to let hos friend down, so he jumped onto a passing tram to get to his brother in arms as quickly as possible. For a while, it seemed the two of them would be able to overpower the German secret police. But then another group of Gestapo showed up… 

A fierce gunfight broke out. Morávek didn’t stand a chance, he was obviously outnumbered. Yet he did not give up and fought with all his strength. Unfortunately, this was his last earthly fight. Reports say he was hit a total of six times. One of the shots hit his aorta, with fatal consequences. According to Gestapo records, Morávek died by his own hand.; however, the latest research contradicts that. There are several facts raising doubts, such as the fact that the fatal gunshot wound was located on the left side of his head, when Morávek was holding the gun in his right hand. The circumstances of Morávek’s death are unclear. 

Although 82 years have passed since the death of Staff Captain Václav Morávek on 21 March this year, he has not ceased to inspire with his courage, valour, patriotism and purity. All the more so when war is currently so close to us. 

Morávek was known for his stout-heartedness, but also for his deep faith in God. His Protestant faith was no secret and he always carried around his Kralice Bible, in which he would read every day, if the situation allowed it. Among his fellow soldiers, he was nicknamed the “pious gunman”. He expressed his credo in his own way in the legendary quote “I believe in God and in my guns!”  

On Sunday, 17 March, members of the ECCB’s congregations in Dejvice and Střešovice commemorated Morávek, soldier of the Czechoslovak army and active resistance fighter (who, together with Josef Balabán and Josef Mašín, formed the “Three Kings” resistance group). The event took place at the spot where Morávek finished his earthly battle – at the memorial that now bears the resistance fighter's name and stands in Prague-Střešovice.

Morávek was a man of flesh and blood

Senator Tomáš Czernin also accepted the invitation to the memorial. In his short speech, he stressed Morávek’s courage. “I wish we had more people like Morávek among us,” he said.

In a spiritual speech, the minister of the Dejvice congregation, Alexandra Jacobea, talked about Morávek’s personality. “Two of his personality traits captured my attention: his courage and his tendency towards a certain jocularity, which some may have considered reckless – because Morávek did indeed balance on the edge sometimes. In addition to the situations that arose as a result of his resistance activities, he often actively created such borderline situations. According to Jacobea, it is these two personality traits that make Václav Morávek a man of flesh and blood, making the often idealised image of the war hero more human. “He belongs to the long line of men and women, Biblical and purely historical figures, who were not picture-perfect, but struggled for a meaningful life, honestly and to the core. They were striving not to waste the time they were given amid the whirlwind of the events of our world,” she said. In her view, Morávek’s life remains a valuable source of inspiration and challenge for people today. “We, too, can ask ourselves how we can connect our strengths as well as the traits that many could consider weaknesses in the time we given. How to live authentically and honestly and serve God and other people with our humanity,” she added. Following a prayer and a final blessing, the Czechoslovak anthem was sung.  

Václav Morávek fell while trying to rescue his friend. He did not manage to free Řehák from the clutches of the Gestapo: the Nazis executed him three months later at the Kobylisy shooting range. In spite of this, Morávek’s life was not wasted. On the contrary. He sacrificed it for the noble idea of fighting for freedom, against evil. He was a faithful and determined servant of the Lord until his last moments. With his brave act, he fulfilled the words of Christ: “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” John 15:13)

We honour his memory.

Adéla Rozbořilová