Soldiers of the Cross: Confederate Soldier-Christians and the Impact of War on Their Faith.Soldiers" of the Cross: Confederate Soldier-Christians and the Impact of War on Their Faith. By Kent T. Dollar. (Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press Mercer University Press, established in 1979, is a publisher that is part of Mercer University. External link
abbr. International Standard Book Number ISBN International Standard Book Number ISBN n abbr (= International Standard Book Number) → ISBN m 0-86554-926-5.) The election of 1860 was the call to arms for many southern Christians. Leading theological figures, ecclesiastical bodies, and denominational weeklies supported secession and war, proclaiming "'God and Our Rights!" Despite the wealth of scholarship on the Civil War, Kent T. Dollar contends that historians have done little on the faith of individual Confederate Christian soldiers. Soldiers of the Cross: Confederate Soldier-Christians and the Impact of War on Their Faith attempts to answer questions such as whether Confederates only sought out God during battle and what impact the war had on those men who were already practicing and professing Christians prior to the conflict. In arriving at his conclusions, Dollar examines the lives of nine soldiers, providing the reader with a brief look at their antebellum, war, and postwar experiences. Dollar selected the nine men based on several factors: surviving writings (diaries, letters, church and census records); different geographic representations (upper and lower South); different military ranks (private to brigadier general): different Confederate armies (eastern and western theaters); different denominations (Methodist, Presbyterian, Baptist, Episcopalian, and Roman Catholic); and different degrees of spiritual maturity. Alfred T. Fielder, William L. Nugent, and William N. Pendleton William Nelson Pendleton (December 26, 1809 – January 15, 1883) was an Episcopal priest and a Confederate general in the American Civil War, serving as Robert E. Lee's chief of artillery. Pendleton was born in Richmond, Virginia. represent mature Christians who were antebellum church leaders. Edward O. Guerrant, Felix P. Poche, and Hiram Talbert Holt were new Christian converts prior to war, while Giles B. Cooke, Alexander T. Barclay, and Robert A. Moore were wartime converts. The majority came from plantation backgrounds, though none were slave owners. Others were teachers or lawyers. The group ranged in age from seventeen to fifty, with just over half being married. All viewed secession and war as acts of self-defense: Abraham Lincoln was a tyrant and the North was the aggressor. To a man, they believed that God sided with the Confederacy Confederacy, name commonly given to the Confederate States of America (1861–65), the government established by the Southern states of the United States after their secession from the Union. , making it a just cause. But their faith was sorely tested by the horrors of war and separation from families. Civil War camps were filled with temptations, such as drinking and gambling. Yet all of the men endured the trials by reading the Bible and praying on a regular basis, attending Christian worship services, and growing in strength and reliance on God, thus becoming more devout by 1865. One of the important aspects of the book is that Dollar follows seven of the men into the postwar era (two died during the war), finding that three became ordained or·dain tr.v. or·dained, or·dain·ing, or·dains 1. a. To invest with ministerial or priestly authority; confer holy orders on. b. To authorize as a rabbi. 2. clergymen and three became church lay leaders (the other was Roman Catholic, which limited his leadership opportunities). The author is careful not to overreach overreach the error in a fast gait when the toe of a hindhoof of a horse strikes and injures the back of the pastern of the leg on the same side. overreach boot with his conclusion that the war had such a positive effect on all Confederate Christian soldiers. One issue with which readers might quibble QUIBBLE. A slight difficulty raised without necessity or propriety; a cavil. 2. No justly eminent member of the bar will resort to a quibble in his argument. is that chapters are thematically based, with each man discussed within each chapter, making some material repetitive. We are told time and again that Robert Mounce died seven months after his confession of faith, and readers will tire of the phrase "Christian neophyte ne·o·phyte n. 1. A recent convert to a belief; a proselyte. 2. A beginner or novice: a neophyte at politics. 3. a. Roman Catholic Church A newly ordained priest. " to describe the converted soldiers. Some readers might wonder if a biographical approach would have been wiser. These criticisms aside, Soldiers of the Cross is sure to be a hit with those interested in a closer look at the spiritual impact of war upon the men who fought it. C. DAVID David, in the Bible David, d. c.970 B.C., king of ancient Israel (c.1010–970 B.C.), successor of Saul. The Book of First Samuel introduces him as the youngest of eight sons who is anointed king by Samuel to replace Saul, who had been deemed a failure. DALTON College of the Ozarks Enrollment is 1,500 to 1,600, and all tuition costs for students are covered by a workstudy program. Students put in 15 hours a week throughout the semester at a workstation, and one 40-hour work week is required outside of the semester. |
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