“One of the Knightliest Soldiers”

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain – 20^th Maine

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain has always been one of my heroes. Before I understood the concept of heroes, I was captivated by the courage of common men in the Civil War. Some of my earliest memories are of the innumerable hours I spent looking at Civil War books. I stared intensly into the battleground and campsite photos…wondering and projecting myself into the scenes. I was mesmerized by the portrayals of warfare; charging enemy lines, reloading behind trees or barricades (often picket fences), bayonet fights, insurmountable odds, stately commanding officers, and bodies strewn almost randomly across battlefields…puppet-like, lifeless…like discarded dolls. While other kids read comic books and watched cartoons, I devoured Civil War journals, studied maps and battlefield charts, and marched off into our woods to test and experience my imaginary strategies. Even as a college student and adult, I continued to be magnetically attracted to Civil War literature and documentaries. I am still convinced that the life lessons from the “divided union” era are vital to our day.

Perhaps the most captivating thing about the Civil War pictures and stories is that this “conflict of the ages” was played out in familiar settings with common men as heroes and villains. The greatness of Chamberlain is largely due to the fact that he was an “ordinary person who lived an extraordinary life.” His life story, demeanor and perspective is not only inspiring and instructive, but we can identify with him. His life has inspired me, his quotes challenged me, and his courage convicted me. His was a life committed to the dignity of humanity that ascribed greatness to God and esteemed value to the human soul. While our generation drowns in the arrogance so characteristic of an age addicted to mediocrity. His life and age was marked by men of excellence and wholeheartedness—visibly magnified in a willingness to give their lives-“the last full measure.”

Early on in life, young Joshua had the desire to be a missionary. More than a passion, though, he believed a missionary life was his calling and burden. He even made a decision for and commitment to pursue this, although it never materialized as a reality in his life, in the way he thought (imagined). Not one to wallow in disappointment or stay idle in delay; he attended college and seminary where he studied Latin, Greek and learned to speak 9 languages. Through the years, he had overcome his greatest obstacle—a speech impediment and embarrassing stammer by developing a sing song manner of speech. While hoping for an opportunity at ministry or missions, he served as a Professor of Rhetoric and Literature teacher. During this season of waiting, the crises of his century erupted—the Civil War provided a clarion call to duty.

On the Call to Duty

“All great leaders have had one characteristic in common: the willingness to confront unequivocally the major anxiety of their people in their time”-John K. Galbraith. This was certainly true of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, as the specter of Civil War produced a conviction of a call to duty and service. As the war broke out, Chamberlain wanted to enlist, but his college administration opposed it because he was too valuable as faculty. He then requested a leave of absence to study in Europe, but immediately enlisted in the Union army instead. He was asked to be the Colonel of the 20^th Maine Regiment, but said he preferred “to start a little lower and learn the business first.” He stated that, “…in military matters… what I do not know in that line, I know how to learn. But, I fear this war, so costly in blood and treasure, will not cease until the men of the North are willing to leave good positions, and sacrifice the deepest personal interests, to rescue our country from desolation, and defend the national existence against treachery at home and jealousy abroad. This war must be ended, with a swift and strong hand; and every man ought to come forward and ask to be placed at his proper post.”

Chamberlain’s combat resume reads like a log from the whole regiment.

• 24 Engagements – (20 battles and skirmishes) including Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Spotsylvania, and Cold Harbor.
• Wounded 6x – had 6 horses shot from under him, 2x a death notice was sent out on him…but he lived on.
• Selected to preside over the Confederate surrender at the Appomattox Court House, his call to salute the “enemy” soldiers became one of the most controversial and memorable scenes of the entire war.
• He was the last man to die of war related injuries –in 1914.

On Returns to Combat

Joshua constantly attributed any of his faithfulness or bravery to his relationship with and trust in God. He once said, “There is no promise of life in peace and no decree of death in war. And I am so confident of the sincerity of my motives that I can trust my own life and the welfare of my family in the hands of Providence.”

On Heroic Sacrifice

In 1893, Chamberlain was awarded the “medal of Honor” for his leadership at Gettysburg. The citation was for “daring heroism and great tenacity in holding his position on the Little Round Top against repeated assaults, and carrying the advance position on the Great Round Top.” His courage has been cited in books, songs, and movies…and he was referred to as “the Lion of the Round Top” by his contemporaries.

In 1889, Joshua wrote a reflection on Gettysburg that contained one of my favorite quotes from history. I find it inscribed on trail markers of many national battlefield parks; and have frequently pondered its truths while hiking and praying at these historic landmarks.

“In great deeds something abides. On great fields something stays. Forms change and pass; bodies disappear; but spirits linger, to consecrate ground for the vision – place of souls. And reverent men and women from afar, and generations that know us not and that we know not of, heart drawn to see where and by whom great things were suffered and done for them, shall come to this deathless field, to ponder and dream; and lo! The shadow of a mighty presence shall wrap them in its bosom, and the power of the vision pass into their souls… This is the great reward of service. To live, far out and on, in the life of others; this is the mystery of the Christ – to give life’s best for such high stake that it shall be found again into life eternal.”

Here, Chamberlain speaks of the ideal of heroic sacrifice while providing a providential perspective that reveals an application of the Cross of Christ to the soldier’s life. Chamberlain’s life was a shining light in a dark time, and still casts an influential shadow on those who aspire to the Call to faithfulness and excellence. In our world of consumerism, intoxicated with entertainment, selfishness and excess; we would do well to emulate him. It is true that “in extraordinary times, there are no ordinary lives.” Nevertheless, Joshua’s example rose above his peers, and positioned him as a much needed beacon of leadership dignity, grace and courage.

As John Johnson wrote, “Success focuses its attention on the external-becoming the tastemaker for the insatiable appetites of the…consumer. Excellence beams its spotlight on the internal spirit…success encourages expedience and compromise, which prompts us to treat people as a means to our ends. Excellence cultivates principled living and consistency…” Joshua’s life calls us to remember “the divine spark” in every human heart and the potential for greatness and excellence we possess…if we can only break from the spirit of our age.

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain embraced the challenge of his time and fulfilled his destiny amidst great difficulty. May he inspire us all to rise above the storms and contentions of our day. His life speaks across the ages and reminds us of Vaclav Havel’s maxim that “the real test of a man is not when he plays the role that he wants for himself, but when he plays the role destiny has for him.”

HEROES

Andrea: "Unhappy is the land that breeds no hero."
Galileo: "No, Andrea...Unhappy is the land that needs a hero."
--Bertolt Brecht, Galileo

"The fate of the hero is linked to the secularization and disenchantment of the modern world. Ours is said to be an age without God, without heroes, and, ultimately, without selves...a great many of us have lost our sense of self. Like Alice in Wonderland, we are unable to articulate who we are...ours is an age without heroes or in which heroism is reduced to mere celebrity...without cultural heroes common to all, who represent ideals, we may lose a common sense of what binds us (together) so our culture itself begins to fragment.
Heroes serve as centers of moral space. They signal to what one's life is called to or committed...(they) are more than figures we admire...in some way, we emotionally identify with a hero...they are further along on our journey, because they have responded to the same call to which we respond...We stand with our heroes, to uphold the values they uphold. For those who have them, heroes are an important inner marker of identity. They are a part of the landscape of the soul.
If it is true that we lost our sense of heroic calling, then the 3 losses---the loss of God, the loss of heroes, and the loss of selves---seem to go together. God, heroes, and selves all partake of the sacred while the central tendency in the collective life of modern and postmodern culture is profoundly profane and secular.
Moral vision is essential to selfhood (identity). Traditionally, in the west, God was the source and foundation of the good (godly)...the heroic is itself closely tied to a religious sensibility, a sensibility, we are seeing, that seems on the wane. The word hero comes from the Greek 'heros' (as referenced by Dad in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding"), meaning "God-person," the person charged with the charisma of the holy and sacred...for those who have them, heroes (usually, statistically) symbolize (embody) moral (godly) ideals...humility, integrity, dedication, vision, and courage." ---Douglas V. Porpora

"No sadder proof can be given by a man of his own littleness than disbelief in great men."-Carlyle

According to Marshall Fishwick, "the search and need for heroes is inherent in human history...(but) heroes have become increasingly attenuated (reduced in force and value) with secularization (worldliness, irreligious). In ancient times heroes were demigods, in the middle ages they were God's representatives, in the Renaissance they were truth-seekers, and in the 19th century=self-made men. Today, there has been a kind of leveling of heroes (with the rise of capitalism). The charismatic (godly) hero, the hero bespeaking transcendental horizons, is (as) dead..."
Leo Lowenthal documents, "a shift during the early 20th century in the kind of heroes celebrated by the media. Whereas before, American capitalism lauded 'idols of production,' people who actually do something...after WWII, media heroes became mere 'idols of consumption,' athletes, movie stars, and entertainers. This shift reflects a greater cultural orientation toward leisure lives." "Celebrities have replaced heroes in modern culture. Whereas heroes were famous because they were great, clebrities are great because they are famous. the celebrity is a person known for his well-knownness (and moral neutrality or negativity). Celebrities are not moral beacons that fill us with purpose, but empty receptacles into which we pour our own purposeless (fitting heroes for an age without metanarratives=big stories w/ absolutes, truth and reference pts)"-Daniel Boorstin

''Christianity has survived (and thrived) miraculously, in the midst of terrible dangers, chiefly because it has found concrete embodiment in human lives of persuasive quality, and the most persuasive of all qualities is that of genuine affection. One demonstration is worth a hundred arguments, for though doctrines may be impressive, it is experience that is convincing."
-Elton Trueblood

"Let us not be complacent about our supposed capacity to get along without great men. If our society has lost its wish for heroes and its ability to produce them, it may well turn out to have lost everything else as well."-Arthur Schlesinger Jr.

The purpose of this blog is to ignite hope and inspire heroism. Every life story and truth testimony told here may serve to invite us to intimacy with the Living God, while calling us to courageous action.
Brothers and sisters, "hear the word of the Lord...the people who know their God shall be strong (courageously loyal), and carry out heroic deeds-Dan.11:32...return to the stronghold, you prisoners of hope (God dreamers). Even today...I will restore double to you. For I have bent Judah (praise and thanks), My bow, fitted with Ephraim (fruitfulness and harvest), and raised up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and made you like the hero's sword-Zech.9:12-13...keep your eyes open, stand fast in the faith (hold to your convictions), be brave (heroic, be strong with relentless love-1Cor.16:12-13.
My desire is the same as the journalist on "Enemy at The Gates:"....to give you "hope!...another way-a way of courage, a way of love...We must publish again the magnificent stories that exalt sacrifice and bravery-that make us believe in victory and give hope...yes, we need to make examples-but, examples to follow. What we need are heroes!.....'Do you know any heroes around here?'...YES, comrad...I KNOW ONE!"

ON REMEMBERING HEROES IN HISTORY

Heb.11:38..."of whom the world was not worthy."
Ps.88:12 "Shall Your wonders be known in the dark?
And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?"

The Bible is full of stories of real faith & real life. It places a heavy emphasis on historical awareness-remembering the ways & wonders of God while rehearsing the life journeys of men & women. English author John H.Y.Briggs said,"historical awareness is essential for the health & well being of any society...it enables us to know who we are, why we're here & what we should do." I believe we desperately need to hear again of heroic lives & historical perspectives that may serve to free us from the arrogance & amnesia that marks our day. "History must be our deliverer, not only from the undue influence of other times, but from the undue influence of our own...from the tyranny of the environment, & the pressures of the air we breathe"-Lord Acton.
We are all created to feed on "good news," & called to communicate the "word of our testimony." We should never forget that the full record of God's history is in our possession-it is HIS-story. It is our inheritance, & we are to be guardians & heralds of it. Every Biblical retelling & rehearing inspires faith; & every life story (testimony) increases expectation while inviting us to intimacy with the Living GOD.
I am (here) committed to remembering & retelling the stories of heroes of faith who have stood out with remarkable peculiarity.

"In great deeds something abides. On great fields something stays. Forms change & pass, bodies disappear, but spirits linger--to consecrate ground for the vision-place of souls.
And reverent men & women from afar, & generations that know us not, & that we know not of,
heart drawn to see where & by whom great things were suffered & done for them,
shall come to this deathless field, to ponder & dream; & lo! The shadow of a mighty presence shall wrap them in its bosom, & the power of the vision pass into their souls!...
This is the great reward of service. To live, far out & on, in the life of others.
This is the mystery of the Christ-to give life's best for such high stake
that it shall be found again unto life eternal."

-Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain-1889 Gettysburg reflection

May we all "remember the years of the right hand of the Most High...retelling for generations to come the praises of the Lord, His strength & wonderful works that HE has done"-Ps.77:1o, 78:4.