Monday, November 11, 2013

Courage for Living

A true story for Veteran's Day.

On February 2, 1943, an Army transport ship called the Dorchester was steaming through the frigid waters of the north Atlantic, going from Newfoundland to Greenland, when a German U-boat fired a torpedo that hit dead-on.  The Dorchester's captain, Hans Danielson, had prepared those on board for the possibility of a strike, and they had been ordered to sleep fully clothed, with life-vests on.  But some had disobeyed orders because the lifejackets were uncomfortable.

Many men were killed by the torpedo blast, but hundreds were not.  Some were not.  Some were rescued by escort ships. But panic began to set in.  Lifeboats were overcrowded--and some sank.  Rubber rafts thrown into the ocean drifted away before they could be used.  Midst all the confusion and fear four men brought a measure of calm to the scene.  Four chaplains.  Two Protestant ministers, a Roman catholic priest and a rabbi.  George Fox, Clark Poling, John Washington and Alexander Goode.

Gently, yet firmly, the four chaplains worked their way around the deck.  They prayed for the dying; they offered words of assurance and hope to the frightened men trying to get off the sinking vessel.  One private who'd jumped overboard and was treading water midst floating dead bodies and oil slicks, later said, "I could hear men crying, pleading, praying.  I could also hear the chaplains preaching courage.  Their voices were the only thing that kept me going."

The chaplains didn't just preach it--they lived it.  One man, a petty officer named Mahoney, had forgotten his gloves when he left his cabin.  Trying but failing to get back to his berth, he met up with Rabbi Goode.  He told him where he was going, what he needed.  Quietly the rabbi told him that he had two pair--and handed gloves to Mahoney.  It was only later that Mahoney realized Goode had in fact given him his one and only pair of gloves.

The chaplains then opened a storage locker and began to hand out life vests to the men who had forgotten their or who had lost them in the melee.  And then, when the vests were all gone, the chaplains stripped off their own and gave them to four men who had none.

And then they gave up even more--for room on the lifeboats was limited.  Together, arms linked in solidarity, the four chaplains stood on the deck of the Dorchester as twenty minutes after it had been attacked, it slipped under the ice cold waves.  To the very end they continued to pray aloud for the safety and the well-being of the men they were charged with shepherding in their darkest hour.  All four died at sea.  (Quote from "The Saga of the Four Chaplains," www.fourchaplains.org)

On this day when we honor so many brave men and women, let us remember that such courage is not just for battles and warfare--courage is a gift for everyday life as well.  The chaplains focused on God and the needs of those around them, and in doing so found the courage to do the right thing.  Might we be so focused ourselves.

No comments:

Post a Comment