"The memory of the just is blessed" (Proverbs
10:7).
Next Monday, January 18, we in the Sovereign State of Mississippi will
honour the memory of one of the most faithful Christians that God has ever
saved, General Robert Edward Lee, Commander of the Army of Northern Virginia.
General Lee was actually born on January 19 (1807), but the legislature several
years ago made the Monday nearest his birthday a State holiday so state
employees could always have a three day weekend.
General Lee was descended from a long line of honourable
men. His father, Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee was an officer in the
Revolutionary War and served under George Washington. He also served his home
state as governor for several terms. One of his relatives, Francis Lightfoot
Lee was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. General Lee married Mary
Custis, the great-grand daughter of George Washington. When General Lee said,
"all the South has ever wanted is the Old Constitution as bequeathed to us
by our forefathers," he was speaking of his own family who had been
instrumental in the Founding of the American Republic.
Robert Edward Lee proved himself to be of great character
from boyhood. It fell his lot to care for his widowed and invalid mother when
only eleven years old. He grew up quick and had no time for play and frivolity.
His mother and he were faithful members of the Episcopal Church. Of course in
that day the Episcopal Church, especially in Virginia and the South still
believed the Bible. The Episcopal Church that Robert E. Lee attended as a boy
was the same one that George Washington attended, and was not "high
church," but was distinctly Protestant and Puritan in its doctrine and
practice. Robert E. Lee finished second in his class at West Point, and never
received a single demerit.
General Lee first distinguished himself as a soldier in the
Mexican War. General Winfield Scott said that he was the most able soldier in
the United States Army, and said he was his own right arm in the Mexican War.
General Lee's character and ability caused Abraham Lincoln to offer him the
command of the whole Union Army when he made the decision to invade the South.
Although Lee knew the odds were great against a Southern Victory, he refused
Lincoln's offer. Had he accepted he would have had all this world has to offer-
fame, wealth and power. He would no doubt have become president himself. Had he
accepted Lincoln's offer the North would have had the most able General alive
at that time and the North would have probably defeated the South in a few
months. Although his heart was broken by the disunion of the country and the
Northern Invasion of the South, he was not a reluctant Confederate. He said,
"a union that can only be held together by bayonets has no attraction for
me." He accepted defeat humbly and graciously and made many conciliatory
statements and gestures after the Surrender. But when the Red Republicans
treated the South as conquered provinces during reconstruction, General Lee
said to Governor Stockdale of Texas, "Had I foreseen these results of
subjugation, I would have preferred to die with my brave men with my sword in my
hand." Contrary to some revisionist historians Robert E. Lee was
thoroughly committed to the South and our Cause. He finally had to surrender
after four years of distinguished service because he was completely surrounded
with no food and no ammunition. The principles of just warfare he had learned
at West Point dictated that he must surrender when there was no hope of victory
and continuing would only mean unnecessary loss of life.
Volumes have been written about this distinguished Hero and
his military skill and great character, but it is his Christian Character that
I mostly want my children and grandchildren to know of. His labours for the
salvation of his men were instrumental in the Great Revival that God sent down
on the Confederate Armies in which upwards of 150,000 Southern Soldiers
professed faith in Christ. General Lee promoted religion in his army first by
his own example. Though a man of sterling character, and (compared to other
men, not God's holy standard) practically without fault, his profession was,
"I am only a poor sinner, trusting in Christ Alone for salvation." He
also promoted piety in his army by issuing orders that only necessary duties be
performed on the Sabbath. He was faithful in attendance of worship and
preaching and promoted preaching in his Army. The last act of his life was to
attend the vestry meeting of his church at which he personally pledged the
funds that were lacking for the pastor's salary.
One of the most telling stories of General Lee's Christian
Character was when after the War a large insurance company from up north
offered him the presidency of their company at a salary of $50,000 a year (that
would be equivalent to at least a million dollars a year in today's money). He
replied that he could do them no good since he knew nothing of the insurance
business. They told him he did not have to do anything, they just wanted his
name associated with their company! He replied, "my name is all I have
left, and it is not for sale." He chose rather to become president of
Washington College and devote the rest of his life to educating the young men
of the South. Next to my own father, General Lee is my hero and a man I would
like to try to emulate as he followed the Saviour.
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