The Catholic Devotional for Confederate Soldiers was written by Bishop McGill for the Confederate soldiers to carry with them into battle, and for their encampments. The work was published and registered by Bp. McGill in the Confederate States of America in 1861. The Devotional contains many Catholic prayers, novenas, selections from the Mass, etc., which are appropriate to Catholics and other Christians, as well as soldiers, who wish to deepen their Faith.
The bedrock of the Southern American culture was that the Bible was indeed the infallible word of the God who created the heavens, the earth, and all that is therein; and that Jesus Christ is the only means of redemption. Therefore it should not be surprising to anyone that at the beginning of the War of Northern Aggression many of the political, military officers, and soldiers were Christians. As a result they knew the great need for those going into battle to possess the Bible, New Testaments, tracts, and hymn books, especially for those who were unsaved. It was simply amazing how politicians, army commanders, preachers, churches, chaplains, and the people of the Confederacy immediately set into motion whatever was necessary to supply the troops with God's word. This small prayer book was originally published in Charleston, SC, early in the War to be distributed to Confederate soldiers marching off to war or already in the field. Hopefully, this book played a part in bringing comfort to the men in the field as they faced the horrors of war.
Extremely well researched and unique in its approach, citing nine individual Confederate soldiers and the impact of the Civil War on their Christianity. These case studies, largely drawn from their own words in letters and diaries, give a personal and individual perspective that has largely been overlooked in other similar works.
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
Excerpt from Prayers and Other Devotions for the Use of the Soldiers of the Army of the Confederate States Though an host of men were laid against me, yet shall not mine heart be afraid; and though there rose up war against me, yet Will I put my trust in Thee. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
They read the same Bible and prayed to the same God, but they faced each other in battle with rage in their hearts. The Civil War not only pitted brother against brother but also Christian against Christian, with soldiers from North and South alike devoutly believing that God was on their side. Steven Woodworth, one of our most prominent and provocative Civil War historians, presents the first detailed study of soldiers' religious beliefs and how they influenced the course of that tragic conflict. He shows how Christian teaching and practice shaped the worldview of soldiers on both sides: how it motivated them for the struggle, how it influenced the way they fought, and how it shaped national life after the war ended. Through the diaries, letters, and reminiscences of common soldiers, Woodworth illuminates religious belief from the home front to the battlefield, where thoughts of death and the afterlife were always close at hand. Woodworth reveals what these men thought about God and what they believed God thought about the war. Wrote one Unionist, "I believe our cause to be the cause of liberty and light . . . the cause of God, and holy and justifiable in His sight, and for this reason, I fear not to die in it if need be." With a familiar echo, his Confederate counterpart declared that "our Cause is Just and God is Just and we shall finally be successful whether I live to see the time or not." Woodworth focuses on mainstream Protestant beliefs and practices shared by the majority of combatants in order to help us better understand soldiers' motivations and to realize what a strong role religion played in American life throughout the conflict. In addition, he provides sharp insights into the relationship between Christianity and both the abolition movement in the North and the institution of slavery in the South. Ultimately, Woodworth shows us how opposing armies could put their trust in the same God while engaging in four years of organized slaughter and destruction. His compelling work provides a rich new perspective on religion in American life and will forever change the way we look at the Civil War.
How did Southern Catholics, under international religious authority and grounding unlike Southern Protestants, act with regard to political commitments in the recently formed Confederacy? How did they balance being both Catholic and Confederate? How is the Southern Catholic Civil War experience similar or dissimilar to the Southern Protestant Civil War experience? What new insights might this experience provide regarding Civil War religious history, the history of Catholicism in America, 19th-century America, and Southern history in general? For the majority of Southern Catholics, religion and politics were not a point of tension. Devout Catholics were also devoted Confederates, including nuns who served as nurses; their deep involvement in the Confederate cause as medics confirms the all-encompassing nature of Catholic involvement in the Confederacy, a fact greatly underplayed by scholars of Civil war religion and American Catholicism. Kraszewski argues against an "Americanization" of Catholics in the South and instead coins the term "Confederatization" to describe the process by which Catholics made themselves virtually indistinguishable from their Protestant neighbors. The religious history of the South has been primarily Protestant. Catholic Confederates simultaneously fills a gap in Civil War religious scholarship and in American Catholic literature by bringing to light the deep impact Catholicism has had on Southern society even in the very heart of the Bible Belt.
The Army Navy Prayer Book of the Confederate States is the Episcopal Prayer Book for the Armed Services of the Confederacy. It went through annual editions from 1861-1865, and was the official military prayer book of the Confederate States. As an Afterword, some additional prayers by Bp. Thomas Atkinson, bishop of North Carolina, have been included. Also added are national calls to prayer by President Jefferson Davis throughout the War, and a sermon by Bp. Stephen Elliot delivered upon the Day of National Humiliation, Fasting and Prayer in 1861. This work is printed for ease of carrying, and daily use by Christians who want a Prayer Book that connects us to our Southern ancestors and their cause of freedom.
