Confederate
Each day, in our daily office, we remember someone who was influential in the Church, and today, that person is William Porcher DuBose.
The hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such the Father seeks to worship him. - John 4:23
DuBose was born in South Carolina to a wealthy family. He entered South Carolina Military Academy (The Citadel) at age 15 and while there, he had a conversion experience not much different from the one Paul had on the road to Damascus.
"I lept to my feet trembling, and then that happened that I can only describe by saying that a light shone about me and a Presence filled the room. At the same time, ineffable joy and peace took possession of me which it is impossible to either express or explain."
He went on to Charlottesville, where he attended the University of Virginia, graduating with a Master of Arts degree in 1859. When war broke out, he was attending the diocesan seminary in South Carolina.
He served in the Confederate Army, fought and was wounded several times before gaining a commission as a chaplain. After the war he was ordained as a priest and served as chaplain at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee, the home of our Education for Ministry Program, which I mentor on Monday evenings.
DuBose's writings are well respected within the church, and he is considered one of our great theologians.
So, I wonder, should we erase his memory from our public places?
During the Civil War, a bishop, the Rt. Rev. Leonidas K. Polk served as a general. While serving as a general he baptized two other generals before dying in battle.
Just as Jesus found a means of spreading the Word through Paul, He remains at work through all of us, if we let Him.
Perhaps we need to remember the past as it truly was, and see if there are lessons to be learned. Or we will learn them all over again.
More to come...