10 May 1863 A.D. GEN Thomas “Old Jack Stonewall” Jackson slips
into the next world. Dr. Rusten tells some
of the backstory.
Rusten, E.
Michael and Rusten, Sharon. The One Year
Christian History. Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2003. Available at: http://www.amazon.com/The-Year-Christian-History-Books/dp/0842355073/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1393302630&sr=8-1&keywords=rusten+church+history
Members of Lexington
Presbyterian, Lexington, VA called him “Deacon.” Most others called him “Stonewall”
Jackson. One might call him “Catechetist
Jackson.”
Before
the backstory, a note. “Old Jack” taught
at Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, VA. He also was concerned about the young black
children in Lexington. He catechetized
and visited the children and the parents.
BTW, that spells Westminster
Shorter Catechism and the Westminster
Larger Catechism. Even during the Civil War, he directed tithe monies
through Lexington Presbyterian to the black children for books, Bibles and
catechisms.
C.
1988ish, aboard an aircraft carrier, I met a black Navy Chaplain. A Captain to
be more precise or, for Marines, the equivalent of a COL, full bird. He claimed to be a descendant, a lineal
descendant, of the catechetical line back to “Old Jack” Stonewall. Forget his name. It was either a Grandfather or
Great-grandfather and cannot recall exactly. This much: reading,
learning, memorizing, digesting, thinking and the ignition to more
learning. That’s the lineage General
Stonewall Jackson left in one black family. The Navy Chaplain studied under the
Rev. Dr. “Old Jack” John Gerstner at Pittsburgh Seminary. This is a digression to the main menu.
Backstory
on “Old Jack.”
Thomas Jackson was born in 1824
in Clarksburg, VA. He had a limited education, but was able to enter West
Pointe. He struggled there, initially,
but ultimately prevailed and distinguished himself. He was interested in
spiritual matters since youth and especially during the Mexican War of 1848.
On 29 April 1848, he publicly affirmed his
faith and was baptized by an Episcopalian minister on one condition: that he
was not committed to a single denomination until he could review which he
favored.
In 1851, he was teaching at the
Virginia Military Institute, Lexington, VA.
He was also seriously influenced by the Pastor there. The parish still has a pew, a specific spot,
where “Old Jack” sat. He joined the parish. He became a “Deacon” in 1853 and
fulfilled his duties with military efficiency and decorum.
He
married in 1853, but his wife and child died in childbirth.
“Old
Jack” did not support secession of Virginia from the Union, but he was a loyal
Virginian. He accepted a commission with
the Army of Northern Virginia.
GEN “Old
Jack” Jackson earned his sobriquet at the first battle of Bull Run. His brigade held the line. His troops rallied, one yelling, “Rally
around the Virginian, Stonewall!”
Of note, “Old Jack” was a
catechetized Calvinist. His courage in battle was noteworthy. He was asked how he could be so calm in
conflict. He answered, “Captain, my
religious belief teaches me to feel as safe in battle as in bed. God has fixed
the time for my death. I do not concern
myself about that, but to always be ready, not matter when it betake me. Captain, this is the way all men should live,
and then all would be equally brave.”
That’s a Calvinist talking, not a Tractarian, Arminian, modern
evangelical, Romanist or Wesleyan. It’s a man who has tasted of the deeper
wells.
Old Jack
Stonewall was also well-known as a man of prayer. Many a time a guard would see old Jack in his
tent, silhouetted against the tent, on his knees praying. We have a print of a picture of Old Jack here
at the house. He was also seen pacing through fields, periodically gesticulating. He was well-known as a man of prayer, living Coram Deo.
From 1861-1863, “Old Jack”
Stonewall demonstrated tactical genius in many campaigns: Penisular Campaign,
Shenandoah Valley, Seven Days’ battle around Richmond, Cross Keys, Port
Republic, the 2nd battle of Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg and
others.
Finally,
at Chancellorsville, VA, he took friendly fire from NC troops. He was hit in the arm. His arm had to be amputated. He was transported south some 27ish miles to
recover, but pneumonia, perhaps septicemia, set it. Upon receipt of the bad news, GEN Robert E.
Lee wrote him, saying, “Could I have directed events, I should have chosen for
the good of the country to be disabled in your stead. I congratue you on the victory.” General Hooker, USA, and his troops had
retreated. When the letter was read to “Old Jack Stonewall,” he replied,
“General Lee is very kind, but he should give the praise to God.” That was Old Jack, not a hypocritical inch inside
the man.
Old Jack
continued to worsen. On 10 May 1863, in and out of
consciousness, he uttered his final words, “Let us cross over the river and
rest under the shade of the trees.” He passed from this life to the next.
His body
was transported south for further transfer to Lexington, VA. He is buried there.
Of note,
we call attention to Mr. (Rev. Dr. Prof.) Robert Dabney, Chief of Staff to Old
Jack in the Civil War. His Life and Campaigns is a meritorious
read. Prof. Robert Dabney would serve as
a Professor of Systematic Theology at Union Seminary, Richmond, VA, for years
afterwards. We include those two references here.
Dabney, Robert. Life
and Campaigns of Stonewall Jackson. No location: Acheron Press, 2012. Available
at: http://www.amazon.com/Campaigns-Stonewall-Jackson-Robert-Dabney-ebook/dp/B009QA3FCA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1394597276&sr=8-1&keywords=robert+dabney+life+and+campaigns
----------Systematic Theology. Edinburgh: Banner
of Truth, 1985. http://www.amazon.com/Systematic-Theology-R-L-Dabney/dp/0851514537/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1394597403&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=robert+dabney+systematic+theology
Again, in
closing, I met a patrilineal and catechetical descendant, a black US Navy
Captain and Chaplain, of “Old Jack Stonewall.”
Little did the General realize it, but lads and lasses were influenced
by his military and Christian duty to catechetized the little ones. It was an
honor to know and serve with this Navy Chaplain. He also wanted to know my
connections to another “Old Jack,” Dr. Gerstner. Funny, involved with that old master two
decades earlier, Dr. John Gerstner, c. 1974, at First Presbyterian, Pittsburg,
PA, but that’s another story for another time.
Lest we forget.
Available
at:
Sources
used by Dr. Rusten.
Chesebrough, David B. “The General Who Looked to
God: Stonewall Jackson.” More Than
Conquerors. Edited by Woodbridge. 22-4.
--------. “Jackson, Thomas Jonathan (Stonewall).”
DCA. 586-7.
Hendersen, G.F.R. Stonewall Jackson and the American Civil War. 2 vols. London:
Longmans Green, 1898.
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