February 3 commemorates the selfless acts of four Army chaplains aboard the USS Dorchester, which sank during World War II.
The four ministers, also known as the “Immortal Ministers” or the “Dorchester Ministers,” represented three faiths: Catholicism, Judaism, and Protestantism.
story of four pastors
The 368-foot steamer Dorchester, operated by the Army Maritime Administration, was part of a convoy that left New York in January 1943 bound for Army Headquarters Base at Narsarsuaq in southern Greenland.
To sail from Newfoundland to Greenland, ships must navigate icy waters and pass through waters infested with German U-boats.
According to official records, the Dorchester was torpedoed by a U-boat in the Labrador Sea off the coast of Greenland shortly after midnight on February 3, 1943, and sank 20 minutes later.
Of the 904 people on board, 675 drowned or died from hypothermia in the frigid waters. This was considered the worst single death toll for a U.S. military convoy during World War II.
Dorchester’s loss is most remembered for the sacrifice of “four ministers,” two Protestants, one rabbi, and one Catholic priest. They were all army lieutenants who went down with the ship.
The four chaplains spent much of their time calming the nervous young soldiers, and even appeared on nightly variety shows to kill time.
When the torpedo hit, the chaplains guided the men below deck to the lifeboats and handed them life jackets.
“Right before our ship sank, the chaplains took off their life preservers and gave them to us,” said one survivor, Daniel O’Keefe, 19, of the U.S. Merchant Marine Service. I told him a week later. tragedy. “When our lifeboat was out of sight, they were standing on deck, holding hands, praying.”
Survivor John Rudd also reported that he recalled pastors handing out life jackets. Four Pastors Memorial Foundation. “It was the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen or hope to see this side of heaven,” he said.
Another survivor, William Bednar, told the Baltimore Sun in 1997: “I heard the men crying, pleading, praying, swearing. I heard the pastors preaching courage to the men. Their voices were probably the only thing that kept me sane. Ta.” “
Who are the four pastors?
The four ministers were Lieutenant George L. Fox, a Methodist minister from Pennsylvania; Lieutenant Alexander D. Good, a Reform rabbi from New York. Lt. Gov. Clark V. Pauling, a Reformed Church minister from Ohio. and Lieutenant John P. Washington, a Roman Catholic priest from New Jersey.
The four became friends after being sent to Camp Miles Standish in Massachusetts while serving overseas.
Their fate was sealed in February 1943 when they were all assigned to the former luxury liner USAT Dorchester, packed to capacity with 751 soldiers on board.
They were each posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and the Purple Heart.
Attempts by Congress to award the Medal of Honor to four pastors were unsuccessful under the strict guidelines for awarding the medal.
Instead, the Special Medal for Heroism was authorized by Congress and awarded by President Dwight Eisenhower in 1961.
Lieutenant George L. Fox
As soon as Reverend George L. Fox learned of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, he knew what was about to happen. “I have to go,” Fox said to his wife, Isadora. “I know from experience what those boys are going to face. They need me.”
A native of Lewistown, Pennsylvania, he lied about his age at age 17 during World War I when he enlisted in the Marine Corps as a medical assistant and trained as an ambulance driver.
Between world wars, Fox graduated from high school, got married, and began religious work.
According to the Jewish War Veterans of America, “He subsequently graduated from Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington and studied at Boston University School of Theology, where he was ordained a Methodist minister on June 10, 1934.” .
After the outbreak of World War II, 42-year-old Fox immediately enlisted in the chaplaincy. He began his active duty on August 8, 1942.
read more: Rev. George L. Fox
Lieutenant Alexander D. Good
Alexander Good, a native of Brooklyn, New York, was an outstanding athlete and scholar whose dream was to become a rabbi like his father, the paper reported. US Indo-Pacific Command.
According to reports, he displayed heroism from an early age, saving his family’s home as a child by putting out a kitchen fire before firefighters arrived. National Museum of the United States Army.
After high school, he was ordained as a rabbi at Hebrew Union College in New York in 1937. He then served at Temple Beth Israel in York, Pennsylvania. and his Ph.D. He received his PhD in Middle Eastern languages from John Hopkins University.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, he joined the Army Air Corps as a chaplain and then lobbied to serve on the front lines.
Mr. Good leaves behind his wife Teresa and 3-year-old daughter Rosalie.
A few weeks later, Rabbi Philip S. Bernstein of the National Jewish Welfare Committee said, “He believed that it was not worth living in a world under Axis power control, and that he would give his life for human freedom.” I was prepared to sacrifice even the most.” The pastors are gone.
Lieutenant Clark V. Pauling
According to PACOM, Clark V. Pauling, the youngest of the four chaplains, “asked his father to pray for him as he left for war.”
Pauling, a seventh-generation Dutch Reformed pastor, said, “I just pray that I may be enough to fulfill my duty and have the strength, courage, and understanding of my people.” That’s all.”
Mr. Pauling came from a family of clergymen and was ordained into the Christian ministry in 1936 at the age of 26.
On the night of the ceremony, his father, the Rev. Daniel A. Pauling, told him: According to an article in The Day newspaper in New London, Conn., you are living a life of real struggle against the forces of evil. Be true to your mission.
Pauling served at the First Dutch Reformed Church in Schenectady, New York.
Lieutenant John P. Washington
John P. Washington was born in New Jersey to a large Irish family. As a child, he loved music, took piano lessons and sang in the church choir.
A graduate of Seton Hall, he went on to study at Immaculate Conception Seminary in Darlington, New Jersey, and was ordained a priest.
He served as associate pastor at St. Stephen’s Church in Arlington, New Jersey.
He enlisted in the Army in May 1942 after being rejected by the Navy due to poor eyesight, according to the magazine. Four Pastors Memorial Foundation.
race to save lives
As the Dorchester was sinking, the Coast Guard cutter Comanche ignored the threat of another U-boat attack and hurried through rough seas to retrieve survivors.
The Comanche lowered its cargo net, but many of the people in the lifeboats were too weak and numb from the cold to board the ship.
Captain First Class Charles Walter David Jr., 26, of New York City, was fiercely loyal to his ship and crew despite the rank of second class given to blacks during World War II. Known for his heart, he jumped into a lifeboat and began picking up survivors.
During the rescue effort, the Comanche’s officer, Lieutenant Langford Anderson, slipped and fell into the frigid water. Without hesitation, David jumped into the icy water and swam to save Anderson and brought him into the net.
After helping the last survivor scramble aboard, David climbed the net himself to the deck of the Comanche, while his friend and First Class Storekeeper Richard ‘Dick’ Swanson struggled through the freezing water. William H. Thiessen, Coast Guard Atlantic Region historian, said he was only able to climb halfway because he was inside.
“Come on, Swanee, you can do it,” David encouraged from the deck of the Comanche. But Swanson couldn’t move. David went down the net again and lifted Swanson to safety.
A few weeks later, David died of pneumonia in a hospital in Greenland after suffering hypothermia during the rescue.
“Despite his secondary status in racial service, Charles Walter David, Jr. put the needs of others before his own. For his heroic acts, David was posthumously named to the Navy. He was awarded the Soldier’s Medal and received the Immortal Chaplain Award in 1999. For Humanity,” Thiessen wrote.
In 2013, the Coast Guard named the Sentinel-class Rapid Response Cutter Charles Walter David Jr. in recognition of its exemplary service.
How to observe Four Pastors’ Day
On February 3, 1951, President Harry S. Truman dedicated four chaplains in Philadelphia.
Since then, thousands of interfaith memorial services for the Four Chaplains have been held each year across the United States, including at American Legion posts.
of American Veterans Association Recommended Guidelines Hosting a memorial service for four pastors includes:
- Ensure that representatives of different faith groups are invited to participate.
- Display a photo of the four pastors and/or a photo of four red roses, life jackets, or four empty seats near the altar or podium.
- This includes lighting candles and decorating wreaths.
- Contains a message about selfless service.
- Collect donations to support the chaplain activities of four chaplains.
The Four Pastors Memorial Foundation also provides the following services: Hosting service proposal, explained in more detail. These include his three proposed funeral formats: a breakfast or banquet program, an all-inclusive program, and a short-term program.
Related: World War II chaplain who comforted sailors in shark-infested waters is posthumously awarded the Navy Cross
Bethanne Kelly Patrick contributed to this report.
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