Christ in the Camp - Religion in Lee's Army

J.W. Jones was a Chaplain who knew Lee, Jackson, Gordon and others very well. Jones meet with them, prayed with them, and of course was with them in the Army of Northern Virginia.

This is not a "WAR" of "BATTLE" book, but exemplifies the religious character of the aforementioned people. On this basis, I have to give it five stars.

As a book that touches your heart, with the feeling of those men that served in the ANV, I also give it the maximum of five stars.

I would like to quote just one page---

"Christ in the Camp" by J. William Jones D.D. page 50, Sprinkle Publications.1886

Feb 1864, Chaplains, Rev. J.W. Jones and Rev. B.T. Lacy, visited Lee along the Rapidan as a committee of the Chaplains Association.
After the meeting their were about to leave Lee's tent when Mr. Lacy said,
----" I think it right that I should say to you, General, that the chaplains of the army have a deep interest in your welfare and that some of the most fervent prayers we offer are in your behalf."
The old hero's face flushed, tears started in his eyes, and he
replied with choked utterance:
"Please thank them Sir,---I warmly appreciate it. And I can only say that I am nothing but a poor sinner trusting in Christ alone for salvation, and need all of the prayers they can offer me."

There are many pages of similar content.
This book sits in a place of Honor in my Library.


Religion in the Army of Northern Virginia   November 26, 2000
 31 out of 34 found this review helpful

Christ in the Camp, written by one of the regimental ministers of the Army's second corps came to my attention while reading Douglas Southhall Freeman's four volume epic Robert E. Lee. Dr. Freeman quoted excerpts from this book repeatedly. I ordered it from Amazon.com and it arrived within about a week. Initially, reading the book was interesting. The Reverend Dr. Jones disclosed little emphasized facts about the religious practices of Robert E. Lee, "Stonewall" Jackson and a host of other fairly recognizable southern military leaders. Most of this disclosure was in the form of letters, either written by the Generals or written by fellow ministers about the famous men. After covering the general staff officers the author began to recount the religious lives and deaths of some not so recognizable historical figures. While these were of some interest, mainly due to the dramatic way in which they were presented, these stories aren't ones that create a great deal of enlightenment. One of the areas that I thought would be of value to a Civil War buff like myself turned out to be the most disappointing part of the book. That is the religious revivals that spread through the southern camps along the Rappahanock and Rapidan Rivers in the winters of 1863 and 1864. What I got instead of something I could really sink my teeth into was a littany of repetative ministirial jargon with no hard cold facts to speak of. Although these letters did mention the brigades, individual names were left out on purpose, such as Colonel _____ of _______, Georgia. Almost all the letters spoke of the soldiers desire to be saved and how many each minister was responsible for baptizing. Unfortunately, this section made up about one-third of the book. But, just as I was about ready to give up on the rest of the book Dr. Jones' last chapter was what I was looking for. He spoke of the job of the coleporters during the war. Coleporters were people who distributed religious material to the soldiers, especially in the form of tracts. The last chapter in the book included a tract called the Soldier's Bible. It was very well written and if someone could get a hold of some of the other tracts Dr. Jones mentions I'm sure it would make a great study. Overall, the book was a primary source about a topic that doesn't get as much attention as it deserves. The lives and deaths of these men were greatly influenced by their religious zeal. I recommend reading this book for anyone who is truely interested in this period of history. --- Carl Hill