The Chaplains' Predicament

THE CHAPLAINS' PREDICAMENT Rolliti W. Quimby the history of the CTVTL war chaplaincy is die story of die chaplains' search for identity. Altiiough Congress had debated die proper function , status, and pay of chaplains widi highly inconsistent results ever since die Revolution, in 1861 die chaplain's rank was still undetermined, his title undefined, his duties unprescribed. The strain of creating and fulfilling a role beneficial to the regiment was so great tiiat some chaplains ultimately transferred to combat duty. Most of die others resigned long before tiieir terms were over. Relatively few became honored and indispensable pastors to tiieir regiments. Comments of the chaplains themselves vividly described the immediate aspects of their problem. The energetic Rev. Frederic Denison, who served both the 1st Rhode Island Infantry and the 3rd Rhode Island Heavy Artillery, expressed surprise that a chaplain had "no appointment or recognized place ... on a march, in a bivouac, or in a line of battle; he was a supernumerary, a kind of fifth wheel to a coach, being in place nowhere and out of place everywhere."1 When Chaplain John Hight joined the 58th Indiana near Nashville early in 1862, he greeted men whom he had known before the war. Yet even these friends "had a distrust of my ability to fill the place of chaplain." The commanding officer, though friendly during the introductory interview, plainly showed that "in the person of the new Chaplain , he had regimental equipment that he was at a loss to know what to do with." Hight believed that the commander's attitude was due to "a general feeling of distrust of army Chaplains that was so prevalent in the army. This feeling was especially shared by nearly all the officers ."2 Rollin W. Quimby is associate professor of Speech and Drama at the University of California, Santa Barbara. This article is the forerunner of a larger study treating on the religious aspects of the Civil War. 1 Frederic Denison, "A Chaplain's Experience in the Union Army," in Personal Narratives, Soldiers and Sailors Historical Society of Rhode Island, 4th Ser., II ( 1891-93), 17. Information for this paper was obtained primarily from materials in the Huntington Library, San Marino, California, and the Wyles Collection of the University of California, Santa Barbara. 2 John J. Hight, History of the Fifty-Eighth Regiment of the Indiana Volunteer Infantry (Princeton, 1895), p. 46. 25 26ROLLIN W. QUIMBY The Rev. James J. Marks, in discussing his service with the 63rd Pennsylvania during the Peninsular Campaign, was much more blunt. "So far as the appointment of chaplains is concerned it was evidently a concession made to the religious sentiment of the country—one of those formless, shapeless things thrown in to fill up a vacuum." Superior officers in particular tolerated chaplains only "because we cannot without them secure enlistments." Yet one must "never forget they are a great expense and annoyance," and ease them into ineffectiveness as soon as possible.3 These are not the complaints of malcontents. Each of the above chaplains served long and honorably in the Federal army. As Marks and Hight suggest, some ministers did labor under irreligious officers. However, much confusion existed even in those regiments where the headquarters staff was well disposed toward the ministry. Much of the dissatisfaction felt by Denison, Hight, Marks, and others was caused by a lack of understanding as to a chaplain's status, his necessary qualifications, and his proper duties. The root of the problem was the incompatibility of war and religion. Since the purpose of war is to destroy and kill, any military high command concentrates on building a disciplined organization that can create chaos with the greatest efficiency. It does not plan ways by which a minister can promulgate the Christian ideals of peace and mercy. The absence of War Department policy regarding chaplains showed clearly in the regulations under which they worked and to which the militia officers turned for guidance. Chaplains were first mentioned in General Order No. 15, dated May 5, 1861, and entitled, "Plan of organization of the volunteer forces called into the service of the United States by the President." The order contained a long set of instructions...