SUMMIT, NJ — A Four Chaplains Day presentation was made to Summit Common Council during its regular meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 1, by the American Legion Lindsey Street Post 322, a military veterans organization in Summit, which was founded in 1946. Henry Bassman, commander of the post, along with William Rapp, the post’s former commander, were in attendance to educate the public about the heroism of the Four Chaplains on Feb. 3, 1943.
“The Four Chaplains is an important story, because it re-emphasizes that people from different backgrounds — social status, religion, political points — can be together, work together and, in this case, serve valiantly to sacrifice their lives for our country,” Bassman said during the presentation. “This Thursday, Feb. 3, will be the 70th anniversary of the sinking of the U.S. Army Transport Dorchester during World War II. Feb. 3 is now commemorated as Four Chaplains Day, due to the heroic and selfless act of four army chaplains who were aboard Dorchester. Here is the remarkable story of the Four Chaplains.”
Bassman detailed the upbringings of the four chaplains during the meeting.
“The troop ship Dorchester departed Newfoundland, where (there are) American bases in Greenland, on Jan. 23, 1943,” Bassman said. “Four chaplains were aboard the ship. Like so many people in World War II, they came together from different backgrounds and had become colleagues and friends during their training at Army Chaplain School. They were Methodist minister George L. Fox, who was born in Lewistown, Pa. When he was 17, he left school, joined the Army and served in World War I in the medical core as an assistant and was awarded the Silver Star, Purple Heart and the French Croix de Guerre. After the war, he attended Illinois Wesleyan University and the Boston University School of Theology, where he was ordained a Methodist minister. In 1942, Fox volunteered to serve as an Army chaplain. He began active duty on Aug. 8, 1942.
“Rabbi Alexander D. Goode was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., on May 10, 1911. He was ordained by the Hebrew Union College and later received a doctorate from Johns Hopkins University,” Bassman continued. “He originally applied to become a Navy chaplain in January 1941, but he failed the physical. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, he applied to the Army and was accepted. Dutch reformed minister Rev. Clark V. Poling was born in Columbus, Ohio. The son of an evangelical minister who was rebaptized in 1936 is a Baptist minister, Poling studied at Yale University’s Divinity School and was ordained in the Reform Church in America. With the outbreak of World War II, he applied to serve as an Army chaplain. Father John P. Washington was local to New Jersey. He was born in Newark (and) studied at Seton Hall. Graduating with an associate’s degree, he entered Immaculate Conception Seminary in Darlington and was ordained a priest in the Catholic Church. Shortly after the Pearl Harbor attack, he received his appointment as a chaplain in the U.S. Army.”
Rapp detailed their heroics that historic day, which was transformational; until the SS Dorchester incident, there was no mention of Catholics, Protestants and Jews working together toward a common cause in the 1940s, which caused a sharp divide in the country along religious lines, especially in prayer.
“Shortly after midnight on Feb. 3, the Dorchester was struck by three torpedoes from a German submarine,” Rapp said. “The torpedoes tore a hole on the starboard side of the ship, from below the water line to the top deck. All electricity was knocked out. The ship was without light or a public address system. Panic set in, and many were trapped below decks. ‘Abandon ship’ had to be passed from man to man. The four chaplains calmed the men, helped the wounded, handed out life vests and directed men to lifeboats. When the chaplains ran out of life vests, they gave theirs to four other young men.
“One sailor, Petty Officer John J. Mahoney, tried to reenter his cabin, but Rabbi Goode stopped him. Mahoney, concerned about the cold arctic air, explained he had forgotten his gloves. ‘Nevermind. I have two pairs,’ Goode responded,” he continued.
“The rabbi then gave the petty officer his own gloves. In retrospect, Mahoney realized that Rabbi Goode was not conveniently carrying two pairs of gloves. The rabbi had decided not to leave the Dorchester. As the ship began to sink, one witness, Pvt. William B. Bednar, found himself floating in oil-smeared water surrounded by dead bodies and debris. ‘I could hear men crying, pleading, praying. I could also hear the chaplains preaching courage. Their voices were the only thing that kept me going,’ Bednar recalled.
“As the Dorchester went under, the four chaplains were seen linked arm-in-arm, praying. According to some reports, survivors could hear the prayers of the chaplains, with English, Hebrew and Latin being recited simultaneously. Six hundred seventy-two of the 902 officers, enlisted men, merchant seamen and civilian workers aboard died. Many of the survivors owe their lives to the courage and leadership exhibited by the four chaplains, who, in sacrificing their lives, created a unique legacy of brotherhood. The four chaplains were posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross — the second-highest army award for extraordinary heroism — and the Purple Heart. There were many in Congress who wanted to bestow the Medal of Honor on the men but were prevented from doing so, because the regulations required that the Medal of Honor recipient perform with valor under direct enemy fire. In 1960, Congress unanimously awarded a special gold medal to the families of the four chaplains in their memory.”
According to Bassman, today the memorial of the deceased Four Chaplains in Arlington National Cemetery is dedicated to the four chaplains and all chaplains who serve. On visiting a few years ago, Bassman came across two gravestones that were side by side but of different religious backgrounds. To him, there was a clear depiction of brotherhood displayed in this gesture, being together forever.
Moved by this story, Council President Marjorie Fox mentioned that this serves a reminder to work together as a community.
“I think this is a really good reminder about how there are so many divisions in our society right now and what makes this country so great is that we’re all Americans and we really all do need to work together and try to be one big community and in Summit as well. Thank you for this reminder,” Fox said during the meeting.
Summit Mayor Nora Radest also found the presentation moving.
“I just want to thank you, Henry and Bill. It’s very moving, and I wish that so many of the divisions that we have in our country would be transcended by what we have in common and not what tears us apart,” Radest said during the meeting.
Councilwoman Lisa Allen agreed.
“I’ve seen you walking around town, and I know that your friendship has been very longstanding, and the two of you are a breath of fresh air, Bill and Henry, so thank you for tonight. It is a reminder that it’s not even just about division, but it’s the authenticity about really caring about people and just really appreciating that we are one people,” Allen said during the meeting.