A Page from the Past

A lot of us have a relationship of convenience with history. We choose to remember what we wish and gloss over all the less-than-pleasant parts of the past. The danger of selective memory, as George Santayana pointed out is 'those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.'   

A topic in the news recently and one, I fear, that will be one for the remainder of this presidential election season, is the continuing political polarization of our nation, So much Us and Them, Red and Blue. Common ground is hard to find and building bridges across the political spectrum is a lost art.

We weren't always like this. And our heroes and heroines weren't influencers and TikTokers. You can look it up. 

Eighty-one years ago, on February 4, 1943, at the height of World War II, the SS Dorchester, a converted cargo vessel pressed into duty and refitted as a troop transport ship was torpedoed in the early morning hours as the convoy of which it was a part was sailing from Newfoundland, Canada to a port in Southern Greenland.

The ship with 904 troops and civilian crew aboard sank bow first in about twenty minutes. The severe list as the ship sank prevented the launch of many of her lifeboats and the overcrowding of the remaining lifeboats caused some of those that were launched to capsize, spilling their reluctant and unfortunate passengers into cold North Atlantic waters whose temperatures were barely above freezing.

Because of the circumstances of the ship’s sudden sinking, no distress signals could be sent delaying the start of any rescue attempts. When help did arrive the following day, many who had survived the sinking were found floating in their lifejackets, dead from hyperthermia. Only 230 men were rescued. The sinking of Dorchester was the largest loss of life of any American convoy during World War II.

Among those who died onboard the ship were four US Army chaplains, who helped frightened soldiers board lifeboats, and gave up their own lifejackets when the supply ran out. 

The four, (Methodist minister, Reverend) George Fox, (Reform Rabbi) Alexander Goode, (Roman Catholic priest, Reverend) John Washington, and (Reformed Church in America minister, Reverend) Clark Poling, then joined arms, offered prayers for the living and the dead, and sang hymns as the Dorchester sank.

Their deaths serve as an example of courage for us, the living, especially now at a time where as a nation we face challenges and uncertainties from without and within. They continue to inspire.

The American Legion Peter Gallan Post 104, 22 Merchants Avenue in Taftville, will conduct a Four Chaplains ceremony this Sunday afternoon, February 4th, at 2 honoring their selfless sacrifice and celebrating their lives.

Members of the local clergy each representing the faith of one of the original chaplains, will deliver a benediction, representing the final moments aboard Dorchester helping us remember not only their bravery but the example they set for us that continues to inspire us eight decades later.  

The ceremony is almost as brief as it is thoughtful and thought-provoking. You come away with lessons learned of lives truly lived with grace under pressure in a spirit of caring and generosity for others that sometimes is lost in today's tumultuous world.

Please attend if you care to remember their heroic sacrifice this Sunday afternoon, if not in Taftville then wherever you are.. All history is the sum of our collective remembrances and such memories remain our best hope for the future.
-bill kenny