Four Chaplains Day
On February 3rd each year, Four Chaplains Day honors four military chaplains from World War II who sacrificed their lives for fellow service members.
Chaplains in the military are an integral part of the service environment. They offer consulting, spiritual guidance, practice services, and religious rites, among other duties, and are present around the world. If there are military troops stationed there, chaplains are also..
Four chaplains who had attended Chaplain School at Harvard together at Harvard boarded the Dorchester en route to the Army Command Base in southern Greenland during World War II. There were 904 service members on board the ship.
The four chaplains were Reverend George L. Fox, a Methodist minister, Reverend Clark V. Poling of the Reformed Church of America, Rabbi Alexander D. Goode, and Roman Catholic Church Father John P. Washington. They began on January 23, 1943, on January 23, 1943. German U-Boats were patrolling the area at the time, and the convoy was on high alert. Chaos ensued after a German submarine torpedoed the Dorchester on February 3, 1943, in the frigid waters off the coast of Newfoundland. a German submarine torpedoed the Dorchester.
Eyewitnesses recalled the chaplains' heroism, including giving their life jackets and gloves to other service members. They prayed with service members, assisting them in lifeboats. On the sinking Dorchester, the four chaplains remained. Only 230 men were rescued from the seas.
In 1960, Congress awarded the four chaplains the Medal of Honor.'
How to celebrate #fourchaplainsday.
- In books like No Greater Glory: The Four Immortal Chaplains and the Sinking of the Dorchester in World War II by Dan Kurzman or Sea of Glory by Ken Wales, read about the four chaplains
- Watch the film Four Chaplains: Sacrifice at Sea
- Museums in New Orleans, The National World War II Museum in New Orleans, The Chapel of the Four Chaplains in Philadelphia, or the Pioneer Chapel in Fort Leavenworth, where a stained glass window recalls the chaplains
- Attend memorial services in honor of the four chaplains
History of the four chaplains day has influenced the day's celebrations.
On February 3rd, Congress unanimously established Four Chaplains Day in 1988.
