Douglas is the only one who has attended more Sam Davis Youth Camps than Dixie. A gentleman and a scholar.
NC LS Members:
I wanted to share this fine essay by Douglas Stephens IV with you as our Chapter has helped him attend the Abbeville Institute’s Summer School last year and this year. Our contributions have helped pay his registration fees after finding scholarships to assist him. This summer he will learn once again “The Greatness of Southern Literature” and add to an already strong foundation of knowledge for such a young person. He is attending Liberty University at Lynchburg this fall and has two younger brothers we can hopefully help in the future.
The past lives within us, we have helped ignite the spark of historical knowledge and perspective in Douglas, and hopefully will add him to our ranks in the future!
FSI,
Bernhard Thuersam, State Chair
North Carolina League of the South
ARSENAL CAMP SCHOLARSHIP
(Excerpted from Fayetteville Arsenal Camp, SCV, June 2012 Newsletter)
The announcement was made at the Confederate Memorial Day Observance that Mr. Douglas Stephens IV was the latest winner of the Arsenal Camp Scholarship. Douglas will be attending Liberty University in Virginia in the fall. Following is his essay submission. Congratulation Douglas!
“Traitors. Rebels. Vicious destroyers of a nation. This is how our Confederate ancestors are viewed in this day and age. The vast majority of Americans have been taught throughout life that the men and women who fought and suffered for the Confederacy were nothing less than the most vile persons to ever tread the earth. Today I’ve been asked to address the question of What My Confederate Heritage Means to Me.
My own perspective is that, far from being objects of derision, our Southern ancestors are worthy of honor and remembrance. The Confederate soldier was not a man to whom duty came easily. He was a man forced to fight against insurmountable odds, in conditions that horrify the modern reader. The spirit that filled the eager recruits of ’61 soon dissipated, but his fierce devotion to hearth, home, and Heaven kept his face toward the enemy.
Our Southern ancestors have often received the degrading criticism of being traitors to their government. Whether or not secession was legal under the US Constitution is entirely irrelevant here. Even if it were his own government that he took up arms against, the Confederate soldier did so in defense of his home, family, and way of life. Who would not agree that these loyalties must take precedence over any political allegiance? In particular, a political allegiance that had resulted in the repression and marginalization of the Southern states for the greater part of a century. It is clear that whatever his legal status, the Confederate soldier was of the same heroic mold as his grandfather Washington.
Some of the most worthy ancestors, however, never carried a musket nor donned a uniform. The women and children of the Confederacy were heroes in their own right. Warring against starvation and deprivation rather than armies, these stalwart people maintained the Southern infrastructure and economy while the fighting men were away. Stories are told of how, in Vicksburg, the inhabitants were reduced to catching and eating rats to survive. Rich and poor alike sacrificed whatever they could to keep their men alive on the front lines. Three cheers for the homespun dress that Southern ladies wear.
So now that we’ve established who our Confederate ancestors were, what does it mean to me to be their descendant? First and foremost, my Confederate heritage is a source of pride. I know, as a Southerner, that I have a time-honored family heritage that the world marvels at. Few nations in history have fought and lost such a desperate struggle, while still maintaining their dignity and identity. We of the South are a peculiar people, a people for whom a love of family and a love of the land run deep. I thank my parents for raising me in the true knowledge of my heritage, that I might take such pride in it.
Second, and more sobering, my Confederate heritage marks me as an outsider. The post-bellum history and people of the South have generally run parallel to the pervasive North, but none would deny that the two are vastly different. As a descendant of a Confederate soldier who, unlike most, is proud of that designation, I will face obstacles throughout life: in the university, in the workplace, and in general society. God willing, I will maintain the strength to surmount these obstacles without breaking under the pressure. The command to honor our ancestors was delivered on Mt. Sinai, and I trust that the great Commander will give me strength to obey that command to the best of my ability.”
Thank you.
NC LS Members:I wanted to share this fine essay by Douglas Stephens IV with you as our Chapter has helped him attend the Abbeville Institute’s Summer School last year and this year. Our contributions have helped pay his registration fees after finding scholarships to assist him. This summer he will learn once again “The Greatness of Southern Literature” and add to an already strong foundation of knowledge for such a young person. He is attending Liberty University at Lynchburg this fall and has two younger brothers we can hopefully help in the future.
The past lives within us, we have helped ignite the spark of historical knowledge and perspective in Douglas, and hopefully will add him to our ranks in the future!
FSI,
Bernhard Thuersam, State Chair
North Carolina League of the South
ARSENAL CAMP SCHOLARSHIP
(Excerpted from Fayetteville Arsenal Camp, SCV, June 2012 Newsletter)
The announcement was made at the Confederate Memorial Day Observance that Mr. Douglas Stephens IV was the latest winner of the Arsenal Camp Scholarship. Douglas will be attending Liberty University in Virginia in the fall. Following is his essay submission. Congratulation Douglas!
“Traitors. Rebels. Vicious destroyers of a nation. This is how our Confederate ancestors are viewed in this day and age. The vast majority of Americans have been taught throughout life that the men and women who fought and suffered for the Confederacy were nothing less than the most vile persons to ever tread the earth. Today I’ve been asked to address the question of What My Confederate Heritage Means to Me.
My own perspective is that, far from being objects of derision, our Southern ancestors are worthy of honor and remembrance. The Confederate soldier was not a man to whom duty came easily. He was a man forced to fight against insurmountable odds, in conditions that horrify the modern reader. The spirit that filled the eager recruits of ’61 soon dissipated, but his fierce devotion to hearth, home, and Heaven kept his face toward the enemy.
Our Southern ancestors have often received the degrading criticism of being traitors to their government. Whether or not secession was legal under the US Constitution is entirely irrelevant here. Even if it were his own government that he took up arms against, the Confederate soldier did so in defense of his home, family, and way of life. Who would not agree that these loyalties must take precedence over any political allegiance? In particular, a political allegiance that had resulted in the repression and marginalization of the Southern states for the greater part of a century. It is clear that whatever his legal status, the Confederate soldier was of the same heroic mold as his grandfather Washington.
Some of the most worthy ancestors, however, never carried a musket nor donned a uniform. The women and children of the Confederacy were heroes in their own right. Warring against starvation and deprivation rather than armies, these stalwart people maintained the Southern infrastructure and economy while the fighting men were away. Stories are told of how, in Vicksburg, the inhabitants were reduced to catching and eating rats to survive. Rich and poor alike sacrificed whatever they could to keep their men alive on the front lines. Three cheers for the homespun dress that Southern ladies wear.
So now that we’ve established who our Confederate ancestors were, what does it mean to me to be their descendant? First and foremost, my Confederate heritage is a source of pride. I know, as a Southerner, that I have a time-honored family heritage that the world marvels at. Few nations in history have fought and lost such a desperate struggle, while still maintaining their dignity and identity. We of the South are a peculiar people, a people for whom a love of family and a love of the land run deep. I thank my parents for raising me in the true knowledge of my heritage, that I might take such pride in it.
Second, and more sobering, my Confederate heritage marks me as an outsider. The post-bellum history and people of the South have generally run parallel to the pervasive North, but none would deny that the two are vastly different. As a descendant of a Confederate soldier who, unlike most, is proud of that designation, I will face obstacles throughout life: in the university, in the workplace, and in general society. God willing, I will maintain the strength to surmount these obstacles without breaking under the pressure. The command to honor our ancestors was delivered on Mt. Sinai, and I trust that the great Commander will give me strength to obey that command to the best of my ability.”
Thank you.
No comments:
Post a Comment