The Angel of Marye's Heights

~ By Jerry Ogles, Logos of St. Andrew's - Fall 2000

 

 

"And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." Matthew 25:40

  The history and traditions of our country are rich in examples of great heroism and patriotism. These great examples are mirrored at every turn in our country's national experience. One such example comes to us from a period of great suffering and sadness as our nation underwent the tortuous ordeal of War...a war that pitted brother against brother and father against son - the great War Between the States.

   Richard Kirkland was a young South Carolina Confederate volunteer of 18 years of age at the beginning of the War. He fought in most of the major battles early in the War from First Manassas to Fredricksburg and, later, Chickamauga.

   Serving under Colonel Kershaw at Fredricksburg, Sergeant Richard Kirkland found himself a member of Company G of the South Carolina Regiment of Kershaw's Brigade. The Union Army of the Potomac under the inept command of General Ambrose Burnsides had crossed the Rappahanock River and was massed before the Virginia city of Fredricksburg. That city, having refused surrender by its mayor, was destroyed by the heavy Union guns which thundered against its defenseless buildings.

   The company of which Kirkland was a member was assigned a defense position along the base of a large and prominent hill called Marye's Heights. Marye's Heights was a formidable tactical position as the artillery of Confederate General Jackson's Army commanded favorable purview of the entire battle area.

   There was a stone wall of solid construction which skirted the base of Marye's Heights, and it was behind this wall that Kirkland and his fellow soldiers sought cover from the overwhelming numbers of arms which were wielded by the numerically superior Union Army.

   Burnside, ambitious and reckless, ordered wave after wave of blue clad soldiers against this bulwark of defense. The Confederate marksmen behind the wall had little trouble in repulsing these assaults with hundreds and thousands of Union casualties left behind to die or otherwise fend for themselves. On the afternoon of December 13, 1862, the open fields before Marye's Heights were littered with untold numbers of dead, dying and seriously wounded Union soldiers. The cries of their anguish were relentless.

   Kirkland was a compassionate soul who could not long endure these sad cries for water and mercy. He sought permission from Col. Kershaw to cross the wall and provide water to these poor souls. Kershaw was reluctant, but acceded to the young man's request despite his firm opinion that he would be shot the moment he raised his head above the wall.

   Kirkland gathered as many canteens of water as he could carry and bounded over the wall. To all his comrade's amazement, the Union lines drawn up opposite the field did not open fire. Kirkland raced to the first soldier who lay freezing in the cold December weather and gave him water to drink and then threw his coat over him. He then raced to the next, and the next, and the next, giving life-saving water to these desperate victims of the cruelty of war. He perhaps gave aid and comfort to more than one hundred Union wounded that day and was revered by Union and Confederate alike for his great courage and compassion. 

   Following this great demonstration of humanity, Kirkland became known to both sides as the Angel of Marye's Heights. He was later killed at Chickamauga where the Union Army suffered another resounding defeat.

   Later, when the Union Army of General Sherman approached the home of Richard Kirkland in South Carolina, even this ruthless General remembered the Angel of Marye's Heights and gave order that his home be spared from pillage and burning.

   Angels come in all forms and personalities. Kirkland was angel to a great number of his enemies. Whose angel are you? 

Sermon Summary for 2^nd Sunday in Trinity (St. Peter the Apostle), 29 June 2025 Anno domini, the Anglican Orthodox Communion worldwide

 

The Collect

O Almighty God, who by thy Son Jesus Christ didst give to thy Apostle Saint Peter many excellent gifts, and commandedst him earnestly to feed thy flock: Make, we beseech thee, all Bishops and Pastors diligently to preach thy Holy Word, and the people obediently to follow the same, that they may receive the crown of everlasting glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

13 When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? 14 And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.15 He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. 18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.. Matthew 16:13-19

 

“Let the words of my mouth, and the meditations of my heart be wholly acceptable unto thee, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.”

 

The Prayer of Collect, in recognizing the apostleship of Peter, emphasizes – not only the excellent gifts of miraculous signs – but, more importantly, the duty to preach the Word of God diligently. It is in our following  - not simply Peter, but in the Gospel of Christ that we are admitted to the everlasting glory to which the Collect makes reference.

 

In our Gospel text from Matthew, Jesus opens His lesson with a question: “Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?” This is not a question of casual, or mundane, significance, but one whose answer has bearing on our salvation in Christ. The question is directed not only to the apostles, but to each of us individually. Yes, Jesus is the Son of Man, but He is also the Son of God. This distinction puts Him apart from you and me – and the apostles as well. The subject of the text is “Christ, the Son of the living God.” The men to whom He spoke, and to whom He speaks today, did not choose to follow Christ as a mere vocation, but are called by Christ to the office of apostle, disciple and to declare the Word in truth and power. 

 

            How do you and I answer that question? Who is Christ to you? Is our Lord Jesus Christ someone we respect, adore, and study about on one day out of seven; or, is Christ the center of our lives in whom we move and have our being, and for whom we have the greatest love and devotion above all others – so much so that we not only study, or hear, His Word preached on the Lord’s Day, but study prayerfully and diligently seven days in a week? The latter would be the right answer to that question.

            There is a great variety of Christian denominations in the world today, some consisting of great multitudes, and some of smaller number; but size and worldly esteem have no part in distinguishing them in faith and doctrine. It is only the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ and His Word (He is the WORD personified) that determines the state of Christian fellowship for all church faith and worship. Whom do we say that Jesus, the Son of Man is? If we truly own Him as Savior and Redeemer, He is with us always, and in our hearts and affections, moment by moment  - not just at the appointed hour of worship.

            Whatever others think of Christ, the most important question addressed to us is not what others say of Him, but what do WE say of Him! “But whom say ye that I am?” How we answer that question will determine our eternity future.

            Peter was not a perfect, or infallible, apostle. Even after Christ had designated him as Peter (petros – a stone) he would deny His Lord three times before the enemies of Christ. Neither are we perfect Christians, but our hearts must be fixed on Christ and ever-willing to repent of our sins in following Him.

            Peter, and the other Apostles, recognized who Christ was for the question was addressed to all – not those who thought of Him as less than the Son of the Living God. When we know Christ in intimate ways as the Son of Man and the Son of the Living God, we will extol His divine Sonship and work of redemption to all into whose company we come.

             Our faith comes from God and not any man – even Peter or the other Apostles. They teach us the truth of God, but it is that truth that saves – not the work of man. 

            “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” What is Christ telling Peter here? Is the Lord telling him that Peter will be the rock upon which He builds His Church? Perish the thought! Peter, in no sense, is the Foundation rock of the Church – that title belongs to Christ alone. The name of Peter by which Christ names the Apostle is the Greek petros – meaning stone. But when Christ refers the Rock upon which He will build His Church, He uses the term petra – meaning great Rock. As gifted as Peter and the other Apostles were in witnessing of Christ, it is Christ, and no man, upon which the Church is built. Peter was compared to a 'chip' of that greater Rock having like character and consistency as the Rock from which he was hewn.

            It is wrong to presume Peter to be that Rock. No man is mediator between the elect of God and the Father but Christ alone. Throughout the biblical record, it is Christ that is identified as that great Rock from the passing over the Red Sea to the sealing of the New Testament Gospel by our Lord. 

         “1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; 2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; 3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat; 4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.” 1 Corinthians 10:1-4

         “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” The keys to the Kingdom is the Word of GOD, and the binding and loosing is the law of love which Christ added to the Commandments of God. Without that Key of Love, none shall go into His Kingdom. Love is the Key to that Door of the Sheepfold which the Good Shepherd is as Christ the Lord.

 

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. AMEN

             

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 THE BLUE ENSIGN,  by Bishop Jerry Ogles, Logos of St Andrews 1999

“Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” Proverbs 16:19.

           The name, Titanic, conjures up magical memories of by-gone grandeur and almost miraculous feats of Naval Science and Engineering. The RMS Titanic, the largest ocean-going vessel to ever sail the high seas, was the embodiment of the national pride of the British Empire and of the prestigious White Star Line.

     The Titanic was even given the privilege of flying the Blue Ensign, a blue flag with Union Jack affixed in the upper left field. This grand vessel was touted  by her Captain, E.J. Smith, as being “unsinkable.” As a matter of fact, when asked by a news reporter if the Titanic could be sunk, the good Captain reportedly responded, “Sir, God, Himself, could not sink the Titanic.” These proved vain and prideful words, for the Master of the Seas presided over the sinking of this glorious idol of the British Empire only four days after these words were spoken. 

     On that fateful night of April 14, 1912, the RMS Titanic struck an iceberg on her starboard bow. Within 2 hours and forty minutes, this vessel sank hard by the bow and slipped beneath the icy cold waters of the North Atlantic as the band played, and the company sang, “Nearer, my God, to Thee.”

     There were many whose lives, though flambouyant, were unremarkable prior to the sinking; however, many of these same souls exhibited rare courage and chivalry in the moments preceding their tragic ending. Many gave up their own life jackets to women and children, some refused to board a life raft so long as there were women and children who required accomodation, and then there was the ship’s band (accustomed to playing at fancy balls), at the moment of crisis, now selflessly playing the funeral dirge for hundreds of perishing souls.

     I have always been fascinated by man’s utter disregard for God and His creatures until the moment in which calamity strikes. Why not live each day as if it were the sinking of our souls? Why not turn to the Master of the Seas and Land, and of all the glittering galaxies of Heaven, while the time is abundant to the purpose?     

      The Titanic carried to her Ocean grave, the souls of 1522 men and women. She went to that Ocean grave with her Blue Ensign neatly tucked away in one of her many compartments. Shall we likewise perish with our ensign neatly folded and tucked away in a bay compartment? or shall we fly our colours gladly as we muster for the daily Battle of Life? Why not? ~ JLO

 DAILY READINGS IN THE LIFE OF CHRIST; J.R. Miller (1890)

June 29. A New Garment

"No man also seweth a piece of new cloth on an old garment: else the new piece that filled it up taketh away from the old, and the rent is made worse." Mark 2:21

    Christ did not come into this world to patch up an old religion, merely to mend a hole here, and beautify a spot there, and a touch to this part or that. He came to make all things new. And when He saves a sinner, He does not propose merely to mend him up a little here and there, to cover over some bad spots in him, and to close up rents in this character by strong patches of the new cloth of grace. Gospel work is not patchwork. Christ does not sew on pieces; He weaved a new garment without seam throughout.

    So we may try from without — to make human character lovely; but there is sin in its very fibre, and the blemishes will ever work out and mar all. The only way is to have a new heart, and then the beauty will be real and will endure. 

    A mother lost a lovely and precious child by death — her only child. To occupy her heart and hand in some way, about her vanished treasure, and thus fill the empty hours — she took up a photograph of her child and began to touch it with her skillful fingers. Soon, as she wrought, the features became almost lifelike. The picture was then laid away for a few days, and when she sought it again, the eyes were dimmed and the face was marred with ugly blotches. Patiently she went over it a second time, and the bewitching beauty came again. A second time it was laid away, and again the blotches appeared. There was something wrong in the paper on which the photograph had been taken. There were chemicals lurking in it which in some way marred the delicate colors, and no amount of repainting could correct the faults. So is it in human lives. No outside reform is enough, for all the while the heart is evil within, and it sends up its pollution, staining the fairest beauty. The change that is permanent, must be wrought in the heart.