[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 1 (Tuesday, January 27, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S69-S70]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           FOUR CHAPLAINS DAY

  Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of Senate resolution No. 169, 
submitted earlier today by Senator Hatch and others.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.

       A resolution (S. Res 169) to designate February 3, 1998, as 
     ``Four Chaplains Day''.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection to the immediate 
consideration of the resolution?
  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, S. Res. 169, commemorates the ``Immortal 
Four Chaplains'' whose brave sacrifice is an inspiring story of 
personal honor and patriotism. Their heroism of 55 years ago stands 
today as an eloquent and enduring example of service, fellowship, and 
love.
  On February 3, 1943, a German U-boat torpedoed the American transport 
ship Dorchester, sinking it off the coast of Greenland. Among the 
nearly 1,000 American soldiers aboard the Dorchester were four 
chaplains whose selfless acts of courage have left a distinguished 
legacy, a legacy that we hope to honor and remember in this resolution.
  Survivors' accounts describing the short 18 minutes that the ship was 
sinking report that Lieutenant George L. Fox, a Methodist minister; 
Lieutenant Alexander D. Goode, a Jewish rabbi; Lieutenant John P. 
Washington, a Catholic priest; and Lieutenant Clark V. Poling, a Dutch 
Reformed minister worked to alert the soldiers to the danger and direct 
them to safety. They distributed life jackets until no more were 
available. Then, these four Army chaplains removed their own life 
jackets and gave them to four soldiers.
  One soldier witnessed a chaplain giving his gloves to a panicked GI 
shivering in the Arctic air to prevent the young man from returning to 
his cabin for his own. The chaplains helped 230 men to safety and then 
chose to remain to calm and comfort the nearly 700 who went down with 
the ship. True to their faiths and to their fellowmen until the end, 
they were last seen, arms linked in prayer, on the hull of the ship.
  A postage stamp in 1948 entitled ``Interfaith in Action" commemorated 
their bravery. Congress passed a concurrent resolution in 1957 to honor 
these chaplains and those who died with them. Presidents Truman and 
Eisenhower also issued proclamations calling for national participation 
in memorial services throughout the country. The American Legion holds 
an annual commemorative service on the first Sunday of February.
  This coming Sunday, February 3, 1998 marks the 55th anniversary of an 
episode in our history that is tragic yet uplifting. Let us remember 
these acts of bravery which were not bound or limited by creed or rank. 
Their timeless sacrifice reminds us that we should not be divided by 
our differences, but that we should face the travails of our nation 
together, with faith and strength.
  I urge the speedy passage of S. Res. 169.
  Mr. GRAMS. Mr. President, there are acts of courage and personal 
sacrifice that are so great that they should never be forgotten. There 
are acts which decades--even centuries--later still reverberate, and 
touch our soul as a nation. Surely, the heroic deeds of the ``Immortal 
Four Chaplains'' count among such acts.
  These four Chaplains sacrificed their lives to save the lives of 
others when the Dorchester, a transport ship, was torpedoed by a German 
U-boat off the coast of Greenland on February 3, 1943. During the 18 
minutes that the Dorchester was sinking, the four Army Chaplains--a 
Jewish rabbi, a Catholic priest, and two Protestant ministers--worked 
to comfort the frightened men and direct them to safety. They 
distributed life jackets, and when there were no more in the storage 
locker, the Chaplains removed their own life jackets and gave them to 
waiting soldiers.
  Rabbi Alexander Goode did not ask whether the soldier that he was 
giving his life jacket to was Jewish; Father John Washington did not 
ask whether he was Catholic; Reverend George Fox did not ask whether he 
was Methodist; and Reverend Clark Poling did not ask whether he was 
Dutch Reformed. The Chaplains simply took off their own life jackets 
and gave them to the next in line.
  The Chaplains were last seen on the hull, with their arms linked 
together in prayer, consoling the men who remained on the ship with a 
final service. The way that they died is so poignant because it 
reflects the way that they lived--full of devotion to God and serving 
the needs of their fellow men. As one survivor noted, the Chaplains 
``were always together . . . they carried their Faith together.''
  Of the 902 servicemen, merchant seamen and civilian workers aboard 
the Dorchester, only 230 survived. Many of them owed their lives to the 
actions of the four Chaplains. Their heroic actions served as an 
inspiration to the survivors of the Dorchester; they should be an 
inspiration to us now.
  The courage of these four Chaplains, and their service to our country 
did not go unrecognized. Each was posthumously awarded the 
Distinguished Service Cross for services beyond the call of duty; 
memorials to their sacrifice have been placed around the country, 
including in the Pentagon and the National Cathedral; a postage stamp 
entitled ``Interfaith in Action'' was issued in their memory; and in 
1957, Congress declared the anniversary of the sinking of the 
Dorchester to be a day for the commemoration of the deaths and the 
heroic acts of the four Chaplains.
  Tragically, however, the memory of their selfless acts has faded. 
Aside from the American Legion, which has annually observed the 
anniversary of their deaths, few continue to recognize this somber 
occasion.

[[Page S70]]

  I am proud to say, however, that some very special individuals in 
Minnesota are working to ensure that the legacy of the Four Chaplains 
lives on through The Four Chaplains Foundation, including: David Fox of 
Hopkins; Barbara Koch of Long Lake; Ardis Wexler of Edina; Kevin 
Applequist of St. Anthony; Phil Brain of Edina; Ambassador Robert 
Flaten of Northfield; Shiro Katagiri of Minneapolis; Representative Jim 
Rhodes of St. Louis Park; Helen Fulford of Bloomington; John Swon of 
Edina; Bettine Clemen of Minnetonka; and Vice President Walter Mondale 
of Minneapolis. These Minnesotans, joined by equally dedicated people 
around this nation, and the world, have established the Four Chaplains 
Humanity Prize to ensure that the spirit of these Chaplains is 
celebrated through a living memorial. This prize will be awarded to 
those who have been willing to put their lives in danger to grant 
assistance to persons of a different creed or color.
  Mr. President, it is fitting that on the 55th anniversary of the 
sinking of the Dorchester, and the 50th anniversary of the issuance of 
the commemorative stamp, Congress once again honors the memory of these 
four Chaplains by designating February 3, 1998 as ``Four Chaplains 
Day.'' We have a duty to make sure that a grateful nation never forgets 
their sacrifice, and continues to celebrate the ideals for which they 
stood.
  Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
resolution be agreed to, the preamble agreed, the motion to reconsider 
be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the 
resolution appear at this point in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 169) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, is as follows:

                              S. Res. 169

       Whereas February 3, 1998, is the 55th anniversary of the 
     sinking of the United States Army transport Dorchester, an 
     event that resulted in the loss of nearly 700 lives in 1943 
     and for which witnesses have recounted in the Congressional 
     Record the heroism of 4 chaplains of different faiths, 
     Lieutenant George L. Fox, Methodist; Lieutenant Alexander D. 
     Goode, Jewish; Lieutenant John P. Washington, Catholic; and 
     Lieutenant Clark V. Poling, Dutch Reformed;
       Whereas witnesses have verified that during the approximate 
     18 minutes the ship was sinking after being torpedoed off the 
     coast of Greenland, the 4 chaplains went from soldier to 
     soldier calming fears and handing out life jackets and 
     guiding men to safety and when there were no more life 
     jackets, they removed their own life jackets and gave them to 
     others to save their lives and were last seen arm-in-arm in 
     prayer on the hull of the ship;
       Whereas many of the 230 men who survived owed their lives 
     to these 4 chaplains, and witnesses among them recounted the 
     unique ecumenical spirit and love for their fellow man these 
     4 demonstrated that were later illustrated in a popular 
     postage stamp issued by the United States in 1948 with the 
     title ``Interfaith in Action'';
       Whereas Congress passed House Concurrent Resolution 90 in 
     1957 to honor these 4 chaplains and the men who died with 
     them, and President Truman and President Eisenhower issued 
     similar proclamations calling for national recognition and 
     participation in memorial services throughout the land that 
     have been observed annually by the American Legion on the 
     first Sunday in February;
       Whereas Congress undertook to create a special medal for 
     valor given to the memory of the 4 chaplains in 1960 and 
     never to be repeated; and
       Whereas memorials to the chaplains' heroic sacrifice abound 
     in many places throughout the country including the Heroes 
     Window in the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) requests the President of the United States to issue a 
     proclamation designating February 3, 1998, as ``Four 
     Chaplains Day''; and
       (2) invites the people of the United States, of all 
     religions and creeds and in all communities, to observe this 
     date with appropriate ceremonies, celebrations, and 
     commemorations.

                          ____________________