[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.
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