[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 16 (Tuesday, February 6, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E117-E118]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE FOUR CHAPLAINS

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENJAMIN A. GILMAN

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 6, 2001

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, this month is the 57th anniversary of one of 
the most heart touching incidents of World War II, the coverage of the 
four chaplains.
  We are fortunate in that we are living in an era when the sacrifices 
of what is now called ``The Greatest Generation'' are finally being 
fully appreciated. The release of recent films and books, the 
groundbreaking last Veterans Day for the official World War Two 
Memorial, and other historic events, are underscoring for younger 
generations the magnitude of the commitment of all the American people 
to their task at hand in World War Two.
  However, of the countless incidents of heroism during that conflict, 
none have the emotional impact or the relevance to today's society as 
the story of the four chaplains.
  It is now 57 years since that fateful night of February 3, 1943, when 
four brave chaplains--George I. Fox and Clark V. Poling, Protestant 
ministers; Alexander D. Goode, a Rabbi; and John P. Washington, a Roman 
Catholic Priest--laid down their lives abroad the U.S.S. Dorchester so 
that others might live on.
  The Dorchester, carrying 902 servicemen, merchant seamen, and 
civilian workers, was traveling across the North Atlantic, towards a 
U.S. Army base on the coast of Greenland, when it was attacked by a 
German U-boat. The German submarine fired a series of torpedoes toward 
the Dorchester, which struck the transport ship well below the water 
line, and injuring her beyond repair.
  As water began to flood in through the ship's battered hull, chaos 
set in aboard the Dorchester, and it was into the ensuing scene of 
utter hopelessness and despair that the Chaplains' legacy was woven.
  When it was discovered that the supply of life jackets aboard the 
Dorchester was insufficient, the Chaplains--without hesitation--removed 
their own, and offered them to four frightened young men.
  The Chaplains then stayed with those injured by the initial blast as 
the ship slanted towards the icy water, and were last seen clutching 
hands together, offering prayers for those around them.
  The qualities which the Chaplains embodied--self sacrifice, unity, 
faith, and respect for each other's creeds--are the qualities upon 
which our nation rests, and which, at the dawn of the new millennium, 
are relevant for us today more than ever. It is for this reason that 
the Four Chaplains deserve our respect and our honor as true American 
heroes.
  As we pay homage to the Four Chaplains today and throughout this 
month, let us reflect for a moment upon the attributes which defined 
their actions, and forget not those four heroic men. The uniquely 
American brand of

[[Page E118]]

heroism which they represented and the countless other men and women 
who gave their lives in the name of our country must not be forgotten.
  Nathaniel Hawthorne once wrote: ``A hero cannot be a hero unless in a 
heroic world.'' Accordingly, it is fitting to note that the Four 
Chaplain's sacrifice came in the midst of a conflict which called upon 
all Americans to make sacrifices in order to guarantee the preservation 
of our way of life and to eradicate tyranny from the world.
  In my Congressional District, many veterans and patriotic 
organizations paid tribute to the Four Chaplains this month with 
appropriate ceremonies.
  Mr. Speaker I invite our colleagues to join in commemorating these 
courageous remarkable American heroes . . . The Dorchester's Four 
Chaplains.

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