In response to the Yankees missing the postseason for the first time in 13 years:

• I won't be re-working my schedule around afternoon and evening playoffs games...
• I won’t be wearing pinstriped jerseys to work and being ridiculed by jealous co-workers…
• I won’t be putting off ‘real work’ to surf the Internet for game stats and pitching match-ups…
• I won’t be bouncing between ESPN radio and FOX television pre-game programs…
• I won’t be talking trash on message boards and blogs with my friends from Boston…
• I won’t be hearing those cheesy ‘Haya Doin’ songs from by Famiglietti and Summa …
• I won’t be gawking at ‘bandwagon’ celebrities wearing NY hats in the bleachers…
• I won’t be watching Ronan Tynan sing a breathtaking version of ‘God Bless America’…
• I won’t be seeing Derek Jeter run out onto the ball field, or Mariano Rivera stroll off of it…
• I won’t be ignoring my wife, children, and chores after the National Anthem starts…
• I won’t be yelling at the television while pacing back and forth in my living room…
• I won't be gloating to my friend (and Phils fan) Eric Wittenberg...
  
• I won’t be basking in the brilliant play-by-play commentary of Bob Costas or Joe Buck…
• I won’t be excited about baseball until Spring Training starts next year…
• I won’t be watching… I won’t be worrying… I won’t be caring…

I guess that’s what its like to be a Royals fan?

Dear Mr. Aubrecht.

My name is Stephen and I just returned from a duty cycle overseas. I am a specialist who helped maintain CH-53Ds at the Al Asad Air Base in Iraq. You may know these birds as super stallions but I affectionately called them dirt devils as they were always blowing sand.

I am a practicing Methodist who attends Grace Methodist church and I am emailing with appreciation for the devotional that you penned on the Civil War. Each week we would get a crate of books from the states and the Southern Cross was one of the paperbacks that caught my eye. I recognized the monument from Gettysburg on the cover.

I think the good Lord may have pointed it out to me because I had no intentions of even taking a book. I was pissed off and missing home all the time and was not going to services for a while. Our divisional chaplain tried to get me to join a men’s study group, but I didn’t have the energy to go. Then I started reading the Southern Cross.

Your book moved me and was a very enjoyable read. I used it with my bible to keep up my devotions in between shifts. I worked the night shift mostly but managed to attend some group meetings. I told them about your book and the chaplain said he knew your name from the Tun Tavern fellowship at Quantico. What a small world we live in.

I liked your choice of scripture and found comfort in reading about Gen. Lee and all the other believers that were dealing with war just as we are. You seem to have a favorite in Stonewall Jackson and he is very popular among my fellow Christians here in the Mississippi. I imagine he is huge in Virginia.

I just wanted you to know that I read your book cover to cover in a week and then passed it on to a friend of mine over there. I think that it will probably be circulating for many months to come. I thought you would be proud of that. 

Thank you brother. Godspeed.
GySgt Stephen J. Ivino

I am Stephen. I really-really am. Thank you.

I would be remiss, as one who professes to focus on the religious perspective of the War Between the States, if I didn’t comment on Rabbi Shmuley Boteach’s reprinted article The Sin of Confederate Hero Worship that is being debated across the blogosphere.

Rabbi, Your editorial seems to pass judgment entirely on protestant southerners. Perhaps if you read some of the transcripts from your own brethren, you may understand why we Christians are able to acknowledge and revere our brothers in Christ who were sinners just as we are. Please refer to Robert Rosen's book, "The Jewish Confederates."

Joseph Goldsmith was a notable Jewish Confederate Chaplain. In an 1895 memoir he wrote, "I am still a living witness and can, from my own memory, give you many names of gallant Jewish soldiers of the Confederate Army. I had ample opportunity to see and to know. Many a wounded Jew have I met in the hospitals of Richmond and administered to his wants, and many a Jewish soldier have I seen walking on his crutch or having his arm in a sling, traveling to and from his command during the war. And I know further that it was simply a sense of loyalty to their homes and their neighbors that prompted them to fight for the South. If not, they could readily have left this country at any time as I myself could have done, had I so chosen. But love for our adopted country kept us here and we offered all we had in its behalf.”

EYE ON LOCAL CHURCHES
Local author pens tale of churches in Civil War
By Amy Flowers Umble. Photo by Peter Cihelka
Date published: 9/27/2008 (FLS Town & County)

Fredericksburg is sometimes called "the city of churches" because of the steeples dotting its skyline. But during the Civil War, those steeples provided targets instead of symbols of sanctuary.

Bullets riddled the tall towers, and inside the chapels below, soldiers on both sides stripped churches of their pews and stained their floors with blood.

"The congregations today are really a testament to the strength and tenacity of the congregations then," said author Michael Aubrecht, who has just released a book, "Historic Churches of Fredericksburg: Houses of the Holy."

The 128-page volume was released this month by The History Press, and Aubrecht will host a book-signing party at the National Civil War Life Museum in early October.

The book tells the history of five downtown churches, all of which survived the Battle of Fredericksburg. The book took a little more than 10 months for the Spotsylvania County resident to write.

He said the churches' perseverance really made the book. "I was impressed with the way these churches were able to handle themselves amid one of the darkest periods in American history," Aubrecht said.

The history of the black congregations also interested the author. "The African-American perspective was crucial to the book," he said. "It's a far-too-neglected part of Civil War history."

Including that history complicated things somewhat. For example, when Fredericksburg Baptist Church split into black and white congregations, forming what's now called Shiloh Baptist Church (Old Site), each congregation recorded different facts in its history.

"I presented each version and allowed them to stand on their merits," Aubrecht said.

He also included information on how the churches impacted society both before and after the war. Before the battles reached Fredericksburg, the congregations hosted many discussions.

"And faith was a major component of the healing that was required to take place after the war," Aubrecht said.

The author focused a lot on the Civil War, which is not surprising. The conflict played a strong role not only in the churches' history, but also in Aubrecht's life.

He became a Civil War buff at age 7, after a trip to Gettysburg. He was so taken with the history that for Halloweens he dressed up as Civil War soldiers, in costumes his mother made for him.

When he started writing, however, Aubrecht didn't first turn to his historic passion but focused on another love: baseball.

He wrote for Baseball Almanac, and one day, out of material, he penned a piece on baseball during the Civil War. People were so receptive to the work that he began periodically writing Civil War pieces for The Free Lance-Star and for magazines.

Six years ago, Aubrecht's writing took another turn when he and his wife returned to church, attending Spotsylvania Presbyterian with their four children.

Aubrecht began including faith in his work, and now writes predominantly about Christianity during the Civil War, filling a niche he said had been ignored.

It provides him with a new audience, and Aubrecht gets letters and e-mail from people who picked up his book on Stonewall Jackson's faith without any interest in the famed Southern general.

Many tell him his books inspire them to do more research on the war. "But I'm most pleased that a lot of people pick up the Bible after reading one of my books," Aubrecht said.

And one Christian group developed his book about Jackson, "Onward Christian Soldier," into a Sunday-school curriculum.

Aubrecht liked the course so much that he teaches it himself. He added some material and plans to take the class on a special tour to the Stonewall Jackson Shrine in Caroline County.

"It's not a course on hero worship, it's a course on worshipping, looking at the example of a hero," Aubrecht said.

SIDEBAR:

WHAT: Book-release party and signing for "Historic Churches of Fredericksburg: Houses of the Holy" by Michael Aubrecht.
Author's talk, tours of the museum, hors d'oeuvres, dessert and live music by Burke Classic Rock
WHEN: Friday, Oct. 3, 6-9 p.m.
WHERE: National Civil War Life Museum at Massaponax
COST: The book costs $20, but all other aspects of the party are free.
DETAILS: pinstripepress.net or 540/834-1859

"If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issuance of their currencies, first by inflation and then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the people of all their prosperity until their children will wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered."

Thomas Jefferson 

This past Wednesday night we had our second ‘Stonewall Study’ at Spotsylvania Presbyterian Church. I had another full house and several new members decided to join us. It appears that this course is a popular one on the SPC schedule (due to the topic – not me) and we may be moving to a larger classroom to accommodate the growing membership. I ran out of workbooks and have to get some more produced for next week’s meeting. What a blessing indeed!

I am ecstatic about the participation of more women and several students who are not members of our church. In fact, a growing portion of the class is from outside denominations and/or congregations. That is a rarity for our Wednesday night programs and I hope that they will consider joining us after the course comes to a conclusion. (NOTE: I would love to get some of the participant’s feedback and insights and share them with you here. Attention: I know some of you “students” frequent this blog. Please feel free to email your thoughts and I’ll gladly post them online.)

We examined Chapter 1 of my book ‘Onward Christian Soldier,’ which primarily focused on the Jackson family’s ancestral background and series of personal tragedies that occurred in Thomas’ childhood. (Workbook excerpt: Question: What and who are the bases of Thomas Jackson’s Foundation? Lesson 1:  We all carry the memory of wounds we have suffered through our lives. The love we receive and the values instilled at an early age, combined with God’s healing power will determine how ugly and visible the scars that remain and how we allow them to define our character. Readings: Proverbs 10:16, Proverbs 28:1, Proverbs 22:29, Joshua 10:25)

I presented how this notion of ‘that which does not defeat us spiritually makes us stronger’ was the basis for the whole book and quoted the opening paragraph: “This is a story about faith. A story filled with the kinds of heartache and hardships that would leave many of us questioning our own beliefs. It is a love story that is filled with sorrow, testimony, hope and despair. It is a story that reaffirms the power of prayer and that all things in Him are possible. Ultimately, it is the story of a man who suffered greatly, but chose to embrace the Will of his Savior as the foundation for a legendary life.”

We then outlined the traumatic events that occurred in the first 17 years of Thomas Jackson's life:

Age 2: the death of his sister followed 3 weeks later by the death of his father
Ages 2–7: witness his mothers illness, and marriage to an uncommitted step-father
Age 7: sent away by his mother to live with an unknown uncle
Age 7: the death of his mother
Age 8 1/2: the death of his stepfather
Age 17: the death of his only brother

It is a heartbreaking list to say the least and would have had a profound affect on any teenager in his formative years. Therefore, pain and personal loss must have played a part in young Thomas’ journey toward discovering salvation. I augmented the curriculum with readings taken from Henderson’s monster bio on Jackson, as well as several letters about his mother that were penned by Jackson’s stepfather shortly after her death. (I will continue to augment our courseware with readings from a wide-variety of Jackson-related studies and publications.) These recollections presented his mother as a fine Christian woman, who clearly left a positive and lasting impression on her son. This nurturing relationship, and the fond memory and example of his mother, was also a building block in his foundation.

Our open-discussion revolved around the idea of personal tragedy and how faith can provide comfort and strength to those experiencing it. Jackson, through the sudden deaths of his family, suffered tremendous loss and ultimately had no spiritual foundation to fall back on. His lack of a religious outlet during this period most likely influenced his dark perspective on relationships and life, induced a level of resentment and anger (that may have been suppressed until adulthood), and made him an eccentric and borderline hypochondriac when it came to his personal health practices.

By examining a timeline of Jackson’s upbringing, these early dark days may explain his outward sense of awkwardness and lack of social graces, his anti-social, but academic enthusiasm at West Point, his infectious enthusiasm for religion at Lexington, and his almost suicidal ferocity on the battlefield.

Our study guide compared ‘Stonewall’ to Joshua who led Israel in the conquest of Canaan, vanquishing Jericho and other cities to bring Palestine under Israelite control. Joshua's leadership, with the divine guidance of God, was marked by courage and devotion to the law given to Moses. Through his strong faith, he reinforced the resolve and beliefs of his fellow soldiers as he shepherded his followers into battle.

Sound familiar? The goal with these early lessons is to define what makes an individual so steadfast in their beliefs and what experiences may have influenced them in the first place. I have said it many times before that my fascination with ‘Stonewall’ Jackson is not what he did on the battlefield – it is what would make a man, any man, ‘stand like a stonewall’ in the face of such carnage.

It is my belief that these untimely deaths in the Jackson family created a void in Thomas’ life that he was only able to fill after joining the Lexington Presbyterian Church and starting a family of his own. Faith became his saving grace and gave him a sense of peace that had been lacking all his life. Unfortunately, more tragedy would befall the man, but this time he would resolve them to God’s will. Most Christians share that very same sentiment. I know I do. Romans 8:28 redefined Jackson's life, as well as mine: "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God."

Next week we will be discussing Chapter 2 and the character traits that defined the man Jackson was prior to the outbreak of war. I am having the best time teaching and the course material is proving to be excellent. I plan to add more scripture readings and some additional DVD viewings in the coming weeks.

I just received a copy of the September 19th issue of 'The Bull Run Observer' in which an article was written about my presentation on religion and the war at Manassas Museum READ HERE. I was able to scan in the newsprint. Also, I'll be in the Saturday issue of 'The Free Lance-Star' Town & County section. I did a photo shoot down at St. George's Episcopal Church and Cemetery on Wednesday. They perched me up on a ladder to shoot the tower in the background. I have a board meeting with the National Civil War Life Foundation on Sunday and some insights from this past Wednesday night on my church Stonewall class that I'll post as soon as I have some free time.

There have been some interesting discussions and debates going on around the blogosphere in regards to the new Gettysburg Visitor's Center and the decision to charge an admission fee. Several bloggers have queried members of the 'Friends of Gettysburg Foundation' to see if they were informed of any planned admission changes. I have been a contributing member of the foundation since January of this year and wanted to share a brief insight on my experience.

Traditionally, my family does all of our charity giving (when we can afford it) through our church. Gettysburg’s revival was the one ‘secular’ cause that I felt I could participate in and I still feel good about my decision to do so. The foundation does a great job of keeping members informed of the goings on at the museum and we do get special treatment for certain events.

I was very honored to have my engraved name and a mini-flag posted at the new VC with other members in appreciation of our support and I have received some nice newsletters, bookmarks, and a 2009 calendar in the mail. I will continue to be a standing member for as long as I can because I already see the long-term rewards that are being reaped by the public. I myself will be visiting the new location for the first time later in the fall.

I am not aware of any time that an admission fee was mentioned or alluded to in any mailer or email communication from the 'Friends of Gettysburg’ since January of this year. Personally, I never minded paying for the Electric Map and I won’t mind paying for the Cyclorama and exhibit hall either. (In fact, I never mind paying a fair fee at any battlefield or museum as I recognize that it requires funds to maintain them.) Therefore I don’t understand all the hoopla on this. How could anyone expect the development and renovation of the area to be 100% free?

Specifically in regards to the G’burg VC, where else on earth can you see the one-of-a-kind exhibits that they have there? Each year, vacationers pay hundreds of dollars for admission to theme parks where the thrill of a roller coaster ride fades before they even make it back to the parking lot. (Civil War buff or not, the new Gettysburg museum experience has to have a larger impact on a visitor than funnel cake and a water slide.)

That said, the lack of mentioning any fees and the giant administration salaries that some bloggers have quoted do bother me and I am also disappointed with being ‘sold out’ on a charity leads list. As soon as I sent in my initial donation form to the 'Friends of Gettysburg Foundation,’ I began receiving weekly matching petitions from every museum and historical foundation on the planet.

This includes the WW1 and WW2 Museum, Korean Museum, Slavery Museum, Lincoln Museum, Tuskegee Airman Museum, War of 1812 Museum, and on and on and on… This bothers me in principle, as it was obvious my name was added on a public donor list. I don’t even open these mailers anymore because I can’t afford to and frankly I feel like I’m being heckled by these organizations.

Gettysburg is a national treasure. Fredericksburg (where I live) is a national treasure. All of these battlefields are national treasures, and I would rather see my money going to support these hallowed grounds than any other ‘secular’ cause. And if paying a ticket price is required to visit the newly restored Cyclorama and state-of-the-art exhibits that present the conflict in bigger and broader terms, so be it.

I have a family of 6 and will gladly 'bite that bullet.'

Still, it would have been nice to have been informed up front of a possible admission fee as much of this 'shocked' reaction from the public may have been avoided. (Additionally, most of us have friends in the NPS and want to see them keep their jobs. By financially aiding these battlefields and museums, perhaps we are also helping them stay employed by the government in a dire economy.)

Here is a close-up from one of the recreation photos of Grant’s War Council that were taken by Terry Thomann on Saturday at Massaponax Church (see shoot details below). We had a great group of participants and everyone did the best they could to match the original series as much as possible. These are the exact pews (painted today of course), but there were some other factors that prohibited us from capturing an exact replica.

The ground was not level anymore, so they had to dig ruts into the church yard to level the pews out. Of course this limited the angles at which they could be set. In the original shot, Timothy O’Sullivan was able to lower the balcony window, but today those original windows are protected by an outer layer of plexi-glass. Therefore, the wet-plate box camera had to be angled in between two of the pane frames. And of course the busy street and gas station in the background had to be ‘cropped out.’ We did our best to mask them with two wagons and horses.

There were two successful shots in the series, which I believe will be available in print form, but here is a cropped out version to show what the end result looked like. I added numbers to show the match-ups that we tried to duplicate. Hats off to Jackson Foster (#4 the pipe smoker) for darn near mirroring his character. Stay tuned for details on where to get the finished prints. Most impressive is the clarity of the tin-type photo that was taken using an 1800's-style camera and developed using 1800's chemical recipies and techniques.  SEE LARGER/UNMARKED VERSION

And speaking of photos, tomorrow I am being photographed in the cemetery at St. George’s Episcopal Church for an article on me and my latest book in the Saturday Town & County insert in The Free Lance-Star. Keep an eye out for my ugly mug.