With Our Fighting Men: The story of their faith, courage, endurance in the Great WarSellers, William E.
History
With Our Fighting Men: The story of their faith, courage, endurance in the Great War
Sellers, William E.
Great Britain. Army -- Military life; World War, 1914-1918 -- Religious aspects
This was a new army--new in every respect. Never before had Christian
ministers and young men in training for the ministry volunteered, in
any numbers, as private soldiers; but the call had been imperative,
and they were out to save their country. They took their religion with
them and made it felt.
Still another great work for the Army has been done by the Christian
churches. In an important article in the _Times_ of January 1915 we
were told:
"It is impossible to give an adequate account of the valuable work
done by the different churches in providing men for the Army through
the various Lads' Brigades and Boy Scouts. The Boys' Brigade is the
senior and largest of these organisations; it has many branches
throughout the Empire, with a present total strength of 115,000. Many
of its members have enlisted. The Church Lads' Brigade had in 1913 a
membership of 60,000, besides two junior organisations, the Church
Scout Patrols and the Church Lads' Brigade Training Corps. It has also
contributed a very large number of recruits. In London the Diocesan
Church Lads' Brigade, which forms part of the Cadet Force of the
country, sent practically every officer eligible and nearly every
cadet of seventeen years of age to join the regular forces soon after
the declaration of war. Many of these have been in action, and the
following casualties have been reported: Killed, two; wounded,
thirty-two; missing, six; invalided, five; prisoners, two. These Boys'
Brigades have become very popular. Besides those already mentioned
there are the Jewish Lads' Brigade, the Catholic Boys' Brigade, the
Boys' Life Brigade, and the Boys' Naval Brigade. Three of the new
V.C.'s have been won by former Brigade lads. On behalf of all these
admirable organisations the Lord Mayor of London has issued an appeal
for financial support, pointing out that 225,000 of those now serving
with the colours have been prepared for their work by one or other of
these organisations."
The Government heartily backed the efforts of the churches. In
addition to the chaplains of all denominations, others for whom no
appointments could be found were allowed to go to France at their own
or their friends' expense, to render to the soldiers what spiritual
help they could.
Services for the men in training were organised everywhere. Schools,
vicarages, and manses were turned into temporary soldiers' homes.
Wherever they came, the men found the churches ready to receive them.
They supplied them with literature to read and with writing materials,
provided refreshments, organised religious services, and did their
best, not only to cater for their social needs, but to enlist them
into the Army of Jesus Christ.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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