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THE SOLDIER'S CATECHISM: Virtuous Warriors in an Age of TerrorA Manual for the Spiritual Fitness of the US Armed Forces
Michael E. Cannon, Jr.
Michael Cannon has served for many years as a Military Chaplain, and has both seen the need for this Manual and acted to meet that need. He has done tremendous research in gathering materials for this "Soldier's Catechism" including the following:
(1) The Soldier's Catechism used in Oliver Cromwell's "New Model Army"
(2) The Soldier's Pocket Bible which comes from the same period of time, and contains hundreds of passages centered around themes addressed to the soldier.
(3) Significant quotations from the Creeds and Confessions of the Church of Jesus Christ
"The Soldier's Catechism, although not infallible as the Word of God, has become to me alike the protective sheath for the Soldiers sword of the Spirit (Eph 6:17). This daily help encourages me to mediate on the whole counsel of God as revealed in Scripture from the vantage point of one who must prepare and lead Soldiers into both physical and spiritual combat. The Soldier's Catechism emboldens my spiritual expeditionary endurance as I wrestle "against the rulers of darkness of this age" as a warrior in God's Church triumphant. My hope is the Soldier's Catechism will be an encouragement to you as we fight the good fight along side each other." - Colonel Michael C. Cloy, Infantry, US Army
"I highly recommend this tool to encourage our great American Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors, Marines and Coast Guardians. In these days of danger and intense service to our country, a means of reminding our troops of their Hope and Joy is very much needed. This time-honored means of instruction is bound to encourage men and women to "glorify God and enjoy Him forever!" - CH (COL-P) Douglas E. Lee, U.S.Army Assistant Chief of Chaplains for Mobilizations and Readiness
"The Rev. Michael Cannon's Soldier's Catechism succeeds wonderfully in modernizing the classic Cromwellian Soldier's Catechism for use by the 21st century soldier. The updated questions and answers accompanied by the English Standard Version (ESV) biblical text successfully engage the modern soldier, are directly applicable to contemporary military tactics, and address the issues of present-day warfare." -the Rev. Richard M. Edwards, PhD, Senior Lecturer, Philosophy, University of Wisconsin Colleges
EVERY SOLDIER SHOULD HAVE A COPY OF THIS VOLUME!
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THE SOLDIER'S CATECHISM by Michael Cannon (List Price $15.00)
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THE FEAR OF GOD: The Soul of Godliness by John Murray (List Price $5.00)
OPENING UP EPHESIANS by Peter Jeffery (List Price $10.00)
CHAINS OF GRACE: The Story of Peter Jeffery (List Price $12.00)
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Additional Information
• Introduction
• Sample Chapter
| Sample Chapter |
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PART I
The Justification of our Soldiers
[1]
Question: Of what Profession are you?
Answer: I am a Christian and a Soldier. Christian Soldiers fight against the Flesh, the World, and the Devil; and since I call myself Christian, I fight against my own unholy desires.
James 4:1, "What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?"
THOUGHTS FOR INSPIRATION:
"I had rather have a plain russet-coated captain that knows what he fights for, and loves what he knows, than that which you call a gentleman and is nothing else." Letter from Cromwell to Sir William Spring, Sept. 1643
"God has brought us where we are, to consider the work we may do in the world, as well as at home." Oliver Cromwell to the Army Council, 1654
"I am a soldier, I fight where I am told and I win where I fight." General George S. Patton
"For peace is not mere absence of war, but is a virtue that springs from, a state of mind, a disposition for benevolence, confidence, and justice" Baruch Spinoza
"Temperance is simply a disposition of the mind which binds the passion." Thomas Aquinas
"From the time I was twelve years old until I retired last year at the age of fifty-seven, the Army was my life. I loved commanding soldiers and being around people who had made a serious commitment to serve their country." General Norman Schwarzkopf
REFLECTION: TEMPERANCE
Temperance is a virtue of independence. It is the power of our rational mind to overcome our irrational (natural or emotional) impulses. A temperate man is concerned with quality instead of quantity for the sake of quantity. An intemperate man becomes so focused on acquisition and indulgence that the pleasure he once derived from the object of his desire no longer gives him pleasure in the way it once did. Food, sex, smoking, or any other pursuit becomes the master, and the man becomes the slave. Moderation in all things is better than losing ourselves to pursue all things.
STUDY AND MEDITATION: PHILIPPIANS 1:20-21
"...as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."
In the passage from Philippians 1, Paul has determined that his life is committed to glorifying God. He has a purpose and is so focused on it that even in death, he sees it as the culmination of his service to God.
Many Christians have separated not only church and state but life and faith. Like two tracks for a train running side by side, they seem to never cross. For Paul, life and faith had merged into one purpose, a monorail system of life. Even in death, he was confident that he served the purposes of his faith which was to progress the Gospel of Christ.
Christian soldiers are not Christians and soldiers, they are one whole person that is all Christian and all soldier. Therefore, everything a soldier is and does must be consistent with everything a Christian is called upon to do and held accountable for before God. There cannot be a dual life in one person but a single-mindedness serving one God.
DOCTRINE: From the Heidelberg Catechism (1563)
Q. 32, Why are you called a Christian?
Because I am a member of Christ by faith, and thus am partaker of His anointing; that so I may confess His name, and present myself a living sacrifice of thankfulness to Him; and also that with a free and good conscience I may fight against sin and Satan in this life, and afterwards reign with Him eternally, over all creatures.
[2]
Question: Is it lawful for Christians to be soldiers?
Answer: Yes, without a doubt: we have enough evidence to believe it.
1. God calls Himself a Man of War and the Lord of Hosts.
Exodus 15:3, The Lord is a man of war; the Lord is his name.
2. Abraham had a regiment of 318 trained men.
Genesis 14:14, "When Abram heard that his kinsman had been taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, 318 of them, and went in pursuit as far as Dan."
3. David was employed in fighting the Lord's Battles.
4. God taught David to fight
5. David trusted God's providence in war.
1 Samuel 17:45, 46, "Then David said to the Philistine, 'You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand...'"
6. The noble gift of valor is given for this purpose.
7. The New Testament mentions two famous Centurions
8. John the Baptist did not require Soldiers to leave their professions, Luke 3:14
9. Many comparisons are taken from this Calling in the New Testament
Philippians 2:25 "I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need"
2 Timothy 2:3-4, "Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him."
10. There have been many famous Martyrs of this Profession.
THOUGHTS FOR INSPIRATION:
"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." Edmund Burke
"The hottest places in Hell are reserved for those who in time of great moral crises maintain their neutrality." Inscription at the Entrance to Hell; From The Inferno
"In the sphere of religion, as in other spheres, the things about which men are agreed are apt to be the things that are least worth holding; the really important things are the things about which men will fight." J. Gresham Machen
CHRISTIAN MILITARY LEADERSHIP:
"While Germany struggled under the political and religious consequences of [Martin] Luther's reform movement, the movement itself quickly spilled out of the German borders into neighboring Switzerland. At the time, Switzerland was not so much a single country as a confederacy of thirteen city-states called cantons. When Luther's ideas began to pour over the border, several of the cantons broke from the Catholic church in Rome and became Protestant while other cantons remained firmly Catholic. Of the cantons that adopted Luther's new movement, the most important and powerful was the city-state of Zurich under the leadership of Ulrich Zwingli (1484-1531).
Zwingli brought to Luther's revolution an education steeped in northern Humanism, particularly that of Erasmus. He was monumentally popular in Zurich for his opposition to Swiss mercenary service in foreign wars and his attacks on indulgences; he was, in fact, as significant a player in the critique of indulgences as Luther himself.
Zwingli rose through the ranks of the Catholic church until he was appointed "People's Priest" in 1519, the most powerful ecclesiastical position in the city. However, by 1519 he had bought fully into Luther's reform program and began to steadily shift the city over to the practices of the new Protest church. In 1523, the city officially adopted Zwingli's central ecclesiastical reforms and became the first Protestant state outside of Germany. From there the Protestant revolution would sweep across the map of Switzerland."[i]
"Zwingli himself died on the battlefield, in the prime of manhood, aged forty-seven years, nine months, and eleven days, and with him his brother-in-law, his stepson, his son-in-law, and his best friends. He made no use of his weapons, but contented himself with cheering the soldiers. 'Brave men,' he said (according to Bullinger), 'fear not! Though we must suffer, our cause is good. Commend your souls to God: he can take care of us and ours. His will be done.'"
"Soon after the battle had begun, he stooped down to console a dying soldier, when a stone was hurled against his head by one of the Waldstaetters and prostrated him to the ground. Rising again, he received several other blows, and a thrust from a lance. Once more he uplifted his head, and, looking at the blood trickling from his wounds, he exclaimed: What matters this misfortune? They may kill the body, but they cannot kill the soul." These were his last words."[ii]
REFLECTION: RESOLUTION
A resolute man is one that is decided on his purpose. He is fixed in his determination; hence, bold; firm and steady. He has concluded his debate on a matter and focused himself on the task at hand. He has committed his resources to accomplish the mission.
STUDY AND MEDITATION: 2 TIMOTHY 2:3-4
"Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him."
In 2 Timothy 2, Paul encouraged Timothy to accept the hardship that comes from serving Christ in this world. It is easy to note the suffering of those who are in service to Christ and become discouraged. The natural human tendency is to seek ease and prosperity in the present rather than serve to receive our reward in the eternal future. Paul wants Timothy to keep his courage and not shrink back when he hears of Paul's misfortune. His guidance is thus, don't get so caught up in your worldly affairs or vocations that you cannot serve Christ. Paul doesn't demand that we have no way to make a living. He simply encourages us to keep the things that are passing away in perspective and not let them overwhelm us and consume all our energy and attention to the exclusion of serving Christ. Like soldiers on the battlefield, we must engage the purposes of Christ as our first aim. Everything else in life is secondary to that.
DOCTRINE: SECOND HELVETIC CONFESSION (1566)
XXX.4, And if it be necessary to preserve the safety of the people by war, let him do it in the name of God; provided he have first sought peace by all means possible, and can save his subjects in no way but by war. And while the magistrate does these things in faith, he serves God with those works which are good, and shall receive a blessing from the Lord.
[i] http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/REFORM/ZWINGLI.HTM
[ii] http://www.ccel.org/s/schaff/hcc8/htm/iv.v.vi.htm
