“Captain, my religious belief teaches me to feel as safe in battle as in bed. God has fixed the time for my death. I do not concern myself about that, but to be always ready, no matter when it may overtake me....That is the way all men should live, and then all would be equally brave.” ~ Stonewall Jackson
According to estimates from the United States census, approximately half of Southerners in 1860 did not belong to any church. Nonetheless, evangelical religion exerted considerable influence on Southern society. By 1830, the previously prevailing skepticism and tolerance of the Jeffersonian era had largely been replaced by religious orthodoxy, which emphasized original sin, the concept of hell, individual repentance, justification by faith, and the belief in an omnipotent, personal God governing human affairs. These doctrines aligned with frontier individualism and the political ideals of Jacksonian democracy, and were actively promoted during the Great Revival of the early nineteenth century as well as by subsequent generations of evangelists at summer camp meetings. Baptists and Methodists emerged as the predominant denominations within the evangelical movement, accounting for nearly three-quarters of Southern church membership by 1860. The remaining quarter consisted of Presbyterians, Episcopalians, Catholics, Jews, Lutherans, Cumberland Presbyterians, Quakers, and various other sects.
Evangelical denominations, along with several smaller groups, consolidated their influence over Southern communities by advocating for slavery. During Jefferson’s era, many members of the clergy viewed slavery as an undesirable institution and anticipated its eventual abolition. In the early nineteenth century, as the practice of slavery expanded following the invention of the cotton gin, churches increasingly adopted the perspective that, although problematic, slavery was deemed necessary for maintaining racial stability and promoting economic growth. By the 1830s, amidst the continued spread of slavery and heightened tensions from abolitionist opposition, religious leaders began to assert that slavery was a positive institution, divinely ordained to facilitate the Christianization of enslaved Africans and contribute to the development of white slaveholders. Southern ministers played a significant role in shaping and articulating the proslavery doctrine during this period.
Given their association with slavery and Southern traditions, it was expected that churches in the South would align themselves with secession and the pursuit of independence. The political divisions that emerged in 1860-1861 were preceded by the separation, in 1845, of Southern Methodists and Baptists from their Northern counterparts over issues related to slavery. Nonetheless, some Southern religious leaders, particularly those in the upper South, were initially hesitant to support secession, and a number chose exile over endorsing disunion. Loyalty to the Union remained especially prevalent among Presbyterian and Episcopal clergy, many of whom had Whig affiliations. In February 1861, a prominent Virginia Episcopalian expressed concern about this shift, stating, “I am shocked at this disloyalty to the Union of our ‘holy men,’ but the undeniable and their influence is now extensively debauching our people.” Similarly, a Presbyterian minister in Virginia lamented the population’s readiness “to rush into division and civil war with nothing to be gained on either side.” Such moderate voices were frustrated by South Carolina’s rapid and unilateral decision to withdraw from the Union. For instance, a Baptist preacher from Prince Edward County, Virginia, wrote in December 1860 of his displeasure regarding “the little sovereign filly [who] erects her head & tosses her tail as if she were the acknowledged & sole mistress of the field.”
By the close of 1860, the vast majority of clergy in the Deep South had expressed support for secession. The commencement of military conflict subsequently led ministers in the Upper South to align with the movement for disunion. With the exception of eastern Tennessee, religious leaders across the eleven states forming the Confederacy were nearly unanimous in endorsing Southern independence as the new government prepared for war in the spring of 1861.
Benjamin M. Palmer, minister of the First Presbyterian Church of New Orleans, was an advocate for secession and independence. Originally from South Carolina and a protégé of James H. Thornwell, Palmer did not express strong views on sectional issues until after Abraham Lincoln’s election. He then publicly supported disunion. On November 29, 1860, Palmer delivered a Thanksgiving Day sermon titled “The South: Her Peril and Her Duty,” in which he argued that slavery—described as divinely ordained—was threatened by the Republican Party’s victory. He asserted that Southerners had the responsibility to maintain slavery and should therefore leave the Union and establish their own government. The sermon was widely published in newspapers and pamphlets, and its impact was significant. A Baton Rouge minister who supported moderation noted that many parishioners and a majority of Presbyterians in the state changed their stance to support secession following Palmer’s discourse.
By 1860, although only forty-two years of age, Palmer had established a distinguished reputation as a minister, editor, and educator. He was recognized for his dynamic character and persuasive oratory. His Thanksgiving sermon significantly enhanced his prominence, positioning him as a leading figure among ministerial advocates of the States, eventually serving as moderator for its inaugural General Assembly.
Palmer was requested to speak to New Orleans units as they prepared to depart for the war; during these addresses, he articulated justifications for the Southern revolution. In an address delivered to the Washington Artillery on May 27, 1861, he stated: “It is fitting that religion herself should with gentle voice whisper her benediction upon your flag and your cause. Soldiers, history…records…[no war] that is holier than this in which you have embarked. It is a war of defense against wicked and cruel aggression—a war of civilization against a ruthless barbarism…a war of religion against a blind and bloody fanaticism…May the Lord of Hosts be around you as a wall of fire, and shield your head in the day of battle.”
Following the fall of New Orleans, Palmer traveled throughout Mississippi and Tennessee, encouraging the troops. A general later remarked that the minister’s passionate support was more valuable to the Confederate cause than a thousand soldiers. In autumn 1862, Palmer joined the faculty at Columbia Theological Seminary, while continuing to deliver numerous patriotic addresses. As Federal forces approached Columbia, he once again became a refugee. Until the very end, he maintained that the South’s struggle was a sacred endeavor and consistently advocated for steadfast public support.
James H. Thornwell, a prominent church leader and mentor to Palmer, was also a strong proponent of slavery and secession. Between 1851 and 1855, Thornwell served as president of South Carolina College but later resigned to join the faculty at Columbia Theological Seminary. Known as the “Calhoun of the Church,” Thornwell delivered a notable fast-day sermon following Lincoln’s election, in which he supported secession despite acknowledging that the “path to victory may be through a baptism of blood.” Subsequently, he articulated the Southern perspective in his widely circulated pamphlet, “The State of the Country,” which greatly influenced public opinion. Thornwell further addressed soldiers in the leaflet “Our Danger and Our Duty,” describing the potential challenges and indignities the South might face should the North prevail. His contributions to supporting the Southern cause concluded with his death from tuberculosis in August 1862.
Several notable ministers were influential in supporting the Southern cause, including Episcopal Bishop Stephen Elliott of Georgia; Thomas Smyth, minister of the Second Presbyterian Church in Charleston; Bishop Francis H. Rutledge of Florida; and Catholic Bishop Augustine Verot of Savannah. On November 21, 1860, Smyth delivered a sermon, later published as a pamphlet, in which he spoke in favor of slavery, supported secession, and criticized the concepts of equality and democracy promoted by Northerners.
Many ministerial advocates of disunion held the view that secession might be achieved without conflict. Others, however, expressed significant concern regarding the church’s potential role in provoking violence and bloodshed. In January 1861, Reverend Robert L. Dabney of Virginia commented that “there were plenty of politicians to make the fire [of sectionalism] burn hot enough without my help to blow it,” and, several weeks later, lamented “the infamy which would attach to the Christianity of America…if it were found impotent to save the land from fratricidal war.” Nevertheless, upon the outbreak of war, Dabney, along with other Southern clergymen, encouraged the populace to defend what they regarded as the Confederacy’s sacred cause.
Ministers contributed to support for the war by authoring articles in church periodicals that defended the South’s position and projected a Confederate victory. They worked with lay members to formally record the approval and endorsement of the struggle for independence within synods, conferences, and other church organizations. Additionally, they provided encouragement and blessings to volunteer companies as these groups departed for the front lines.
Numerous ministers participated in the war effort, serving as chaplains, soldiers, or in temporary roles by preaching, distributing literature, and supporting troop morale. The effectiveness and impact of chaplains varied considerably; accounts from soldiers suggest that those with less dedication and ability surpassed their more zealous and eloquent counterparts in number. Among the notable chaplains was Charles Todd Quintard of the First Tennessee Regiment, who possessed qualifications in both medicine and theology and thus provided comprehensive physical and spiritual care to the service members under his charge.
In the heat of the battle some chaplains could not resist the urge to join in the shooting. At Chancellorsville, Chaplain T. L. Duke of the Nineteenth Mississippi Regiment, according to an official report, “remained in the forefront of his regiment with his musket…and directed the movement of the skirmishers.’ Chaplain Brady, in an action near Columbus, Kentucky, was said to have shot two Yankees, slashed the throat of a third with his knife, and then rushed after the for crying, “Go to hell, you damned sons of bitches.” Several chaplains received official recognition for their actions on the battlefields, and a few lost their lives while performing their duties. Chaplain William H. Cone died from wounds sustained at Corinth; B. F. Ellison was fatally injured during the action at Monett’s Ferry, and Father J. Emerson Blimeol was mortally wounded while assisting a Catholic soldier at the Battle of Jonesboro, Georgia.
Ministers who transitioned from the pulpit to military service frequently continued to perform religious duties when circumstances allowed. Bishop-General Polk occasionally delivered sermons to his troops and administered baptisms to several senior officers, including Generals Hardee, Hood, and Joseph E. Johnston. General William N. Pendleton, serving as Lee’s chief of artillery, and Major Robert L. Dabney, Stonewall Jackson’s chief of staff—both ordained ministers—facilitated religious services within their camps. Several Confederate captains also came from clerical backgrounds, such as the president of Howard College in Alabama, who organized an infantry company composed of students and led it into combat. These minister-captains typically integrated religious instruction into their leadership responsibilities.
During the initial two years of the war, there was a marked increase in religious engagement and activity on the home front. The enlistment of numerous men into military service altered the composition of congregations and, in some cases, resulted in the absence of clergy. Nevertheless, women, older men, and children adjusted accordingly and continued activities with renewed commitment. Many churches conducted special services on designated days established by President Davis and state governors, which were dedicated to fasting and prayer for Confederate success. Religious revivals and camp meetings became prevalent, contributing to the growth of church membership. For instance, in September 1862, a Methodist minister from east Texas reported that recent camp meetings and revivals had increased his congregation by over two hundred members. Earlier that year, the editor of the Southern Presbyterian observed that, despite the tumult of the ongoing conflict, spiritual renewal was occurring within many Southern communities. In Savannah and Columbus, Georgia, various denominational groups organized joint meetings to foster spiritual development and offer prayers for Confederate victory.
President Davis actively supported the religious revitalization occurring throughout the South by invoking divine assistance in both his speeches and official proclamations, and by becoming a communicant of the Episcopal Church. He regularly attended St. Paul’s Church in Richmond, occupying the designated pew and listening to sermons delivered by Reverend Charles Minnegerode. John M. Daniel, editor of the Richmond Examiner, criticized Davis for joining the church and accused him of focusing on religious rituals rather than directing military efforts to defend the Confederate capital. However, the broader public generally approved of the President’s emphasis on faith.
During the war, churches participated in providing assistance to the families of soldiers. North Carolina Presbyterians organized fundraising efforts to support the education of children whose parents were deceased or disabled veterans. Jewish congregations in Vicksburg, Montgomery, Augusta, and Richmond contributed funds for the families of Confederate volunteers. Georgia Baptists collected over $200,000 to build a home for children who lost their parents during the war. Various religious organizations arranged programs to aid families experiencing financial hardship, some church members offered goods at reduced prices, and certain planters provided produce to individuals in need.
Secession and war caused an intensification of religious activity on behalf of the slaves. This was due in part to a widespread feeling among church leaders that in antebellum times Southerners had neglected the spiritual indoctrination of their servants and hence had failed to live up to their responsibility for Christianizing and uplifting the people committed to their care. A more immediate and perhaps more compelling reason was belief that religious instruction would have a wholesome effect on the conduct of the blacks and make them more submissive during the disruption and turmoil incident to war. The South Carolina Methodist Conference cited the value of the program “in securing the quiet and peaceful subordination of these people.” A contributor to the Religious Herald stated: “May we not hope and pray that large numbers will be savingly converted to Christ thus becoming better earthly servants while they wear with meekness the yoke of their master in heaven.” Ministers who preached to black congregations during the war leaned more heavily than ever on such texts as “Servants obey your masters for it is right in the sight of the Lord. Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and unto God the things that are God’s,” and “I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to the content.”
During the war, as before, slaves commonly attended churches of their masters, sitting in the front pews, in the balcony, or in some other section reserved for their occupancy; sometimes ministers preached to the Negroes alone in the afternoon. But as the number of clergymen diminished, it proved increasingly difficult to maintain slave missions in cities and on plantations, or to attend separately to the spiritual needs of both Negroes and whites. Because of this, the lack of funds and difficulty of travel, the responsibility of providing religious instruction fell more and more on slaveowners, particularly on their wives, who conducted services in their homes or private chapels. In remote areas, and especially on plantations where owners were indifferent to religion, slaves were often deprived of the opportunity to worship with their fellows under competent leaders.
Throughout the war the churches worked diligently to sustain public morale and promote the success of the Confederate cause. Many congregations donated their bells to be cast into cannon. St. Paul’s Methodist Church of Columbus, Georgia, raised a special money offering and sent it to the Confederate Treasury, “with the earnest prayer that God may give us peace, liberty, and independence.” Numerous other religious bodies throughout the South made similar contributions, and church leader urged their followers to invest generously in Confederate bonds.
The churches used their influence to combat extortion, speculation and other reprehensible practices, occasionally dropped deserters from church rolls, and in a few instances forced ministers suspected of union leanings to vacate their pulpits. In 1863 a Methodist conference in east Tennessee expelled five members for supporting the Federal cause, “a crime sufficient to exclude them from the kingdom of grace and glory.” Slaves who abandoned their masters were sometimes shorn of their spiritual connections. The record book of a Virginia Baptist congregation contains this entry for September 17, 1864: “Forty-one excluded who have gone off to the enemy.”
Churches played a role in supporting the Confederacy’s efforts to garner international support. In 1863, Reverend Father John Bannon, serving as a Confederate chaplain, traveled to Ireland to foster goodwill among the Catholic clergy and thereby encourage Southern sympathies among the Irish laity. In early 1864, President Davis appointed Catholic Bishop Patrick N. Lynch of South Carolina as special commissioner to the Vatican. Although Bishop Lynch was granted several audiences with the Pope, he was unable to secure official recognition or negotiate a treaty. During his journey to Italy, Bishop Lynch also visited Ireland, where he aided Father Bannon in discouraging Irishmen from joining the Federal forces. Additionally, in April 1863, ninety-six clergymen from various denominations issued an “Address to Christians Throughout the World,” a widely circulated pamphlet that highlighted Southern piety, depicted slavery as a benign institution, characterized emancipation as detrimental, condemned Northerners as aggressors, and predicted the ultimate success of the Confederacy.
The churches primarily focused on promoting religion and patriotism among the Southern population. From their pulpits, ministers spoke against actions they considered sinful and expressed opposition to the Yankees, while encouraging congregants to support both their faith and the Confederacy. In Richmond, Rabbi Michelbacher advised his flock to heed the words of the prophet Nehemiah; “Fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives and your houses.” From the pulpit of St. Paul’s nearby, the Reverend Charles Minnegerode declared that the hand of Providence was evident in all events that had befallen the Confederacy. Thomas Smyth combined military enthusiasm with religious conviction in addressing his parishioners: “Let all the people everywhere old and young, bond and free, take up the war-cry and say each to his neighbor ‘Gather ye together and come against them, and rise to battle.’” Benjamin M. Palmer travelled across the region encouraging audiences to maintain their commitment to their beliefs and the pursuit of independence; he stated, “every blow struck by us is in defense of His supremacy.” Following one of Palmer’s addresses, Mary Boykin Chestnut recorded her reflections in her diary: “What a sermon! The preacher stirred my blood…A red hot glow of patriotism spread through me.”
Pulpit pleas for support of the Confederate cause were ably seconded by pastoral letters and the church press. A total of fifty-five religious papers were published in the Confederacy at one time or another and their influence was tremendous. The editor of the Nashville Christian Advocate boasted in 1862 that religious periodicals had done more than secular papers “to shape the course and quicken the patriotism of the Southern Confederacy,” and three years later the Christian Observer commended the church papers for the “remarkable unanimity” with which they had sustained the Southern cause.
Despite the best efforts of ministers, church periodicals and faithful laymen, both public morale and religious zeal suffered a marked decline in the last two years of the war. The spiritual retrogression was due to several influences. Prominent among these was the increasing impact of Union invasion. Approach of the Federal armies disrupted church services and caused congregations to dwindle. “The ways of Zion languish and mourn,” the Synod of Mississippi reported in the fall of 1863. “Pastors are parted from their flocks, God’s worship interrupted or forbidden, while from many churches God’s people are exiled sheep, scattered without their shepherds, the remnants left behind either worshipping in secret, or listening in their sanctuaries to strangers whose voices they do not know and who they cannot follow.” At Vicksburg, Fredericksburg, Atlanta and elsewhere churches were damaged by shells or destroyed by fire. “The commodious edifice of one of our largest churches are within the enemy’s line…their members refugees.” In a few instances congregations were subjected to Federal fire in the midst of their worship. On June 23, 1863, Father Lawrence W. O’Bannon of Vicksburg, Mississippi, wrote in his diary: “Mr. Donovan’s arm shot off this morning in front of the church by a Parrott shell from the Point. When I was about to go to the altar another shell passed through the church [but] no one was hurt.”
In July 1864, General Robert E. Lee wrote to his wife: “The shells have scattered the poor inhabitants in Petersburg so that many churches are closed, indeed they have been visited by the enemy’s shells…Mr. Platt, pastor of the principal Episcopal church…held service again today under the trees near my camp. We had quite a large congregation. During the service I constantly heard shells crashing among the houses in Petersburg.”
Some ministers abandoned their flocks rather than submitting them to Federal control. Others experienced misfortunes which severely curtailed their spiritual activities. A Georgia woman noted in her journal during Sherman’s invasion: “No church, our preacher’s stolen by the Yankees.” Mrs. Susan P. Mills of Louisiana wrote her daughter in September 1864: “Our preacher was taken prisoner above Clinton and was robbed of his fine mare, his buggy and clothes and even his ordination papers. There was a contribution made up yesterday for him and I hope he will soon be able to buy another horse.”
Both Confederate and Federal forces repurposed churches as hospitals during the conflict. Union troops were sometimes housed in these places of worship; in certain cases, they damaged property by mutilating furnishings or burning benches for firewood. In some instances, occupying forces took control of religious services. However, they typically allowed the regular clergy to continue preaching, provided that sermons and prayers refrained from expressing sentiments deemed disloyal. Congregants were also expected to acknowledge the new authority. Notably, five women from Vicksburg who left an Episcopal church on Christmas Day in 1863—when the minister prayed for the President of the United States—were subsequently expelled from the city and sent beyond Union lines.
During 1863-1865 in both invaded and uninvaded areas the growing pinch of war took its toll of religious activities. Synods, conferences and other church gatherings met irregularly, if at all. Many church papers had to suspend publication. Numerous ministers had to seek other employment because their pay would not support their families. Clergymen vacating their positions for any reason were difficult to replace, for the Confederacy, while not subjecting ordained ministers to conscription, made no provision for exempting theological candidates. The result was a sharp decline in the number of persons seeking ordination. In 1858 new preachers admitted to the Georgia Methodist Conference totaled 27, in 1861 the number was 10, in 1862, 6; and in 1864, only 3.
Decline of religious interest manifested itself in a falling off of church membership and attendance. “How is it not more than one-thirtieth part of the entire population are attendant upon any form of Christian worship on the Sabbath day?” wrote a Mobile editor in 1864. The Palmyra Baptist Church in Georgia, a large and active congregation in 1860, shrank during the conflict until in 1864 it had only eleven white members. Total white membership of Southern Methodist churches declined from 355,458 (reported by thirteen conferences) in 1861 to 251,849 (twelve conferences) in 1863 and to 191,240 (ten conferences) in 1864.
Prayer meetings and Sunday schools languished and the great wave of revivalism which swept over Confederate camps during the last two winters of the war had no counterpart on the home front. Church periodicals frequently called attention to the contrast between the spiritual zeal of the soldiers and the indifference of the folks at home. In the fall of 1864 the editor of the Augusta, Georgia, Baptist Banner advised ministers to visit camps so that they might “catch the inspiration of the army in religious things and carry back to their cold flocks at home some of the fire.” But such appeals were to little avail. Save for occasional manifestations of religious fervor in isolated areas, revivalism became virtually nonexistent among Confederate civilians as the shadow of defeat settled over the South.
As religious influence diminished, there was a notable increase in lawlessness. Contemporary sources—including letters, diaries, and newspapers—indicate a significant rise in disorder, crime, and immorality during the final two years of the conflict. These issues were particularly pronounced in cities and remote areas that attracted deserters, guerrilla fighters, and so-called “independent scouts.” In November 1863, a resident of Columbia County, Arkansas, reported these conditions in a letter to his congressman: “Nearly all of the Arkansas soldiers…from north of the Arkansas River have deserted and more of them turned highwaymen, making a perfect reign of terror on that side of the river. They rob Union men and strangers in the daytime and Secessionists at night.”
Southerners living near areas controlled by Federal forces engaged in trade with Union soldiers. A portion of the cotton exchanged during this period was acquired by sellers through unauthorized means. Across the Confederacy, individuals profited from inflation and shortages by accumulating essential goods and seeking financial gain during challenging circumstances. After traveling through the deep South early in 1864, a Catholic chaplain serving in Lee’s army made notes about his experiences in his diary: “I found the stay-at-homes having but one great object in view, that is in the making of money. Never had I seen such avariciousness as that displayed throughout my travels, but more particularly in Georgia. Money and their Negroes appeared to be their gods.”
In some of the cities and towns, assault and robbery became so common that respectable people were reluctant to leave their residences. In April 1864, the Fulton County grand jury reported that “idle and vicious boys [are] roaming the streets of Atlanta at night, frequently many places of vice, corrupting and being corrupted.” In December 1864, Congressman Warren Akin wrote his wife from Richmond that Congress had discontinued night sessions partly because of the “danger of assassination in the streets.”
Drunkenness, brawling and gambling flourished in the cities. After a big party at Tyler, Texas, in April 1865, Kate Stone wrote in her journal that “all the men present but two were said to be drunk, and that several were so intoxicated they could not escort the girls home.” Florence Fleming Corley in Confederate City, Augusta, Georgia, 1860-1865 thus describes conditions in that town early in 1865: “Shootings, stabbings, fights and fires occurred almost daily…stealing was the order of the day…the demoralized and desperate elements even sacked the churches. The communion table, chairs and cushions were taken from the Presbyterian Church and communion service and aisle carpets stolen from St, Paul’s. Gambling, drinking and vice increased to such proportions that they became the subjects of town-wide comment.”
Prostitution and illegitimacy increased in both town and country and decent people were shocked and disturbed by the general deterioration of morals. In May 1863, a soldier in camp near Spring Hill, Tennessee, wrote his wife: “This is the most beautiful region of the country here but I am sorry I cannot say much for the morals of it from the way I hear the boys speaking and going out to see the women. I fear the standard of virtue is not very high.” A Mississippi lady in June 1864, wrote her husband of the “shameful acts” and added: “I am not astonished to hear of General Sherman saying he could buy the chastity of any Southern woman for a few pounds of coffee…[though]there are still many virtuous women in the Confederacy.”
J. D. B. DeBow, a leading Southern journalist, was so depressed after a trip from Mississippi to Richmond and back in January 1865, that he wrote to a friend: “You can have little idea of things in the heart of the Confederacy. Everything has been swept by a whirlwind. No public and little private virtue escaped the shipwreck.”
This was an extreme statement. But there can be no doubt that immorality increased enormously in the latter part of the war. This does not mean that evil reigned supreme and unchallenged. At home and in the army many people remained firm in religion and staunch in character, and some were refined and strengthened by sorrow and suffering, and by triumphing over the evil that surrounded them.
I was given poverty, that I might be wise ...
I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men.
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God ...
I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life.
I was given life, that I might enjoy all things ...
I got nothing I asked for—but everything I had hoped for. Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.
I am, among men, most richly blessed”
~ Confederate soldier
Such a detailed and well-written article, Monica.
Monica, another excellent work. I have so much respect for you and so much to say regarding this post. However, family life today prevents me from doing so now. I intend to make a full comment by this Saturday. In the interim, I will be praying for your health and your future efforts. By the way, a book you may wish to review is Christ in the Camp The True Story of the Great Revival During the War between the States by Rev. J. William Jones, Sprinkle Publications, Harrisonburg , VA 1986. Used copies are available on Amazon.com Have a great day. Very comprehensive 624 pages. Have a great day!!