At this time of year we think about celebrating Christmas, which to many folks is anything but spiritual. it’s a time to eat, get drunk, and insult the relatives you haven’t seen in a year. I realize lots of folks don’t like all this “religious” stuff so I expect my readership for this article and others like it will be down. That’s okay. I have to say what I say and I’m not out to win a popularity contest. Spiritual things are important, even if many don’t want to admit that.

I had a friend in the East who passed away at this time of year a few years ago. He was devoted to the cause of Southern heritage and truth in history, yet to the best of my knowledge, he passed from this life with no knowledge of how important the Lord Jesus Christ was and is to the human race. He admitted theology was his weak point but that was as far as he would go.

Well, theology is a weak point for most of us. I don’t have too many friends who are gifted theologians, a few maybe, but not many, but I do have a lot of friends who recognize that they are sinners and know that they need to trust the Lord Jesus Christ for their eternal salvation and they realize that the Lord Jesus is the only way to God, contrary to what the world says. My friend (and a few of you may know who I am talking about) never seemed to grasp this. I know a few of us talked to him about it but it never seemed to take. He didn’t have time for church, as he always had something “more important” to do. The fact that worshipping God is one of, if not the, most important things you can do never reached him. There was always something “more important” to be done and church was a distraction from that, especially on Sundays.

I’ve known others in the Southern Heritage Movement who had the same attitude. When the Lord’s Day came around they always had something “more important” to do than worship the Lord. The Southern Heritage Movement seems in disarray at this point. It certainly does not seem to have the potential it once did. Our flags and monuments have come down in rapid succession in the last few years and nothing seems to abate that trend. I have often wondered if the fact that a goodly number in our movement always seemed to have something “more important” to do on the Lord’s Day than worshipping God might have had anything to do with that.

Our Confederate ancestors were mostly Christian men, not all, but mostly. You had Christian revivals throughout the Confederate armies during the war and Christian chaplains were encouraged to preach to the soldiers and they were mostly orthodox Christian men, not tainted with the Unitarianism so prevalent in the North. I wonder if we today have followed in their path. As important as Southern history and heritage are, especially in this day of historical apostasy, the worship of God is MORE important.

At this time of year, when we celebrate Christmas, we should really take note of the fact that Jesus Christ came to earth to save men from their sins and He shed His blood on the cross to do that and rose on the third day to show that he’d accomplished it. How many in the Southern Heritage Movement have grasped that – and if not – why not? Over the years I’ve run into several in the movement that want nothing to do with religion–they are totally secular. If I might be permitted to say so, that is a horrendous mistake. Our Confederate ancestors would not have appreciated that and we shouldn’t either. Those who have no time or place for the Lord should not expect too much back from Him. It’s only by His grace that we even exist and we need to remember that – especially at Christmas.

December 21, 2023

~ The Author ~
Al Benson Jr. is the editor and publisher of “The Copperhead Chronicle“, a quarterly newsletter that presents history from a pro-Southern and Christian perspective. He has written for several publications over the years. His articles have appeared in “The National Educator,” “The Free Magnolia,” and the “Southern Patriot.” I addition he was the editor of, and wrote for, “The Christian Educator” for several years. In addition to The Copperhead Chronicles, Al also maintains Revised History.

He is currently a member of the Confederate Society of America and the Sons of Confederate Veterans, and has, in the past, been a member of the John Birch Society. He is the co-author, along with Walter D. Kennedy, of the book “Lincoln’s Marxists” and he has written for several Internet sites as well as authoring a series of booklets, with tests, dealing with the War of Northern Aggression, for home school students.

Mr. Benson is a highly respected scholar and writer and has graciously allowed the family of Kettle Moraine Publications to publish his works. We are proud to have his involvement with each of our projects.