DVD highlights Stonewall’s religious fervor

On May 10, 2007, another teacher and I were driving some 8th-grade history students to Charleston, W.Va. After stopping in Lexington, Va., to tour the Lee Chapel at Washington and Lee University, I suggested a quick trip to the town cemetery to visit the grave of the famed Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson, a person whose life we had studied and discussed quite a bit that year in class.

As it so happened, that day marked the 144th anniversary of the general’s death, and when we arrived, the local chapters of the Sons of Confederate Veterans and United Daughters of the Confederacy were midway through a ceremony honoring the man whom Gen. Barnard Bee, at the height of the Battle of Manassas, dubbed with the unforgettable moniker — Stonewall.

While watching the solemn proceedings, I was glad that the children had the unexpected opportunity to witness the reverence that many in the Old Dominion and across the South still hold for the great Confederate hero.

Although Fred Bloom, the speaker that morning, reminded those present of Jackson’s illustrious military career in both the Mexican and Civil wars, he also emphasized the general’s close walk with Christ.

In the new DVD “Still Standing: The Stonewall Jackson Story,” director Ken Carpenter presents a side of the man that few know.

Adapted from Richard G. Williams Jr.’s recent book “Stonewall Jackson: The Black Man’s Friend,” the documentary, while highlighting his military achievements, focuses on the progressive development of Jackson’s strong Christian faith and his own fruitful efforts to increase Christ’s kingdom.

Beautifully filmed on location in Lewis County, W.Va., and parts of Virginia, including Guinea Station, Lexington, Manassas Battlefield, and the Shenandoah Valley, the movie is narrated by Barry Scott, with commentary by noted Jackson scholars such as the general’s pre-eminent biographer, James Robertson Jr.; and Mr. Williams, interspersed with remarks by various local historians.

Visually complementing the narration and personal observations is film editor Joel Fisher’s skillful blending of period sketches, paintings and photographs throughout the film. Composer Tom Howard’s first-rate score is a real treat.

Most authors and filmmakers usually give Jackson’s early days only cursory treatment. In “Still Standing,” however, Mr. Carpenter gives a thorough account of this formative period of Jackson’s life.

Born on Jan. 21, 1824, in Clarksburg, Va. (now W.Va.), Thomas Jonathan Jackson became an orphan by the time he was 6. First losing his father to yellow fever and later his mother to tuberculosis, he and sister Laura were taken in by uncle Cummins Jackson, a backwoods entrepreneur who owned Jackson’s Mill, near Weston in what is now West Virginia.

The introspective lad had a normal boyhood for the time, filled with plenty of hard work and occasional play. Frances Lightburn Cressman, a descendent of Joseph Lightburn, Jackson’s best friend and himself a future Union general in the War Between the States, points out that her great-grandfather not only roamed the hills with Jackson during their teenage years but also introduced him to the Bible and the teachings of Christ. Young Tom often accompanied the Lightburn family to services at the Broad Run Baptist Church.

Another important religious influence upon the impressionable teenager was the piety he observed in some of Cummins Jackson’s slaves who also followed Jesus.

In 1842, a fortunate appointment to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point gave Jackson the opportunity to get the education he craved.

Although not academically prepared for the rigorous course work that lay ahead, he eventually overcame his scholastic shortcomings through constant study. After Jackson graduated from the academy in 1846, the Army assigned him to serve in the artillery. Soon he was on his way to Mexico.

Mr. Carpenter chronicles Jackson’s valorous deeds in the Mexican War, but also includes his continuous search for religious fulfillment. During this time, battery commander Capt. Francis Taylor becomes his spiritual guide, reintroducing Jackson to the Scriptures and encouraging him to study and follow the teachings of the Holy Book.

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