We squeeze almost a decade of fighting the War for Independence into a one-day celebration--July 4. We have good and sufficient reasons to celebrate and commemorate April 19 for it was on April 19, 1775 when the boycotts, letters, correspondence, Continental Congress meetings, petitions, and discussions ended with the firing of guns at Lexington and Concord. A British officer yelled out, "Ye villians, Ye rebels, disperse; damn you, disperse." This was the moment of truth for those men standing there with their rifles. Standing there with them and helping them uphold their resolve was Pastor Jonas Clark of the Church of Lexington.
In the early years of our Republic, the events surrounding the Battles of Lexington and Concord were staples of the patriotic diets of Americans. The great Schoolroom Poets of the middle of the 1800s all turned their poetic muses to celebrating this part of our heritage. Best known among the poems are Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "Paul Revere's Ride" and Ralph Waldo Emerson's "Concord Bridge" (which contains the unforgettable line about the farmers firing "the shot heard 'round the world."
One of the best ways to get a first-hand look at the events of April 19, 1775 is to read The Battle of Lexington: A Sermon and Eyewitness Narrative by Pastor Jonas Clark of the Church of Lexington. This work was originally titled The Fate of Blood-Thirsty Oppressors and God's Tender Care of His Distressed People after the sermon was preached on the first anniversary of the battle.
Nordskog Publishing has re-printed Pastor Clark's sermon and personal experiences at the battle of Lexington. Nordskog is a Christian publishing company that has published a number of practical Christian books that apply Christian thinking to all areas of life. This particular publication includes some introductory materials and four of the poems (including the two I named above) that were written in celebration of the events.
The role of the clergy in the War for Independence is one of the most important aspects of that war. Pastors were community leaders. Their influence would be comparable and favorably superior to the modern day role for politicl leaders, media spokesmen, and sports and movie stars. The clergy were prime movers and shakers of events. In Pastor Clark's case, he stood there with the men of his congregation as they faced the hostile Redcoat army. A year later, he set forth the theological case for why the colonists were fighting the war.
A monument to those who stood their ground at Lexington and Concord.
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