Importance of Religion to the Lee Family

It's interesting what you can read courtesy of our National Park Service. Consider Arlington House and the Robert E. Lee Memorial. Lee is certainly an important figure in our national history. Most of us know of his role leading the South in the 1800's, but it could be a surprise to tourists at his memorial to learn what a strong role religion played in his life.

Such was not always the case for Robert E. Lee. But his marriage to a devout Christian woman and his connection to that family would have a great influence on him. Some of that influence is outlined in the following paragraph, found on the National Park Services web page about the Lee Memorial:

With firm conviction, Lee began to pray and read his Bible daily. He began to go to church regularly—a routine that his religiously committed mother had ingrained in him from day one. Now, as a grown man with grown children of his own, religious beliefs impacted his decisions not only in his personal life but in his military career and during his tenure as a college president as well. He “had come to [Washington College in] Lexington as much a missionary as an educator.” Lee weighed his decisions in light of the question: "what was his duty as a Christian and a gentleman?" Truly, his creed of doing that duty was acted upon even in the most challenging of social situations.

This little tidbit is one more example of how much of a role religion (usually Christianity) played in the history of our nation.

Read more by following the link below:
http://www.nps.gov/arho/historyculture/religion.htm