Steven Vincent Benet referred to Robert E. Lee as a "riddle unread." Certainly, that was the case in the South during the post Civil War period. Within just a few years of the war's end, Robert E. Lee the man had become a mythic figure for many Southerners, and some were even so bold as to suggest a measure of divinity. As early as 1868, Fanny Downing referred to Lee as "bathed in the white light which falls directly upon him from the smile of an approving and sustaining God." (Downing, Fanny, "Perfect Through Suffering." The Land We Love 4 (January 1868): 193-205.) This saintly imagery was elaborated and reinforced by others. John W. Daniels who served on General Jubal A. Early's staff wrote: "The Divinity in his bosom shone translucent through the man, and his spirit rose up to the Godlike." (Jones, Rev. J. William, D.D. Army of Northern Virginia Memorial Volume. Richmond: J.W. Randolph and English, 1880, p. 122.) Both lay people and members of the clergy described Lee as a Christ-like figure. His decision to reject command of the Federal armies was seen as the equal of Christ's temptation in the wilderness. Appomattox was described as "the anguish-fraught hour of (Lee's) Gethsemane." (Wilson, Baptized in Blood, p. 48.) Randolph McKim wrote that the suffering of the Southern people "had 'pressed sorely upon him, a true crown of thorns, borne silently and uncomplainingly.' Indeed to McKim, Lee had been to his soldiers, "not only their commander, but their Father..." (Note the captitalization; quoted in Wilson, Baptized in Blood, p. 49) Indeed, one minister went so far as to remark that Lee was pure enough to have founded a religion.

Although Lee came to be an icon for Southern religion (hence the use of Lee as an icon for this course page), his religious views were not necessarily in keeping with those of the region. Lee did not receive confirmation in the Episcopal church until late in life, and his views on the race question would have incensed many Southerners had they been known.

And yet, even reputable scholars continue to speak of Lee in reverent terms. In his recent work Robert E. Lee: A Biography (1995), Emory Thomas records a little known incident in Lee's life that speaks volumes about both the man and the way he continues to play a "christ-like" role for many. Shortly after the end of the War, Lee attended communion at St. Paul's Church. It's "list of communicants read like a Who's Who of the Confederacy." When the invitation to come forward and receive communion was given,

"a tall-well dressed, black man stood and strode to the rail. There followed a pregnant pause. According to one witness, "Its effects upon the communicants was startling, and for several moments they retained their seats in solemn silence and did not move, being deeply chagrined at this attempt to inaugurate the 'new regime' to offend and humiliate them...". Then another person rose from the pew and walked down the aisle to the chancel rail. He knelt near the black man and so redeemed the circumstance. This grace- bringer, of course was Lee. Soon after he knelt, the rest of the congregation followed his example and shuffled in turn to the rail...Lee's actions were far more eloquent than anything he spoke or wrote." (Thomas, p. 372.)

For a revisionist view of Lee see: Nolan, Alan T. Lee Considered: General Robert E. Lee and Civil War History. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1991.