This Is the Way
We Read to Know We Are Not Alone

By Robin Webber

It’s been nearly 10 years since I became acquainted with the comforting wisdom of the phrase "we read to know we are not alone." It’s wonderful advice that has never wandered too far from me. It was a twice-repeated line from the movie Shadowlands, which focused on C.S. Lewis, a noted British theologian. Lewis was transformed by the suffering he experienced through the premature death of his wife. When the phrase is first mentioned in the movie by one of his students, it simply bounces off his carefully constructed nonemotional intellectual armor. Only later, when he experienced the pain of losing a "special someone," did he come to understand the weight of shared emotional experience.

About three months ago, this powerful life-changing concept of "we read to know we are not alone" was again brought to light through an article titled, "The Marines: Always Faithful to Their History" written by Los Angeles Times staff writer Tony Perry, which the paper ran on March 6, 2003.

Far from the setting of the ancient halls of Lewis’ Cambridge University, this journalistic entry puts us down into the sand of Kuwait as U.S. Marines prepare to "kick in the door" to neighboring Iraq. There is probably no greater contrast than that of a theological mind like Lewis and a young "can-do" Marine. Yet, each in his own time came to profit from the wisdom of "we read to know that we are not alone."

Carrying on the tradition

Reporter Perry begins by introducing us to Marine Lance Cpl. William Figlesthaler of Naples, Florida. He’s a member of the Camp Pendleton-based First Marine Division, which is the oldest, largest and most decorated division in the Marines. The division’s nickname is "Old Breed."

But, just a moment. Figlesthaler is only age 19. What makes such a young man want to be a part of the "Old Breed"?; He emphatically states, "The Marines have got the best history and now I’ve got a chance to carry on that tradition—it’s awesome." How did he achieve that level of purpose at such a young age?

The article makes a blunt assertion that "while each branch of the military teaches its recruits about its history and heroes, none does so as thoroughly as the Marine Corps."

Perry builds on this assertion by sharing the game plan of how Marines become larger than themselves and become a part of a greater story. He explains, "The emphasis on history starts with recruiting, which stresses the legacy of the corps. In boot camp, drill instructors deliver history lessons; in the final physical challenge, a 72-hour outdoor ordeal called ‘the crucible,’ recruits are ordered to discuss the heroism of Medal of Honor recipients. Then, officers and senior enlisted members pick up the task once new Marines report to their first duty stations."

Something special about remembering

An example of extended training by reading is the methodology employed by Chief Warrant Officer John Johnson of Detroit, 40, who occasionally has young Marines assigned to his command read the commendations detailing the bravery of Marines awarded the Medal of Honor. He says, "I want them to understand the organization that they’ve joined. There is something special about remembering those who preceded you."

Even as they wait in Kuwait for the eventual foray into Iraq, the Marines spend off-hours reading books about their history. The corps has an official reading list, with different books recommended for different ranks. At the top of the list is the "commandant’s favorites." Second Lt. Richard Wilkerson, 27, of Knoxville, Tennessee, was reading With the Old Breed by E.B. Sledge. It’s the story of Marines at Peleliu and Okinawa.

What does such emphasis on reading about one’s forebears produce? Wilkerson puts it this way: "Ask someone in the Army when the Army’s birthday is, and you’ll get a strange look. Ask any Marine about the birthday and they will tell you ‘Nov. 10, 1775.’" What happened then? It was on that date the Continental Congress in Philadelphia ordered that a "few good men" might be raised to form two battalions of Marines to serve as landing forces for the Navy. Not only was a good slogan of "A Few Good Men" born, but also an American institution. The Marines, the smallest branch of the U.S. military, pride themselves in moving and striking quickly in seizing territory and establishing a beachhead for the other forces arriving later.

Richard H. Kohn, military history professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, explains that young men and women want to "‘define their identity with what has become almost a legendary institution in American life...’ Almost uniformly the younger members say they are eager to see if they measure up to the heroes they’ve read about."

Such a methodology of reading about your history and honoring those who have served before you creates an incredible tension between the past and the present. Reporter Terry comments, "Even as Camp Pendleton was consumed with preparing Marines and their gear to deploy to Kuwait, the base held a memorial service to honor the 58th anniversary of the amphibious assault at Iwo Jima by the Third, Fourth and Fifth Marine divisions. It’s as if there is simply one continuous troop composed of young and old, dead and living, wounded and serving and those yet to serve. As Sgt. David Anderson, 30, of Hammond, Louisiana, so aptly puts it, ‘In civilian life, we’d be castaways. But in the Marine Corps, we all click and come together. We’re a brotherhood just like the history.’"

There is no more widely known historical maxim than George Santayana’s, "Those who fail to learn the lessons of history are doomed to repeat them." Likewise, those who do not read the lessons of history or read about the lives and exploits of courageous men and women are doomed to never equal or surpass them. It is for this reason that the pen truly is mightier than the sword. A sword is an incredible instrument, but the greater question is, who wields the sword? And the yet greater question is, what values have a grip on the holder of the sword? The level to which one rises is determined not by the steel, but the heart behind the steel.

But now consider the spiritual thrust behind this thesis. Have you ever taken a good look at 2Timothy 4:13 ? Paul is imprisoned in Rome. He’s near the end of his life. Here’s the man who has written more books in the New Testament than any other individual. He’s said and written much. Yet he asks for books! "Bring...the books, especially the parchments." In addition to editing his works, is it possible that the very same man who coined the phrase "fight the good fight" (1Timothy 6:12) needed to "read to know he was not alone" to step up to the next level of spiritual engagement? To have wisdom, he needed to read about wisdom. To have courage, he needed to read about courage acted out by "men of like passion." To be able to forgive his enemies before he died, he would have to read about how Christ did it.

Paul, the soldier for Christ

Like the Marines, Paul, the soldier for Christ (Philippians 2:25), knew he was but a part of a small contingent called to create a beachhead for others to follow. He was not destined to witness the beginning or the end, but he was commissioned to do his utmost and finish the course set before him. The one who stopped him on the road to Damascus is the same one who described His followers as just a "little flock" in Luke 12:32. They were the smallest of the small, just a few good men and women.

Paul came to the same conclusion that Sgt. David Anderson came to about his companions. In any other life the people he was working with would be considered "castaways." Paul said as much in 1Corinthians 1:27, when he stated, "But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty." Yet, those very same castaways—given identity, a purpose and a shared history of spiritual heroes who had gone on before them—would "turn the world upside down."

Ask any Christian the birth date of the Church that Christ founded, and he or she will tell you "Pentecost, A.D. 31." Why do they know it? Because they have read the story of Peter and the apostles and the 3,000 people who were baptized, and in so doing the readers know they are not alone. Pentecost, A.D. 31, is not simply the beginning of the story of the Church, but also the beginning of the story for each Christian. The story is greater than the reader. It offers identity and companionship.

Paul tells his beloved assistant Timothy in 2Timothy 2:1-3 to "be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ." Is it possible that Paul desired to reread his own words to encourage himself to persevere through the challenge of being executed?

"Of whom the world is not worthy"

Is it possible he wanted to read one more time the unfolding accounts of bravery and heroism found in Hebrews 11 ? Imagine him reading at night, using only the faint glimmer produced by a little clay oil lamp, to make out the words he most likely penned in what would become known as Hebrews 1l:32-40:

"And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets: who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens . . .

"Still others had trial of mockings with scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment...of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us."
In such a reading Paul would in no way be alone. In a darkened cell, standing around him were many examples of God’s people who sacrificed all to be a part of the greatest adventure ever bestowed on mankind—following Christ.

Your Bible clearly pinpoints your reality in the incredibly challenging future before the return of Jesus Christ. The articles you read in World News and Prophecy pull no punches about where this world, apart from God, is headed. The question is not, What is God going to do? The question is, What are you going to do? As spiritual soldiers in Christ’s service, we had better know what we stand for!

Are you filling up now with the marvelous examples of courage, wit, wisdom, sacrifice and humility of those who have already "fought the good fight"?; Such "good fights" don’t come by wishful thinking, but by diligent study, motivated by heartfelt need.

Perhaps the encouragement of, "This is the way, walk in it," found in Isaiah 30:21 is best personified by the words of Chief Warrant Officer John Johnston, whose quest in life is to make sure those under his command "understand the organization they have joined. There is something special about remembering those who have preceded you." After all, that’s why we read—to know we are not alone! —WNP

( Return to Table of Contents )