by Sandy » Wed Aug 23, 2017 12:06 pm
Interesting story. Great sermon.
I recently started searching through my genealogy, now that I am close to my parents' childhood homes. I don't know that there's much that is shared in terms of ideology or faith with your ancestors, though I guess it can be interesting when the ancestor is well known, and the descendant takes an opposite position.
I'm more fascinated by the fact that Lee was married to Mary Anna Custis, the great-granddaughter of Martha Custis Washington, and daughter of George Washington's step-grandson and namesake George Washington Parke Custis. It was actually her parents' mansion, Arlington, that she and Lee inherited, and which, during the Civil War and the union occupation, was turned into Arlington Cemetery. It would be interesting to get beyond the brief written history to find out exactly what the Custis family, and the Washingtons, thought about Lee's decision to support a state rebellion against the United States. Mrs. Lee apparently had strong feelings, and advocated for emancipation, in addition to encouraging her husband to remain loyal to the union, but his influence prevented her from emancipating their slaves, and of course we know his decision regarding military service.