Another testimony of multi-generational honor from the Faith of Our Fathers project:
For the family of Corporal Jake Lindsey, this year’s pilgrimage of honor to the tiny island of Iwo Jima had as its primary mission, the execution of a sacred duty long overdue. Sixty years after the death of this much beloved Christian young man, his family returns to leave a testimony of the way his sacrifice has affected three generation of Lindseys.
Corporal Jake Lindsey was killed on Iwo on February 28, leaving behind a grieving family and fiancée. In a letter to Jake’s mother, Marine Corps General Graves B. Irskine reflected on Jake’s death in light of biblical manhood:
Greater love hath no man than this, said our Savior that a man lay down his life for his friends. And the soldier who dies to save his brothers and to defend the hearth and alters of his country reaches this highest of all degrees of charity.
For sixty years, the family of Corporal Jake Lindsey, 3rd Marine Division, has spoken of the heroism of this devoutly Christian boy who never left Iwo Jima. Now they return to honor the multi-generational implications of Christian manhood for the posterity of a family. Pastor Vess, who led the family delegation, said this to me during an on-camera interview:
We came to Iwo Jima with one goal in mind if it all possible. And that was to bring a plaque with Jake’s picture on it, his rank, his name and so on, and inscribed under his picture are these words: “One man’s sacrifice instills courage and character to a family for many generations.” And I think that this speaks so very, very loud. And I don’t have time to tell you but I could tell ya that it’s been providential for us to be able to bring this plaque.... And I feel that this is a direct answer of prayer.
Since his death, a half a dozen extended family members have been named after Jake Lindsey.
