Lewis Powell: The conspirator who was "different."

[STS Lincolnite]

(08-16-2014 10:09 AM)L Verge Wrote:  ... Mrs. Surratt being a VERY devout Catholic convert but condoning murder. If Weichmann's statement that she asked him to pray for her intentions is true, however, that would make all the difference. Does one pray for absolution before the deed is done?

For the record, I have little doubt that Mrs. Surratt had knowledge of and was in fact a complicit party in the kidnap plot and probably the assassination.

I have always been interested in the characterization of Mrs. Surratt as a devout Catholic to support the fact that she was innocent. From all I have read, religion was a much greater part of people's daily life than we might broadly expect to see today. So I guess that causes several questions to spring to mind:
1) How is/was "devout" defined?
2) In what way(s) was how she practiced her religion any different than how any other typical Catholic practiced their religion in the mid 19th century?
3) Was this characterization as being "devout" just used as a tool by her attorneys to make her appear more innocent? (Like the characterization of Powell as an illiterate fool who was simply taken in by and enthralled with Booth - which I do not believe is accurate).

The idea of someone appearing to be a devout religious practitioner also brings to mind something my grandfather used to say: "He (or in this case she) who sings loudest in church isn't always the most holy".

And even if she truly was a devout Catholic, I don't think that would necessarily support her innocence. I know that during the American Civil War, people on both sides of the conflict trumpeted the idea that theirs was the truly right cause and that God was on their side (leading to some intra-denominational splits some of which persist to a degree to this day). Their cause and God's grace would be proven by their victory in the war. So (assuming she was a truly "devout" Catholic) if Mrs. Surratt felt that her/their cause really was the right one (actively supported by her son and endorsed by God) I don't find it unbelievable that she would have gone to any length to ensure a Confederate victory - feeling she was doing "God's work" and would be justified/vindicated in doing so. In that context, it doesn't seem unlikely that she might ask someone to pray for her intentions (success in her undertakings or peace of mind for being involved in murder, justified or not). She probably would have never really considered that she would be arrested and convicted, much less executed because in her mind she would have been doing God's work.