God’s Grand Plan or Lucky Random Chance?

You probably knew that a serious post would come sooner or later, so join the solemnity and consider the question,  “What are we to make of our ancestor’s near brushes with death?”

I think the life of Johann Wolfgang Odoerfer, the Hessian soldier who is my (and maybe your) ancestor and link to Germany, makes us think about this question.

A Brush With Birth

Johann Wolfgang was almost not born.  His father, Marcus was the 13th child in the family — an unlucky number at that.  And evidence is that he almost died at birth. No Marcus, no Johann Wolfgang, no me (or maybe you).

Some Brushes With Death

Also, Johann Wolfgang, as a soldier, had some near death experiences.

On the ship the Hessian soldiers sailed on to America, many soldiers — even one of Johann’s friends, died of malaria.  Johann Wolfgang was spared.

When Johann Wolfgang was quartered in Rhode Island, the famous 22-ft. snowfall was devastating. Many soldiers froze to death, or got lost in the storm, were covered with snow, and died.  Johann Wolfgang lived through this ordeal.

In the battle of Yorktown, Johann’s regiment was shelled unmercifully by their enemy, and was left to fight as the rear guard as Cornwallis attempted to escape by sea.  Had Cornwallis not been compelled to return because of violent waters, Johann Wolfgang and his regiment would surely been annihilated by the overwhelming French and American forces.

Johann Wolfgang was captured in the battle of Yorktown, and forced to make a grueling march from Yorktown to Winchester Barracks prison in northern Virginia. The conditions in the prison were terrible, and a high percentage of the prisoners — not Johann, however — died of dysentery or other diseases.

A Question About Life

For sake of discussion, let’s assume that if Johann had died or been killed before he had a chance to sire Henry, his ancestors in that line would not have existed.

Pretty serious stuff, which could make those of us who are Johann Wolfgang’s descendants ask, “Am I here because Johann stayed alive by Lucky Random Chance, or because the whole scenario was a part of “God’s Grand Plan?”

This is a mysterious question, and some of the events related above and others — such as the violent waters that forced Cornwallis’s return to the battle of Yorktown — suggest to some that more than chance has to be at play here.  But each of us has his/her own ideas about the bigger question, and we will probably never be able to prove that our ideas are correct.

The Bottom Line

But one thing we can hang our hats on is that Johann Wolfgang Odoerfer was one in a long line of courageous ancestors — with their warts and all — who gave all they had in their own way to pave the way for their descendants who followed them.

I guess that’s about all anyone can do, hopefully with God’s help.