On May 5, 1868, In his capacity as commander-in-chief of the
Grand Army of the Republic, General John A. Logan issued a proclamation calling
for "Decoration Day" to be observed annually and nationwide, a
practice which had already begun in the south. Where Veteran’s Day, in November,
honors those veterans who survived their time of service. The purpose of
memorial day is to honor our war dead.
Memorial Day asks us to ponder an important question: what
do the living owe the dead? Especially if we believe that the dead served us,
offered up, as Lincoln once described, “the final measure of devotion, of
fidelity.” What do we owe them?
We are quickly becoming a society unable to remember
history, disconnected from our roots, set loose from the lessons that our
ancestors learned. Yet, the Church does today what all men should do. The Church in the United States offers today
Masses for peace and justice. We believe
it is a matter of justice to remember and honor those who have fallen in
battle, to remember those who gave their lives in service to this country.
Something is missing when we fail to honor them properly.
Yet, justice demands that not only we remember them, but
what they died for, so we might continue to work to make this country worth
dying for. Serving our country is not
just the job of our military men and women, not even our politicians…I think we
are learning that we get into a lot of trouble when we hand too much of that
responsibility over to corrupt politicians.
Today, we not only remember, and pray for our dead, but ask
ourselves, ““are we serving our country? Are we safeguarding its purpose? Are
we accepting responsibility for its destiny?”
What we do with our lives is what we offer up to our beloved
dead. Let us take the time today to remember, to honor, to share the story of those
who served on our behalf. As we go to our picnics and barbeque, let our
conversation be not the newest reality tv program, or speculation on whether a
particular sports team will win some meaningless championship, but let us speak
of real sacrifice, real honor, real virtue which has won our freedom. By remembering
our heroes, those who hungered and thirsted for justice, enough to die for it,
they become present to us, and teach us, and embolden us for the work in which
we all share.
Only in this way will justice truly “flourish” (Ps 72) in
our time, and fullness of peace forever, for the glory of God and salvation of
souls.
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