Memorial day

 ​Today on Memorial day we’ve come together to remember with thanksgiving for all the men and women who gave their life for our freedom. “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” said the Lord. 

War reminds us to be people who work for peace. Today, as we gather to honor our dead, we are reminded of the gift of eternal life that our God has promised to us, His people. He gives to us the promise in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. God’s intent for all of us is to live with Him forever in heaven. That is His divine will and we are free to choose and to embrace His will, to say "yes" to it or to say "no" to it. We on our part need to do everything within our possibility to strive for holiness. As St. Paul says: " Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms". This must learn us that the powers of the world can be evil and so can those in authority be. 

We especially honor today those who have died in war, those who have fought for our freedoms as Americans. We know, too, that war is never pleasant, that in the midst of war, even when it is a just war, evil is present. I recall that talk that I had with my uncle about WWII and the role of America in it. One day I can remember speaking with one of my uncles. He said: “Ronnie, if it was not for the Americans we would not be here”. And every time there was a war going on when I grew up and America was involved he used to ask me: “And Ronnie what you think about it?” He loved to talk about things going on in the world. A great man. My family experienced the war in all it’s aspect. Another uncle died in a German prison camp as a member of the resistance.  There are all sorts of questions around that war, so it is always good to talk about these things.
 
 The bottomline is: "There is no glory in war. No matter how just the cause may be, war is always horrific, even when you are trying to battle evil and you are on the side of good. To kill another human being is never easy. To hold a fallen comrade in your arms is never easy. To experience the killing of innocent people, which unfortunately happens is never easy. There is always a darkness to war." War should always remind us of the call the Lord gives to us, , to be people who work for peace. The only way that there will ever be peace within our world is if all peoples are converted to the message of Jesus Christ, if our hearts and minds are transformed to live our lives according to God’s plan and not our plans. When we honor the dead and those who have gone before us, we, too, remember the tremendous sacrifices they have made. They We believe, as written in the book of wisdom, that the righteous are in the hand of God. Not that nothing will harm them in this life, but they have a place in Gods everlasting glory. Because there is ‘no greater love that give your life for others’ as the Lord tells us today.

In any war, the Evil One always has a field day. You can see that even in the war in Iraq. The Evil One is the winner in any war, even when good succeeds. We, as a people, are called to conversion. We are called to recognize the presence of Jesus Christ in our midst even in the dark times of war. We are called to reconciliation after war so that the grace of Jesus Christ may bring true healing and peace. As we remember our dead and hold them up to the Lord, let us ask the Lord to give us a deeper faith in the truth that has been proclaimed in His Son, Jesus Christ. May we, recognize the presence of our Lord in our midst and may our lives be conformed to His truth. Amen.