Some 20 years ago, I told my college sophomore son, “America is a privileged nation.” He countered, “I disagree.” And I rejoined, “Son, that’s the privilege.” Since then, and in our own lifetime, the United States of America has seen some dark days and yet some very bright hours. We’ve learned a lot about ourselves. It turns out that we don’t just live in America, but rather that America also lives in us: “crowned with good through brotherhood.”
And yet, we Christians are strangers and sojourners on this earth. Aren’t we but passing through? Not one of us is staying. We look to the city whose builder is God. Our citizenship is in heaven. We also have earthly responsibilities — duties to each other, to Caesar and to God.
Governments were ordained by God. Religion provides moral values that can make a country great. Government can provide the climate and protections that make greatness possible and sustainable. The Scriptures (e.g., Romans 13) certainly hint that, in clashes between good and evil on this earth, duly constituted governments are the vehicle through which to right the wrong done to the innocent public.
And so it was, for example, on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, was enacted between the Allied nations and Germany in World War I, then known as “the Great War” (for people couldn’t imagine a worse war). Today, and on each Nov. 11, regardless of what day of the week on which it falls, an official wreath-laying ceremony is held at the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington, Va., while other celebrations are held in the states.
Although Thanksgiving is a day when we pause to give thanks for the things we have, Veterans Day is a day when we pause to give thanks for the people who fought for the things we have. So, let’s forget not the real reasons for America’s Veterans Day.
Our Veterans Day helps focus attention on one important purpose: a celebration to honor America’s veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good and mutual goodwill and understanding between nations. And just who are the brave men and women who serve and protect America? Some volunteered; others were drafted. They all learned how to go and to fight and to win.
Presently, there are 23 million living military veterans in the U.S. Our nation’s service men and women come from all walks of life. They are parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts, brothers, sisters, spouses, nephews, nieces, and children. They are friends, neighbors and coworkers, and an extraordinary part of their communities. Twenty percent of our College of Business Administration faculty, for example, are veterans. They have ordinary names like Bob, Mark, Don, George and Steve.
Although we Americans often have our differences (especially during election seasons), we still join together in times of crisis. Judge Felix Frankfurter provided the clarity we need: “Democracy is always a beckoning goal, not a safe harbor. For freedom is an unremitting endeavor, never a final achievement. That is why no office in the land is more important than that of being a citizen.”
Is this a great country or what? Would you remember to take time out of this busy Nov. 11 to thank a veteran? If so, then “Three cheers for you … and the red, white and blue.”
