Memorials and War -- A Reflection

Tomb of Civil War Unknown Soldier -- Arlington Cemetery

Memorial Day is a national holiday that has its roots in what was once known as Decoration Day. It was established in the late 19th century to honor Union Soldiers who had died during the Civil War. Since war has been part of our national ethos for much of our history, a day of remembrance of those who died to keep together a nation that President Lincoln had declared could not survive half slave and half free has become a day to remember all who have died in service to country. That is as it should be, though we can pray that the day will come when we're no longer adding names to the long list of those who have died in times of war.

Because this observance has its roots in remembering those who died in the Civil War (specifically

Bloody Lane, Antietam

Union war dead), it is appropriate that we stop to remember a war that kept the nation together and ended slavery in the nation (at least in those states that had rebelled).  While the nation remained one and slavery ended, we're still living with the ramifications of the war. For former slaves slavery might have ended, but the now free African American faced great hurdles, hurdles that often remain present to this day, that prevented them from entering fully into national life. The myth of separate but equal emerged as a cover for discrimination and bigotry. The cause of "state's rights" continues to be pushed to this day, with calls for secession and nullification being bandied about, often in the region that made up the former Confederacy.

I must confess that I have always identified with the Union cause. It is ironic that the party of Lincoln has now become the party of states rights.  I am troubled, I will admit, by those who fly the Confederate battle flag. To me that runs contrary to one's identity as an American.  We are the United States of America, not the Confederate States of America. As a result of that war we cemented the idea of our unity as a nation, so that we are first Americans and only secondarily citizens of a particular state. 

For the past four years observances have been held remembering the Civil War. Now that we've reached the 150th anniversary of the end of the War, it will be easy for us to forget that defining moment in our nation's history, but we dare not forget. Calls for secession are a betrayal of our national identity. We dare not forget that we are many and diverse, but we also one nation. It is in that spirit that I stop to remember those who have died down through the years in service to country. It is also in that spirit that leads me to pray that war would cease and that would pursue peaceful means of resolving our differences.