MEMORIAL DAY ARTICLE

 MEMORIAL DAY ARTICLE

By Rusty Lee Thomas

On May 26th, 2003, America will observe Memorial Day. It is proper and fitting that Americans take the time to honor military veterans and their sacrifices made on the behalf of our cherished freedoms. Men and women who gave their last ounce of devotion and their very lives for the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Recently, a poignant poem was circulated that certainly captures the basis for honoring our brave military veterans. The author is unknown. The poem is simply called “It Is The Soldier.”

It Is The Soldier not the reporter,
who has given US Freedom of the press.

It Is The Soldier not the poet,
who has given US Freedom of speech.

It Is The Soldier not the campus organizer,
who has given US the Freedom to demonstrate.

It Is The Soldier not the lawyer,
who has given US the right to a fair trial.

It is the soldier, who saluted the Flag,
who serves beneath the Flag
and whose coffin is draped by the Flag,
who allows the protester to burn the Flag.

Without memorials, without recounting our true history, without acknowledging God, and the sacrifices of American soldiers, we have no accurate concept of where we came from. Thus we surely won’t have the proper vision to know where we are going or what to do once we arrive. It was the Psalmist who declared that righteousness cannot long endure in the land of forgetfulness (Psalm 88:12). A Russian philosopher once said, “the surest way to destroy a people is to severe their roots.”

Sadly, much of our roots have been damaged, our history revised or rewritten, and our godly heritage purposely deleted. Consequently, the rudder to steer this great ship called America through the dangerous seas of life has become suspect. Thus, we are in danger of drifting, tossed to and fro, without a strong root system to keep us on course to preserve and pass on freedom and liberty to our posterity.

One of the undeniable evidences of this precarious situation is the war that is raging against life in America today, the common practice of slaughtering American children in the wombs of their mothers. This holocaust, called abortion, is responsible for the deaths of over 45 million little baby boys and girls since January 22nd, 1973. This shocking figure greatly surpasses all American lives lost in all our wars combined. More American citizens have been killed by domestic terrorism, than foreign terrorism could possibly dream of.

When George Washington viewed his rag-tag group of weary soldiers who were starved, exposed to the harshness of the elements, outgunned, and out-manned, he inspired them with these words, “The time is now near at hand which must probably determine whether Americans are to be freemen or slaves; whether they are to have any property they can call their own; whether their houses and farms are to be pillaged and destroyed, and themselves consigned to a state of wretchedness from which no human efforts will deliver them. The fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the courage of this army. Our cruel and unrelenting enemy leaves us only the choice of brave resistance, or the most abject submission. We have, therefore to resolve to conquer or die.”

Our Founding Father pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. They were willing to have their blood spilled and die to pass on to the unborn a legacy of freedom. Tragically, we have taken that same freedom that came with the price of blood and now abuse it to slay the unborn and shed their innocent blood. This betrayal is allowed to flourish with the blessing of the state and the silent consent of the Church! What a travesty! God have mercy on us! This is a desecration against the blood of our veterans who died in freedom’s cause.

Dr. Leo Alexander who studied the Nazi war criminals at the Nuremberg Trials came up with a profound and concise definition of Nazism. He stated, “Nazism and Fascism occurs when a government or a culture utilizes death to solve its economic and moral problems.” Tragically, what the World War Two generation fought and died to end in Germany is now alive and well in America. The Jews in the aftermath of the Nazi Holocaust came up with a motto that declares “Never Again.” Well, “Never Again” is most certainly happening again and its happening under our watch.

Can anyone of us even remotely imagine our brave American soldiers in World War Two fighting and dying so “Never Again” can happen again in our beloved land? Can we truly believe that the so-called “right” for parents to kill their unborn and for homosexuals to parade in our streets committing unspeakable acts is what inspired and sustained those who were storming the beaches of Normandy or dropping from planes on D-Day? I think not! The idea is absolutely repugnant and ludicrous and yet, it is now mainstream in the land of the free and the home of the brave.

We tragically proclaim abortion is a Constitutional Right and homosexuality is a civil right. But what does our Constitution actually say? It states, “We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defense, promote general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” Notice the Constitution is not just for ourselves, but for our posterity. Abortion is the height of selfishness. If we are not willing to grant life and freedom to our own flesh and blood, are we worthy of it ourselves?

The French Philosopher, Alexis De Tocqueville, once stated that “America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.” America was great because America’s foundation was Christianity. The reason why we were so successful militarily is because we used our strength to help aid and defend the weak nations of the world against strong, tyrannical, oppressors. And now because we have abandoned God, excluded Him from the public life of our nation, and trashed His Holy Laws by which men are to live by, we now use our strength to exploit and destroy the most vulnerable amongst us, the unborn child. These things ought not to be, America!

I’ll leave you with the words of Abraham Lincoln who stated at the Gettysburg Address, “It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us--that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion--that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain--that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom--and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

For more information or interviews contact Rev. Rusty Lee Thomas at (254) 836-1037 or 498-5100.