The past Memorial Day Holiday weekend is usually celebrated throughout the nation with special ceremonies, observances and flag distributions throughout cemeteries in particular. Also with just plain family gatherings and cookouts, many of which had no relevance to the holiday at all. One veteran being interviewed in the news expressed his preference to the holiday remaining on its original date rather than being forced to the presently mandated Monday for all national holidays that he feels dilutes the effectiveness of each.
Especially in current daily newscasts do we hear renewed meaning of the words penned over 400 years ago by Thomas Jordan in which he writes: “Our God and soldier we alike adore; just at the brink of ruin, not before. The danger passed, both are alike requited. God is forgotten and the soldier slighted.”
In conjunction with the current hearings on innumerable cases of veterans’ delayed appointments and treatment at various VA hospitals throughout the nation, there also were aired numerous group and individual testimonies of veterans returning from combat duty overseas unable to cope, even with therapy treatment, with the increased magnitude of trauma and horror associated with today’s highly sophisticated “weapons of mass destruction.” Yet there remain those in high military and political positions who view such defeatist strategy as “weakening our defense.” Pray tell, at what point does who determine when that “defense” becomes “offense”– and subsequently offensive – to God and man?
An elderly country gentleman once said to me, “The only difference between city folks and country folks is, they’re dumb about different things.” Isn’t that really the biggest difference between any of us? We also have different strengths and different weaknesses. What a wonderful world this will be when we learn to pool these strengths rather than become so easily provoked to pit them against one another–world-wide!
“O ye that dwell on earth!” state the Baha’i Writings. “The fundamental purpose animating the Faith of God and His religion is to safeguard the interests and promote the unity of the entire human race and to foster the spirit of love and fellowship amongst men.” (ALL mankind until “no child (of God) is left behind” in any corner of the earth!)
“War, anywhere on earth, is destruction while peace is construction. War is death while peace is life; war is the destroyer of the edifice of mankind while peace is the everlasting life of the world of humanity. This darkness must be turned into light, this bloodthirstyness into kindness, this enmity and hatred into fellowship and love…”
These Holy Scriptures for this new age are not prophesy; they come with modern-day spiritual GPS (unparalleled in the annals of mankind) guiding this “revered American nation” to its high destiny of “leading all nations” by example and not by force.
We are therefore admonished (individually and collectively) to “Be a sign of love, a center of love, a sum of love, a world of love, a universe of love! Ah, me,” asks Abdu’l-Baha. “Hast thou love? Then thy power is irresistible!” (Investigate – 1-800-22unite)
