God “will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.” – Isaiah 2:4
On this day we rightly honor the valor and commitment of those warriors who sacrificed their lives in the cause for which they fought.
At the same time, the images of this day speak to something more simple and basic than these lofty words: scenes of parents, children, partners, friends and colleagues of the fallen, kneeling in tears at the grave of a loved one whose life was cut short. On this day we mourn for those who did not return from war; those who never had the chance to live out a full life. They did not ever have the opportunity to lay down their arms and take up the tools of their trade. We imagine what these brave souls could have done.
Before it was Memorial Day it was Decoration Day, when loved ones, and those who benefitted from the sacrifice of the fallen, decorated their graves. This was a way of fulfilling a simple promise: “I will remember you.” This remembering is a poor substitute for what might have been, but decorating the grave allows for the impact of that person to, in some small way, live on.
And far from glorifying war, mourning this loss allows us to comprehend the futility of violence. We honor their sacrifice by working as individuals and as a people to be peacemakers. The promise of God through Isaiah is not that we will simply stop fighting, but that we will actively find ways of settling disputes without violence. This takes guidance and judgement which God offers, if we would only humble our pride before God.
Gracious God, we thank you for those we love but see no more. Allow our pain and sorrow to move us to a commitment to be makers of peace. Grant to us imagination, ingenuity, and grace, that we may open lines of communication and build relationships. Help us to remember the lives and the commitment of those who have gone before, and honor them by building a better world for those who will follow. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.