May 26, 2003
Marietta National Cemetery
Dear Friends in Christ,
As we stand here today, surrounded by the peaceful remains of so many men and women who have served their country, and so many who have died for their country, resting here, as in cemeteries throughout the world, awaiting the Last Judgement, when we will all rise, and accept what God will give us - as we stand here, it is as one body of believers, as one family of patriots, and we signify to the world, the precious gift we recognize, in those whom we remember at this Mass.
We do this, with all feeling and all seriousness in our hearts. But we also say to the world, who may not take these matters quite as seriously - we say to the world, with the question that so eloquently opens our national anthem, "O say, can you seeÉ?"
O say, can you see these brave men and women, as they put aside the simple joys and comforts of ordinary life, and took upon their shoulders the extraordinary burden of standing up, in the face of death, to fight and perhaps die for the freedom we love, the freedom they wished to protect for us, their loved ones?
And O say, can you see, the profound bonds which linked them one to another, which gave them a devotion as friends and associates, so that together, arm in arm, they could brave the rigors of the battlefield, the harsh cruelties of capture, and even the fear of death, and the possibility of never again returning home?
And O say, can you see, the love in the heart of these veterans, these heroes, these martyrs, which kept their feet on the path, and molded them into acts of self-sacrifice, that can only be likened to the sacrifice of the One who died on the Cross for us all, and who taught us that there is no greater love, than that which gives itself for its fellow man?
These soldiers, these veterans, these warriors are the men and women who have lived for others, who have sometimes died for others Ð the men and women of our armies past and present - the men and women, who, when accused of being the lackeys and servants of conquerors and imperialists, were defended by our Secretary of State with these profound words:
"Over the years, the United States has sent
many of its fine young men and women into great peril to fight for
freedom beyond our borders. The only amount of land we have ever asked
for in return is enough to bury those that did not return."
And to the conscience of the world, we add this final query - O say can you see, in these cemeteries across the globe, the valor, the greatness, the courage that America has time and time again, sent forth in the bodies and souls of these serving men and women, that the world might remain free, and people at liberty to pursue their own happiness?
Dear friends, one of our purposes in being here today, is to ask the world these questions, and to remind the world, and our fellow citizens, at what great cost our freedom has been won, and at what great cost it is even now, as we speak, being preserved. In answering those questions ourselves, and in seeking answers from others, we pay a part of the debt, and bring to the graves of these noble souls, the recompense of our hearts, the gratitude we feel, the thanks we wish to convey to their immortal spirits.
But a mystery the world may never understand, and more to the heart of why we are here today, is the reason that we can speak with confidence of the immortality of the souls whose bodies rest around us. And it is summed up in our Faith, and in the words by which our Lord has established our Faith, heard in today's Gospel:
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day.
May God keep these men and women, our fathers and mothers, our sons and daughters, our sisters and brothers, our friends, until that day when we will gather together, our souls reunited to our bodies, and raised up on the last day. May He keep the memory of their gift, their sacrifice, alive and dear to us all. May He continue to find and bring out of our midst, men and women of equal courage and dedication, who will accept the burden of defending our country, who will live and serve, and if called on, die for the freedom of the world. And finally, may He ever fill us with the confidence, with the faith to believe the words of hope, the words of comfort which He pours into our hearts and souls:
For the Lord himself, with a word of command, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God, will come down from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore, console one another with these words.
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