Peace and Patriotism on Memorial Day

by Louise Diamond

 

Memorial Day in the United States is a wonderful time to redefine patriotism. Traditionally on this day we wave the American flag and honor those who have fought and died in war. It is true that every society needs its warriors – those who will stand up to injustice, oppression, and the misuse of power, and will put their lives on the line to protect the people from harm. It is not true that war is the best, or only, way to do this.

Peace is a true warrior’s path, for peace is rooted in the highest ideals on which our nation – and all our major world religions – are founded. It takes as much (and sometimes more) effort and courage to wage peace than to wage war. Peace cannot be imposed through force; it grows from a seed we each carry in our souls. The peace warrior’s task is to water that seed so that it may unfold in all its radiant beauty, in spite of the many forces that would impede its blossoming.

America is indeed a spiritually-blessed nation, an experiment to see if humanity can make democracy – the power of the people rooted in justice, freedom, and inclusion – a viable way of life. To be patriotic is to practice these ideals in our everyday lives, and to hold our leaders accountable for how they manifest them in our policies and institutions.

This Memorial Day, let us therefore show our patriotism by declaring ourselves warriors for peace.

Let us wave the American flag in honor of our nation’s founding ideals, and let us also display our peace flags and our world flags, to show we stand as one in the family of humanity.

Let us honor our peace warriors past and present – like Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela, the Peace Pilgrim, and all those who have touched our lives by demonstrating the power of love in the face of fear, the courage for compassion in the midst of hatred, and the commitment to justice in the face of oppression.

Let us go to our cemeteries and parades to indeed honor our soldiers, by praying that war may quickly become obsolete, and our sons and daughters may be called no longer to fight with weapons that destroy life but rather with those tools that build and grow and respect the life force in its myriad forms.

Let us celebrate by dedicating ourselves to raising our children to be peacebuilders peacemakers, peacekeepers, and peace warriors.

Let us observe the holiday (holy day) by renewing our commitment to creating – through our thoughts, words, and deeds – a culture of peace to replace the current culture of violence that pervades our society.

In short, this Memorial Day, let us show our true patriotism, both joyously and solemnly, by declaring for peace as the new, true American ‘way of life.’