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Seeing all the flags honoring Memorial Day, I am reminded of the preciousness of the flag of the United States as a symbol of sacrifice and honor for those who willingly offered their lives as a commitment and obligation for the good of our nation. I am also reminded that veterans carry the pain and sorrow of the witnessed horrors of war.
When I was growing up in America, the flag was flown at schools, police stations, fire houses, city halls, seats of government, the Fourth of July and Memorial Day. As a Navy chaplain conducting memorial services for fallen Marines, I never ceased to be moved by the presentation of the flag given by a grateful nation for services beyond the call of duty.
Outside of the celebration of Memorial Day and other appropriate standards, the flag is bantered in various ways in some attempt to promote patriotic fervor. The message presented is that showing the flag in every possible posture will represent some extension of value for America.
You cannot make the greatest government experiment in human history “Great Again.” America is already great. It may be more appropriate to make America, “American again.”
Flying or wearing the American flag does not make one a patriot. A patriot is a person who lives and believes in the rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for all Americans regardless of religion, color, gender, sexual preference or prior origins of nationality. In my view:
It is a desecration of the flag to hang a 50-foot, two-story American flag to sell cars.
It is a desecration of the flag to sell any merchandise so marked for personal profit.
It is a desecration of the flag to wear shirts, pants, shorts, hats, shoes with the emblem of the flag.
It is a desecration of the flag to declare daily that one is more American than others.
It is a desecration of the flag to suggest that it represents one political party over another.
The propensity to fly the American flag for so many trivial reasons seems to degrade its standard of meaning and honor.
The pandering of the American flag for financial gain, for ideological discrimination or for personal profit undermines the character and vision of America the Great.
On this Memorial Day weekend, as we celebrate the lives of the men and women who died while in service, let us not forget those living survivors who bear the scars of mind and body. This day their suffering should be a reminder that we need always take seriously the consequences of their service.
No one who has been in combat is ever free of the imprint of violence on the heart. Flashbacks reoccur to remind us of the price we pay for the dedication of our service.
Let the flying flag protect our resolve, and honor the price paid for service. No trivia. No false patriotism, and no advantage for gain. Let the flag fly as a symbol of honor and fidelity.
Kahu Richard Walenta is a retired pastor and was a U.S. Navy chaplain in Vietnam.
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