Memorial Day
Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13
Every year on this day we remember those who gave the ultimate sacrifice—their lives in defense of our nation. Memorial Day was once called Decoration Day and originated after the Civil War to honor both the Union and Confederate soldiers who died fighting in that conflict. Now on Memorial Day we remember all Americans who gave their lives in service to our country—men and women who laid down their lives for their friends back home—and for you and me.
This is the oath that our enlisted men and women pledge as they enter the Armed Forces:
“I, (NAME), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”
Below is the oath pledged by our National Guard members:
“I, (NAME), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States and the State of (STATE NAME) against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the Governor of (STATE NAME) and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to law and regulations. So help me God” (see http://usmilitary.about.com/od/joiningthemilitary/a/oathofenlist.htm).
These men and women make a solemn oath first of all to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Secondly, they pledge to bear true faith and allegiance to the same. Third, they pledge to obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of those appointed over them. It is my opinion that the sequence of this oath is not random, but it reveals what is their top priority—to defend the Constitution and its provisions with true faith and allegiance.
Our Constitution has altered somewhat with time. Built into it is a mechanism by which to change or tweak it. This mechanism is called an amendment to the Constitution and requires a well-thought out, specific, sober, and meticulous process to enact.
One way an amendment is introduced is when both the House of Representatives and the Senate approve a joint resolution by a two-thirds vote. If approved, this by-passes the Executive Office and goes straight to the fifty states for ratification. Another way an amendment may be proposed is for two-thirds of the state legislatures to ask Congress to call for a national convention to propose an amendment, although this method has never been used.
In order to ratify an amendment, three-fourths of the state legislatures must approve it. The repeal of Prohibition was an exception; it was enacted first by conventions held in three-fourths of the states—the only time an amendment was passed this way.
Ratification, according to the Supreme Court, must be done within “some reasonable time after the proposal.” Typically, that “reasonable time” is seven years, but this is not set in stone. Since the writing of the Constitution, only 27 amendments have been ratified, including the ten listed in the Bill of Rights (see http://usgovinfo.about.com/od/usconstitution/a/constamend.htm).
The Constitution, which our men and women in the Armed Forces pledge to support and defend as their top priority, was designed to protect both the rights of the majority of the population and those of all minorities—down to the lone individual with a very unpopular or distasteful point of view. Each man and woman (including those who serve this nation in the Armed Forces) has been endowed by his or her Creator with these certain unalienable rights: Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; when upheld according to the letter of its content, the Constitution defends these rights. This document—protected and safeguarded by American armed forces throughout US history—was designed by its framers to withstand the vagaries and societal conceits that cry for quick, and often, irrational or destructive, change. To withhold its protections from any free American is, by definition, unconstitutional.
May we never forget the brave sacrifice that our military dead have made on our behalf so that we may enjoy life and freedom supported and sustained by the greatest man-made document in history. May God grant knowledge, wisdom, and holy boldness to those He has chosen to continue to ensure that this nation will remain and become again strong, brave, and free.
May the wisdom and enduement of God’s power pour out upon men and women of virtue, humility, and upright desire from sea to shining sea to boldly do their unique part in and for this nation.
May God save and bless America. In Jesus’ name, so be it.
Dorothy