Memorials and Their Meaning
Illustration★★★★This day shall be unto you for a memorial. Ex. 12:14 The memorial idea has prevailed among all kinds of people from the earliest times. The Old Testament contains the record of many memorials.
The greatest of these was the day set apart to commemorate the safety of the people of Israel from the destroying angel and their deliverance from bondage to the oppressor. Year by year, generation by generation, this occasion was ordered set apart as a time of joyous gratitude to God. We too have a Memorial Day. We as a people are also summoned to re- member.
Ours is not primarily a religious institution, yet it has for us a profound spiritual significance. While we separate the functions of church and state, we do not separate religion from the total life of the nation. As a people we have reason to be profoundly grateful to the Father of nations because we have been delivered from fear and oppression and been given opportunity for the freest life any citizens have ever known.
The point
Memorial Day reminds a nation of deliverance from oppression and gratitude for freedom—a secular occasion carrying profound spiritual significance.