From the pulpit, 05-25-19

The Bivouac of the Dead—Poem by Theodore O’Hara (1820-1867)

The muffled drum’s sad roll has beat

The soldier’s last tattoo;

No more on life’s parade shall meet

The brave and daring few.

On Fame’s eternal camping-ground

Their silent tents are spread,

And Glory guards with solemn round

The bivouac of the dead.

No rumour of the foe’s advance

Now swells upon the wind;

No troubled thought at midnight haunts

Of loved ones left behind;

No vision of the morrow’s strife

The warrior’s dream alarms;

No braying horn nor screaming fife

At dawn shall call to arms.

Their shivered swords are red with rust,

Their plumed heads are bowed;

Their haughty banner trailed in dust

Is now their martial shroud,

And plenteous funeral tears have washed

The red stains from each brow,

And their proud forms in battle gashed

Are free from anguish now.

The neighing steed, the flashing blade,

The trumpet’s stirring blast,

The charge, the dreadful cannonade,

The din and shout are past;

No war’s wild note, nor glory’s peal,

Shall thrill with fierce delight

Those breasts that never more shall feel

The rapture of the fight.

Like the dread northern hurricane

That sweeps this broad plateau,

Flushed with the triumph yet to gain

Came down the serried foe;

Our heros felt the shock, and leapt

To meet them on the plain;

And long the pitying sky hath wept

Above our gallant slain.

Sons of our consecrated ground,

Ye must not slumber there,

Where stranger steps and tongues resound

Along the heedless air.

Your own proud land’s heroic soil

Shall be your fitter grave;

She claims from War his richest spoil -

The ashes of her brave.

So ‘neath their parent turf they rest,

Far from the gory field;

Borne to a Spartan mother’s breast

On many a bloody shield;

The sunshine of their native sky

Smiles sadly on them here,

And kindred hearts and eyes watch by

The heroes’ sepulcher.

Rest on, embalmed and sainted dead!

Dear as the blood you gave,

No impious footsteps here shall tread

The herbage of your grave;

Nor shall your glory be forgot

While Fame her record keeps,

Or Honor points the hallowed spot

Where Valor proudly sleeps.

Yon marble minstrel’s voiceless stone

In deathless songs shall tell,

When many a vanished age hath flown,

The story how ye fell;

Nor wreck, nor change, or winter’s blight

Not Time’s remorseless doom,

Shall dim one ray of holy light

That gilds your glorious tomb.

• • •

Top 10 wars ranked by U.S. combat deaths:

Figures from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs reflect deaths up to April 2017; numbers reflect battle deaths.

World War II - from 1941 to 1945 - 291,557 dead

American Civil War - from 1861-1865 - 214,938 dead

World War I - from 1917 to 1918 - 116,708 dead

Vietnam War - from 1955 to 1975 - 47,424 dead

Korean War - from 1950 to 1953 - 33,686 dead

American Revolutionary War - from 1775 to 1783 - 8,000 dead

Iraq War - from 2003 to 2011 - 3,836 dead

War of 1812 - from 1812 to 1815 - 2,260 dead

War in Afghanistan - from 2001 to present - 1,833 dead

Mexican-American War - from 1846 to 1848 - 1,733 dead

“Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends…” — John 15.13.

We pay tribute to all the fallen on this Memorial Day 2019!

(Scott and Jane Johnson minister with East Faulkner Church of Christ and BRG Bible. Bible questions can be sent to [email protected].)

• • •

Don’t Forget!

As many of you know, I used to be in youth ministry. I absolutely loved teaching children because of their innocence, creativity and their profound wisdom! You never knew what going to come out of those little “big mouths!” and I loved it!

One time I was teaching about Memorial Day. The question was: “Why do we remember?” Some responses were: 1. So we can get older. 2. It helps with school. 3. So I don’t get whipped when dad asks me what happened? Sometimes the real answer works! 4. So we don’t forget.

Number 4 is my all time favorite answer! Zachary was 6 year’s old when he gave me that answer. It’s one that I will never forget. It was simple yet so profound.

It hurts me when I think that too many times we remember and hold on to negative things in life and forget about the good things.

This Monday is Memorial Day. A day in which we set aside to remember and memorialize all the brave men and women who died in battle so that we may enjoy the freedoms that we have today. Unfortunately, it has become a 4 day long weekend barbecue party to celebrate a day off!

I’m not against a good barbecue or a day off. Just please take time to remember those who sacrificed their lives for our freedom. As believers, sacrifice and freedom go hand in hand.

Jesus says in Mark 10:45, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.””

He also says in John 8:36, ““So if the Son of Man sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

Don’t forget why we are free! Happy Memorial Day!

(Captain Jason Perdieu is corps officer of the Salvation Army of El Dorado.)

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