At the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, World War I was declared over. An armistice agreement had been signed earlier in the day by Germany as they admitted defeat. “The First World War left nine million soldiers dead and 21 million wounded, with Germany, Russia, Austria-Hungary, France and Great Britain each losing nearly a million or more lives. In addition, at least five million civilians died from disease, starvation or exposure.”1
Today is also Veteran’s Day, not to be confused with Memorial Day or Armed Forces Day. Veteran’s Day celebrates all living military veterans. Memorial Day remembers all who died while serving. Armed Forces Day recognizes all who are currently serving. Why don’t we celebrate Armistice Day? The explanation is simple – kind of.
“U.S. President Woodrow Wilson first proclaimed Armistice Day on November 11, 1919. At the time, he said, “To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations.”
“The United States Congress passed a concurrent resolution on June 4, 1926. The resolution requested that President Calvin Coolidge issue another proclamation to observe November 11th with appropriate ceremonies. A Congressional Act (52 Stat. 351; 5 U.S. Code, Sec. 87a) approved May 13, 1938, made the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday: “a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as ‘Armistice Day.'”
“In 1945, World War II veteran Raymond Weeks from Birmingham, Alabama, expressed an idea. Weeks proposed to expand Armistice Day to celebrate all veterans who served in the U.S. military. Weeks led a delegation to Gen. Dwight Eisenhower, who supported the idea of National Veterans Day. Then in 1947, Weeks led the first national celebration in Alabama. Annually, the country recognized its veterans until he died in 1985. President Reagan honored him at the White House in 1982. Weeks earned the Presidential Citizenship Medal as the driving force for the national holiday. Elizabeth Dole prepared the briefing for President Reagan, calling Weeks the “Father of Veterans Day.”
“U.S. Representative Ed Rees from Emporia, Kansas, presented a bill establishing the holiday through Congress. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, also from Kansas, signed the bill into law on May 26, 1954. Congress amended this act on June 1, 1954, replacing “Armistice” with “Veterans,” and it has been known as Veterans Day since.”2
The chances that you will run into a veteran any day of the week are pretty good. There are 17.6 million veterans in the United States. Roughly 565,000 of them live in the state of Ohio which equals about 6.5% of our state’s population.
To all who are veterans, we sincerely thank you for your service. We are grateful for all who were willing to serve under the flag of the United States of America. Thank you to your families as they shared you with a nation that wasn’t always grateful.
There are those in the world who believe God would never call anyone to war and that being a part of the military is beneath the Christians calling. I could not disagree more!
Take note of what David said in Psalms 144:1. “Blessed be the LORD my strength, which teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight.” Remember that David had wanted to build a house for the Lord but was denied the privilege because his hands had shed blood. God’s calling to one area of service excluded David from another area of service. Was David angry or bitter about it? It sure doesn’t seem so. Instead, he is thanking the Lord for teaching him how to war and fight.
In Romans 13:3-4, Scripture gives government the right to do what is necessary to keep peace and order. “For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: (4) For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.”
Let’s celebrate our veterans and remind ourselves that they have done a difficult task that many would not do. They followed orders and their Commander-In-Chief. Whether they knew it or not, they were a part of fulfilling 1 Peter 2:13-15.
“Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; (14) Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. (15) For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men.”
1https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/november-11/world-war-i-ends
2https://www.nationaldaycalendar.com/national-day/veterans-day-november-11
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