5 November 2017
Sir 44:1, 9-13
Ps 122:1-2,
4-5,6-7,8-9
Eph 4:30-5:2
Mt 5:1-12a
WW I: Gallipoli,
Verdun.
WW II: Iwo
Jima, Anzio, D-Day
Korea: Inchon
Viet Nam: Tet, the Fall of Saigon
The Gulf War and
all the subsequent worldwide involvements.
The changes in the
art and science of war, the way wars are fought, and the reasons underlying wars
emerge from changes in society and in those who fight them. Were any of the veteran's of the 26th Yankee
Division--or any veteran's of WW I--alive today, it is unlikely that they would
recognize anything about the way wars are fought or the way in which those who
serve are trained and prepared for war.
The philosophical
and theological understandings of conflict and war have changed dramatically in
the century since World Wars I and II. It
is unlikely that either "Over There," George M. Cohan's WW I song, or
Frank Loesser's "Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition" of WW II
vintage would be written today, or become the hits they were at the time.
Much has changed
since the founding of the 26th Yankee Division one hundred years ago here in
Massachusetts. We commemorate those
changes and the veterans of military service, including the recently
discharged, who implemented and lived them.
The WW I trenches,
hand to hand combat, and bayonets were replaced by a powerful air force, and bombs
with extraordinary destructive potential in WW II. Today, missiles can be deployed via computer.
There is a risk of sophisticated chemical and biological warfare. All of these developments have changed the
experience of those called to fight wars.
The response of
American society to veterans has also changed. The ticker-tape parades and
welcomes given veterans returning from
battle after World Wars I and II contrast sharply with the vitriolic ugliness
dished out to veterans of Vietnam by so-called 'peaceniks.' And this is
different from the sense of ho-hum that marks returning veterans today. I will only comment on professional athletes quote
taking a knee unquote during the
National Anthem by ignoring further comment.
This is sacred space. There are
some words and concepts that cannot be spoken here.
Wars define the generation
that fought it and the generation that follows, the veterans' sons and
daughters. My dad, born in 1905, was too
young for WW I. However, during WW II he
served four years in Europe as a physician in the Army medical corps. Like many veterans, he rarely spoke about it,
though a few years before he died, we had a few late night conversations on
being a physician during war, conversations that I promised not to share with
siblings or the rest of the family.
The four years I
worked at the White River Junction VA before entering the Jesuits, were eye-opening
and, at times, heart-rending. It was not, is not, and never will be, easy to
serve.
The first reading
from Sirach was an intentional choice.
"Now will I
praise those godly men, our ancestors,
each in his own
time."
Another version
translates the verse differently:
"Let us now
praise famous men, and our fathers
in their
generations."
Both translation
are appropriate for this Mass. Both
translations describe the life and plight of the veteran, each in its own way.
"Now will I
praise those godly men,
our ancestors . . .
"
The sacrifices the
veteran made--and will continue to make-- are oftentimes discounted or ignored.
Future plans, family life, education, jobs
. . . all of these are put on hold when
one is called or volunteers to serve in the armed forces. Injuries may short circuit some plans. The
risk of death needs no elaboration. Other
times military service opens up previously undreamed of opportunities and paths
of life.
"Let us now
praise famous men
our fathers . . ."
The Revised
Standard Version translation was used ironically as the title for a depression-era
book of photos and essays by Walker Evans and James Agee. The subjects were sharecroppers. The irony is that the families were anonymous. In fact their surnames were changed for the
purposes of the book. Their fame was found only in that anonymity. They were famous for their hiddenness.
That is the plight
of the one serving in the military and
the veteran. Anonymity. Hiddenness. The fame of the veteran is in the
hiddenness of the veteran's service. Doing
a job day by day with little recognition or appreciation.
The Godly One.
The Anonymous One.
"Of
others there is no memory . . .
Yet these also were godly men, . . .
their wealth remains in their families,
their heritage with their descendants"
It the task of us who are the descendants of the veterans, to
keep their memories, and the narrative they shared with us alive. And, by keeping those memories alive, we
learn from them. Take a look at the WW I memorabilia on display here. What was it like to
carry that canvas backpack in battle? What
was it like packing it before shipping out?
What about the man to whom they belonged?
The Beatitudes are
the most familiar portion of the much longer Sermon on the Mount.
"Blessed are
the peacemakers,
for they will be
called children of God."
Sometimes peace can
only be accomplished through war. Peace
may only be possible when enemy threats
from the outside are crushed in the fight. Ideally swords will be pounded into plowshares
and spears will be turned into pruning hooks. But at times plowshares must be forged
again into swords and pruning hooks back into spears.
The reality of the
human condition is that we are sinners. At
times those sins manifest in actions that threaten the lives and safety of
others. At times those sins ignite the
fuse that leads to war. This has been
true since the beginning of time and it will be true until the end of
time. Thus our gratitude to those who
served. Our thanks to the veteran who risked
everything to ensure the safety and freedom we enjoy.
Paul instructs us
that: All bitterness, fury, anger . . . reviling and malice must not find a
home in our hearts. This is particularly true after the battle. We are called to put the hostility toward the
enemy aside and to work for reconciliation. We may never become buddies with
our enemy but we can try to live in a state of cautious armistice. That may be the only form of peace possible in
this deeply troubled world.
"Blessed are
the peacemakers,
for they will be
called children of God."
We thank them.
And we pray for
them.
The Boston College Eagle in front of Gasson Hall. It is a challenge to have one's photo taken with the eagle given that it is about 15 feet above the ground
Gasson Hall from the front facing Commonwealth Ave.
The back of Gasson Hall.
Tailgaters don't change much across schools.
Nice touch.
+Fr. Jack, SJ, MD
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