Memorial Day, a federal holiday since 1967, originated from the American Civil War to honor the Union and Confederate dead. During the early 20th century the occasion has been extended to recognize all Americans who have sacrificed their life during military conflict.
Below are two memorable Memorial Day speeches in American history.
1. Ronald Reagan’s remarks on Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery, 1982.
Reagan, known as “The Great Communicator,” concluded his remarks with a challenge: “Earlier today, with the music that we have heard and that of our National Anthem — I can’t claim to know the words of all the national anthems in the world, but I don’t know of any other that ends with a question and a challenge as ours does: Does that flag still wave o’er the land of the free and the home of the brave? That is what we must all ask.”
2. Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., 1884. Holmes, a veteran of the Civil War, delivered an address titled “In Our Youth Our Hearts Were Touched With Fire.”
His speech was given in Keene, N.H. two decades before his appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court in honor of the fallen of America’s most devastating conflict.
Holmes elaborated on the meaning of Memorial Day:
“So to the indifferent inquirer who asks why Memorial Day is still kept up we may answer, it celebrates and solemnly reaffirms from year to year a national act of enthusiasm and faith. It embodies in the most impressive form our belief that to act with enthusiasm and faith is the condition of acting greatly.”
Editor’s note: This 2015 article was written by Ray Nothstine for the Christian Post.
