Church of St. Matthew

A visible expression of God's love

  • Home
  • Mission & News
    • Parish Pastoral Council
    • Parish Bulletins & Inserts
    • Staff & Programs
    • Safe Environment
    • Volunteer Opportunities & Parish Needs
    • Liturgical Ministry
    • Music Ministry
    • Funeral Ministry Opportunities
    • Facility Rental
    • Parish History
      • Our History
      • Fr. Steve Homilies
      • West Side Paintings
      • 50th Anniversary of 1968 Church Fire
      • 50th Anniversary of Our Church Building
    • Men’s Club
    • Rosary Society
      • Funeral Ministry Opportunities
    • Serving Our Neighbor
      • Casa Guadalupana
      • Loaves and Fishes
      • St. Mary’s Health Clinic
  • Worship
    • Mass Times & Reconciliation
    • Worship Online
    • Online Mass videos
    • Funeral Planning and Liturgies
  • Faith & Learning
    • Sacrament of Baptism
    • Faith Formation
    • Community of Saints School: Pre-K through 8
    • The Good News newsletter
    • Safe Environment
  • Alums-Family-Friends
    • About Alums & Family & Friends (AFF)
    • AFF Committee
    • The Good News newsletter
    • How to Give to Community of Saints School
    • Alums Scholarship Fund
    • Scrip Fundraising
    • Missing Alums List
    • Class Reunions
  • Blog
  • Donate
  • Contact Us
You are here: Home / Fr. Steve's Reflections / Reflection from Father Steve – May 29, 2022

Reflection from Father Steve – May 29, 2022

May 29, 2022
Seventh Sunday of Easter

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in service of their country. It’s difficult to prove the origins of this day as over two dozen towns and cities lay claim to be the birthplace.

Regardless of the location of origins or the exact date, one thing is crystal clear – Memorial Day was borne out of the Civil War and a desire to honor our dead. On the 5th of May in 1868, General John Logan who was the national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, officially proclaimed it in his General Order No. 11.

Part of the history of Memorial Day will show that in the Order, the General proclaimed, “The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village and hamlet churchyard in the land.” Because the day wasn’t the anniversary of any particular battle, the General called it, The date of Decoration Day.

On the first Decoration Day, 5,000 participants decorated the graves of 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried at Arlington Cemetery while General James Garfield made a historic speech.

Memorial Day history couldn’t be complete without the birth of the “National Moment of Remembrance”, which was a resolution passed in December 2000 which asks that at 3:00 p.m. local time, for all Americans “to voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to ‘Taps.”

Take the time on Monday to give thanks for those who made the ultimate sacrifice; and to remember that because of their sacrifice we are yet a land of hope and promise, a land that strives to be worthy of the ode by Emma Lazarus:

The New Colossus

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Father Steve Adrian

  • Share this page to Facebook
  • Share this page to Twitter

Published May 25, 2022. Filed Under: Fr. Steve's Reflections. Posted by Richard Schletty

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • Twitter

Parish Bulletins

Download bulletins and inserts

Online Mass Videos

Online Masses as individual posts

Recent Posts

  • Parish Administrator’s Note – January 29, 2023
  • Upgrade the Electrical Box: $150,000 Fundraiser
  • Reflection from Father Steve – January 29, 2023
  • Volunteer Opportunities and Parish Needs for the week of 1-29-2023
  • Lector Workshop: Proclaiming the Good News! February 4, 2023
  • Volunteer Opportunities and Parish Needs for the week of 1-22-2023
  • Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra Family Concert – Peter and the Timberwolf, with Hip Hop, History and the Arts – 2/5/2023
  • Faith Formation News, January 22, 2023
  • Liturgical ministry scheduling for Ash Wednesday – May 28
  • Parish Administrator’s Note – January 22, 2023
  • Reflection from Father Steve – January 22, 2023
  • Volunteer Opportunities and Parish Needs for the week of 1-15-2023
  • Isaac’s Blessing Bags 2022 – Thank You
  • Parish Administrator’s Note – January 15, 2023
  • Faith Formation News, January 15, 2023

See all blog posts

Blog Categories

  • Advent and Christmas
  • Alums & Family & Friends
  • Catholic Leadership
  • Class Reunions
  • Community of Saints School
  • Community Service
  • Faith Formation / Religious Education
  • Fall Festival
  • Food events
  • Fr. Steve's Reflections
  • Free food
  • Fundraising and Donations
  • General News
  • Gospel Readings
  • History
  • Homilies Weekly
  • Job Fair
  • Lent and Easter
  • Liturgical Ministry
  • Maintenance and repair
  • Memorials and Dedications
  • Men's Club
  • Messages from Fr. Bob
  • Music
  • Parish Pastoral Council
  • Pastoral Ministry
  • Prayer and Adoration
  • Reflection
  • Rosary Society
  • Sacraments
  • Scouts
  • The Good News newsletter
  • Vocations/Religious Life
  • Volunteer Opportunities
  • Worship
  • Youth Ministry

Subscribe to us!
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • Twitter
Site development and design by Schletty Design • Contact if you have trouble using this website.