By Archbishop Thomas Wenski - The Archdiocese of Miami
Homily by Archbishop Thomas Wenski at Memorial Day Mass at Our Lady Queen of Heaven Cemetery on May 26, 2025.
Today in this beautiful cemetery, among the faithful departed whose earthly remains rest here, we gather to honor and to pray for all the dead but especially for those who have made the supreme sacrifice, those who have died in the service of this great nation.
Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day, and I remember that my mother always called it that. It was established to honor those fallen in battle during our nation’s Civil War. However, today Memorial Day honors those who have died not only in the far distant past; today, we honor not only our grandfather and fathers who died in wars fought yesterday; today we honor also our sons and daughters, our brothers and sisters, or parents who have died in the more recent wars. Nor can we forget those in our armed forces who today still stand in harm’s way.
We owe our fallen heroes, and the families who mourn them our gratitude for their sacrifice and our prayers for their eternal repose. This year also marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. We observed V-E Day earlier this month and in August we will observe V-J Day. The numbers of veterans still alive today from that conflict are very few. Many of them are buried or interned here at Our Lady Queen of Heaven.
President Lincoln’s words at Gettysburg still challenge us today:
“…(the) great task remaining before us, that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion; that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain; that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom; and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”
Yes, to recall to our memory those who have died in war means also to commit ourselves to the cause for which they died. To honor their memory, we too must also be resolved to serve our country, to safeguard its promise, to accept responsibility for its destiny “that these dead shall not have died in vain.” This we do through assuming the responsibilities of good citizenship, by voting responsibly and paying our taxes; we do through putting the common good ahead of private self-interest and in “giving back” through volunteer service.
Saint John XXIII in Pacem in Terris (Peace on Earth), wrote that peace is an edifice resting on four pillars: Truth, Justice, Love and Freedom.
Truth must be the basis of our lives: the truth of God, the truth of the moral law written on the human heart. Without commitment to those self-evident truths placed in our nature by God, we will be enslaved by what Pope Benedict called the dictatorship of relativism. We have to embrace the truth of who we are as creatures made in the image and likeness of God.
Justice commits us to respect the dignity and rights of every human person, from conception till natural death. Justice commits us to the rule of law; but a law that is just and in conformity with the truth about the human person and not merely the imposition of the will of the powerful on those who are weak and vulnerable. Justice tells us that “might” does not make “right.”
Love is the capacity to transcend oneself, to make a gift of oneself to another. We must make our families once again the schools where such love is taught and experienced and the gift of self is made possible, where children learn such love from parents, from mothers and fathers who are committed to each other in that stable and permanent relationship called marriage.
Freedom is not the ability to do as we please but to do as we ought. It means that we can and do assume responsibility for our actions, to do good and not to do evil.
As Americans, we also honor the sacrifice of those who died in the service of our nation by praying today for peace in Eastern Europe, in the Middle East, and in Africa. Conflicts in these areas, not to mention Asia, could escalate into a World War III – and we would not be able to avoid getting involved ourselves.
Therefore, Memorial Day reminds us of the price paid for peace in the past and thus calls us to pray for peace today – but a peace that would rest on those four pillars of Pacem in Terris: Truth, Justice, Love, and Freedom.
Jesus tells us, blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God.
May the souls of all the faithful departed, especially those fallen in the service of this great nation, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.
