Posted by
Dwayne Horner on Monday, October 29, 2007 10:31:35 AM
In one of the most deplorable acts by the Veterans Administration, it has now banned the flag-folding recitations given during military funerals due to
one complaint at the Riverside National Cemetary in California. Yes, it's true. This one hits very close to home, my father served in the United States Navy for over twenty years that included tours in Korea and Vietnam. Over the 2006 holidays, we learned that he has stage four mesothelioma cancer and couldn't breath because fluid kept building up around his lung...you see it sits dormant in the body for about thirty years and all of sudden hits like a ton of bricks. I started looking into certain things because I know my father wants to be burried at the D/FW National Cemetary. Well, through the Grace of God and prayers from a large network, the cancer treatments have worked and he is no longer on chemo and simply goes in for checkups/test every 60 days. So, that being said, when I read this I hit the ROOF!
It's also important to understand what the issue here is. The flag is folded 13 times at a military funeral and each fold has a meaning:
1. Symbol of life.
2. Symbol of our belief in the eternal life.
3. In honor and remembrance of the veteran departing our ranks who gave a portion of life for the defense of our country to attain a peace throughout the world.
4. Represents our weaker nature, for as American citizens trusting in God, it is to Him we turn in times of peace as well as in times of war for His divine guidance.
5. A tribute to our country, for in the words of Stephen Decatur, “Our country, in dealing with other countries, may she always be right; but it is still our country, right or wrong.”
6. Represents where our hearts lie. It is with our heart that we pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
7. A tribute to our armed forces.
8. A tribute to the one who entered in to the valley of the shadow of death, that we might see the light of day, and to honor mother, for whom it flies on Mother’s Day.
9. A tribute to womanhood.
10. A tribute to father.
11. In the eyes of a Hebrew citizen, represents the lower portion of the seal of King David and King Solomon, and glorifies, in their eyes, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
12. In the eyes of a Christian citizen, represents an emblem of eternity and glorifies, in their eyes, God the Father, the Son, and Holy Ghost.
13. When the flag is completely folded, the stars are uppermost, reminding us of our national motto, “In God We Trust.”
It was #11 that caused the complaint and so the VA threw the baby out with the bathwater, so to speak. This attack on religion has to stop. "It is a perfect example of government choosing to ignore religion in order to avoid offending some religions," says Rabbi Yitzhak Miller of Temple Beth El "To me, ignoring religion in general is just as problematic as endorsing any one religion."
Please contact Acting VA Secretary, the Honorable Gordon H. Mansfield or the Undersecretary for Memorial Affiars which includes the overseeing of the National Cemetary Administration. I'm working on a phone number to voice a complaint.