worship guide
Memorial Day Worship Guide
The Pastor's Workshop Memorial Day Worship Guide helps you find great sermon and liturgical resources for remembering those who gave their lives in national service.
Memorial Day (and Remembrance Day) Resources
Remembering the Fallen
Memorial Day (as well as Remembrance Day in Commonwealth Nations) is a secular holiday set aside to remember those who have died in war.
There is a balance to be struck by churches which can be tricky. On one hand, our communities have been touched by the tragedy of war. Our congregations may have lost members or have lost family members. Remembering them and honoring their sacrifice is a good thing.
On the other hand, observances can come uncomfortably close to state-worship. Making an idol of the state is no better than idolizing money, status, or Caesar. We are distinct from the state. Our ultimate master stands above kings, Presidents, and Prime Ministers. Pastors will have to determine for (and with) their congregations whether, for example, singing patriotic songs crosses this line (they are included in many denominations' hymnals). Should flags be displayed?
However one strikes that balance, because deep loss and sacrifice are on your congregations' minds, it is a good opportunity to highlight sacrifice in your sermons and liturgy.
The paradigm is Christ. Texts like Mark 10:45, John 3:16-17, Romans 5:8, Isaiah 53:1-12, Philippians 2:6-8, and Hebrews 10:10-14 are great ways to stress that the sacrifices made by our loved ones point to the great sacrifice made by Christ. This can be done with an evangelistic focus, calling people to Jesus for the first time, or with a discipleship focus, calling believers to gratitude and sanctified lives.
We can also highlight the sacrifice we are called to in imitation of Jesus. The gospels call us to pick up our crosses and follow Jesus. Texts like Matthew 10:38 and 16:34, Mark 8:34-38, and Luke 9:23, 57-62 and 14:27 all call Christians to self-sacrifice in following Jesus. Again, if we honor those who have given their last full measure for our nations, we should also be willing to give our lives for Jesus. The individual sacrifices this often calls for us are far less than death, yet we struggle with them.
The calling to give up our lives can be connected with "the greatest commandments": to love God (with all our hearts, minds, and souls) and our neighbors as ourselves (Matt. 22:34-40, Mark 12:28-34, and Luke 10:25-28). And this can be connected with that favorite verse for Memorial Day, John 15:13:
Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.
Using these texts and themes as a guide can offer the opportunity to both honor the fallen, comfort those who dearly miss them, and point your congregation toward Jesus!
Veterans Day
Veterans Day requires the same care to balance the sacred and secular, but it is a great opportunity to show love to members of your congregation who have made (or are making) great sacrifices.