Today is Veterans Day.

In 1921, an unknown American soldier was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Similar ceremonies had occurred earlier in England and France, where an unknown soldier was buried in each nation’s highest place of honor (Westminster Abbey in England and the Arc de Triomphe in France).

These memorial services all took place on November 11, the anniversary of the end of World War I. In 1926, Armistice Day was recognized as a holiday and 12 years later it became a national holiday. On June 1, 1954, the name was changed to Veterans Day to honor all war veterans.

In issuing his Armistice Day proclamation, President Woodrow Wilson said, “To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nation.”

The day is a solemn occasion to honor those who have made the greatest sacrifice—giving up their lives for their country, for peace, for justice, and for the end of tyranny. While the death of any soldier is tragic, we can more readily understand the loss of life when the cause is, as President Wilson said, peace and justice. We would find it harder to accept dying for a cause that is evil or bad.

That’s exactly what Jesus did. He didn’t die for just people, or even good people. He died for sinners—people who were weak, who ignored God, and who did wrong things. He died for us because he loved us.

That is the greatest sacrifice.

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8).

To Do

Visit your local cemetery and honor a war veteran by placing flowers on the grave.

Also on this day

1620—The Mayflower Compact was signed by the 41 men on the Mayflower when they landed in what is now Provincetown Harbor. The compact called for “just and equal” laws.

1938—Kate Smith first sang Irving Berlin’s “God Bless America” on the radio.

1946—The New York Knickerbockers (now the Knicks) played their first game at Madison Square Garden.

From Betsy Schmitt and Dave Veerman, 365 Trivia Twist Devotions: An Almanac of Fun Facts and Spiritual Truth for Every Day of the Year (Cincinnati: Standard, 2005). Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation unless otherwise noted.