Last Saturday night we had a flag retirement ceremony for the camp. Missionaries who had served in the military or police/fire departments were asked to participate. We all gathered at Camp Abish to view the proceedings.
As the flag was folded, the following tribute was read:
The Flag:
The portion of the flag denoting honor is the canton of blue containing the stars representing states
our veteran served in uniform. The canton field of blue dresses from left to right, and only is inverted when draped
as a pall on a casket of a veteran who has served our country honorably in uniform. In the evening, in the
Armed Forces of the United States, at the ceremony of the retreat after taps have been sounded, the flag is lowered
and folded in a triangular fold, and kept under watch throughout the night as a tribute to our nation’s
honored dead. The next morning it is brought out, at the ceremony of reveille and run up aloft as a symbol of our
belief in the resurrection of the body. The individual folds of our beautiful flag all symbolize the same
religious principals that our great nation was founded upon.
- The first fold of our flag is a symbol of life.
- The second fold is a symbol of our belief in the eternal life.
- The third fold is made in honor and
remembrance of the veteran departing our ranks who gave a portion of his
life for the defense of our country to attain peace throughout the
world not to have been in vain and shall never been forgotten.
- The fourth fold represents our weaker
nature, for as American citizens trusting in God, for it is to him we
turn in times of peace as well as in times of war for his divine
guidance.
- The fifth fold is a tribute to our
country, for in the immortal words of Steven Decatur, "Our country, in
dealing with other countries, may she always be right, but it is still
our country, right or wrong."
- The sixth fold is where our hearts lie -
and it is with our hearts that we pledge allegiance to the flag of the
United States of America, and the Republic for which it stands, one
nation under God indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
- The seventh fold is a tribute to the armed
forces, for it is through these same armed forces that we protect our
country and our flag against all her enemies, whether they be found
within or without the boundaries of our republic.
- The eighth fold is a tribute to the One
who entered into the valley of the shadow of death, that we might see
the light of day, and this fold is made to honor Mother, for whom it
flies on Mother’s Day.
- The ninth fold is a tribute to our
womanhood, for it has been through their faith, love, loyalty and
devotion that the characters of the men that have made this country
great have been molded.
- The tenth fold is a tribute to Father, for
he too has given of his sons for the defense of our country, since she
was born first. We fold from the stripes toward the stars, for whereas
the stripes represent the thirteen original colonies that found our
republic, and they are now embodied in the fifty sovereign states
represented by the stars, so that the stars cover the stripes.
- The eleventh fold in the eyes of a Hebrew
citizen, represents the lower portion of the seal of King David and King
Solomon, and glorified in their eyes of God of Abraham, the God of
Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
- The twelfth fold in the eyes of the
Christian citizen, represents an emblem of eternity and glorified in
their eyes God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost. When the
flag is completely folded, the stars are upper most, which reminds us
of our national motto, " In God We Trust."
After the flag is completely folded and tucked in, it takes on an
appearance of a cocked hat, ever reminding us of the soldiers who served
under General George Washington, and the sailors and marines who served
under Captain John Paul Jones, and they, followed by their comrades and
shipmates in the armed forces of the United States, have preserved for
us the rights, privileges and freedoms which we are enjoyed today.
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| It was a very moving ceremony. As the flags were burning, someone began singing the song-"America, America" others joined in and sang it as a round. |
