PTSD Day

On the Fourth of July, I often recall Frederick Douglass'  speech in 1852.  In it, he sharply criticized the United States of America's hypocrisy in celebrating freedom and yet denying freedom to slaves:

Fellow-citizens, above your national, tumultuous joy, I hear the mournful wail of millions! whose chains, heavy and grievous yesterday, are, to-day, rendered more intolerable by the jubilee shouts that reach them. If I do forget, if I do not faithfully remember those bleeding children of sorrow this day, "may my right hand forget her cunning, and may my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth!" To forget them, to pass lightly over their wrongs, and to chime in with the popular theme, would be treason most scandalous and shocking, and would make me a reproach before God and the world.


In this excerpt, Douglass invokes Psalm 137, reminding the listener that freedom comes at a cost.  Like the Hebrews of the Torah and Douglass over a century ago, I find it hard to celebrate freedoms when bondage abounds.  While I'm grateful for the country I live in, how can I applaud a country that didn't consider freedom for my ancestors worthy of even one mention in their Declaration of Independence?  Even now, I find it hard to congratulate American independence in the same year the Voting Rights Act is effectively invalidated. 

Ironically, there is another group of citizens who also have difficulty enjoying this day - military veterans.  Veterans?  Yes, many veterans have lots of trouble enjoying the Fourth of July because of the fireworks.  Loud explosions trigger Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (click the picture above to find resources for veterans with PTSD) in those who have served in active duty.  They stay inside away from the sounds that recall the physical and emotional battles of service.  It is an irony that those who fight for independence can also have trouble celebrating it.  Explosions are a symbol of great celebration and great sorrow.  



For all, freedom is complicated.  For some, it is delayed - for others it is denied.  Even for those who fight and win, there are consequences.  Everyone freedom touches (or doesn't touch) has endured a traumatic encounter.  Days like today remind us of the complex PTSD the US is still living with.  This is a nation where the trauma of the past continues to unfold in the present.  While the country rejoices, let it also remember the "mournful wail of millions" within it's borders.  



Lord, You are the great Liberator.  You free us in mind, spirit, and body.  Please allow us to address the consequences of our past we so readily deny.  Please help military veterans, abuse victims, and all those who have survived unimaginable events. Give them peace and support.  Remind us all of the cost of freedom.  In the name of Jesus, the way, the truth, and the life, Amen.




Remembering,
j.a.g.






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4 Psalm 137:4-6
4How can we sing the songs of the Lord
while in a foreign land?
5 If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget its skill.
6 May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember you,
if I do not consider Jerusalem
my highest joy.


John 14:6
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.