WHAT A FIVE STAR GENERAL SAID ABOUT FATHERHOOD

Five star General Douglas MacArthur (1880-1964) would be near the top of any listing of the world’s greatest military commanders. He graduated at the top of his class at the U. S. Military Academy at West Point and later served as the Superintendent of that institution. . He served with valor on numerous battlefields, prior to, and during World War I, was Supreme Commander of allied armed forces in the Pacific during World War II and was Commander-in-chief of all United Nations forces during the Korean War. He was a recipient of the Medal of Honor and over fifty other medals including two purple hearts. But This great man believed that his role as a father was the greatest responsibility, and the greatest honor a man could ever have in his lifetime. He expressed these sentiments in the following words:

“By profession I am a soldier and take pride in that fact. But I am prouder – infinitely

prouder – to be a father. A soldier destroys in order to build; the father only builds, never

destroys. The one has the potentiality of death; the other embodies creation and life. And

while the hordes of death are mighty, the battalions of life are mightier still. It is my hope

that my son, when I am gone, will remember me not from the battle field but in the home

repeating with him our simple daily prayer, 'Our Father who art in Heaven.”

General MacArthur was right. And thoughtful fathers have always shared his sentiments. These were obviously also the sentiments of Abraham, who, by the way, was another great military commander. God conferred upon Abraham some of the highest praise a man could ever receive when He said:

"I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they

shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment." (Gen. 18:19).

This Sunday, June 16th. constitutes a special reminder that it is the duty of fathers to earn and exemplify the honor that is identified with fatherhood. And, it is a special occasion for children to express and extend due honor to their fathers.