27th of January A Day of Remembrance
This article was contributed by a local member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The views expressed may not represent the views and positions of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For the Church's official site, visit churchofjesuschrist.org.
by Liv Jakobi
What do we remember?
Today 57 years ago, the Red Army reached the concentration camps in Auschwitz. They freed the survivors of the Holocaust. More than one million people lost their lives to the German Nazis, among them were disabled, Sinti and Romans, homosexuals, allegedly “asocial”, “criminals,” and Jews. The Jewish people went through unimaginable circumstances. Today we remember what happened and what can never happen again.
Importance of remembrance
To reflect on the past is to learn for the future. Often we forget what God has done for us and we become ungrateful. But He wants us to remember Him.
“3 Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.“
Moroni 10:3
We need to remember the things He did for us. How the people of Moses were freed from the hand of the Egyptians and the Jews were freed from the Red Army.
Remember!
We shall remember what has been given to us so we can find joy in the things we have.
God gave us prophets to lead us on this Earth today. He gave us families to bless us. He gave His Son so we can be free from sin. He gave us history so we can learn from it.
We shall not forget that we are one human race with one purpose on earth. We are the same. It does not matter color, religion, race, or nationality. Let us find similarities instead of differences and joy in our nationality. The mistake of the past was the ignorance of man. We can find the same mistake in the scriptures. When man forgets God, he becomes wicked.
“8 Behold, O ye wicked and perverse generation, how have ye forgotten the tradition of your fathers; yea, how soon ye have forgotten the commandments of God.”
Alma 9:8, 10
When we remember, we stay focused on the Lord and remember the things he did for us. When we remember the past we will have a better future.
“Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it”
– George Santayana
