From My Perspective - - -

December 7, 1941 – A Day That Shall Live In Infamy! President Franklin D. Roosevelt addressed a Joint Session of Congress on December 8, 1941 at 12:30 p.m. His speech began: “Yesterday, Dec. 7, 1941 - a date which will live in infamy - the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan. The United States was at peace with that nation and, at the solicitation of Japan, was still in conversation with the government and its emperor looking toward the maintenance of peace in the Pacific. Indeed, one hour after Japanese air squadrons had commenced bombing in Oahu, the Japanese ambassador to the United States and his colleagues delivered to the Secretary of State a formal reply to a recent American message. While this reply stated that it seemed useless to continue the existing diplomatic negotiations, it contained no threat or hint of war or armed attack. It will be recorded that the distance of Hawaii from Japan makes it obvious that the attack was deliberately planned many days or even weeks ago. During the intervening time, the Japanese government has deliberately sought to deceive the United States by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace…”

A Day of Infamy. Infamy means: “extremely bad reputation, public reproach, or strong condemnation as the result of a shameful, criminal, or outrageous act…” The Encyclopedia Britannica shares – Infamy: “public disgrace or loss of reputation, particularly as a consequence of criminal conviction. In early common law, conviction for an infamous crime resulted in disqualification to testify as a witness. The criterion for considering a crime infamous was whether or not it stamped the offender as untrustworthy. The concept was, therefore, at first limited to so-called crimen falsi, originally perjury, but was extended to any crime involving fraud or corruption.” The Japanese representatives in negotiations proved to be deceptive and disingenuous. They were “lacking in frankness, candor, or sincerity; falsely or hypocritically ingenuous; insincere.”

There are other historical uses of the word/term Infamy. For instance, Wikipedia indicates: “Infamy is a term…in Roman Catholic Canon Law.There are two types of infamy, infamy of law (infamia juris) and infamy of fact (infamia facti). (1) Infamy of law is contracted in one of three ways. Either the law itself attaches this juridical ineligibility and incapacity to the commission of certain crimes, or makes it contingent upon the decision of a judge, or finally connects it with the penalty imposed by him. This kind of infamy is incurred chiefly by those guilty of dueling (whether as principals or seconds), rape (as likewise those who co-operate in it), attempt to marry during the lifetime of the actual consort, heresy, real simony, etc. Infamy of law may be removed either by canonical purging or by application to the Holy See. (2) Infamy of fact is the result of a widespread opinion, by which the community attributes some unusually serious delinquency, such as adultery or the like, to a person. This is more of an unfitness than an irregularity properly so called, unless sentence in court has been pronounced. It ceases therefore when one has shown by a change of life extending over a period of two or probably three years that his repentance is sincere.”

The word “infamy” appears in Ezekiel 36:1-4 (KJV): “…Ye mountains of Israel,hear the word of the LORD:…Because…they have made you desolate, and swallowed you upon every side,that ye might be a possession unto the residue of the heathen,and ye are taken up in the lips of talkers,and are an infamy of the people…” Days of Infamy – such as the Sodomites in Genesis 19, or the godless/unrighteous in Romans 1, or the enemies of the righteous – days of infamy are real and should be remembered as landmark moments from which all can and should learn. Historically, the nation has been called to remember certain things, such as “Remember The Alamo.” This was also the case in December 1941 and the patriotic reminder to “Remember Pearl Harbor.” The Biblical Church is called upon to “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8); and “Remember also your Creator…before the evil days come and...” (Ecclesiastes 12:1). A line from an old ballad is: “Try to remember, and if you remember, Then follow” is an apt reminder for us to Follow our Victor, the Lord Jesus Christ (I Corinthians 15:57). Consider these things with me!