A Day to Remember

I remember watching the second plane crash into the Twin Towers and wondering what was happening. I watched with the local funeral director and others in the building of Capital Presbyterian Church, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, that day. We contemplated whether the next target was Three Mile Island, a nuclear power station nearby, in fear and disbelief. From the time I arrived in Harrisburg in 1999, we were reminded that if Three Mile Island ever erupted, few would escape the damage it would cause.

That evening we opened the doors of the church for a prayer gathering. We allowed space for lament, and the community came. I had no particular word from the Lord. On that evening, healing, anxiety, and inconsolable sorrow were addressed by a community united by tragedy. Every person was affected by the terrorist attack. Many knew a victim. Some had family members who were first responders.

The United States was changed forever. My daughter-in-law, whose birthday is September 11, will forever be celebrated in the shadow of the day of violence, death, and fear. Although many of us have moved on, the families and communities of New York City, Pennsylvania, and Washington, DC have not. We continue to pray for those most intimately impacted by 9-11.

Where was God when tragedy changed our lives? God was present among the people who lay aside years of separatism. Neighbor consoled neighbor. People supported each other with acts of compassion, shelter, food, clothing, and financial resources. Bruised forever, yet during the days and weeks following 9-11, we experienced the best of humanity in many ways, for the moment we were one.

Today, America has returned to many of its divisions. Neighbors do not necessarily help neighbors. We see boldly the “other” as different from ourselves. Do we have the capacity and will to make today the time when we come together in the bonds of human respect and good will? How will we frame the next decades in our country? May the words of Howard Thurman guide us:

“When I have lost harmony with another, my whole life is thrown out of tune. God tends to be remote and far away when a desert and sea appear between me and another. I draw close to God as I draw close to my fellows. The great incentive remains ever alert; I cannot be at peace without God, and I cannot be truly aware of God if I am not at peace with my fellows. For the sake of my unity with God, I keep working on my relations with my fellows. This is ever the insistence of all ethical religions.” (From We Are All One in Meditations of the Heart, By Howard Thurman).

Borrowing from the words of Pope John Paull II, let us pray:

“Violence never again!
War never again!
Terrorism never again!
In God’s name, may all religions bring upon earth justice and peace, forgiveness, life, and love!”

Let It Be So! Amen.
Rev. SanDawna Gaulman Ashley