This past Sunday marked the 21st anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks on our nation. Like many who were at least teenagers or adults on that fateful day, I can remember exactly where I was when I first got the news, and how the rest of that morning played out for me. The news was too shocking and too significant to be pushed aside by relatively inconsequential bits of information absorbed over the past two decades that would otherwise vie for attention in my mind. Therefore, the call to “Never Forget” is one that is easy for me. However, what is less clear is precisely which parts of the day are we called to hold onto?
There are three key points that I find so critical to hold onto. The first is that, in the midst of the attack, hundreds of first responders ran into the danger even when the outlook was grim. More than 400 would be killed that day because they placed enough value on the lives of neighbors that they had never met to willingly race towards the flames. So many others who survived that day would later succumb to injuries or illnesses as a result of their rescue and recovery efforts, simply because it was part of their human nature to try to help someone in distress. Their selflessness should never be forgotten, and we should always promote that attitude amongst all people, whether they are first responders or not.
The second point that I find critical to hold on (particularly as a pastor) is how many people turned to the church in the immediate aftermath of the attacks. For the next few weeks, churches were filled with people who hadn’t been in churches for decades. Whether it was a quest for understanding or a search for comfort, people inherently recognized that some answers are beyond our paygrade, and that God has a unique perspective that we were created with an inner yearning for. Often, it takes a tragedy to get us to look in places that have been long forgotten, but when we struggle to find understanding, we can find peace in the one who has all the answers.
The third point that we must never forget is that tomorrow is promised to no one. Not a single victim of the 9/11 attacks woke up that day thinking that they would never make it back home. Mothers assumed that there would be another chance to make up for missing a child’s sporting event. Husbands left the house mad at their wives for some (ultimately) petty and inconsequential thing. A brother who had been thinking about reconnecting with his siblings after years of separation. Each one assumed that there would be more time to correct a wrong, say “I love you”, or restore something that was broken. Those pieces of unfinished business would increase the pain felt by the loved ones who were left behind.
If you put those three things together – honor and promote selflessness, look to God for peace, and never assume that there will be more time to restore relationships – we wind up with some powerful lessons from a day of unspeakable tragedy. We must never forget, and these are points worth remembering.
Peace and blessings – Pastor Aaron