remembering 9/11

Here is the prayer Pope Benedict XVI made at ground zero when he visited the US several years ago. As we journey through this weekend and remember 9/11 may this prayer gives us direction and strength to live the gospel of forgiveness and love even as we seek to reject hatred in all its forms...

O God of love, compassion, and healing,
look on us, people of many different faiths and traditions,
who gather today at this site,
the scene of incredible violence and pain.
We ask you in your goodness
to give eternal light and peace
to all who died here—
the heroic first-responders:
our fire fighters, police officers,
emergency service workers, and Port Authority personnel,
along with all the innocent men and women
who were victims of this tragedy
simply because their work or service
brought them here on September 11, 2001.
We ask you, in your compassion
to bring healing to those
who, because of their presence here that day,
suffer from injuries and illness.
Heal, too, the pain of still-grieving families
and all who lost loved ones in this tragedy.
Give them strength to continue their lives with courage and hope.
We are mindful as well
of those who suffered death, injury, and loss
on the same day at the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
Our hearts are one with theirs
as our prayer embraces their pain and suffering.

God of peace, bring your peace to our violent world:
peace in the hearts of all men and women
and peace among the nations of the earth.
Turn to your way of love
those whose hearts and minds
are consumed with hatred.

God of understanding,
overwhelmed by the magnitude of this tragedy,
we seek your light and guidance
as we confront such terrible events.
Grant that those whose lives were spared
may live so that the lives lost here
may not have been lost in vain.
Comfort and console us,
strengthen us in hope,
and give us the wisdom and courage
to work tirelessly for a world
where true peace and love reign
among nations and in the hearts of all.

Amen

Here are a few words spoken by the Vatican representative to the UN at a prayer service at ground zero

At a Mass in Manhattan’s Church of the Savior near the United Nations, then-Archbishop Renato Martino, the Vatican’s Permanent Observer to the UN told us in his moving homily in Feburary 2002:

“The sacred scriptures speak to us about sin, and the desperate need we all have for conversion. What you will see today when you visit Ground Zero is the consequence of sin: A crater of dirt and ashes, of human destruction and sorrow; a vestige of sin that is so evil that words could never suffice to explain it. Nevertheless, it is never enough to talk about the effects of terrorism, the destruction it causes, or those who perpetrate it … We do a disservice to those who have died in this tragedy if we fail to search out the causes. In this search, a broad canvas of political, economic, social, religious and cultural factors emerge. The common denominator in these factors is hate, a hate that transcends any one people or region. It is a hatred of humanity itself, and it kills even the one who hates.”

9/11 reminds us what hatred can do. It has also taught us that love, faith, and hope is stronger than hatred. Love is stronger than any force of death and peace rises from the ashes. We must be bearers of that peace as we live and breathed beneath the shadow of the cross, where death gives way to life, destruction gives way to renewal, and hatred is transformed by forgiveness.