As we observe the 10th anniversary of 9/11, most of us can remember that day so clearly. We can visualize where we were and recall what we were doing when we stopped to watch our televisions. In stunned silence, we witnessed the first, and then the second tower of the World Trade Center collapse in a heap of rubble.
In the forefront of our minds was the shock of "Is this really happening?" but in the background was the disquiet of "What does this mean for the future?" The realization that our borders were not impenetrable, our defenses were not impregnable, and our nation was not invulnerable, was an eye-opening experience for many of us.
I visited what was being called "ground zero" only days after this horrific and senseless attack. I stood in absolute amazement at the spot where the mighty twin towers of the World Trade Center once stood and watched the smoke billow from the mass of destruction. It was all so surreal and incredibly sad.
On September 11, 2001, God allowed in the life of a nation what He so often allows in the lives of individuals: tragedy. I wish I could tell you that tragedy only strikes in the life of the godless, but we know the godly also suffer. Why does God allow tragedy?
Of course, there are no easy answers to this question. But I do believe that one reason is because suffering peels away the veneer of self-sufficiency in our lives. It melts away the pretense that we don't need help. It reminds us that we need God. C.S. Lewis wrote "Pain removes the veil; it plants the flag of truth within the fortress of a rebel soul."
It may come as a surprise to some people that the Bible does not promise a life that is free from suffering. But it does promise the presence of God for the person who believes. The Bible promises that God will help us through that suffering if we allow Him to.
Thinking back to the events of 9/11, and the days that followed, we were barely beginning to understand that a whole new kind of battle had begun. It was at that time that the phrase "War on Terror" was coined. More than a military conflict, though it includes that, the war we now face is a war of ideas, a war of beliefs.
Don't get me wrong. I am all for strengthening our nation's defenses, for tracking down and removing known terrorists, for uniting as a nation to physically protect innocent people from wicked individuals and their warped ideology. I don't even mind the excessive regulations at the airport (well, unless I'm running late). But I recognize that these things, in and of themselves, do not hold the answer to the War on Terror.
This battle ultimately will not be won with M-16s; it will be won with John 3:16, which tells us that God loved the world so much that he gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.
"Homeland security" will never be achieved until we secure a new homeland -- a heavenly citizenship -- which can only be obtained through placing our faith in Jesus Christ.
You see, the teeth of terrorism is fear. The fear of suffering, the fear of death, the fear of losing what we think is ours -- all of these dissipate when we turn our focus to God. The Bible says that perfect love casts out fear, and that God is this perfect love. God removed the sting of death and gained victory over the terror of the grave more than 2,000 years ago, when He sent His Son to die on the cross.
Most Americans believe in God and a surprisingly high number identify themselves as "born-again Christians." But many go through life as practical atheists, having no real relationship with God to speak of. I believe we need to turn to God and put our faith in Him in these uncertain times in which we live.
That is why, on the day before the 10th anniversary of one of the darkest days in America's history, thousands of us will gather at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles for what we are calling "An Evening of Hope".
Let me direct your attention to another "911" that our country can turn to in times of urgency: Psalm 91:1. "Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty" (NLT). The next verse goes on to say, "He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; He is my God and I trust Him." May we, as a nation find safety and refuge in the shelter of the Almighty as we trust in Him.
And let's not forget to pray for the comfort of those who lost loved ones ten years ago.
Michael W. Waters: The Loss of an Authentic Expression of Human Spirit in the Post-9/11 World
Atheists say 9/11 cross beams a Christian symbol - On Faith - The ...
Atheists Sue Over World Trade Center 9/11 Cross: Should Christian ...
9/11 Reflection: 'It Was Like The World Was Silent ...' - Lake Forest ...
Didn't Japan already prove that America wasn't beyond the reach of an enemy in 1941?
***Of course, there are no easy answers to this question. But I do believe that one reason is because suffering peels away the veneer of self-sufficiency in our lives. God***
That IS an easy answer
***I am all for strengthening our nation's defenses, for tracking down and removing known terrorists, for uniting as a nation to physically protect innocent people from wicked individuals and their warped ideology***
"Wicked" and "warped" can be applied to many things. Remember Kissinger's support of juntas?
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***This battle ultimately will not be won with M-16s; it will be won with John 3:16, which tells us that God loved the world so much that he gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.***
Combating terrorism will only be won by promoting the idea that only theists will live forever?
****"Homeland security" will never be achieved until we secure a new homeland -- a heavenly citizenship -- which can only be obtained through placing our faith in Jesus Christ***
Or perhaps placing your faith in effective airport security, intelligence reports, recognition of what "blowback" is, and having a president who actually reads terrorism warnings.
Unless we seek universal truth and not be bound by our sense of nationalism alone, your comments would raise some questions.
Regarding our borders being penetrated, do we honor the borders of other nations? There is no question that 9/11 was a great tragedy. How about going to the other side of the world and initiating a far greater tragedy in the name of "Shock and Awe" as we bombed a city of millions in a country that had done nothing to do with 9/11?
On what basis do we blame God for the "tragedy" of 9/11 rather that those who in any way had a hand in bringing it about?
Two-third of humanity are not adherents to Christianity which itself is not monolithic as you well know. How can then John 3:16 be the solution to terrorism?
I also have a question about the verse itself. It is mathematically probable that there might be millions of planets in the universe teaming with intelligent life. If this proved to be correct, then how could Jesus be in the only begotten son even for those who believe in this concept?
In addition, regarding terrorism, should we not take an honest look at how we have dealt selfishly with other nations in Asia, Africa, Central and South America during the last decades?
And finally, should we not accept death as a natural cycle of existence and not be terrorized by it?
Shifting the meaning of words like security between physical and emotional is a bait and switch tactic worthy of a shady used car salesman, not someone who would like to claim to speak for universal truth.
Perhaps it is your predilection for style over substance that allows you to think that our present form of airport security is working well, but I am more than happy to bet my life that a strip search of a 97year old Christian grandmother flying from Iowa to Florida does nothing to prevent international terrorism.
The "why" of tragedy that has been so discussed by handwringing, religious apologists is no difficult thing for those who are not trying to replace cause and effect with supernatural interventions and/or engineered appearances.
Hiding from this life, in dreams of the next, has never been a solution to real problems.
Explaining away, and offering solutions to, 9/11 without reference to a true relationship between cause and effect, is one of the best ways to ensure that our future is full of them.
I don't have answers as to why it happened or why God allowed it to happen. It just did. In Luke 13:1-5 Jesus shares with some people who are upset and coming to Him about the death of several Galileans at the hands of the Romans. He explains that they weren't any worse sinners than anyone else alluding to the fact that it wasn't divine punishment. He also mentions the deaths of eighteen more people in Siloam on whom a tower fell. Did it fall on them all those years ago because they were the worst sinners in Jerusalem? Jesus said "no, but unless you repent you will likewise perish." Were those who died in the collapse of the towers on 9/11 the victims of punishment due to their sin? No, it was an awful tragedy, a reminder of the depravity of man and our need for a Savior.
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We want to 'save' what we thought was America, then we all need to remember we are *not* a religion, we are *not* an ideology, we are *not* a political party or ever-consolidating corporation. We are land. We are people. We are a promise. We are a set of ideals, yes, but expressed through what is *real* ...to and among us, ...even when we pray. We are not a Christian nation just cause some Deist one said 'Creator' or put 'In God We Trust' ...any more than we're a Pagan nation because we revere, as symbols or even divinities, symbols like Liberty and Columbia and Justice.
We're both, any, and all, and more than that, we're farms and factories and cubicle-warrens and churches and temples and groves and national parks... Aircraft carriers and barges, ditches and pavements and swamps and peaks and breweries and... Pubs. Street corners. Trusts and laws and trust-but-verifies... Homes and mothers and warriors, disabled, mighty, and 'just folks.' Statesmen and spammers and couch potatoes. We're the gas station. We're the farm stand. We're the hotel cleaning carts and those behind them: We're plumbers and priests and cops and *everyone we do and don't think of every day.*
We're *alive.* Contrary to portrayals, we're *alive.*
What we're *not* is some Bible verse or some graven religious commands to kneel to. That which we are, we are, to quote a favorite poem.
Come on, kids, we have not yet begun 2America. :)
Even better: Those M-16s with "J3:16" stenciled on.
While ,theologically speaking, it is an orthodox argument - derived I suppose from that rather repellent Irenean tradition of the world as a "vale of soul making" (not that I have any sympathy for this point of view - which seems based in a warped view of God's love), it is the political and social implications that are distasteful.
As Margit said "Peace is obtained through detente and alliances" - and that must include the alliances and detente of recognizing and celebrating the diversity of a society where a host of world views, religions and lifeways are represented. This article does not allow for that - it merely states "this is THE answer", when it should be saying "this is the answer for me".
While Paul Raushenbush's article elsewhere argues passionately that the response of the religious to 9/11 has been to work more closely together, this article plays into the hands of those who would argue the converse - because their argument is based upon exclusivity rather than inclusivity, upon drawing lines that divide, rather than lines that include.
It strikes me that honouring God, if that is how you wish to frame your ethic, should include honouring those others who are different; to accept them with open hearts. Circling the wagons and saying "My way of understanding this is the only way for everyone"
But that's not what the Bible says... Acts 4:12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”
And unless we believe that, we are not Christians. Obviously, you do not have to agree, that is your choice, but we cannot apologize for actually taking our faith seriously.
This is the *problem,* not the solution.