September 11, 2001: The day I enlisted... I decided to wait till the end of the day to do my September 11 post. A novel of sorts rolling around in my head all day. Over the years, I have seen the harvest of war - not real-time, but aftermath - patch jobs in German cathedrals, ruins of Mongolian temples, and bullet holes in gates around Jerusalem. I have heard from my grandfather, German elderly friends and others who carried stories of war atrocities unknown on American soil in generations. I have read dozens upon dozens of books on war. When it comes to America and war, I have always been struck by our unmarked physical facade. We might call that unmarked facade a blessing, except that perhaps it might also be a curse, making us unaware of just how evil war is, masking how it is no respecter of persons when unleashed. In a nation that hadnt known an act of war by another nation on its mainland since 1812, 9/11 truly was a shock. (That is considering Hawaii wasnt a state when it was attacked, and there were a few Mexican/American skirmishes as well as a couple boats sunk offshore during WWII). I believe this event was an act of depravity from every angle. It wasnt born out of a vacuum. Masterminded by a former American operative in Afghanistan, that act of violence birthed a ripple of violence across the oceans that continues to crash back on our shores in myriad forms. The Twin Towers became our own Helen of Troy, Was this the face that launchd a thousand ships, / And burnt the topless towers of Ilium. For most of us, 9/11 brought home the idea that life as we know it can change in a minute and that it can happen outside of our control. We realized that most of our feelings of security are manufactured. The year before 2001, The Toledo Symphony where I worked, sold out almost every concert. The 2001-02 season had launched that fall, and I remember days of no phones ringing and maybe one sold-out concert. Really? In the Midwest, 1,000 miles from NYC, people were afraid to gather in public spaces and spend their money on what they loved? We began to recite patriotic slogans to reassure ourselves. I remember seeing a profusion of God Bless America signs, even a full bus wrap, and thinking, wait, hasnt He already done so? Why arent we acting like it? I have deeply personal feelings of sadness about that day, but I have even greater feelings of sadness over this event becoming a catalyst for the stripping away of more freedoms and a deepening sense of mistrust of the other, whether it be our neighbor or a foreign visitor. For many, it seemed to be a heightened experience of Yeats Second Coming - Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world, The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere The ceremony of innocence is drowned; The best lack all conviction, while the worst Are full of passionate intensity. Meanwhile, when fear drives our hearts, we forget to look up. Fear makes us forget to consider all the good things we have, and how those good things are entrusted, to us, loaned not owned. We stuff down the knowledge that our treasures are also to be shared with the community around us, not hoarded. Fear makes us forget that to whom much is given much is expected. We lose sight of what made other generations great - the investment of time, love, energy into neighbors, neighborhoods, and neighboring countries provides a return that is unmeasurable in this life. The free market system fails when it doesnt take this goal in to account - if not, it becomes an economic free for all, a relentless grab for material wealth and personal consumption. Christians cant conveniently forget that the last verses of the Bible speak of a Book of Life being opened and each one being called to account for what they had done. As a Christian, I remember that God gives us hope, not the hope that the world will pass away soon and we can escape, but the hope that life can be transformed, made new, restored through the power of the Holy Spirit. I have passionate intensity, with all conviction, that Christ provides a center that holds while innocence might be drowned, a blood dimmed tide might be loosed, and things fall apart. Thats why I can count 9/11 as a turning point when I chose to run into the crazy fray as a pastor, not out of it, waving a banner of Hope. As Christ says, When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all people to myself (John 12:32)
Posted on: Fri, 12 Sep 2014 02:44:18 +0000
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