September 11th: A Memorial

Today is the third anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the United States, in the form of the crashing of commercial airliners into the Pentagon and the World Trade Center; and the attack thwarted by the crash of a fourth jet in a field in western Pennsylvania. Our world today is shaped by the events of that day, and the aftermath. We must never forget those who died that day.

An incredible memorial can be found here. (The link comes from Glenn Reynolds, a journalist who writes for Slate Magazine. He has some other insightful comments worth a few minutes of your time.) I can't vouch for anything else on the site; nor could I bear to watch the entire video presentation. Given the host site, I fear that the conclusion might be one that would incite us to violence, even hatred. This, too, we cannot allow. No doubt many will be moved to pray for those who lost their lives that day -- may their memories be eternal, and may God grant them a blessed repose. May He also comfort those who lost loved ones on that day, or through the American military response that has followed. Those prayers are easily offered.

Not so easy a task is to pray for our enemies; and yet we are commanded to do so by our Lord Jesus Christ Himself. We cannot allow the grief and sadness of that day drive us to dispair, or, worse, to hatred. This does not mean that our government cannot or should not act to defend our country and our people. War is an evil sometimes forced upon us; and we should never delude ourselves into thinking that any war can be "justified"; even if we are in the midst of fighting for our lives. Even our enemies are human beings, made in the image of God; and the taking of any life is a tragedy, as it is the destruction of what God has created.

[Also recommended: Letter to Mankind at the blog of Journeyman James.]



Only An Attorney Could Say Something Such as This...
As Hurricane Ivan continues to cause death and destruction, the tourists and residents in the Florida Keys are, for the most part, heeding the direction given to evacuate the low-lying islands south of the Florida Peninsula, where the storm is expected to arrive as early as next Tuesday. But one person, attorney Michael Barnes, who has lived in the Keys for 15 years, is reported by the Associated Press to have said, "Anything that comes to Key West and takes away the trains and trolleys and tourists is not all bad,” he said. “The worst have been the ones who put out the electricity that prevent me from having ice for my drinks."

May the Lord have mercy on all those in the path of this dangerous storm -- even the attorneys.