The sky over Madison was filled with contrails on this evening ten years ago. I was with my son and my dog and sat for awhile in a park along Lake Monona as the sun dropped toward the western horizon. I counted four jets in the air at the same time. Earlier in the day a vintage WWII B-17 bomber had been flying around Madison.
The next evening, of course, there were no planes in the air over Madison or anywhere else in the country.
The next morning I had the TV on in the newsroom and as I was preparing the 8am news I glanced over to notice CBS was showing a plume of smoke over downtown Manhattan, coming from the World Trade Center. Bryant Gumbel was doing a live narration, speculating on what was happening but clearly having no idea.
I flicked the channel to NBC. NBC was still carrying the time-delayed programming from the previous hour. That was even more puzzling.
Questions with no answers
I mentioned what I had seen on my 8am news. And because I was reporting the news I missed the second plane that flew into the second tower. I remember how frustrating it was, having a million questions about what was going on, and no answers.
September 11, 2002, found me on the road and passing through Oklahoma City, the site of America’s previously most destructive act of domestic terrorism. I arrived at the site of the former federal building just after a one-year commemoration of 9/11 had ended, and I wandered reflectively through the memorial site.
September 11, 2004, I was in New York City for a convention and rode the subway early in the morning down to Ground Zero. Much of it was familiar from the extensive news coverage. I was drawn to St. Paul’s Chapel, Manhattan’s oldest public building, which miraculously survived the destruction despite its proximity to Ground Zero. It’s hard to put feelings into words about all that had happened there.
Sunday morning services
Tomorrow morning there is a memorial program in downtown Madison, as well as hours of special television programming on the major TV channels. I’m appreciative of the efforts that are being made to properly recognize the losses and the sacrifices we have experienced since 9/11. However, I will be in church, where I usually spend my Sunday mornings.
In Luke 13:4 Jesus refers to the day the tower fell in Jerusalem, the Tower of Siloam. He reports that 18 people died in that destruction. Then, as now, people were trying to ascertain some meaning from tragedy. Jesus’ response is, “unless you repent you will all likewise perish.”
We find it a lot easier to worry about others, when Jesus seems to be saying that we should be more concerned about the state of our own soul. We are accountable for our own soul, not the souls of others.
The questions that are still unanswered
Now that it’s been ten years, it may be that all of the questions we had thought we had on that 2001 morning have been answered. But perhaps there are other questions that we need to be asking ourselves, about whether we really understand what happened there and how we should respond.
Following 9/11 some people have found comfort in Psalm 91:1, which reads, “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.”
God was not taken by surprise by 9/11.
Recently a friend posted on Facebook:
ONLY JESUS…
can turn a MESS into a MESSAGE,
a TEST into a TESTIMONY,
a TRIAL into a TRIUMPH,
a VICTIM into a VICTORY!