While overwhelming sorrow at the memory of the dead from 9/11 comes easily, the continuing challenge for Catholics is forgiveness and reconciliation in a fractured world, Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio said in his Sept. 11 homily.
Archbishop Broglio, head of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services, called for “reconciliation, dialogue, and rebuilding a sense of our common humanity.”
The afternoon Mass celebrated by the military archbishop in the Crypt Church of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception was a quiet, reflective end to a day filled with somber and emotional 25th anniversary commemorations in New York City, at the Pentagon, and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, marking when al-Qaida terrorists hijacked and crashed four planes on Sept. 11, 2001 killing 2,977, including first responders. Thousands have died in years since from 9/11-related illnesses, adding to the death toll.
Masses were held by bishops around all three locations to commemorate 9/11, including a vigil Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York on Sept. 10, and a Red, White & Blue Mass at the Cathedral of St. Catherine of Siena in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 11 that began at 8:46 a.m. That marked the moment American Airlines Flight 11 hit the World Trade Center’s North Tower in New York. United Airlines Flight 175 would strike the South Tower within 20 minutes at 9:03 a.m. The Allentown Diocese includes Shanksville, where United Airlines Flight 93 went down at 10:03 a.m. after passengers mounted a valiant fight to take back the hijacked plane.
Prior to the Mass with the military archbishop, the national shrine tolled its largest bell, the Mary Bell, 25 times at 9:37 a.m. on Sept. 11, commemorating when American Airlines Flight 77 struck the Pentagon just 5 miles away.
“We raise up to God the nearly 3,000 lives who were lost; we pay tribute to the first responders; and we will never forget the day that shook our nation to its very core,” said Msgr. Walter R. Rossi, the basilica’s rector.
In his homily, Archbishop Broglio compared the abiding memories of 9/11 to the memories of those old enough to remember where they were when President John F. Kennedy, the first Catholic president of the U.S., was assassinated Nov. 22, 1963.
With the suddenness of the deliberate plane crashes on that clear morning, “in a very real sense, the whole world felt the impact of the attack,” he said.
He added, “No one really prepares for a tragedy of that dimension. Certainly, the first responders train, follow procedures and imagine emergencies; but the magnitude of the events of that September day took the world by surprise.”
“So many of the police and firefighters who rushed into that situation died in the catastrophe,” he said, adding, “At this celebration, we pray for their eternal repose.”
Referring to the Gospel of John, in which Jesus reminds his disciples that there is no greater love than laying down one’s life for one’s friends, Archbishop Broglio reflected: “Is not that the application that these men and women made to care for others? Did they not set aside all of the considerations that would make someone go away from these scenes, and instead do what they could?”
He remembered that “some still suffer the ill effects of the toxic air they breathed in the moments of immediate response. Others experienced trauma as they so quickly responded. We pray for them as well. They will carry those effects with them for a lifetime, perhaps even a shorter one than expected.”
Of the grieving families, he said, “We beg the Lord to shower healing and serenity upon them.”
St. Paul, he said, “reminds us that preaching the Gospel is an obligation, not an option,” and that his advice was “be persistent, whether it is convenient or inconvenient.”
Recalling the horrors of 9/11, Archbishop Broglio acknowledged the search for retribution and justice for the crimes committed against the dignity of the human person.
“We find it difficult to forgive, and more difficult to work for reconciliation. We find challenging the notion that I cannot change another, or his or her perceptions,” he reflected.
“But I can change mine,” he said. “I can adjust my approach. Drawing on divine grace, I can be an instrument of reconciliation.”
