Dear Parishioners:
It’s September! College students have returned to universities, and students are back in classrooms! Even the lifeguards have left the beaches! The English Philosopher Sir Bernard Williams said: "September tries its best to have us forget summer." And so it is at OLM as we prepare for a busy month ahead!
This week we celebrate the Nativity of the Blessed Mother Mary on Tuesday, September 8. It is a special feast for our parish, as the Blessed Mother is our patroness. So be sure to honor and thank her for her guidance and intercession for our parish and ourselves.
Also this week we commemorate the 25th Anniversary of the Islamic Terrorist Attacks on September 11, 2001. We remember the thousands who died that day, their grieving families, and the many first responders who were so courageous in responding. Friday is a day to pray for those who died and honor those who courageously responded to the attacks. It is a day of national unity to remember the dead and honor the brave.
911. For years, those numbers simply meant a call for help. Now they also remind us of September 11, 2001, the date of the worst terrorist attack on the United States of America and one of the deadliest days ever on American soil. This day has been designated as Patriot Day.
A 2009 presidential proclamation stated that Patriot Day is also a "National Day of Service." The proclamation calls on Americans to "participate in community service in honor of those our Nation lost, to observe this day with other ceremonies and activities, including remembrance services ... to honor the innocent victims who perished as a result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001."
Following the attacks, churches were packed with people praying and attending Mass. The attacks produced much sorrow and grief but also tremendous national unity and pride. We remembered the dead and rejoiced in the many heroic acts that took place that day.
As I look at our nation today, sadly such unity and pride are missing. Far too many Americans, including those in civil office, have forgotten the past and live only to score partisan political points rather than encourage civic unity and pride.
So on Friday, pray, attend Mass, and remember the dead, the brave, and the nation. On his visit to the September 11th Memorial in 2008, Pope Benedict XVI recited this prayer:
“O God of love, compassion, and healing, look on us, people of many different faiths and traditions, who gather today at this site, the scene of incredible violence and pain. We ask you in your goodness to give eternal light and peace to all who died here—the heroic first-responders: our firefighters, police officers, emergency service workers, and Port Authority personnel, along with all the innocent men and women who were victims of this tragedy simply because their work or service brought them here on September 11, 2001.
We ask you, in your compassion, to bring healing to those who, because of their presence here that day, suffer from injuries and illness. Heal, too, the pain of still-grieving families and all who lost loved ones in this tragedy. Give them strength to continue their lives with courage and hope.
We are mindful as well of those who suffered death, injury, and loss on the same day at the Pentagon and Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Our hearts are one with theirs as our prayer embraces their pain and suffering. God of peace, bring your peace to our violent world: peace in the hearts of all men and women and peace among the nations of the earth. Turn to your way of love those whose hearts and minds are consumed with hatred.
God of understanding, overwhelmed by the magnitude of this tragedy, we seek your light and guidance as we confront such terrible events. Grant that those whose lives were spared may live so that the lives lost here may not have been lost in vain. Comfort and console us, strengthen us in hope, and give us the wisdom and courage to work tirelessly for a world where true peace and love reign among nations and in the hearts of all. Amen.”
On Labor Day, pray for all workers, for just wages, and for the dignity that work provides. Happy Labor Day! Be well. Do good. God Bless. God Bless America! Remember 911!