How time flies!  It was nine years ago that the most significant foreign attack on American soil occurred since the Revolutionary War, and with it came the sorrow, tears, anger, and ultimately fortitude of the American people.

As the second unprovoked attack on America in our nation’s history, the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center and Pentagon on September 11, 2001 is another day in American history that will live in infamy, much like the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on some sixty years earlier.  The events of 9/11/2001 left Americans stunned and saddened.  In the days following, as Americans watched the story play out on their television screens, shock turned to resolve to avenge the loss of life and bring to justice those responsible for the cowardly attack.

By the very next day, September 12, 2001, there were not enough flags available to meet the demand of Americans wishing to express their patriotism and solidarity with the families of those who had lost loved ones as a result of the attacks.  Inadvertently, our enemies had awoken a sleeping giant and given a purpose to a President and a Presidency that had struggled to find its voice and message in the early months of its Administration.

Suddenly, America was at war with radical Islam whose purpose it was to intimidate America and its allies around the world.  Revered as martyrs and patriots, the 9/11 perpetrators were celebrated in the Muslim world.  Yet, the leaders of Al Qaeda and other radical groups soon discovered and realize to this day that a united America would be tireless in exacting its justifiable retribution.

It is said that “time heals all wounds,” and nine years later, many Americans do not feel the same emotion as we did on that fateful day.  Yet, with the images etched in our minds and hearts, we will never forget.

September 11, 2010 finds America debating a new dilemma:  the intention of the Church of Islam to build a large mosque and cultural center near ground zero. This has created a firestorm of protest by families and loved ones of victims and first responders lost in the holocaust of 9/11.

America is a country that prides itself on freedom of religion.  Yet, there comes a time when all Americans, regardless of religious affiliation, should heed and consider the true meaning of the words of President John F. Kennedy when he said, “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.”

Americans, for the most part, have no qualms about building mosques – or any other religious structures for that matter – on American soil.  Nor do they blame all followers of Islam for the heinous attacks.  Many do, however, consider the land near ground zero to be hallowed ground and do not wish construction of a structure that might be construed as a shrine to the perpetrators of the attacks.

If Islamic Americans and the Islamic world in general want to build a bridge of mutual respect with the rest of humanity, perhaps it should start here.  Then, we might all have hope of peace on earth to men of good will.

“I’ll see you later” is a phrase uttered millions of times daily throughout the United States.  Implicit in the phrase is a confidence that all is well and that the speaker will actually be able to fulfill the promise of “seeing,” at a later time, the individual to whom the phrase is spoken.

Eight years ago, on September 11, 2001, thousands of individuals working at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, as well as the passengers of United Flight 93 were unable to keep their promises because of the actions of a small, but coordinated group of deranged individuals.  I call them deranged, because they presumably believed that their actions were achieving the Will of God.

Recorded history is replete with acts of violence, murder, war, and oppression — all carried out in the name of the Almighty.  Often times, both sides in a conflict considered that “God was on their side.”  Attitudes like these beg the question, “Does God have a side?”

I recall that, on that fateful morning, as I viewed the television images of ashen survivors fleeing the site of the fallen towers and courageous public servants rushing toward them in a largely vain attempt to save the victims, I didn’t see Christians, Jews, Moslems, Hindus, or Buddhists — I saw only people, frightened and bewildered.  And, although I do not presume to put myself in His (I use the pronoun His without reference to God’s gender) position, maybe that’s how God sees us.

While the memory of that day fades in the minds of many Americans who will give no or only passing thought to the significance of this date on the calendar, it burns vividly and continually in the hearts and minds of those who lost loved ones.  And so, it is only fitting that each of us offer a prayer on their behalf:

May our Creator give peace to the souls of all the 9/11 victims, comfort to their bereaved families, and wisdom and insight into His Will to us all.  Amen.