I made the decision to write my reflection on 9/11 after letting my soul sink deeply into the morning uninhibited by the struggle of what to say. I needed to simply allow my heart to listen for the whispers of God’s voice weeping through the voices of the 2,977 fellow human beings who no longer speak.
In the morning silence 20 years later, I gratefully remember, and honor, those who practiced unselfish sacrifice as first responders. Twenty years later and words remain inadequate while my heart still grieves at how a human heart can conceive to do such a thing.
It still causes my soul to tremble and wonder how our souls can bear such tragedy, and yet I witnessed our nation and the world step boldly into a resilience that only God can inspire. It is a good and right thing to weep again, praying that in the weeping we will no longer taste the bitter tears of what hatred can bring.
A Question of When
by Leonard Fairley
When there are no more reasons
to fly planes into buildings.
When weapons silently gather dust
with no memory of why they existed.
When battlefields become gardens
where children play without fear.
When love regains its true meaning.
When hatred loses its power to divide.
When there is nothing more to die for
and every day becomes worth the living.
When all life becomes a sacred trust and
weeping is no more.
“On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.” (Rev. 22:2b)
In Christ,
Bishop Leonard Fairley
