Here it is - one more time ... September 11. Today's NY Times has an article talking about all the things we feared would happen following the events of eight years ago. That New York would become a ghost town with soldiers in the streets and submarines in the harbor; that noone would want to live there; that people would never rent space in a sky scraper again.
In contrast to those fears, people are sitting under patio umbrellas enjoying Times Square. Security is enhanced, but the pedestrian traffic is higher in the Square now than before "9/11". And the Times article has an interesting title - Remembering A Future That Many Feared.
Those horrible days are almost overshadowed by other things ... well, in this country, by one other thing - health care reform. This week's Economist has an article called "The Politics of Death". The subtitle reads: Americans fear health reform because they fear the Reaper. The article then goes on to outline all the things people fear about "Obamacare" - death panels parceling out health care; impossible deficits; tax-payer funded abortions; life-saving treatments being denied.
With 15% of us being uninsured, most of us have health insurance. The 15% have the most to gain - potentially - from health care reform. The rest of us - most of whom have no idea what our insurance actually costs - we have something to lose. But here is the crux of the matter: No amount of health insurance would have made a difference to the 2,993 who died eight years ago today. Health care puts off the inevitable. But it does not lift the burden of our mortality.
Eight years ago today the world was reminded how fragile life is, how evil we can be, how generous many are - how frightened we can become. Sometimes we don't know what we fear until we face it. But if September 11 has taught us anything about human nature, it is this: We can live with sadness and grief, with tragic memories and crumbled dreams. We can live with the stress of economic uncertainty. We can push hard against our own mortality. We can learn to be more careful. But we can't live in fear.
There is a line from an ancient Christian Seer that is worth remembering: There is no fear in love. Eugene Peterson paraphrases the line: A fearful life - fear of death, fear of judgment - is one not yet fully formed in love. It is safe to say, I think, that we are not yet "fully formed" in love.
Maybe this is the work that must be done in this still young century - the work of alleviating fear - in our neighbors and in ourselves. Maybe today that's the best way to acknowledge and honor the memories swirling all about us. Face what we fear; deal with it; learn to love; and help others to do the same.
In contrast to those fears, people are sitting under patio umbrellas enjoying Times Square. Security is enhanced, but the pedestrian traffic is higher in the Square now than before "9/11". And the Times article has an interesting title - Remembering A Future That Many Feared.
Those horrible days are almost overshadowed by other things ... well, in this country, by one other thing - health care reform. This week's Economist has an article called "The Politics of Death". The subtitle reads: Americans fear health reform because they fear the Reaper. The article then goes on to outline all the things people fear about "Obamacare" - death panels parceling out health care; impossible deficits; tax-payer funded abortions; life-saving treatments being denied.
With 15% of us being uninsured, most of us have health insurance. The 15% have the most to gain - potentially - from health care reform. The rest of us - most of whom have no idea what our insurance actually costs - we have something to lose. But here is the crux of the matter: No amount of health insurance would have made a difference to the 2,993 who died eight years ago today. Health care puts off the inevitable. But it does not lift the burden of our mortality.
Eight years ago today the world was reminded how fragile life is, how evil we can be, how generous many are - how frightened we can become. Sometimes we don't know what we fear until we face it. But if September 11 has taught us anything about human nature, it is this: We can live with sadness and grief, with tragic memories and crumbled dreams. We can live with the stress of economic uncertainty. We can push hard against our own mortality. We can learn to be more careful. But we can't live in fear.
There is a line from an ancient Christian Seer that is worth remembering: There is no fear in love. Eugene Peterson paraphrases the line: A fearful life - fear of death, fear of judgment - is one not yet fully formed in love. It is safe to say, I think, that we are not yet "fully formed" in love.
Maybe this is the work that must be done in this still young century - the work of alleviating fear - in our neighbors and in ourselves. Maybe today that's the best way to acknowledge and honor the memories swirling all about us. Face what we fear; deal with it; learn to love; and help others to do the same.
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