Dear Brothers and Sisters: This month we remembered the events of September 11—twenty years ago.  I offer you this month a section of a homily (edited for this year) that I shared on September 16, 2001 at St. Martin of Tours in Bethpage, NY, and again in later years on this anniversary.

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. Upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shown,” (Isaiah 9:1).

We are a hope-filled people. We are a family of believers. We are a faith-filled community who experienced darkness twenty years ago. People of all ages, of every race, of every economic situation, of every ethnic background and nationality walked in darkness on that first 9/11. Some of us may have actually walked in the darkness in the midst of the dust and debris as the Twin Towers collapsed. A few of us may have walked in the darkness of not hearing from a family member or a friend. Many of us walked in the darkness of knowing someone who had lost a loved one in the tragic events of that day. We as a faith community, we as a nation, we as a world dwelt in the land of gloom twenty years ago.

We are a loving people. We are a family of great care for one another. We are a giving and generous community who also saw a great light in the days after 9/11. Yes, light shone on us who dwelt in a land of gloom. In the midst of destruction, in the midst of death, in the midst of a lost innocence of our young people and teens we also witnessed the Rising Star of our Loving God once again entering into our lives.

In the midst of a collapsing building we saw the light of Michael Benfante and John Cerqueria carry a disabled woman down 68 floors of a World Trade Center building and place her in an emergency van. In the dust and debris we saw the light of firefighters, police officers, Port Authority officers, and thousands of volunteers who rolled up their sleeves and donned surgical masks to look for life in the midst of the incomprehensible rubble in lower Manhattan. In every city across our country we saw the light of countless people waiting to donate blood, food, and various other supplies that were needed. In the dusk of an autumn evening we saw the light of candles burning brightly in our neighborhoods. We heard the prayers of millions rise to our God in heaven. We listened to the singing voices of thousands asking our God to bless us.

In the midst of the darkness of those days twenty years ago, we have seen a great light. It is the light of our faith in our God. It is the light of our hope for peace in a better world for tomorrow. It is the light of our love for one another, love for those around us, love for people affected by this tragedy that we do not even know.

It is the bright shining light of a group of teens, young adults, and old adults from the parish of St. Martin of Tours in Bethpage, where I was helping out, who gathered for six hours straight to wash cars in order to raise money for the Red Cross. It is the inexhaustible light of these teens that no act of terror can ever put out. It is their faith, their hope, and their love that cried out to help in any way they could to overcome the darkness and gloom of our country and our world. It is the light of the hundreds of people who waited patiently in a car wash line to donate what they could for the Red Cross. It is the bright shining light of those who simply stopped and offered whatever they could. As individuals, as a community, as a nation we walked in darkness, we dwelt in the land of gloom.

But I write today, as I said twenty years ago, to tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt that we also saw a great light during those days.

That light shines brightly today and the message of our God to us is simple: continue to allow that light in each and every one of us to shine. The light we experienced in those days after 9/11 is the Child of Bethlehem; he is the Prince of Peace; his dominion is vast and forever peaceful. How can I say that – because I saw his light shine in the hearts of countless millions that week.

May our Good and Loving God welcome into his embrace those who died in the events of September 11, 2001. May God send his comfort to those who continue to mourn the loss of loved ones. May God bless each and every one of us with the courage and graces we need to allow our light to shine throughout this great land of ours. And may God bless this great and beautiful world with his peace. Amen.

In the Spirit of the Redeemer,

Paul J. Borowski, C.Ss.R.