Leader’s Guide
Prayer Service for the 10th Anniversary of the
Terrorist Attacks on September 11, 2001
Written by Katherine Schmitt, M.Div. National Catholic Educational Association, Arlington, Virginia. www.ncea.org. 8/24/11
Background
As we mark ten years since the events of September 11th, we note that for most students, 9/11 is an historical event. They do not personally recall it; they even may not have been born yet. Older teens, however, do recall it. These two groups have very different needs, and two reflections are included below. You are encouraged to adapt this prayer service to meet the needs of your group.
A bookmark with reflection questions may be passed out before or after the service. It can be found at the end of this document, or go to www.ncea.org.
The focus of this prayer service is to remember those who died and to reflect on Jesus’ call to love others, especially our enemies.
Opening Song
Choose a song that is well known by the participants, such as All Are Welcome, All That We Have, For the Healing of the Nations, Lord of All Nations, The Servant Song, World Peace Prayer, or some other song.
Welcome
I’d like to welcome you to this prayer service remembering the events of September 11, 2001. As we gather here, we remember the many people who died in New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia. We want to pray for them and their families. We recall the police, fire fighters, medics and chaplains who were the first responders, and we are grateful for their sacrifice. Many among us know someone who was personally affected by the events on 9/11 – friends, relatives, co-workers. We remember them, as well. Lastly, we think of the soldiers who are fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq as a result of 9/11, and their families. Let us gather all these people into our hearts, along with all our love and concern, and lift them up to God.
Opening Prayer
Loving God, we gather today to recall the events of September 11. We lift up to you all those people affected by 9/11 – those who died in the attacks, those who responded, those who now fight in wars as a result of that dark day, those we know who were personally impacted, and all those who still mourn the loss of loved ones.
We lift up our prayers and our concerns and our desire to bring your love to a broken world. Send your Holy Spirit among us now, O God, to open our hearts and minds to your presence. We know you are a God of life, not death; you are a God of mercy, not vengeance. Lead us into holy actions that will glorify you and honor those who died.
As we turn our attention to scripture, open our ears to hear your life-giving Word, and stir our souls to respond to the grace you so freely bestow. We make this prayer in the name of Jesus, our Lord. Amen.
First Reading – Galatians 5:13-14
A reading from the letter of St. Paul to the Galatians
You were called for freedom, brothers and sisters. But do not use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh; rather, serve one another in love. For the whole law is fulfilled in one statement, namely, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
The word of the Lord. Response: Thanks be to God.
Psalm 23 (this may be recited or sung – Shepherd Me O God or some other song)
The LORD is my shepherd;
there is nothing I lack.
In green pastures he makes me lie down;
to still waters he leads me;
he restores my soul.
He guides me along right paths
for the sake of his name.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me;
your rod and your staff comfort me.
You set a table before me
in front of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Indeed, goodness and mercy will pursue me
all the days of my life;
I will dwell in the house of the LORD
for endless days.
Gospel – Matthew 5:43-48
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew. Response: Glory to you, O Lord.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brothers and sisters only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same? So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
The Gospel of the Lord. Response: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Reflection
For Children
We gather today for a very special reason. Ten years ago, an event happened that we call 9/ll or September 11th. On that day, many people were killed in three areas – New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania. People all over the world were saddened that day because of all the death and destruction that occurred. In this prayer service, we remember all those who died in the attacks, all those who were injured, and all their families. We hold them in our hearts, and we pray for them.
But on that sad day, something else happened, something good. We human beings opened our hearts and loved one another openly and freely that day. Parents kissed their children and said “I love you.” Teenagers called their grandparents to say “I love you.” Friends gathered to reassure one another and give hugs. People who don’t often go to church went to church to pray for the victims and their families.
People were extraordinarily nice to each other, even to strangers. In New York, the owners of shoe stores gave away sneakers to women who were walking home who had only high heeled shoes. Grocery store owners gave away free bottles of water to people who got thirsty. News reporters, who usually just report the story, started giving hugs to the people they were interviewing. All over the country, people rushed to the Red Cross to donate blood, knowing that injured people would need it. People from many countries around the world sent expressions of concern and sympathy to U.S. leaders. Some nations sent rescue workers to work side by side with U.S. responders, and there are many more stories of how people acted with compassion. On that dark day, we turned to one another and showed love, helping out strangers and anyone in need.
Today in our scripture readings we hear God’s call to love. Jesus said to love our neighbors and our enemies. It is easy to love our friends and family, a little more difficult to love neighbors, and it can be very hard to love enemies. But Jesus teaches us that in order to be children of God, we must learn to love everyone, even our enemies. The good news is that we don’t have to love our enemies on our own strength. First, Jesus gives us God’s love, and God’s love gives us the power and strength to love our enemies. When we give love instead of violence, we transform enemies into friends.
In your heart, I ask you to pray for the victims of 9/11, and to pray for all people who are tempted to use violence to get what they want. Pray that God would use us human beings as instruments of peace, to transform violent people into peaceful people. (Pause) Pray that God’s love will make you a powerful person of peace who chooses to build a world of love and justice, where people are friends instead of enemies.
For Teens
Love is at the heart of the Christian message. It is the main thing that Jesus talked about when he walked this earth. In the first reading, we hear St. Paul quote Jesus, who said, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” In the Gospel reading, we hear Jesus tell us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. Whoa – did he really command us to love our enemies? We hear the “love your neighbor” command all the time, and we can deal with that. But love our enemies? Really? On the anniversary of 9/11, could God really be telling us to love our enemies?
Indeed, it is what God tells us every day, and especially this day. We are called to love our enemies, because that is the only way we can come to understand the depth and power of God’s love. Once we know and experience the power of God’s love, then we are capable of giving that love to a world that sorely needs it.
As followers of Jesus, the first step is to know and experience God’s love. We can do that by reflecting on Jesus’ life and teachings and what we see and experience in him. Recall that when we human beings sin and turn away from God, and do things we know are wrong and against God’s will – well, that is when God shows us the most love. He sent Jesus 2,000 years ago to suffer and die on a cross so that we could be forgiven and healed instead of trapped in sin and violence.
Jesus did not just talk about love; he put his love into action. He suffered and died, and took deep into his heart all the pain, suffering and death that we human beings could inflict on him, and there he transformed them into merciful love and everlasting life. That is why we are called to love our enemies. It is our job to transform the world – to take all the pain and suffering and sin and death in this world and change it into merciful love and everlasting life.
This kind of love is radical; it is powerful. It makes us powerful – and it is possible. It is what we are called to do as Christians. It is our job description. If ever we had any doubt, 9/11 showed us that the path of hatred and violence leads only to death and destruction. Our destiny is to live forever in the arms of a loving God. Love is the path to life with God, and on that path we are called to love everyone, even our enemies.
We can love our enemies, but only when we stay connected to God. It is only when we are receiving God’s love on a daily basis, through prayer and the sacraments, that we have the power to put our love into action and transform enemies into friends.
Just a few weeks ago, the Martin Luther King, Jr., memorial was dedicated in Washington, D.C. Martin Luther King was someone who used the power of love to transform enemies into friends. Through the power of God’s love and nonviolent direct action, he and his followers in the Civil Rights Movement took the beatings, the water hoses, the dogs, the bombings and the murders – they took all that hatred, suffering and violence into their own bodies where they transformed them into radiant, powerful, life-giving LOVE. Martin Luther King changed the world, and so can we.
In December 1964, King said, “World peace through nonviolent means is neither absurd nor unattainable. All other methods have failed. Thus we must begin anew. Nonviolence is a good starting point. Those of us who believe in this method can be voices of reason, sanity, and understanding amid the voices of violence, hatred, and emotion. We can very well set a mood of peace out of which a system of peace can be built.”
On this tenth anniversary of 9/11, our God does indeed call us to love our enemies. Love is our method, our path and our final destination. Loving our enemies is the way we can best honor the 2900 people who died in New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Death reigned for a day, but we know that death does not have the final word. God has the final word, and that word is love.
Silent Meditation (soft instrumental music may be played; if you are using the bookmark with reflection questions, it may be referenced as this time of silence begins.)
Petitions
Our response is, Lord hear our prayer.
We pray for those who died in the terrorist attacks of 9/11, those who died in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and for all who have died, that they may know the life-giving love of God, we pray:
We pray for those who still mourn the death of loved ones, that they would be comforted by our love and concern, we pray:
We pray for those now fighting in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, a result of the attacks, and for their families, that they would be safely reunited, we pray:
We pray for the peacemakers in all nations, that they would be blessed in their efforts to bring peace and justice to our world, we pray:
We pray for all of us, that as we follow Jesus, the Prince of Peace, we would redouble our efforts to be peacemakers in our families, schools, communities and world, we pray:
We pray for the strength to turn away from evil and hatred, for the power to convert enemies into friends, and for the wisdom to love others unconditionally, we pray:
Our Father
Let us now turn to our loving God and pray in family terms, understanding that we all have one Father, and that makes us all brothers and sisters to one another. We are family even with those we call enemy. We pray: “Our Father…”
Closing Prayer
As we come to the end of this prayer service, we look to the future and the world that we can build with the power of God’s love. Let us pray: “God of life and love, we thank you for the gift of Jesus, who taught us about your love. We ask you to send the Holy Spirit to remind us of all that Jesus taught. You call us to love our neighbor as ourselves and to love our enemies. Strengthen us with your powerful, uplifting, life-giving love, so that we are able to take your love into our broken world, and transform it into a world of love and peace. We make this prayer in the strong name of Jesus, our Teacher, our Brother and our Risen Lord. Amen.
Closing Song
Choose a song that is well-known by the participants, such as We Walk By Faith, They Will Know We Are Christians, On Eagles’ Wings, Though the Mountains May Fall or some other song.
Written by Katherine Schmitt, M.Div. National Catholic Educational Association, Arlington, Virginia. www.ncea.org. 8/24/11
