I Went to Pray

Like many Americans, I am sickened by the day's events. As a former New Yorker with friends and relatives at risk, the attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon left me numb for hours.

Emotionally drained from the mixture anger and sadness, I called my church to ask if they were planning a memorial mass this evening. After years of absentee Catholicism, I have recently begun to find solace by returning to church, and asking many things from God. Tonight I thought to ask Him Why? And to pray for my country and the victims of today's terrorism.

The service was held at 7:00PM. With about 150 attending, the church was half full, a fair number for an unscheduled mass. No doubt many churches and temples across the country had similar turnouts.

Among the parishioners was a woman with a brother, a New York policeman, who spoke to her on his cell phone while he participated in the rescue operations. He said they were evacuating the building (which of the two towers was not clear, or significant), and hasn't been heard from since. We prayed for him, and all other victims.

A reading from Ecclesiastes was heard, wherein a "time for every purpose" under heaven exists.

Shortly, we were instructed in the priest's homily, to pray for peace. And we sang songs of peace. And offered each other peace.

I left feeling very uneasy. What the church offered was more of the kind of thinking that brought on today's events. Peace, brother. Live and let live. respect differences. Open the borders. Moral equivalency.

Well I for one don't want peace, or to turn the other cheek. I want retaliation, swift and certain, hard as can be. I want blood. I want revenge for the Thousands of dead Americans, my countrymen.

Well, I heard Franklin Graham speak on Fox News about swift retaliation to people who hate the US and everything it stands for. Pretty strong words for a man of God. Also Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson were pretty stern about this. Of course, they weren't in prayer services, but it was pretty amazing to me.

The priest was giving you what Jesus commands:

You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.
MATTHEW 5:38-39, 43-45

This is undoubtedly a hard commandment to follow. But a Christian should seek to follow it.

The service I went to tonight had our pastor asking that no rushes to judgment be made. Someone else made the comment that we should not be quick to assume that all middle-eastern looking people are involved.

In other words, find out who was involved, and determine an accurate response. There is such a thing as righteous anger, despite what some bleeding heart libs might think, and while there is a time for forgiveness, there is also a time for justice.

Let's not forget that God himself will one day judge each of us, and there will be those who rejected God who will be sentenced to eternal torment. God's judgment is righteous and just, and so should our response be.

A gathering was held at our city's reform synagogue. There were serveral hundred people there. I know going in, the leadership has a very liberal slant, but, it's the main meeting place. They had invited a black reverend. He spoke about a co-sponsored learning program happening between the synagogue and his church. He spoke about just having returned from Durban where he had met with Yasser Arafat and Nelson Mandela. (No one said a word or booed or even hissed. Just sat there politely.) He spoke that "isms" like homophobiaism, genderism, anti-Semitism, racism, etc. are bad. (Gee, does that include Zion-ISM?) and, he spoke about putting what happened TODAY behind us. (Not even one day old, and, let's put this behind us!)

And, the message of the Jewish "leadership" which were about 5-6 speakers was "tolerance." OY VEY! Over and over with the "tolerant" brainwashing to the several hundred people sitting there! Pathetic!

(Oh, prior to the service, people stood in the foyer and watched President Bush's speech, but, I missed most of it, and, didn't really notice people's reaction to it.)

So, JoeA, I can relate to some of what you say. Thanks for this thread.

Regarding Post #3 above.

In the passage you are quoting, Jesus is dealing with the corruption of meaning which the Pharisees taught.

Mosaic law required justice. This was to be done by the nation of Israel

The Pharisees took the teaching of Moses, twisted them, and used them as an excuse to exact personal revenge.

The original text of Moses was not dealing with personal revenge, but with justice administered by the state.

Jesus was speaking against the teaching of personal revenge, period. He did not overturn the principle of justice brought forth by the Law of Moses. Indeed, the gospel message is one of justice and retribution.

Jesus is not a pacifist.

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