Rector's Reflections: 9/11 & Making Space for Story
Dear Friends,
This year's observance of 9/11 feels different; more tender than previous years perhaps, or more of a landmark anniversary. How has it been 20 years since that memorable and devastating morning?
When 9/11 came up in conversation during our Zoom coffee chat on Thursday morning, everyone on the screen had a memory of that day; a friend who had been taking pictures of the NYC skyline that morning, a deferred plan to be on one of those planes, a job that took someone to the front lines of people's loss and pain, the shock of seeing that second plane fly into the second tower on live news.... that day collectively changed something in us.
I think it is akin to the pandemic in many ways, which is perhaps one reason the day feels so poignant this time around. Again, we are embedded in the pages of history in a moment that is changing us. Pandemic stories abound, but our proximity is still so close and the extent of the fall out is still so unknown. Sometimes the grace of time helps us to know what the most important parts of the story are.
Twenty years out, it's time to make some space for our 9/11 stories. If you are young, perhaps your stories come from your parents. If you are twenty-five or older, I am willing to bet you remember something of that day; where you were, or how you were pulled in, involved, disturbed, or disrupted.
I invite you to log on to Compline at 7PM Sunday night for a "Pre-Compline 9/11 Story Vigil". Come to listen, come to share, come to bear witness to this shared history, common loss, and recalibration of our prayer lives that happened 20 years ago this weekend. Since our Compline account only allows for 40 minute Zooms, we'll login from 7PM-7:40 to share stories, take a 5 minute break, and then log back in for some more conversation at 7:45, followed by Compline at 8PM.
When two or three are gathered in my name, there I am in the midst of them ~Matthew 18:20
Yours in Christ,
+Becky
Tags: Rector's Reflections / Events
