Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Catholic
Remembering Where You Were

Remembering Where You Were

Last updated on: November 30, 2022 at 1:04 am by Mark Wilson

2 Comments

Remembering Where You Were 2022-11-30T01:04:43-05:00 Mark Wilson

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I’m writing these particular words on Labor Day, September 7th, 2020 on my wife’s computer. My computer’s screen just fizzed out and I can’t use it. I have to bring it in to get fixed or I have to get yet another computer. My computer ceased to labor on Labor Day. In the overall scheme of life, this is not a very tragic event, it’s just a setback and inconvenience, as I use the computer to type my blog and do my bills and talk to people etc. But it happen on a particular time I can associate with a particular day. Often times people can remember insignificant events that they were doing when big important events occurred.

People who were alive back in 1963 remember where they were when President Kennedy was shot.

In an article by George Gao at Pew Research Center he writes…

According to a September 2011 Pew Research survey, 95% of Americans born in 1955 or earlier said they could recall exactly where they were or what they were doing when Kennedy was killed. That compares with 81% of adults asked in 2011 who remember those details when Osama bin Laden was killed in 2011, and 72% when Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed in 1968, according to the same survey.

He continues…

The only other event that weighed on American consciousness to such an extent was the 9/11 terrorist attacks (97%). (Survey questions were filtered to people who were at least eight years of age at the time of each historical event.)

I was on my way to work at Staples listening to the radio when I first heard about the planes crashing into the world trade center. I didn’t know what to make of it. It was unlike anything I had ever heard of. Even thou this type of violent attack occurs on a much wider scale across the seas in the middle east, back in Europe decades and centuries ago, it doesn’t happen here in safe secure America. Until now. We have now joined the rest of the world in the reality that we are not completely safe. We are vulnerable to attack just like everyone else.

We remember where we were when the tragedy struck and we also remember certain people who lived and died during those events. We remember the fallen and remember the phoenixes who rose out of the ashes of disaster.

Father Mychal Fallon Judge, O.F.M. was an American Franciscan friar who served as a chaplain to the New York City Fire Department. He was in the North Tower lobby at an emergency command post when debris from the South tower struck him when it collapsed. He became the first certified fatality of the September 11, 2001 attacks. (May 11, 1933 – September 11, 2001)

According to Wikipedia…”

“The Father Mychal Judge Walk of Remembrance takes place every year in New York on the Sunday before the 9/11 anniversary. It begins with a Mass at St. Francis Church on West 31st Street, then proceeds to the site of Ground Zero, retracing Judge’s final journey and praying along the way.”

The first victim of these horrible attacks is still remembered today almost 20 years later.

Prayer of Father Mychal Judge

Lord,

Take me where you want me to go,

Let me meet who you want me to meet,

Tell me what you want me to say and

Keep me out of your way

Here are a few other events that stick out to me in terms of remembering good people that came out of a really really bad situation.

April 20, 1999

The Columbine High School massacre left 15 dead including the shooters. Among the dead lay devout Christians Rachel Scott and Cassie Bernall who came to be regarded as Christian martyrs by Evangelical Christians. One student who survived that day was Mary Gianna who years later ended up going to Franciscan University and eventually became Sister Mary Gianna Thornby.

Sr. Mary Gianna Thornby, DLJC. Courtesy Photo.

“I really feel like the sufferings I’ve had in this life; I think it’s kept me close to the Lord. And I think it’s the call to trust God, that He never allows a tragedy or a heartbreak to happen unless He can bring a greater good out of it.”

October 2, 2006

A shooting occurred at the West Nickel Mines School, an Amish one-room schoolhouse in the Old Order Amish community of Nickel Mines, a village in Bart Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The event that makes this incident stand out is the forgiveness offered to the killer of the children and his immediate family. About 30 members of the Amish community attended his funeral and they also set up a charitable fund for the shooter’s family. They gave an example of what forgiveness looks like for all people, especially Christians.

Amish begin to bury school shooting victims | News, Sports, Jobs - Lawrence Journal-World: news, information, headlines and events in Lawrence, Kansas

“We have to forgive,” said Aaron Beiler, whose farm is just a few miles away from Nickel Mines. “Jesus forgave us of our sins. How can we expect forgiveness if we can’t give it?”

Dec. 14, 2012

The Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting leaves 26 dead. Jennifer Hubbard’s 6 year old daughter Catherine was among the victims. Jennifer went on to write reflections in the Magnificat magazine and to give talks about healing and God’s mercy around the country.

Sandy Hook mother to speak in Greensburg to Catholic women's group | TribLIVE.com

“The moment I deny the grace extended to me, I become the anticipated thunderous boom at which I cowered. I deny the one whose example I long to follow, and I forget it was with his last breaths as he hung from the cross that Jesus prayed for our forgiveness. Head bowed low and knees firmly planted, I pray for the courage to love as I have been loved and forgive as I have been forgiven.”

– Divine Mercy 2017

Often times we can not forget the horrible disasters and tragedies that befall us. It lodges in our memories like a festering sore. But the touch of God in the lives of those who survive, if even in our memories, is the remembrance that brings healing and grace to our fractured souls.

healing

history

Previous Post

September 9, 2020

Unreal Cinematic History

Next Post

September 12, 2020 Harry Potter and the Infiltration of the Catholic Church

Recent Comments

2 Comments | Leave a Comment

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 1889 abortion adoption Advent After Life Angles apologetics Art Awards BCCT bible book review books business Carmelite Catechetics Catholic Actors catholic authors Catholic Bard Catholic Faith Catholic List Catholic Rigorous Vortex Christian Authors Christmas church teaching civil conversation coronavirus Current Events death Different Religions Divine Mercy Easter Education encouragment Entertainment Eucharist Evangelization Event faith Family Life famous people feast day food Fun Stuff Global Church God guest post Harry Potter healing Heck of a Ride Around the Sun history holiday Holy Family Holy Orders Holy Spirit Holy Week hope Humor Interview Ireland Jesus kindle unlimited reflections Last Things Lecto Divina with Kristin Lent Lent/Easter liturgy love marriage Mary Meet the Author Mission Month in Advance Movie Review Movies Movies of the Month Music Narrative Older Writings patheos authors personal Philosophy podcasts poetry political Politics pope prayer Private Revelation pro-life public domain Quotes racial relations racism reflection Religious Life Saints science Scriptural Meditation social justice Social Media spirituality suffering supernatural theology Topics Travel Trivia Tweeting to the Choir Uncategorized universal church Vatican virtue war Week in Review women world religions writing Writing Write Now

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who wrote most of the New Testament letters?

Select your answer to see how you score.

John Peter Paul James

Books by This Author Books by Catholic Bard

See All Titles »