NCC statement on the anniversary of 9/11

["Philip Jenks" <pjenks@ncccusa.org>]

As ninth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks approaches,
Kinnamon asks churches to remember all the victims

New York, September 9, 2010 -- The terror attacks of September 11, 
2001
changed millions of lives forever, and the General Secretary of the
National Council of Churches is calling on churches to hold all the
victims in prayer -- families of the dead and injured as well as
millions of Muslims who continue to be targets of Islamophobia 
rhetoric
and attacks.

In a letter to NCC Governing Board members, the Rev. Dr. Michael
Kinnamon expressed alarm that the pastor of a small church in
Gainesville, Fla. continues his threats to burn the Qur'an, and called
on Christians to remember Jesus' commandments to love God and "love 
your
neighbor as yourself."

Kinnamon included in his letter a bulletin insert of the statement
issued September 7 by a historic summit of interfaith leaders 
expressing
their concern about the rise of anti-Muslim statements and actions in
the U.S., and urged communions to share the message with their 
churches.

Remembering the horror of the 9/11 attacks in 2001, Kinnamon said the
aftermath has been "almost as horrible."

"What began with a twisted plot by a handful of terrorists with 
bizarre
ideas about God evolved quickly into two wars, tens of thousands of
additional deaths among all combatants, and the deepening of 
xenophobic
misunderstandings on all sides about the nature of Christianity, 
Judaism
and Islam.

A printable copy of the letter and the bulletin insert can be found at
www.ncccusa.org/NCCseptember11letter.pdf

>The text of the letter is below:

>----

>Office of the General Secretary
>National Council of Churches USA

>September 9, 2010

>Dear Friends,

Saturday marks the ninth year since the terror attacks of September 
11,
2001.

For all who lived through this terrible day, September 11 will forever
be a reminder of the fruits of ignorance and the depths to which human
hatred can descend. Nearly 3,000 lives were lost that day, more than 
the
deaths counted at the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. In the New York
area especially, but also in Washington, millions of people were
directly affected by the attacks, by the deaths and injuries of 
victims
and first-responders, by the loss of property and jobs, by
post-traumatic scars borne by uncounted witnesses who watched the
attacks with horror. It was a day we shall never forget.

Almost as horrible have been the direct consequences of the attacks.
What began with a twisted plot by a handful of terrorists with bizarre
ideas about God evolved quickly into two wars, tens of thousands of
additional deaths among all combatants, and the deepening of 
xenophobic
misunderstandings on all sides about the nature of Christianity, 
Judaism
and Islam.

As September 11 approaches again, little has improved. The "military
phase" of the Iraq war has been declared over, but U.S. troops 
continue
to be in harm's way amid insurrectionist attacks. The Afghanistan war
continues with only tentative assurance expressed by our leaders that 
it
will be successfully concluded.  And at home, manifestations of
Islamophobia and hatred defy both logic and the commandments of our 
Lord
to love our neighbor as ourselves. 

Most notably this Saturday, the leader of a small congregation in
Gainesville, Fla., resisting both common sense and a basic 
understanding
of the gospel, threatens to burn the Holy Qur'an as a statement to
Muslims that they are not welcome in America. This abject publicity
stunt has been condemned not only by interfaith leaders at home and
abroad but by nearly half of the Gainesville congregation itself. As 
of
today, the Gainesville pastor continues to ignore warnings by General
Petraeus that the burning of the Qur'an may put American troops in
harm's way, and he has certainly ignored the warnings of our own 
member
communions that the stunt may endanger fellow Christians who live in
minority communities in Muslim nations if extremists use it as a 
pretext
to violence.

We don't have the power to dilute the potion of publicity that has 
moved
this pastor beyond the point of reason, and certainly his First
Amendment rights to express his view are as indelible as ours. But we
can do this:  we can amplify our own testimony and encourage our
congregations to join a crescendo of witness.

On September 7, I participated in a summit of interfaith leaders to
express our deep concerns about the prevalence of anti-Muslim rhetoric
in our land. A copy of our joint statement is attached. I commend it 
to
you, and hope you will commend it to your member congregations so that
we can speak with one voice.

Our message is not complicated, and Jesus took great pains to make it
clear.

'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all 
your
soul and with all your mind.' This is the greatest and first
commandment. And a second is like it:  'You shall love your neighbor 
as
yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the law and the 
prophets.
(Matthew 22:37-40. NRSV)

This September 11, my prayer is that the member communions of the
National Council of Churches will join in the proclamation of this
simple message - the basic meaning of which is repeated in the Torah 
and
in the Qur'an. Love God. Love your neighbor.

With these commandments, God has made our path clear:

. This September 11, we remember all who died and were injured in the
terror attacks of 2001, and we pray for all who were physically,
emotionally, spiritually scarred.

. This September 11, we remember that the dead and injured include
Muslims who worked in the World Trade Center as well as members of 
many
other faiths.

. This September 11, we remember that among those who continue to 
suffer
the consequences of the terror attacks are millions of Muslims who
reject the mindless violence of a minority of extremists.

. This September 11, we commit ourselves to engaging Muslim sisters 
and
brothers in dialogue and acts of neighborliness.

. This September 11, we join our voices in a rejection of anti-Muslim
rhetoric and threats.

. This September 11, we unite in prayer that this agonizing period of
war, terrorism, hatred, and festering ignorance of one another will
pass, and members of all faiths will resolve to live together in 
harmony
and in faithfulness to the commandments of the one God.

>Grace to you, and Peace,

>Michael Kinnamon
>General Secretary

>See also:

>www.ncccusa.org/MK.cordobamosque.html
>www.ncccusa.org/news/100901quran.html
>www.ncccusa.org/news/100907interfaithpressconference.html

>www.isna.net

>----

Since its founding in 1950, the National Council of the Churches of
Christ in the USA has been the leading force for ecumenical 
cooperation
among Christians in the United States. The NCC's 36 member faith 
groups
-- from a wide spectrum of Protestant, Anglican, Orthodox, 
Evangelical,
historic African American and Living Peace churches -- include 45
million persons in more than 100,000 local congregations in 
communities
across the nation.

NCC News contact:  Philip E. Jenks, 212-870-2228 (office), 
646-853-4212
(cell), pjenks@ncccusa.org