Archbishop Dolan, Cardinal Egan recall 9/11

September 13, 2011

Archbishop Timothy Dolan and Cardinal Edward Egan preached memorial Mass homilies on the tenth anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks.

“What I propose at our Mass this Sunday morning, on this tenth anniversary of that day, is that as a matter of fact the side of light actually triumphed, as temptations to despair, fearful panic, revenge, and dread gave way to such things as rescue, recovery, rebuilding, outreach, and resilience,” Archbishop Dolan preached. “The side of the angels, not of the demons, conquered. Good Friday became Easter Sunday. And once again God has the last word.”

Cardinal Egan recalled:

A team of emergency-workers digs into broken cement and pools of oily mud to pull half-dead bodies out from under piles of debris. They stop only to breathe a prayer for a victim being folded into a shiny, plastic body-bag, or to send up a shout of joy when a dust-covered form emerges as from out of a tomb and shows signs of life. They labor around the clock, day after day, asking nothing but to be allowed to continue. They are exhausted, and they know that at any moment their own lives might be snuffed out by a falling steel beam or a dislodged block of granite. Still, they work on – and on and on.

These are not characters out of fiction. These are not imaginary heroes. Each one is one of us.

 

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Further information:

• Archbishop Dolan: September 11th Memorial Mass Homily (Archdiocese of New York)
• Cardinal Egan: September 11th Memorial Mass Homily (Archdiocese of New York)