Twenty years ago today, a beautiful Tuesday in Portland, Oregon was overshadowed by shocking events on the East Coast that shook our nation to its core. September 11th rings in our hearts and minds as a day that changed most everything. Mr. Richard Gedrose, Jesuit's President at the time, closed school for that day. He told students, faculty and staff that they needed to be home.
The following day, Jesuit held an all-school Mass in the Fr. Hayes, S.J. Plaza where the sky was blue with not a plane in the sky, except the sobering moment when two Air National Guard planes flew by overhead.
In remembrance, we sang Be Not Afraid, we sang Set Your Hearts, and we listened to the 12th Chapter of the letter of Paul to the Romans which we have used in prayer the last 20 years on or near this date. Romans 12: 9, 12.
Let love be sincere; hate what is evil, hold on to what is goodRejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer.
And we shared a Sign of Peace that carried with it a deeper meaning than we knew. May each of us be a bearer of hope today.