Print Issue: September 5, 2002

Dear Friends In Christ,

For most people living in the United States, three events are burned into our memories with indelible force - we will never forget where we were when we heard the news, who we were with, and what we thought. The first and oldest is the attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7th, 1941; the second, the assassination of the first Catholic President of our country, John F. Kennedy on November 22nd, 1963; and the last, still fresh and bitter in our minds, the terrorist attacks on our citizens and our homeland last year, September 11th, 2001.

As we approach the anniversary of this terrible day, and when we commemorate any sad or tragic event in our past, let us try to remember that our Lord Jesus Christ has taught us that we are destined for an eternal home with Him in Heaven, and that to reach Heaven, we must meet the sufferings that come to us here on earth, joining Him in the mystery of His Holy death, if we are to rise to the glory of life that He has promised.

But as this day looms on the national horizon, let us also not hesitate to think of and to pray for, the thousands who lost their lives - the families who were suddenly bereaved with blinding impact - our country, which suffered a blow to its confidence and sense of safety - and the world, who watched and perhaps or perhaps not, learned a lesson about the tragedy and futility of violence waged to gain political ends.

In whatever way is possible and practical, I ask all Catholics in North Georgia to set aside the entirety, or at least a part of this coming September 11th, to offer our prayers to God, asking Him to give final rest to the dead and consolation to those who now grieve for their absence, and to open the hearts of men and women everywhere to the realization that peace is possible in the world, if we can but agree to accept it from the hands of Jesus Christ, who gave it to us, the first gift after the miracle of His resurrection

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Most Reverend John F. Donoghue
Archbishop of Atlanta