Americans and their allies are still reeling from the New York and Washington terrorist attacks. They are also grappling with the dilemma of how the U.S. should respond to the intense hatred and suicidal commitment of their terrorist enemy. Many are voicing doubts about whether a military response alone can actually stop future and even worse attacks from these shadowy, fanatical opponents who seem to have no regard for innocent human life and even for their own lives.
Pope John Paul II officially received James Nicholson Thursday as the new U.S. ambassador to the Holy See. The Pope expressed his personal “profound participation in the grief of the American people” and his “heartfelt prayers for the President” and those coping with the aftermath of the attack. He stated “I pray that this inhuman act will awaken in the hearts of all the world's peoples a firm resolve to reject the ways of violence, to combat everything that sows hatred and division within the human family, and to work for the dawn of a new era of international cooperation inspired by the highest ideals.”
The Pope continued with more general comments that, “the vision and the moral strength which America is being challenged to exercise… call for an acknowledgment of the spiritual roots of the crisis which the Western democracies are experiencing, a crisis characterized by the advance of a materialistic, utilitarian and ultimately dehumanized world view which is tragically detached from the moral foundations of Western civilization. In order to survive and prosper, democracy and its accompanying economic and political structures must be directed by a vision whose core is the God-given dignity and inalienable rights of every human being, from the moment of conception until natural death. Never has it been more urgent to re-invigorate the moral vision and resolve essential to maintaining a just and free society.”
Click here for the complete address of the Holy Father to Ambassador Nicholson.
At the U.N., Vatican representative Archbishop Renato Martino said that an international response to terrorism must seek to eliminate the motivations for such activities. He pointed out: “Terrorists are people who are desperate; they feel they have nothing to lose. They see no future, so they are ready to kill and to be killed.”
Co-incident with the Pope's spiritual emphasis President George W. Bush has proclaimed Friday as “a national day of prayers and remembrance.” The White House is “calling on Americans during their lunch hours” to “attend prayer services at churches, synagogues, mosques, other places of their choosing” to pray for the nation and the families of those who were victimized by the terrorism in New York and Washington.
The Canadian and Irish governments have also declared Friday as National Day of Mourning for the victims and tomorrow, at 11 a.m. British time, a three minute silence will be held across Europe in memory of those killed in the U.S. Yesterday, 30,000 Argentineans, including the President and many top government officials, joined in a mass ecumenical prayer for the U.S. victims. The Canadian Catholic Bishops and the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada have called for prayers as well.
(This update courtesy of LifeSite News.)