On September 11, 2002,
Father C.J.T.Talar's homily at St. Mary's Seminary in Houston,centered on Ms. L. Hall’s theological reflection.
In remembrance of the victims of 9/11 we are publishing the original paper written on September 11, 2001.
Editor of LEAP OF FAITH

Reflective Response to Stone and Duke and/or Young

By L. Hall

The love which moves the sun and other stars ... .

Dante, Divine Comedy

    Thus the poet concludes his masterwork having caught a glimpse of God.

    Today, September 11, 2001, at 3:50 pm, exactly thirteen hours after having completed an initial draft of the assignment, I abandon it and wonder how we catch a glimpse of God in today. Is it in the hands of the policeman firmly, but politely, directing pedestrians instead of vehicles? Is it in the faces of the firefighters, hands on hips, helmets in hand, eyes raised to a heaven obscured by smoke?  Is it in the touch of the triage attendant?  The voice of the teacher?  The Mayor?  The Ambassador?  The President?  The Cardinal?

    Or is it in the eyes of the child carried by her father looking straight at us--right into the lens of the camera, right into our eyes, all questions in one question: have you caught a glimpse of Him today?

    If there ever was a day for theological reflection, surely today's that day. And while all the theology in the world cannot provide a vision, it cannot help but focus our attention so that we may examine more closely, think more deeply, live more consciously, and maybe even pray more thoughtfully.

    And here we come back to the child--the only child seen amid the flash of fire, the flesh of bodies, the dust of implosion, the reign of debris and the vacancy in the skyline.

Young tells us that to understand and to enter the kingdom of God requires that we become childlike. That is, that we recover “[our] insatiable curiosity, [our] infuriating persistance in asking why or how, [our] energy and drive to explore and discover, [our] …sense of wonder …”¹

    Young also tells us that “to be as a ... child is to keep on asking questions, to refuse to accept inadequate answers ... never to take anything for granted ... [and] to be determined to get to the bottom of any subject ....” ²

    Young further tells us that this is the fundamental process of theology:  A process of penetrating investigation into matters of everyday existence. A process which relentlessly combines devotion, conviction and action into a single-minded dedication to catching a glimpse of God so as to fashion a vision of Him; so as, to perceive the nature of the Father, the person and mission of the Son, and the ongoing activity of the Holy Spirit in our creation, redemption and salvation³; and, finally, so as to answer the question, how then shall we live?

    Theology is a dynamic, perpetual, individual and institutional conversation dealing with fundamental life issues.  The kind of issues September 11, 2001 raises: “the problem of suffering, the meaning of prayer, the interpretation of scripture, … the purpose of worship [and] the relationship between the world inside the church and the world outside in which people actually [live] their lives.”⁴

    With five friends still missing at the end of the day, my closing prayer is less "God bless America" than it is "God help America." Especially those of us still here desperately in need of finding a purpose in suffering and comfort in scripture.

Endnotes

1.Frances Young, Can These Dry Bones Live: An Introduction to Christian Theology (Cleveland: The Pilgrim Press, 1992), 5.

2.Ibid., 6.

3.Howard W. Stone and James 0. Duke, How To Think Theologically (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1996), 8.

4. Young, 17.