Rusty Benson

AFA Journal associate editor

November-December 2001 – Funerals remind us of the brevity of life and the certainty of death, especially when we watch someone else bury a loved one. However, when death comes to our own family, such contemplations are often obliterated by pure misery and grief.

Like spectators at a funeral, most Americans have experienced the events of recent months through news reports. We’ve been shocked, saddened, angered and fearful. We’ve talked about them, prayed about them, and speculated about them. But the tragedy hasn’t really changed our own lives.

However, for our fellow citizens in New York and Washington, D. C., the reality of evil has been bone-jarring. The rest of us can only imagine.

“At first, and still to a great degree, we experienced a profound sense of sadness and grieving, like one huge extended funeral,” said Senior Pastor John Hutchinson at McLean (Virginia) Presbyterian Church, only a few miles from the Pentagon. “Then the grief somewhat subsided and turned into righteous anger. Now we are all experiencing a fair amount of fear and uncertainty, wondering what’s next. We are all learning how to live in wartime as a Christian.” Hutchinson estimated that as many as 50 McLean members work at the Pentagon. None died in the terrorist attacks. 

The day after the attacks, Dr. Tim Keller, who pastors a congregation in Manhattan, wrote in an open letter: “It’s really too horrible for words. Verbal efforts to express the full magnitude of what has happened seem to almost trivialize it instead.” 

First meet physical needs
In guiding the church family at Redeemer Presbyterian, Keller has encouraged them to meet regularly for prayer and to provide practical help to the community in coping with the tragedy. Such aid comes in the form of help for those who have lost their jobs, been forced out of their apartments or need financial assistance.

Hutchinson agrees that meeting physical needs should be a top priority for Christians. “Churches need to be prepared to meet people’s material needs first,” he said. “A church doing that is more ready to minister when catastrophe strikes.” 

Alongside material needs, Keller says Christians must not shy away from what he calls the “ministry of tears.” “Maybe we’re going to have to be a little less concerned about our own careers and more concerned about the community. So let’s enter in.… Let’s weep with those who weep.…” he said in his September 16 sermon.

Tough questions
Soon after the attacks, Redeemer posted on their Internet website (www.redeemer.com) “Questions on Everyone’s Mind.” The article tackled six difficult issues: How can you trust God after this kind of event? Is this a judgment from God on our country? How does vengeance not manifest itself in the Christian community? How do both nations and individuals cope with grief? Should America retaliate? What are Christian people to do?

The McLean church staff in Washington wrote and distributed a shorter piece entitled “Making Biblical Sense of This National Tragedy,” which focused on the sovereignty of God and the reality of evil. 

McLean is also providing answers through the distribution of a booklet entitled “Fallen, But Not Forgotten,” published by Christian Embassy, a Christian ministry in Washington, D. C. In the context of the attacks on New York and Washington, the booklet leads readers to Christ. “It’s not an appeal to come to church,” Hutchinson said. “We are very sensitive not to be opportunistic, but we want to be available to anyone who needs us.”

Hutchinson said the terrorists’ strikes have resulted in more openness about the things of God. Several McLean members have led prayer groups in their offices and workplaces. Before the attacks, such meetings would have been verboten.

“The high competence level of people who work in the nation’s capital sometimes translates into a persona of ‘I don’t have any needs,’” Pastor Hutchinson said. “One of the most significant things that has happened is that the attacks have resulted in a sense of violation and vulnerability which has caused many to have to face their weakness and need.… Christians are showing more need for fellowship and non-Christians are openly looking for answers.”

Fear and ministry
Those who live in and around Washington, D. C. understand they are a primary target for future assaults, so fear and anxiety are issues they struggle with daily. 

“God gives grace for every day and every situation that comes before us,” Hutchinson says. “But in day-to-day living, we must realize that we live between the now and the not yet. We live in a fallen world; that is the now. So we have to live realistically with the brokenness and evil. But also in the now we must know that our Redeemer reigns.… And so we have to trust Him and step out in the midst of fearful situations.”

“Christians should not sit back and wait for the phone to ring,” Keller says. “We should pro-actively fan out through the city and look for ways to help. After all, nobody asked Jesus to give Himself for us.”