Vita 6: Dec. 1, 1997

This day has more vivid imagery in the remembrance of some (especially those present or directly involved) than it does for me. But it had a much more significant impact on me than for most who would frequent this blog. Many recall where they were when they heard about the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. I was woken up by a fellow college mate who lived down the hall...when he realized that he woke me up, he said, 'Oh my gosh, Rudy...you don't know.' 'Know what?' He turned on the television and only one of the WTC towers was standing...and I watched as the other collapsed. That was a horrific image stapled in my memory, but if I can be honest here, I felt somewhat distant from it all, too. I knew it would impact me on some scale and I don't know, maybe it was just too hard to believe that what I saw was real, but something felt distant, separating me from what was happening. Maybe it was that I had (and still have) never been to New York City.

But I had been in the lobby of Heath High School. I had friends and family who went there...who were there. Eleven years ago this morning, I was sitting in Agricultural Technology class working on an assignment, when sometime around 8:30, the following message came over the PA: 'Good morning, students, teachers, and staff. As you may or may not have heard, there was a shooting in the lobby at Heath High School this morning. We are unsure about the details of what types of casualties exist, but there are several who have been taken to the hospital and we will keep you updated on anything we hear throughout the day. At this time we will take a moment of silence. If you are a praying person, would you please lift up the victims and everyone involved in the situation?'

Later that morning, the FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes, which at my high school could have been considered somewhat of a misnomer since most in the club were not 'athletes' per se and many weren't followers of Christ), of which I was president, called a gathering in the gymnasium for prayer, inviting any who wanted to come and share in our supplication to God on behalf of the students, faculty, and staff of our high school's arch rival. If I may be so bold to say this, on that day, there were no Bombers versus Pirates...we were all Pirates (the mascot of Heath). I found myself behind the microphone wondering what in the world I could say to speak to students who were confused, angry, lost, scared, and hurt. I looked up and saw a Heath student (the daughter of one of my high school's teachers). 'Good,' I thought, 'there's one who is, for now, out of harm's way.' I do not recall what I said...I hope something that wasn't too messed up. God, redeem what I said, and bring hope to those who only had and have fear.

If you have heard of this shooting incident, what you may have heard is that the gunshots were fired into a gathering in the lobby of the high school. What you probably haven't heard is that the gathering was a prayer group. According to what was reported, however, it doesn't appear that the attacker targeted the group because it was designed for prayer or religious significance. Still the fact that the gathering was one for that purpose and that the three girls whose lives were taken and the five other students who were injured, motivated myself and some close friends to start a prayer gathering in our own school.

I do not pretend that mine is the most important story of how things transpired that day and its aftermath. I only offer this as my own interaction with a massacre closer to me in proximity than any other in my lifetime. Something about tragedy does (or at least should) motivate the surrounding community, nation, or world to action. Our response was solidarity and unity of purpose. Again I pose that the best response to the problem of evil is not one of mere cognizance or discourse...the best response is an incarnational one...one that is embodied...one that is active to fight evil, not to explain it away. And maybe, just maybe, we will look back in retrospect and acknowledge as Joseph did that what the enemy 'intended for evil, God intended for good.' Is that not the picture of the cross? What was intended for evil was the makeup God used to redeem the cosmos.