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Keller was most encouraged that within a few minutes of the blast several churches in his Presbyterian Church of America denomination had called to offer help to the church or to anyone the church was helping. "It immediately made us feel a little more confident, like we can go looking for things to do."

The church is preparing to help New Yorkers process the horrific experience. Keller says, "We have to address the fear and even the problem of hate. Right after the Sunday service, we are going to have a memorial service for everyone that died. We are going to cancel our classes, mourn our losses and thank God for the homegoing of Christians."

Keller says that churches also need to help respond to the real hatred for the terrorists. "If those towers hadn't come down, I think it would have been different. The coming down was much more horrific and will forever stand for an intrusion, a hostile attack." The pastor says that New Yorkers will viscerally feel the horror for years. "It was satanically brilliant. Now, every time you see that empty space you will not be able to put it out of your mind. I felt a hatred well up in me, so I thought, well, we are going to have to deal with that too."

Christian men and women on the front line of the terrorist war feel that justice also needs to be practiced. Kenneth Wong, a federal officer and leader at Trust In God Baptist Church near the World Trade Towers, says he worries about his fellow officers on the scene and wants something to be done. "I am wondering about my Secret Service and U.S. Customs brothers and sisters based in 7 World Trade Center." World Trade building 7 collapsed late Tuesday afternoon. Attempts by CT to reach a list of security personnel who were active leaders in their local churches were often met with a "We don't know where he or she is." Wong says, "This is an act of war as far as I am concerned." The officer also worries that it won't be easy "for the U.S. to be good guys any more."

Mitch Glaser, president of Chosen People Ministries, in New York City, says his ministry has spent the day tracking down personnel and their children to make sure that they are safe. "We understand that there is a possibility that they will be after Jewish targets, and we have a menorah engraved on the front of our building."

Chosen People, which evangelizes Jewish people, sent medical doctors and nurses to help at downtown Beth Israel Hospital and offered help to a nearby Judaic synagogue.

Glaser says that the day for the terrorist attack may have been chosen because September 11th is the anniversary of the Camp David peace accords. "The terrorists are trying to show that the U.S. or any Western nation that stands with Israel and the Jewish people will be punished."

Glen Kleinknecht, director of Here's Life Inner City of Campus Crusade for Christ, says that they set up a prayer station at the Queens end of the 59th Street (Queensborough) Bridge. Cars were banned and the bridge was filled with people fleeing NYC. They offered to pray with anyone that wanted to stop and pray. "We put up a sign saying, 'Free prayer,' Kleinknecht said. "People were respectful and many stopped. They didn't want to stay long but they prayed and took some literature." Several other groups also have put up prayer stations around the city.

Kleinknecht says that he thinks that New Yorkers seem to be handling the emotional impact of the disaster well. "New Yorkers have grown up with a certain tolerance of a level chaos. They are not as put off by chaos. We have found that people here in the city want to step out and to help out rather than focusing on their own needs."

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September (Web-only) 2001, Vol. 45