The Catholic News & Herald 1
September 21, 2001
September 21, 2001 Volume 11 t Number 2
Inside Report cites progress in eliminating land mines
S e r v i n g C a t h o l i c s in Western North Carolina in the Diocese of Charlotte
As airport re-opens, chaplain prays terrorists’ victims now in hands of God
...Page 7
Campus ministries open doors in wake of tragedy
... Page 8
Local News Faith formation community celebrates ministry
... Pages 4-5
Many respond to social justice call at conference ... Pages 14
Every Week Entertainment ...Pages 10-11
Editorials & Columns ...Pages 12-13
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me.” — John 14:1
By JIMMY ROSTAR Associate Editor CHARLOTTE — Ted Boone could have gone to his own church on Sept. 14, a date President Bush declared a national time of prayer following the worst terrorist attacks ever in the United States. But the building maintenance employee of Charlotte/Douglas International Airport felt called to be with extended family as the air traffic industry got back to work. Boone was among several dozen people, mostly aircrew members and airport personnel, who gathered in an outdoors courtyard at the Charlotte airport for a noon prayer service. “This is a time to look toward the future and hope that nothing else like this ever happens again,” said Boone. “This kind of made me feel a little bit better, and my prayers go to the families who have lost someone.” Rev. Mr. Ben Wenning, a permanent deacon of the Charlotte Diocese, serves as the head chaplain at Charlotte/Douglas. At the service which he led, he prayed for God’s healing presence in the wake of the attacks. “Have mercy on all the holy innocents who were caught in the tragedy on Tuesday and all of those who are in service to them,” he prayed. “Make them worthy to share the joys of paradise, for they believed in the resurrection of the dead.” Following readings from Psalm 23 and the Gospel of John, Rev. Mr. Wenning said the faithful can find great comfort in the Scriptures that they will one day be with the Lord. “We place the souls of all those who were unjustly killed on Tuesday in the hands of God,” he said. “Now, though we mourn for them, we need to be God’s hands for those whom he left. In prayer and in action, we need to be available to those thou-
Photos by Joann S. Keane
Rev. Mr. Ben Wenning presides at a noontime prayer service at Charlotte/ Douglas International Airport. Rev. Mr. Wenning, a permanent deacon for the Diocese of Charlotte, serves as airport chaplain. He conducted the prayer service for airport workers and travelers. Above left, Rev. Mr. Wenning reads from Scripture during the service. sands of families who have lost loved ones.” Rev. Mr. Wenning said he has counseled countless numbers of the mourning after the tragedy, both in the airport chapel and at his parish, St. Gabriel in Charlotte. As the nation’s air traffic industry now deals with the grim realities of destruction wrought after four planes were hijacked from U.S. airports Sept. 11, Rev. Mr. Wenning said the sorrow has a special poignancy here. “As airport employees, we understand the basic team concept,” he said. “We work great as a team. We know we have to play well. We function together, and everything works. “I ask you in your hearts, based on our tragedy and the Scripture, that also embedded in that is in your mind a presence of God.” A retired air-traffic controller, Rev. Mr. Wenning called on those gathered to carry that sense of God’s presence back to work with them — both in this most trying of times and in the future. “Let us today remember that on the 11th we suffered a tragedy that should unite us in a way we’ve never been united before — in our work because of the security, in our hearts because we need to carry Christ with us.” The Rev. Wilber and Mossie Sites were grounded in Charlotte on their way from their Chambersburg, Pa., home to Mandeville, Jamaica, where
they are planning a three-month voluntary teaching stint at a Bible college. Instead, on this day they found themselves joining hands with others outside the Charlotte airport, uniting in prayer as they recited the Our Father. “Not only do we need to pray for the persons who have lost loved ones and all the workers, but we need to pray for our government officials because they have a tremendous responsibility of determining who is guilty and what action to take,” said Rev. Sites, a retired minister of the United Brethren in Christ Church. Mossie Sites said the tragedy is a painful reminder of the need for a sense of God, not just in times of sorrow, but in everyday life. “So many times, when things are going well, we forget about what God has done for us and the freedom that we have here in America,” she said. Her husband agreed. “It shouldn’t be a day of prayer just today,” he said. “It ought to be a matter of prayer for all of us at all times.” As the prayer service neared its close, Rev. Mr. Wenning prayed “for comfort in our sadness, certainty in our doubt and courage through Jesus.” And in closing, he offered an invitation to steadfastness: “God bless you all. It’s time to go back to work — for Christ and for yourselves and for the