The Pillar of Fire Cloud

On the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, Homiletics offers some guidance for the proclamation of the Word.

What do you remember about September 11, 2001?

It was an unforgettable, gut-wrenching, world-changing day. We all recall exactly where we were when the terrorists attacked. In terms of national impact, it was a day on par with the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the assassination of JFK.

Carl Wilton, a minister in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey, vividly remembers walking down to the beach after the towers fell and looking to the north. He saw a pillar of cloud. What he was seeing, of course, was the massive column of smoke rising from the devastated buildings. He wondered: Was it a sign of the Lord's presence and power, amidst our national agony -- leading us onward, to some new way of being God's people? Or was it merely the smoke of ruination, inciting us to vengeance? He has a strong intuition that how we have answered that question as a nation over these last 10 years says everything about how our faith intersects (or fails to intersect) with our national life -- and, indeed, our...