9/11

 
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8.  For everything there is a season, a right time for every intention under heaven 2 a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, 3 a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, 4 a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, 5 a time to throw stones and a time to gather stones, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, 6 a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to discard, 7 a time to tear and a time to sew, a time to keep silent and a time to speak, 8 a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.
 
It's hard to believe that 24 years have passed since 9/11/01.  9/11, a day that will be forever remembered through the heinous, cowardice act of barbaric terrorists that was inflicted upon this nation in New York City, The Pentagon in Springfield, Virginia and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.  Everyone today vividly remembers where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news of the aircraft slamming into the World Trade Center buildings on the crystal clear September morning of 2001.  3,024 unarmed American civilians and numerous other people of various nationalities were murdered in an attack that had until that defining moment been unprecedented in human history. WE have an entire generation born after 9/11 that we must teach so that they may never forget!
 
America's character was revealed on September 11th, 2001 and in the troubling days to follow as the world witnessed photos and film of hundreds of fireman and police officers solemnly responding to the crisis, climbing the stairs into harms way, floor after floor of these massive buildings to battle the raging fires and rescue the victims of this attack and in turn became victims themselves as the towers collapsed upon them.  Untold stories of bravery and courage as peopled helped people out of the burning towers, as both military personnel and rescue workers entered into the blazing furnace that was the west side of the pentagon to rescue trapped workers, and those heroes and patriots aboard hijacked flight 93, aware of the attacks that were happening, and chose to fight the terrorist enemies which  resulted in their plane crash into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.  Great courage and heroism was displayed by many on 9/11.
 
-Karl Barth, a Swiss Theologian said: "Courage is fear that has said its prayers."
 
Courage is the state or quality of mind or spirit that enables one to face danger or fear, with self-possession, confidence, and resolution: bravery.
 
Courage is reflected in our daily lives and actions.  The courage to speak truth and not stay silent in the face of adversity, because we are afraid that other people might not agree with us or worse it could be dangerous. IT takes courage to be a Messianic Believer. To stand on and live biblical truth, swimming against the current of manmade theology and holidays.  It takes courage to stand up for the Kingdom of God in a politically correct nations and world that fears speaking out against the black tide of Islam, moral corruption, and sin.  The courage to do what is right and resist the easy way out in life's situation which leads compromise and tolerance.  It takes courage to be a faithful follower of Yeshua.  
 
Mark Twain said: "Courage is not the absence of fear. It is acting in spite of it."
 
A courageous person is someone who senses, recognizes, feels, and faces fear and still goes on to do what is right.  9/11 was the defining event for this generation, it was this generations Pearl Harbor.  Young people today, post 9/11 will never know the America that existed prior to, and the freedoms enjoyed pre 9/11.  America changed forever on September 11th, 2001.  
 
The world watched as America responded to 9/11 with great solemnity, rescue workers and volunteers working around the clock, remove the rubble stone by stone, searching for survivors.  There is testimony after testimony of God answering prayers and people escaping the carnage in the World Trade Centers and the Pentagon who thought they were doomed to never get out.  God was there! As we remember the tragedy of 9/11 we also must seek to comprehend and understand this roots of this attack and why it happened.  
 
People who do not have a relationship God and some that do asked; "Where was God on 9/11", "Why did God allow this to happen"
 
God was there on 9/11, nothing escapes Him but all too often people are incorrectly told in situations like this that God is in control which means it was His fault which is not true. God is Sovereign, not in control.  He gave dominion, control to us.

The sages teach God's creation exists through heavenly separation. This separation is known as Tsimtsum in Hebrew, which means withdrawing.  Tsimtsum is a voluntary limitation God Himself does that is necessary in order to allow us to exist.  Scripture explains again and again that God is Kadosh, Holy, separated, set apart, but the word really translates more closely as pure in English.  Since God is completely pure, omnipotence, omnipresence, righteous, loving, full of grace, justice, mercy and perfect in all essence and reality it defines what God is not.  
 
The things that define what God are also define what He is not, which is what humans by nature are, impure, sinful, prideful, unloving, judgmental, and many other faults and flaws too numerous to mention that we all have in varying degrees.  These human faults therefore require a separation by God, a withdrawing of His full presence from His creation or it could not continue to exist.  
 
The sinful flaws inherent to humanity cannot exist in God's pure presence, we would be completely and immediately destroyed because impurity and imperfection cannot exist in His presences.  However, God is affected by human tragedies.  Scriptures tell us that God hates the gatherings of those that are evil that He is grieved by them!  Look at God's response to evil:
 
Psalms 26:5 (NLT) I hate the gatherings of those who do evil, and I refuse to join in with the wicked

God Himself is grieved by our actions and our rebellion against Him and the injustices we do to each other.

Psalms 78:40. How often they rebelled against him in the desert and grieved him in the wastelands!

But God remains sovereign because of Tsimtsum.  Sovereign is defined as: One that exercises supreme authority within a limited sphere, an acknowledged leader.  Remember Tsimtsum, God limits Himself or everyone would be destroyed, therefore,  GOD IS SOVEREIGN!  

Psalms 8:9.(NRSV) O Lord, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
God's oneness, His echad, wholeness, and perfection requires that He remain separate from anything that could dilute His purity and perfection.  When we hear of horrific events such as the attacks of 9/11 people immediately ask "How could God do this?  How could He let this happen?"  The body has been falsely taught that God’s in control which is false, God is sovereign, man is in control! In fact, there is a heavenly purpose in grief:
 
Ecclesiastes 7:3. Grief is better than laughter, for sadness can improve a person.
 
God does Shema, hear those who cry out to Him
 
Psalms 18:6. In my distress I called to ADONAI; I cried out to my God. Out of his temple he heard my voice; my cry reached his ears.
 
God is with the broken hearted:
 
Psalms 34:17-18.  [The righteous] cried out, and ADONAI heard, and he saved them from all their troubles. 18 ADONAI is near those with broken hearts; he saves those whose spirit is crushed.
 
As we remember we must ask of ourselves, has the nation improved from this tragedy in the last 24 years?  In fact, 9/11 was the culmination of years of sadness.
 
Unlike previous defining moments of American history from Bunker Hill and the shot heard around the world to the surprise attack at Pearl Harbor that began Americas involvement in WW-II, the attack on 9/11 was specifically designed and targeted against civilians by Islamic religious warriors who seek America’s, Israel, and other western nations destruction.  
 
A few leaders said: "Do you think God is trying to get our attention".  This comment always brings immediate backlash of criticism from the press who belittled the comment and the person remarking that a loving God could never do such a thing and that it was insensitive. People get highly offended when a correlation like this is made!  They say "How can you say such a thing when so many people are killed, hurt, and suffering....they say: "It's being insensitive".  

If you don't believe God doesn't do this look at Israel's history.  God continuously sent prophets to tell them of His great displeasure with them in their rebellion and idol worship.  The Prophets forewarned of impending judgment through attacks by foreign armies, foreign invasions and horrific oppression by hostile nations who hated Israel and God brought upon them for one purpose:   "To awaken the people" so that they would repent and turn back to Him yet the track record of repentance is not good!  Remember Isaiah's words chilling to Israel (Northern Kingdom, Shomron, Ephraim) when they suffered a similar, 9/11 style terrorist attack from on their border over 2,700 years ago that hearken to our own plight today in America.  
 
Isaiah 9:8-13.  Adonai sent a word to Ya'akov, and it has fallen on Isra'el. 9 All the people know it, Efrayim and the inhabitants of Shomron. But they say in pride, in the arrogance of their hearts, 10 "The bricks have fallen, but we will rebuild with cut stone; the sycamore-fig trees have been chopped down, but we will replace them with cedars." 11 So ADONAI has raised up Retzin's foes against him and spurred on his enemies - 12 Aram from the east, P'lishtim from the west; and they devour Isra'el with an open mouth. Even after all this, his anger remains, his upraised hand still threatens. 13 Yet the people do not turn to the one striking them, they don't seek ADONAI-Tzva'ot.

These words written by the prophet Isaiah seem too contemporary. Has nothing changed in 3,000 years? America must learn from the past and repent of its wicked ways and turn back to God:
 
Psalms 34:15. turn from evil, and do good; seek peace, go after it!

God had been trying to get our attention for quite some time.  A religious war has been raging against America for 25+ years prior to 9/11, America herself was not aware of or awakened to the danger until the morning of Sept 11, 2001.  The phrase is "Remember
9/11-never forget", but we have much more to remember:
REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the Marine barracks in Lebanon in 1983!
REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of Pan Am Flight #103 in 1988!
REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993!
REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the military barracks in Khobar, Saudi Arabia 1996!
REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the American Embassies in Kenya in 1998!
REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the USS COLE in 2000!
REMEMBER the MUSLIM attack against the World Trade Center, Pentagon, and Flight #93 crash 2001
REMEMBER the Muslim bombing at the Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013
REMEMBER the MUSLIM attack in the Orlando Nightclub on June 12th, 2016!
REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombings in New York and New Jersey on Sept. 17th – 19th 2016.
REMEMBER the MUSLIM truck ramming attack in New York on Oct. 31st 2017.
REMEMBER the MUSLIM truck ramming attack in New Orleans on Jan. 1st 2025.

Terror has a long and dark history against humanity.  It's had many names over the centuries:  Crusades, Inquisitions, Pogrom's, and Holocaust to name a few.  Although the attacks of 9/11 were focused and directed at America, the root cause remain the same as it always throughout history" Anti-Semitism and Judeo/Christian hatred. Sadly, its gaining ground in America since the horrific attack against Israel on Oct. 7th, 2023. It’s hard  to believe that New York City may soon elect a communist Muslim Mayor who will not denounce terror attacks.  
 
Dennis Prager, a nationally syndicated radio talk-show hosts and the author of several books wrote about why Muslims hate America:
 
Because America alone (and the little America in the Middle East, Israel) prevents the expansion of Islamic rule.
 
Because expansionist totalitarian movements, whether socialism, communism or Islam, always hate free societies, and America is the strongest free society in the world.  Because America is not only strong, it is Judeo-Christian, the two religions the Islamists need to overcome to expand globally.
 
The greatest problem confronting America is not that people who loathe freedom loathe us. Indeed, it is to America's enduring credit that it is hated by Islamists. Our great problem is that so many in our country do not understand that those who loathe liberty loathe America.
 
Thus 9/11 reveals another hard fact for America, we are in a physical and spiritual war!  

Just 1,000 years ago Jews and Christians rejected the writings of Muhammad so he turned fiercely against them, and later passages in the Koran speak of them in an extremely negative manner.  Muslims are commanded to fight against Jews and Christians until they either submit to Allah or die.
 
[2.191] And kill them wherever you find them, and drive them out from whence they drove you out, and persecution is severer than slaughter, and do not fight with them at the Sacred Mosque until they fight with you in it, but if they do fight you, then slay them; such is the recompense of the unbelievers
 
[4.89] They (christians and Jews) desire that you should disbelieve as they have disbelieved, so that you might be (all) alike; therefore take not from among them friends until they fly (their homes) in allah's way; but if they turn back, then seize them and KILL THEM wherever you find them, and take not from among them a friend or a helper.
 
[9.14] FIGHT THEM, ALLAH WILL PUNISH THEM BY YOUR HANDS and bring them to disgrace, and assist you against them and heal the hearts of a believing people.
 
This is just a minute layer of info regarding this topic but in the 24 years since 9/11 what have we learned. There seems to be a great hindrance or denial of the truth in America regarding who attacked us on 9/11 and why!  If we deny the truth we’re doomed to suffer more of the same.  PEACE CAN NOT BE OBTAINED BETWEEN WESTERN JUDEO/CHRISTIAN DEMOCRACIES AND ISLAM.  

The term “Peaceful Islam” is an oxymoron!  I know some Muslims that are not very religious and are peaceful people, but Islam is not.  In fact, the Islamic movement is brash and brazen as witnessed what they did on October 7th 2023.  America must awaken from its slumber of wokeness, D.E.I., political correctness ,and ignorance.
 
Appeasement never works.  9/11 was just the beginning.  This religious war America is fighting today will be the longest conflict in our history if America survives.  We are quickly learning that we are our own worst enemy.  A young Abraham Lincoln, in a speech given in January 1838 said America would never fall to a foreign power, not in a thousand years, but Americas demise would come from within:
 
"At what point, then, is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher."
 
 
It's time to learn from history, not repeat its mistakes and come to understand!  Islam is at war with us whether we chose to believe it or not, or to fight or not!   Islam is bringing the fight and war to us!  THERE WILL NEVER BE PEACE WITH ISLAM.  
 
As we remember 9/11 and mourn those who were slain, we must do so with the courage and fortitude to reflect upon ourselves and the nation these past 24 years to see where we've come from and where we're going.  We must remember why it happened! We must remember who did this!  Foremost and most importantly we must remember God's words:
 
Exodus 23:22. But if you listen to what he says and do everything I tell you, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and a foe to your foes
 
We must be honest and ask, is America heading in the right direction!  Has the moral fabric and character of the nation and ourselves gotten better or worse? Do we have the moral fortitude to stand for biblical truth, justice, and equality! To stand against the raging antisemitism found at our universities and cities! Will America survive this Muslim invasion?
 
Never forget!!!!!!
 
Rabbi Eric S Carlson