How Are You Commemorating?
“Ten years ago, members of al-Qaeda used four passenger aircraft as weapons to kill nearly 3,000 people on Sept. 11, 2001. The United States government’s response was to answer violence with violence. In the ensuing wars, hundreds of thousands more people have been killed. New York Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) urges everyone to recognize this anniversary as an occasion to remember that there are always alternatives to violence and that there is a Spirit in every human being, which responds with gratitude to these alternatives. ... We testify to the world that we disown all wars and fighting with outward weapons for any cause whatsoever. These are never necessary. There are no “just wars.” Among the weapons we renounce are the tongue and the pen, when these are used to provoke prejudice and hatred. Neither will we be silenced by fear when we are called to witness against evil masquerading as good. We seek to build a world in which a just peace is possible.” -- Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), New York Yearly Meeting