Let's Roll Again

by Fr. Roger J. Landry - September 9, 2005

The response to the terrorist attacks of September 11th — the fourth anniversary of which we mark this weekend — has provided the standard by which we are able to evaluate the response to the destruction wrought by Hurricane Katrina.

Four years ago, as overwhelmed as we were by the sense of evil and the scenes of destruction and death, we were at the same time buoyed by the sense of goodness and scenes of heroism in so many of our fellow citizens.

As tens of thousands were running out of the Twin Towers, brave firemen, policemen and chaplains were running in. Husbands and dads and boyfriends flying above central Pennsylvania gave their lives to protect others on the ground. The first instinct of so many was to ask, "How can I help?," as, within hours of the attack, ordinary New Yorkers stood in line for hours to give blood, and doctors and nurses sprinted for miles to get to trauma units in case they might be needed.

Political leaders, moreover, did what they were elected to do — lead — and did so under immense pressure with grit, courage, magnanimity and grace. In the midst of the dusty darkness of one of the worst days in American history, the rays of light from the best of Americans began to radiate.

There have certainly been examples of self-sacrificing bravery in the Bayou as ordinary citizens converted their boats into modern versions of Noah's Ark and rescue personnel have made helicopter extrications look routinely easy.

But at least initially, the contrasts between 2005 New Orleans and 2001 New York have been more striking than the comparisons.

Moral evil is always worse than physical evil. What has been tougher to handle than the natural disaster wrought by a category five hurricane has been the man-made disaster effected by commissions and omissions we witnessed over the first week of the on-going tragedy.

Rather than bringing out the best in people, we've seen the catastrophe bring out the worst in many: armed gangs shooting at innocent bystanders and Medivac helicopters; women being physically violated and killed; policemen abandoning their duty to protect and serve; politicians engaging in the blame game rather than overcoming differences and working together as leaders to solve an urgent crisis urgently. Rather than "How can I help?," many have seemed to ask, "How can I profit?"

The spirit of self-giving sacrifice and leadership that so marked the Big Apple four years ago needs to be brought to the Big Easy and its environs, because the rebuilding project will need to be much more extensive and more long-term. None of us should duck the hard questions that need to be asked and the hard work that needs to be done.

There is a serious moral problem that goes well beyond race or class that needs to be confronted. Citizens, moreover, must hold politicians and themselves accountable for failures adequately to prepare and to respond. And all of us must work together to heal our self-inflicted black eye by proving ourselves to be the Good Samaritan of our Gulf Region neighbors rather than bandits who prey on them or passers-by who ignore them.

There's plenty of opportunity to do so. Bishop Coleman has authorized every parish to take up a special second collection to help out the charitable work of the Church in the affected dioceses. Many have already done so and parishioners have responded with great generosity. There are also several thousand evacuees in our own diocese, and Governor Romney has put out a clear call for the types of help needed in Bourne, especially in terms of volunteer personnel. In addition to their material needs, their spiritual needs also will need to be attended to.

While the beginning of our response clearly could have been better, the buzzer has not yet sounded. Our finest hour may not have been the first, but there's still time.

The words of Todd Beamer given four years ago this weekend continue to echo and to challenge: "Are you guys ready? Let's roll!"

Father Roger J. Landry is pastor of St. Anthony of Padua in New Bedford, MA and Executive Editor of The Anchor, the weekly newspaper of the Diocese of Fall River.