It is hard not to think that this is the defining moment of the century so far. We all remember exactly where we were ten years ago. I was in a bookshop in Knutsford, the owner had turned up the radio for us all to hear. America was under attack. When I got to a television, the images dug deep into the memory, a horror made for TV.
Those pictures; the impact of the planes on metal and glass; people leaping to their deaths; the fire officers struggling in the dust; the lines of shocked people walking away from Manhattan.
But it is the response to the violence of those 19 suicidal extremists that has sadly defined this last decade. Revenge on nations, invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. Over a million killed. The US could have pursued those responsible in such a different way. They choose retribution and violence, and now there are at least 19 suicidal extremists every month in Iraq and Afghanistan. Vicious and endless circles of violence.
Let us pray, that the next ten years will see nations refusing to follow the logic of violence and revenge, and instead, doing all they can to foster real justice and peacemaking in our troubled world.
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