PREAMBLE: I grieve for those who lost their lives on 9/11/01, and for their families, for whom I frequently forget to pray. I condemn the actions of the perpetrators and name them (the actions, not the perpetrators) as what they are: unmitigatedly evil. As a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, I also condemn the immature "lashing out" in reaction to that evil, and I grieve for those who have lost their lives in furtherance of that lashing out, and for their families, for whom I frequently forget to pray. END PREAMBLE.

Now here are some other numbers that we may want to keep in mind on 9/11/09, as a matter of perspective.

* Total number of deaths during 9/11 attacks (excluding the terrorists): 2,973

* Total number of people who will die on 9/11/09: 150,835

* Total number of people who will die on 9/11/09 from hunger/starvation: ~24,000

* Total number of children under the age of 5 who will die from hunger/starvation on 9/11/09: ~18,000

* Total number of people who will die of HIV/AIDS on 9/11/09: 5,479

* According to a recent Cornell University study, number of people who will die of causes directly related to water, air and soil pollution on 9/11/09: 60,334

* Total number of people who will not be allowed to live, due to their inconvenience to others, on 9/11/09: 126,027

* Total number of people who will survive on less than $2.50 on 9/11/09: ~3,000,000,000

* Total number of people who will survive on less than $1.00 on 9/11/09: ~1,300,000,000

* Total number of children of primary school age who will not be able to attend a school on 9/11/09: ~72,000,000

* Percentage of money spent on weapons required to put all 72,000,000 of those children in school: <1%

On September 11, 2009, let us mourn, let us remember, let us pray, let us think, let us speak, let us work, let us hope, and let us love (and, remember, the greatest of these is love). But let us do so within a proper context, within a proper perspective.

On September 11, 2009, I won't forget to pray for that.

Join me, please.

Grace and Peace,

Raffi