A quarter-century after the attacks that changed the nation, Americans are being called to remember the lives lost, honor extraordinary courage and teach a new generation why September 11 still matters.
Families of victims will gather Friday at the National September 11 Memorial plaza in lower Manhattan for the 25th anniversary commemoration of the 2001 terrorist attacks.
During the ceremony, relatives will read aloud the names of 2,983 men, women and children killed in the September 11 attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Six moments of silence will mark when the towers were struck and fell, along with the attacks at the Pentagon and the crash of United Airlines Flight 93. A seventh silence will honor those lost to 9/11-related health effects.
A New Generation Must Learn the Story
The Memorial estimates that 100 million Americans are now too young to remember September 11, 2001. That reality gives this anniversary a particular urgency. Memory cannot depend only on those who witnessed the day; it must be deliberately passed on.
A free digital learning program will offer students and teachers first-person accounts of the attacks and their aftermath. Exhibitions throughout the anniversary year also highlight how grief was transformed into service, art, community action and care for others.
Light in the Darkness
At 8 p.m. Eastern, a national broadcast titled “9/11 Tribute in Light: Live from Lower Manhattan” is scheduled across ABC, Disney+, Hulu, National Geographic and related platforms. The two blue beams of the annual Tribute in Light will again rise above New York, recalling the Twin Towers and the people whose lives were taken.
THRIVE! Perspective: Turn Remembrance Into Faithful Service
Biblical reflection: Romans 12:15 calls believers to share the grief of others. Remembering September 11 means honoring the dead and remaining attentive to the living: bereaved families, survivors and responders whose suffering did not end when the cameras left. Prayer and practical care can give our remembrance substance.
For Christians, remembrance includes mourning with those who mourn, honoring sacrificial service and rejecting the hatred that targets innocent life. It is also a time to pray for survivors, first responders and families who still carry grief and physical illness.
Twenty-five years later, “never forget” remains more than a slogan. It is a promise to tell the truth, preserve memory and choose courage, compassion and service when darkness comes.
