Reflections on a Post 9/11 Society:19 Years Later

Thinking back on September 11, 2001, I have it better than most. I’ve shared elsewhere about how my sister was stranded in Pakistan working for the UN helping Taliban refugees, and how after waiting it out in Europe for flights back into the US to resume after they’d been halted, she finally made it home. My story has a happy ending. This is not to say I was unaffected: of the people I knew of in the Trade Towers that day, two made it out alive, and the one who didn't was the father of a classmate. 

I grew up in Bayonne, a smallish town of 60,000 people separated from the Manhattan skyline by only the Upper New York Bay. That may sound like a lot of people, but you couldn’t walk down the town’s main street on a summer night without running into someone you knew. Many commuted daily into the city to work at places like Windows on the World, Cantor Fitzgerald, and the Port Authority of NY/NJ. One of them, Marcy Walsh, the subject of one of the most iconic photos taken that day, was a few years ahead of me in high school.

I recently read recently that there were over 750 people from New Jersey alone who died that day, and as I scrolled through the pictures, I recognized many surnames and wondered if they were related to people I had grown up with.

No one in my hometown was unaffected. We were young adults at the time and the world was a very different place. I wouldn't own my first cell phone for another year, not that it would have made a difference that day: mobile phone traffic was completely overloaded up and down the East Coast, and would continue to crash cell tower networks for days.

I had moved to Virginia Beach 3 years earlier, but still visited often. I remember calling my Mom, who because she worked for the Department of Defense, was able to get a secure line and make a 3-way call to my best friend at the time. He was working for Major League Baseball off of 6th Avenue and, incredibly, was at home that day. I felt so much relief knowing that he was safe, and away from all of the madness. We only spoke for a few minutes, because the line was desperately needed for defense preparations being made. My Mom never really talked about what that day was like for her, but years later we went to see the Nicholas Cage movie World Trade Center, and she broke down sobbing in the theater. 

I can’t stress enough that America was a different country back then. People loved George W. Bush. I hadn't voted for him, but he won me over with his love for Jesus and his steadfast determination to take a nation, still in shock, by the hand and tell us that we would survive, heal, and find the people accountable for this horrific act. I remember hearing first hand accounts of black men and white men walking together in Times Square in the days that followed. Embracing. Crying together. And of rescue workers deliberately hiding under rubble, so that the K9 officers could be encouraged periodically to find someone alive. Word had gone out that the dogs were getting visibly discouraged, finding body after body. 

I was in massage school at the time, and we got reports from MERT (Massage Emergency Response Team) members who had driven all through the night and over hundreds of miles to offer trauma massage to the overworked EMTs. As evil as that day was, it brought Americans together in a way I had never seen before, and churches were overflowing. Perhaps what amazed me most were the people who cried with America from the heartland, thousands of miles away, who had never set foot in New York City. They sent aid and manpower, as if they had experienced personal loss. And that was the thing: they HAD, because we were all Americans. Stories began to emerge of the heroic acts of so many brave men and women who gave their lives not just at the Towers, but on United Flight 93, and at the Pentagon. There was such unity in those days. There was no mistaking good for evil.

Which brings me to the point of writing this. I didn't think it was ever possible, but people have forgotten what happened that day. With time Bush's legacy was marred by the war in Afghanistan and the weapons of mass destruction debacle, but even more disturbing were the conspiracy theories that cropped up. That the Jews had done it, that the government had done it, and the worst of all: that no one was actually in the Twin Towers the day they fell. I remember wanting to scream at the ones carelessly promoting these ridiculous stories. These people were real. I knew them. They mattered. And anyone promoting such lies was displaying the ultimate disregard for not just the families left behind, but for the victims themselves. They were being no better than Holocaust deniers.

And all the while a new generation was coming of age; last year marked the first time that the anniversary would be observed by adults who were born post-9/11, with no recollection of life before the Manhattan skyline was forever altered. And the truth seems to have become muddled over the years. Anyone who advocates for anything less than open borders is likely to be called narrow-minded and full of hatred. We now have been hearing that Islam is a religion of peace for so many years that anyone who dares question this mantra is guilty of bigotry, while Christianity is met with open hostility and disdain.

We're so afraid of offending people that we have ceased to have real discussions where opposing opinions can be laid bare and debated for the purpose of trying to understand one another and find truth. We stumble over ourselves to let people into this country who haven't been properly vetted, and when our current administration wanted to take a few months and relook at those policies and procedures, people nearly lost their minds.

We're told it's shameful to refer to ourselves as a Christian nation because it is a microaggression and drives people to their safe spaces. But it's truth. Most don't realize that when our forefathers wrote our constitution, it was intended for men and women who had Judeo-Christian values. There's no need to apologize for that. It's what has made our country blessed and prosperous.

I wake up every day recognizing my country less and less. What's right is wrong and what's wrong is right. And yet, the Bible indicates that this time would come - the end of days. I'm not troubled for myself, because I know Jesus paid for my sin and I have eternal life no matter what happens. But for the people I love who haven't quite picked a side, who try and straddle the fence to please everyone and offend no one, it's for them that I lose sleep some nights. 

The generation that came before me has often lamented that removing prayer and Bible reading from schools is when this started. Maybe they're right. Because faith comes by hearing the Word of God, and for those kids who didn't go to church on Sundays, they were at least hearing about God. They were hearing about what is right and what is wrong. There was a moral standard, and if people lived contrary to that standard, they at least had the decency to be ashamed of their actions. Today we have people parading it out for everyone to see, full of pride and without respect for anything, including themselves.

A few years ago on the anniversary of the attacks, I wore a shirt with stars and stripes to work. I had a few people comment on how patriotic I looked, but I'm not 100% sure they made the connection of why I made that fashion choice. I realize that it falls to my generation, as well as the ones who have come before, to not allow September 11, 2001 to be marginalized, distorted, or forgotten. We need to tell our stories of what the world was like before. When people could still reason together. When being a God-fearing American was not something to be ashamed of.

The World Has Gone Mad. (But What Can I Do?)

How Culture Impact Teams are helping Christians go from Helpless to Heroic

If you’re like me, you are probably on social media. But these days, after a short time, I start getting angry, overwhelmed, and sad by what I’m reading. I start to type a response to someone who I clearly feel needs me to enlighten them, only to realize that I’m not going to win a Facebook argument with someone whom I have never met, lives in another part of the country, and gives zero bananas what I think. 

Halfway through my frenzied typing, I let out a sigh. Love is patient. Love is kind. Love does not behave rudely. Love is not provoked. I hit the backspace button and exit the app, leaving my words hanging. Unspoken. Frustrated.

And I console myself with the fact that at least I know the truth! But deep down, I’m grieved because I feel like if I could just share a cup of earl grey with them, I might be able to listen and understand how in the world they came to their conclusion, and perhaps from that place, we could look at the Bible together and pray for God’s perspective on a given topic. (Although I’m pretty sure I already have it and they’re the ones that need revelation. Did I mention I have a stubborn streak and am perpetually needing to humble myself? Well, another time, another blog…)

But the fact remains that I still feel pretty overwhelmed about what’s going on in the world, and ever more helpless to do anything about it. Anyone else?

So I was really intrigued when my friend Chris told me she was starting a Culture Impact Team that would meet at our church one Saturday a month. I even asked if I could interview her for my blog. She had an even better idea: an offer to introduce me to David Riffel, coordinator for The School of Practical Government for Charis Bible College, who also oversees the Culture Impact Team at his church, and helps other churches to start their own Culture Impact Team.

Um, yes, please?!

So without further ado, I’d like to share with you what I learned during my hour-plus conversation with David and his wife Marian on a Zoom meeting call a few days ago. 

Who are David and Marian Riffel?

I spent the first few minutes of our interview just getting to know this couple and I was so impressed that they would take time out of their busy schedules to talk about Culture Impact Teams, but also to ask me questions about myself, as well as share about their own journey of how their Culture Impact Team came to be viewed by some leaders as a “Poster Child” CIT because of the Team’s amazing results.

“Both Dave and I are from Michigan,” Marian told me, “and we’ve been married 52 years, and we’ve always done ministry together.” 

Pretty impressive, considering neither look a day over 60. But I soon discovered that Dave had a thriving chiropractic business before all of this, so it makes sense that they have taken good care of themselves and show no signs of slowing down anytime soon. But they actually credit a promise that God gave Dave about 40 years ago from Psalm 103:5 that states that their youth would be renewed like the eagles. 

He also taught at the church they attended, so it’s pretty incredible that they decided that there was still more to learn, and had no problem picking up their lives and moving to start attending bible college. According to Dave, about 2 and a half years earlier, a friend gave them a book by Charis Bible College founder Andrew Wommack entitled God Wants You Well. After reading it, Dave began to ask if he could pray for patients at his practice, especially if they were not responding to his treatments or if they were battling a condition that was beyond his care. During this time, Dave had the opportunity to pray for over 700 of his patients! Many saw an improvement in their condition, including one lady who had been on hospice with stage 7 Alzheimers, but after prayer regained her ability to speak, read, and write. One day Dave told Marian, “I think we could do more for people praying for them than we can by my working with my two hands,” so they retired and began the next chapter at bible college.

While in their second year, an option opened up to take an additional year of schooling that would specialize in Practical Government for students who felt they wanted to impact their culture by running for public office. Dave felt led to enroll in this curriculum and became acquainted with Mark Cowart, Director of the Practical Government School, and Senior Pastor of Church for All Nations, where they are now members and where they trained to lead their own CIT. 

A Closer Look at Culture Impact Teams

So if this is the first time you’ve ever heard of a CIT, you probably have questions. I did. I asked, and Dave answered!

JC (Jenny Constantine): What is a Culture Impact Team for those who have never heard of one? Can you talk about how and why it came to fruition? What is its purpose or function?

DR (Dave Riffel): Culture Impact Teams (CITs) were the creation of the Family Research Council (FRC) in Washington, D.C.  They lobby legislators to support bills that relate to matters of faith, family, and freedom.  A year ago FRC renamed the teams Community Impact Teams, but they have given permission for those who have operated under the Culture Impact Team name to continue to use that name.

A Culture Impact Team is formed within a local church, with the approval of the pastor, and the team follows the guidelines established by FRC to assure that they will work to:

• Take work off the pastor’s “plate” instead of adding work to his already full plate

• Educate, inform, and inspire the congregation with a Biblical worldview of events

• Invite experts to speak to the CIT, including legislators, Ministry Leaders, such as Crisis Pregnancy Centers; Civic Leaders, including candidates for office and office-holders who have a Biblical worldview.

• Organize training events to sponsor Voter Registration and Circulating Petitions

JC: Is a CIT rooted in biblical precedent? Is it founded on the truth of Jesus Christ?

DR: In the Great Commission, Jesus commanded his disciples to “make disciples of all the nations.”

Matt 28:18-19 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations. (NKJV)”

The Church has made disciples “in all the nations” but has not attempted to disciple the nations as a whole. Doing so means transforming the culture so that the nation follows Godly principles and has a Biblical worldview.

That is exactly what America’s founding fathers did. They codified Godly principles in the Declaration of Independence and in the US Constitution that for the first time espoused the equality of all men and their right to choose their leaders. As a result of their efforts, America became known worldwide as a Christian nation!  They had followed Jesus’ command to make disciples “of all the nations.”

JC: What would you tell a believer who thinks Christians should quit meddling in politics and be content to believe “God is in Control?” 

DR: When we look at the totality of Scripture, we see a much different viewpoint than the commonly espoused view by much of the Church that “God is in control of everything”.  From this distorted viewpoint comes a mindset of apathy: “If God is in control, we can sit back and know that His will shall be accomplished, regardless of our actions or lack of action.”

2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

Here God’s will is clearly stated: He is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.  The obvious questions are: do any perish?  Do all come to repentance?  After all, according to the “Sovereignty of God” mantra, God is in control of everything and whatever His will is will come to pass regardless of our actions or lack of action.

It is clear that God’s will is not accomplished simply because He wills it.  He does not want anyone to perish in their sin, yet thousands perish in their sin daily because He has given us free will, and He will not impose His will on our free will.

Take the scriptural examples of the following men who opposed their government’s edicts and were honored by God as heroes in the “Faith Hall of Fame” in Hebrews 11 and in other places in Scripture:

• Moses’ parents who defied Pharaoh’s order to kill all Hebrew male children 

• Moses himself who defied the commands of Pharaoh 

• Daniel, who refused to an “Executive Order” to bow and pray to the golden image.

Finally, America’s Founding Fathers defied the commands of their King, because his edicts contradicted the truths that they were discovering in the Scriptures, including:

• “all men are created equal” which they saw in this Scripture:

Gal 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.  

They discovered that God had shown Moses how His people should be governed:

Isa 33:22  (For the Lord is our Judge, The Lord is our Lawgiver, The Lord is our King; He will save us);  

From this Scripture, they derived the three branches of government that we now know as the “Separation of Powers:”

• The Lord is our Judge showed them the Judicial Branch

• The Lord is our Lawgiver showed them the Legislative Branch

• The Lord is our King showed them the Executive Branch (God has stated to Israel not to have a King but they disobeyed Him.)

Ex 18:21 Moreover you shall select from all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.  

From this scripture they derived the election of leaders (“Choose from among you”) and their character qualities (“able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness;”) and the divisions or levels of government:

• Rulers over thousands were like the Federal government 

• Rulers of hundreds were like the State government

• Rulers of fifties were like the County government

• Rulers of tens were like the Municipal or City government

JC: If someone wants to get involved in a CIT here in Colorado or in their own hometown, how do they get started? Can they get help to start their own chapter if there isn’t one happening in their local area?

DR: First of all, Culture Impact Teams function within a Church congregation.  They are not just a Civic/Community group, they are a group of Christians who share the following values:

• They are of like faith 

• They have a common bond; they are members of the larger Body of Christ, but are also members of their local church congregation with fellow believers and friends

• They have a Biblical worldview

• They want to see Godliness restored to their culture and their government

• They want to see their freedoms protected

• They are willing to be trained to take action to accomplish these goals

Our church has provided a website with resources to help your church start a Culture Impact Team! We want to see every church take action to restore Godliness to our culture and to our government. To do so we provide:

• A website with links to videos that you can share with friends and with your pastor.  That website is www.cultureimpact.us  

• Watch the videos, share them with your pastor, share them with your friends

• Ask your pastor for a meeting to share your vision to transform the culture after he or she has watched a few select videos that you have shared with him

• Assure him or her that having a Culture Impact Team will not add work to his or her plate, but that you will work to take things off his or her plate, such as:

  • He or she already has people wanting him or her to address topics that he or she cannot cover from the pulpit

  • You will cover the topics in depth that pertain to a Biblical worldview on current events that may challenge our freedoms and our faith

  • You will invite speakers that he or she approves of to educate, inform, and inspire your congregation members

  • From your team, you will develop events to sponsor Voter Registration, circulate petitions, and even have candidate forums so that your congregation can become educated citizens who vote their Godly values

• After receiving approval from your pastor, meet with those interested in being a part of the Culture Impact Team.  See that they have watched the videos that you have selected and shared with your pastor or watch them together as the focus of your initial meeting with them.

• Enlist a team of leaders who will help to divide responsibilities:

  • An Administrator who will arrange meeting dates with the Church calendar

  • A person who will invite speakers to address your CIT on your regular meeting dates

  • A person or persons who will manage the technical aspects of running the AVL (Audio-Visual and Lighting), controlling sound systems, microphones, computers and display screens for PowerPoint Presentations

  • A person who can control the HVAC (Heating/Ventilation and Air Conditioning) to keep the room temperature comfortable and who can turn off loud blowers or fans if needed

• Don’t be overwhelmed.  Pray and ask for God’s guidance in each area.  Remember that it is His idea to have Godliness restored to our culture and our government.  Ask for His help, He will give it willingly!

• Remember that you will start small and will grow.  You and one other person may constitute the entire leadership team at first.  Leaders will surface as people volunteer and participate.  You will recognize their gifts and you can ask if they would like to be a part of the leadership team.

• Ask for our help.  You can reach us through:

  • Our website: www.cultureimpact.us  

  • There is a link there to email us at: info@cultureimpactteams.com 

• Contact the Family Research Council’s Community Impact Team website: https://communityimpact.frc.org/

  • Watch their training videos

  • Sign up to register your CIT

  • Order promotional materials for your CIT

  • Stay informed through their educational webinars 

Takeaways

My mind was sufficiently blown after the interview. I had never realized how the model for our government was actually based in scripture; and if it was, it made total sense why so many people in this country who are opposed to Godly principles would be seeking to dismantle it.

I really enjoyed talking with the Riffels. While I have always had an interest in politics, and would occasionally volunteer during election years if I felt strongly about a candidate, it always felt as though I never had the time to really invest in on an everyday basis other than reading the newspaper and feeling frustrated for a few minutes before pushing it out of my mind on more pressing things for the coming day. 

I could clearly see how CITs were a game changer for all of that. They are a place to become educated and informed, and then begin to take that back with me to my friends, family, and co-workers.

Culture Impact Teams aren’t just for politics, either. I went to a meeting at my local church, and we had a guest speaker who addressed teen suicide. We discussed how to be more equipped and bring the truth of Jesus into those difficult situations, and help people to see their worth and value in Him. 

I think there’s something very poignant and hopeful about CITs, because they are not only taking a proactive approach to address real issues that Christians are facing, but are also looking towards the future to preserve the beauty of what makes America such a wonderful place to live, for this generation, and for the ones to follow.

Jesus famously said in the Sermon on the Mount, 

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called Sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt 5:9-10, NKJV)

Clearly, not everyone is going to love righteousness and pursue peace. Doing so ensures that we will face persecution. However, while the world has gone mad, the people’s souls who live in it are clearly worth fighting for. And as long as America stands for biblical principles, I’m standing with her.