“Oh, God of love, compassion and reconciliation, address Your look to us, people with many different faiths and traditions, who are gathering in this place today, a scenario of incredible violence and pain”. The special prayer by the Pope at Ground Zero started with those words, and was shown by cameras from all over the world. After going down to a depth of 80 metres by the Pope car, reaching the “Bed Rock”, Benedict XVI was immersed in prayer for a few minutes, on his knees, and before kindling the candle and meeting 24 representatives of those who provided aid on September 11th, 2001 (the fire brigades, the police, the civil defence), of the wounded and the relatives of the victims, he prayed “to concede eternal peace and light to all the people who died in this place”: the first “heroic rescuers”, together “with all the innocent men and women, victims of this tragedy simply because their work and their service led them here on September 11th, 2001”. “We ask you to heal all the people who are suffering for wounds and illness owing to their presence here on that day”, said the Pope: “Heal also the sufferings of the families who are still in mourning, and of all the ones who lost people they loved in this tragedy. Give them the strength to go on living with courage and hope”. (To be continued)
