Renewing our Christmas faith

KENNETT, Mo. -- The Christmas season has always been special to America, partly because its observance holds such meaning for those of us who are Christian and partly because it reminds all of us of the magical qualities that make up our society and its remarkable, almost unbelievable blessings.

This year's observance is no less meaningful than those of years past, and in many respects it is more significant than previous ones as a result of the events on Sept. 11.

The holiday season only a year ago and those immediately preceding it took on a flavor of an unprecedented spending exercise that did little to enhance the magical qualities that once surrounded our Christmases. Rich in cash and the ever-rising promises of corporate stock seemed to challenge us to a spending spree unequaled in the history of commerce. We spent, we splurged, with little or no thought of the fundamental concerns of millions of others around the world. We were the richest king of the walk, the proud possessors of more capital than we ever dreamed of seeing, much less acquiring.

And, then, came unimaginable terrorist attacks on New York City, Washington and Pennsylvania, claiming the lives of thousands of our fellow citizens. Quite suddenly, and most surprisingly, we found ourselves in an environment that more closely resembled that of the rest of the world.

Even as we were experiencing the numbing effects of these attacks we realized that our new world, unlike the old, was much more dangerous than we had ever imagined it could, or would, be, and that in this transformation we ourselves were being changed. How, we weren't certain, but we knew our complacent American had taken its place beside far too many other nations that had experienced the threats of both destruction and extinction.

For the first time in the memory of many of us, the safety of our fellow countrymen was being threatened. Those of us who still remember Dec. 7, 1941, were reintroduced to the same haunting feelings that returned on the morning of Sept. 11. The remarkable recovery of America after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the vitalization of the strength and resolve of Americans and our ultimate triumph against overpowering forces must still be counted as no small miracle, or series of miracles as we climbed out of the tangled debris left by the treacherous force of Imperial Japan and faced the even more formidable threat of Axis powers in Europe.

Our odds of achieving all of this were pathetically small on Dec. 8, but we survived, toughened, struggled, fought and died to preserve qualities that took on more meaning than any experienced in this country since the Revolution. Great homage has been paid to those who fought in that war, but we were not America's greatest generation alone. We had the support, the backing, the encouragement of all Americans, and it is they who deserve the accolades along with those who fell in battle.

On the morning of Sept. 12, Americans found themselves in a hauntingly familiar setting, threatened by enemies we knew little about, facing a prospect of rebuilding and rearming that, while different, was strangely familiar to the challenges presented us more than half a century earlier. The circumstances were different but the demands were the same. We were at war, and while the nature of its pursuit would be less involving now than after Pearl Harbor, the same support, courage, patriotism would be required if we were to win this one in the new millennium.

America's responses after Sept. 11 were just as forceful, just as united, just as strong as they were after Dec. 7. Without anyone even asking, we sent what aid we could in the form of donations to help those whose lives had been shattered by terrorism.

Millions and millions of us sent many more millions to help the victims on the east coast; thousands of rescue workers turned to the challenges of recovering and then burying the dead, and many more thousands offered whatever assistance was needed to restore the strength of our society. Not since World War II have our citizens responded with such speedy, overwhelming action to assist their fellow men and women.

What a great moment, what a revealing view of Americans!

As we pursue our enemies and as we take up the cause of protecting the weak and the vulnerable, America on this first Christmas after Sept. 11, are truly blessed for we have once again been given the opportunity to reunite our nation, reaffirm its cause, and demonstrate to the rest of the world that we are dedicated to the principles that were first laid out in our earliest colonial days.

These are the magnificent designs of a great democracy dedicated to guaranteeing basic freedoms for all citizens, not just the privileged or the powerful or the anointed. We shall pursue these freedoms, not only for ourselves but for all those in the rest of the world who have long been denied them.

America's determination to follow this path may indeed be the best Christmas gift we can share not only with our families and our neighbors but with al those who have never known the blessings of this special season.

What better way can American demonstrate its gratitude for the freedoms we seemed to take for granted only a year ago? What better way to show our appreciation for the greatest fit mankind can receive? Today's America is not the America of a year ago.

Today's America has found its calling, resurrected its faith in God and reaffirmed its resolute beliefs in a just society. What a great gift we have to share, and share it we must for the sake of those who died at the moment of our society's resurrection.

Merry Christmas, World!

Jack Stapleton is the editor of Missouri News and Editorial Service.