{"id":2358,"date":"2015-09-25T13:45:47","date_gmt":"2015-09-25T20:45:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/?p=2358"},"modified":"2016-07-10T11:34:16","modified_gmt":"2016-07-10T18:34:16","slug":"accepting-differences-at-ground-zero","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2015\/life\/accepting-differences-at-ground-zero\/","title":{"rendered":"Accepting Differences at Ground Zero"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"pope\"<\/a>

from www.buzzfeed.com<\/p><\/div>\n

I watched the televised broadcast of Pope Francis at Ground Zero. To say it was moving would be an understatement. I saw the pontiff embrace an imam and a rabbi, after they and others of varying faiths reflected on the senseless tragedy that had occurred on Sept. 11th<\/sup> fourteen years ago. They all gave messages of peace from the pulpit.<\/p>\n

The prayer for those who died was beautifully sung by a Jewish cantor. His voice, wailing at times, expressed the pain that comes when those you love are inexplicably taken away before their time.<\/p>\n

In his closing speech, Pope Francis reframed Ground Zero as no longer a place of death but now, a place of life.<\/p>\n

A choir of New York\u2019s young sang a song that had the refrain, \u201cpeace begins with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pope Francis, unlike his predecessors, has said that salvation is open to all, not just to those who embrace Catholicism.<\/p>\n

I am no longer a devout Christian but one who likes to follow in Christ\u2019s footsteps. To honour his teachings. To try to be as good as I can be. Pope Francis does walk in Jesus\u2019s shoes. He embodies what I believe were Jesus\u2019s teachings. He reaches out to all, regardless of their station in life or their belief, and shows each and every one the respect they deserve.<\/p>\n

Regardless of what faith we follow, we all strive for peace in our hearts.<\/p>\n

\"www.nbc.com\"<\/a>

www.nbc.com<\/p><\/div>\n

I was very religious growing up in the Orthodox faith. I was a Sunday School teacher. It all changed when I married a Catholic and our ceremony took place in my husband\u2019s church.<\/p>\n

I did not convert then, but the questioning began. Especially when the Catholic priest who was marrying us thought my husband shouldn\u2019t marry me because I wasn\u2019t Catholic. Since I was a good Christian at the time, I couldn\u2019t understand his judgement. But I did understand his unhappiness and judgement came from his inability to assert his control and convert me to his belief. He couldn\u2019t accept my different faith.<\/p>\n

And isn\u2019t that the same problem that exists today, as evidenced by all the religious wars? Whether it\u2019s the Catholics and the Protestants in Ireland, or the Jews and Arabs in the middle east, or the Islamic extremists and who they define as infidels?<\/p>\n

Why can\u2019t we accept each other\u2019s differences and live with a common purpose of peace and good will toward all?<\/p>\n

I\u2019m still at a crossroads when it comes to faith, not knowing which way to turn. My grandmother was a deeply religious woman and I wish I could follow in her footsteps, but with science and all, I question too much.<\/p>\n

But having said that, I marvel at those who do not and follow their faith, questions and all.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m in awe of Pope Francis, and hope and pray that his message will resonate for years to come. I hope and pray that those who are bent on fighting will pause and hear this great man and reflect on what they are doing and what they believe. Together, we can overcome.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I watched the televised broadcast of Pope Francis at Ground Zero. To say it was moving would be an understatement. I saw the pontiff embrace an imam and a rabbi,… <\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2360,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[88],"tags":[794,78,793,792,167],"class_list":["post-2358","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-life","tag-christian-faith","tag-diana-stevan","tag-ground-zero","tag-pope-francis","tag-sept-11"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/pope.jpg?fit=225%2C225&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1LuVB-C2","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2366,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2015\/life\/a-priest-is-just-a-man\/","url_meta":{"origin":2358,"position":0},"title":"A Priest is Just a Man","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"10 \u0416\u043e\u0432\u0442\u043d\u044f, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"I just finished reading The Bishop's Man\u00a0by Linden MacIntyre, a great read following Pope Francis's recent visit to America and his acknowledgement of the past sins of some Catholic priests. The book underlined the fact that a priest is just a man. This novel touches on the sexual abuse scandal\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 "Books"","block_context":{"text":"Books","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/books\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"a priest is just a man","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/41M4rNvT7PL._SX322_BO1204203200_-195x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5479,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2021\/uncategorized\/the-world-revolves-around-family\/","url_meta":{"origin":2358,"position":1},"title":"The World Revolves Around Family","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"12 \u0427\u0435\u0440\u0432\u043d\u044f, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"The World revolves around family, for where would we be without one? No matter the religion, the race, the culture, the sexual orientation, we've all struggled to manage the restrictions imposed because of the pandemic. 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I plan to watch the memorial television programs today. My husband says he doesn\u2019t want to relive it. We all have our ways of dealing with loss. We\u2019re Canadians and\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 \"Diana Stevan\"","block_context":{"text":"Diana Stevan","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/tag\/diana-stevan\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/the-world-trade-center-memorial.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2509,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2016\/uncategorized\/dumbing-down-donald-trump\/","url_meta":{"origin":2358,"position":3},"title":"Dumbing Down With Donald Trump","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"29 \u041b\u044e\u0442\u043e\u0433\u043e, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"The primaries seem to be all about dumbing down with Donald Trump. It's been entertaining but also frightening. To think that the American public might elect Donald Trump as their president has to be the most shocking development in the presidential race. \u00a0It looks like the American voters are dumbing\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 "Life"","block_context":{"text":"Life","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/life\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Dumbing Down With Donald Trump","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Donald_Trump_August_19_2015_cropped.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":554,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2011\/uncategorized\/cipher-at-tulsa-international-film-festival\/","url_meta":{"origin":2358,"position":4},"title":"Cipher at Tulsa International Film Festival","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"10 \u0421\u0435\u0440\u043f\u043d\u044f, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"CIPHER, a short film my grandson, Michael Stevantoni,\u00a0 directed, shot and edited has just been selected for the Tulsa International Film Festival Sept. 22-25, 2011. 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It's every writer's dream, at least I think it is, to have a book published by them or one\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 "Writing"","block_context":{"text":"Writing","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/writing\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/05\/P1110395-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2358","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2358"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2358\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2360"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2358"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2358"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2358"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}