The smiling of the late-summer sun upon the Bethlehem Catholic High School campus belied the mood inside the auditorium, where students, staff, and guests had gathered for a Blue Mass celebrated by Bishop Alfred Schlert. Held on the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, it recognized first responders, 9/11 survivors, and those who had lost their lives while serving and defending the citizenry.
“These men and women are examples of the people of 9/11 who ran in the opposite direction,” he said, gesturing toward the honored guests.
The Bishop went on to recall his former student Colleen Supinski, a graduate of Notre Dame High School, Easton who was killed when the South Tower of the World Trade Center collapsed.
“She had a wonderful future ahead of her,” he said. “She never had a chance because she was above the impact, and to this day, her family has gotten nothing of her to bury.”
Bishop Schlert shared that, every year, he watches the film “102 Minutes That Changed America,” a documentary about the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
“I watch it for Colleen, because I want to remember her. I want to remember those families who were forever affected. I want to remember the first responders who went that day and never came home, or came home forever scarred. I want to remember the construction workers and the men and women on the street who cleared debris for days.”
Addressing the students, the Bishop said, “My young friends, you didn’t live it, but you also mustn’t forget it.”
He proceeded to tell how, on the night of the terrorist attacks, both houses of Congress met on the steps of the Capitol and sang “God Bless America.”
“Could any of you picture that happening today?” he asked the congregation. “That we could all come together and agree on something?
“What has happened in these last 24 years is that the enemy has become ourselves. Not some extremist movement, not some deranged people, but ourselves.”
Bishop Schlert then issued the students a challenge. “You need to change this,” he said. “Can we resolve today to move away from our screens and the hatred that they produce? To seek to understand each person as human beings?”
The Bishop movingly described the attitude of Americans in the aftermath of 9/11. “We acknowledged each other’s humanity. [The attacks] jolted us back into who we are and what’s important.
“I hope we can refind that, but not in the way we found it on 9/11. That was a terribly hard lesson. Let’s try to rekindle that just because we want to be peace-loving, God-loving, better citizens of humanity.”
At the conclusion of the Mass, first responders and survivors enjoyed a reception with Bishop Schlert.
Afterward, Bishop Schlert blessed three new spaces at Bethlehem Catholic, including the Marian Garden in the school’s courtyard. Overseeing the garden’s rosebushes and vivid yellow blooms is a beautiful new statue of Our Lady, a gift of Jim and Donna Foley, members of the Class of 1975. The statue was donated in memory of Joan Mangan Foley ’42, who had a devotion to the Blessed Mother.
The Frassati Room for Campus Ministry, named after the newly canonized St. Pier Giorgio Frassati, was the Bishop’s next stop. The room, which is used for meetings, recreation, and Bible studies, is outfitted with couches, bean bag chairs, ping pong, foosball, and a projector screen.
Bishop Schlert also blessed the Hawk Learning Support Classroom, a dedicated space for students with individual learning needs.
Each of the three spaces will help further the school’s mission of developing servant-leaders in the image of Jesus Christ.
Photos by Ed Koskey.