Twenty-five years after the 9/11 attacks, their impact continues to resonate differently. Personal histories and political actions shape individual understandings of the event. Government policies and foreign interventions created new societal divisions and fears. Younger generations learn about 9/11 as historical events, not lived experiences. The COVID-19 pandemic offered some a new perspective on drastic change.

Twenty-five years since the attacks on the World Trade Centre in New York, 9/11 casts a shadow over a nation that just can’t seem to agree on anything any more.

As we approach the 25th anniversary of that terrible day, this week’s haftarah (Isaiah 61:10-63:9) offers a powerful perspective on destruction, rebuilding, and memory.

The September 11 attacks inspired a sense of national unity that has since been shattered.

This act of terror made us all suspicious of each other, where people’s looks, accents and clothes acquired a political meaning