On September 11, the members of the executive board of our downtown Manhattan church got in touch with each other within a short time of the attacks on the World Trade Center. We decided to open the church that evening as a refuge for our community to pray, read psalms, and sing hymns. An organist, who was called at the very last moment, ran on foot from 34th Street to 8th Street in order to provide the music when the subway could take him no further.
Smoke filled the air outside the boardroom.
Although the special meeting was to be held at 7:00, we found that we opened the doors at 6:30, people came right in. Our church was the closest Christian Science church in the city to the site of the attack, and many were on foot that afternoon, their evening briefcases in hand, as they sought a safe place.
