Dear Friends,

Egyptians in general—and staff members of CEOSS in particular—are stunned and saddened by the events of September 11. Many of my colleagues, and one family, the Iskandars, had relatives working in the World Trade Center buildings. Magda Iskandar received a phone call from her nephew who had walked down from the 39th floor to safety below.

People here have been kind to me, and we have all been shocked by the celebrating in the streets in Palestine, Egypt, and other parts of the Middle East. Egyptian Christians in particular are linked to the West in a theological as well as practical way. There have been special prayer services for citizens of the U.S., and especially for those whose lives have been lost.

They join me in expecting the United States’ foreign policy to shift, security issues to take top priority over relationships. There will surely be a military response.

On Friday, the people on the street and colleagues at CEOSS were saddened to learn that one of the men arrested held an Egyptian driver’s license. This means he is Egyptian, for only a citizen can hold a driver’s license. Their questions are not spoken out loud to me, but they are wondering how the States will retaliate?

My reaction has surprised me. I love my country as never before. I wanted to be with you, not thousands of miles away so that I would know you are safe and could react without screening my feelings. I was watching a TV in a hotel lobby as the news was broadcast and I thought I was watching a tasteless video. When I realized the truth I felt an overwhelming sense of sadness. On the evening of the 10th I’d been listening to the BBC report of violence in Nigeria. One-hundred and fifty people had been killed, some of them hacked to death with machetes, dragged from their cars. On the surface, the reasons were due to Muslim/Christian divides. But the underlying reason was economic distress, poverty, joblessness, youths striking out. How long, I thought, can the U.S. continue to escape this kind of anarchy? How long will we isolated from the problems of the southern tier’s chaotic existence? Sadly, the answers came quickly.

Mission partners of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) throughout the Middle East have condemned the attacks of the 11th. Both Christian and Muslim political leaders have all condemned the violence and expressed their dismay at any celebration of terror. And they ask that there be a global inquiry into the root causes of terrorist activities.

I pray that nothing of this nature will happen again. And I pray for the victims, the families and friends who have suffered immeasurable losses. And I trust that our country will measure the evidence, gather information, and make studiously just responses. I wish that I could be with you during this time, but feel that being here and continuing work is an important statement of solidarity to the vast majority of people in the Middle East who love justice and peace as much as we do.

God bless,

Layne Hawley

The 2001 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 143