NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER AND REMEMBRANCE AT THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

President Richard C. Atkinson - September 14, 2001

As you know, President Bush has proclaimed today a National Day of Prayer and Remembrance for the victims of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. I want to welcome each of you and to thank you for coming. This has been an incredible week, an extraordinarily difficult time for all of us. I am grateful for both your grace under pressure and your good work on the University's behalf.

The Office of the President is not a campus, but by tradition we do have a "chancellor"--the Senior Vice President for Businss and Finance. In a few moments, Senior Vice President Joe Mullinix will speak to us in that capacity, after which we will welcome comments from those who wish to share their feelings and perspectives on this week that has devastated so many lives. First, however, I would like to say just a few words.

If there is one lesson of the past few days, it would seem to be that there is much in life we cannot control. We cannot change the enormous human suffering that Tuesday's attacks have inflicted. We cannot avoid the uncertain but surely tremendous impact that these attacks will have on our own futures as individuals and as citizens. We cannot, at this point, even fully understand the human and geopolitical and other forces that have spawned this week of searing images and unforgettable events. That is a task for the days and months ahead.

But if we cannot change what happened on September 11, we can join with each other and with the rest of the nation in mourning for those who have lost their lives. We can unite our sorrow with the sorrow of other Americans across the country and, with them, express our sympathy to those who, as a result of this terrible attack, must face a future bereft of family or friends or colleagues. And we can, through the testimony of our presence, reaffirm the values that our academic community stands for--intellectual freedom, respect for those who differ with us, and the search for mutual understanding. Those values have stood the test of time. They have never been more important than they are today.

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