Denver Catholic

2 I CATHOLIC LIFE SEPTEMBER 10, 2014 I DENVER CATHOLIC REGISTER ARCHBISHOP'S COLUMN MOST REV. SAMUEL J. AQUILA "You will know them by their fruits," Jesus told the crowd listening to him on the mountain top. This week, as we remember those who died on Sept. 11, 2001, I want to ex- amine the fruits born from the choice in our hearts between hatred and love, so that it's clear what is at stake. God did not intend for death to be a part of creation, but it entered the world with the disobedience of Adam and Eve. Soon thereafter, Cain killed his brother when God chose Abel's sacrifi ce over Cain's less generous offering. This was the fi rst episode of violence in history. Between 2000 and 2008, scholars gathered in Vienna, Austria, for the International Christian-Islamic Round Table. During that dialogue, professor Heinrich Ott de- scribed the phenomenon of religious violence in the form of an equation. A paraphrased version of what he said is: "When you love your fellow man, you love God. When you hate your fellow man, you end up hating God." When one meditates on the two great commandments, one can see the truth of that conclusion. The fruits of violence committed in the name of religion fi ll the news. We hear almost daily about families being torn apart and individuals' lives being lost. One only needs to look at the attacks of Sept. 11 and the atrocities currently being carried out by the Islamic State, Boko Haram and others to see that this evil remains with us. The fruit of people hating their fellow man is that they end up hating God. Their religion becomes warped and twisted by their hatred for their neighbor. The two loves are intertwined; you cannot love God and hate man, who is made in his image and likeness. No true religion allows this combination. The fruits of loving one's fellow man stand in stark con- trast to the rotten fruit of hatred. This past Monday and Tuesday, the Church celebrated the feasts of the Birth of Mary and St. Peter Claver, S.J. These two saints, of whom Mary is certainly the greater, both loved their fellow man, and therefore loved God. When the Blessed Mother experienced the persecution of Herod, when she heard about her son being ridiculed by the Scribes and Pharisees, or when she witnessed the cruel execution of Jesus, she was presented with the opportunity to hate her fellow man. But Mary chose to love her neigh- bor, and in doing so, she loved God. The fruit of her holy life and death is beyond compare. History is fi lled with the stories of countless souls that have been reunited with God, miracles that have been obtained, and disasters that have been averted through Mary's intercession. St. Peter Claver was also confronted with the cruelty of man toward his neighbor in the form of the slave trade. He lived during the early 1600s and dedicated himself to serv- ing the hundreds of thousands of slaves brought from Africa to the port city of Cartagena, Colombia. Whenever a ship docked, the Jesuit saint would beg for food for the prisoners and then enter the holds to bring what he Sept. 11 and the battle for hearts For more informa on and to register: www.HikeforHospice.org or call 303-561-5790 Join us for the 9th annual Hike for Hospice to benefit Porter Hospice and St. Anthony Hospice Sunday, September 14, 2014 Check in between 7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m Olinger Mount Lindo, off Hwy. 285 South, Morrison, CO For more informa on and to register: www.HikeforHospice.org or call 303-561-5790 Sunday, September 14, 2014 Check in between 7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m Olinger Mount Lindo, off Hwy. 285 South, Morrison, CO Join us for the 9th annual Hike for Hospice to benefit Porter Hospice and St. Anthony Hospice Sunday, September 14, 2014 Sunday, September 14, 2014 Check in between 7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m Olinger Mount Lindo, off Hwy. 285 South, Morrison, CO Join us for the 9th annual Hike for Hospice to benefit The Catholic Register Proudly Supports Presen ng Sponsor: Right At Home See Aquila, Page 5 Retired NYC fi refi ghter remembers 9/11 every day BY ROXANNE KING This week the world will re- member the 13th anniversary of the events of 9/11, but for Steamboat Springs resident Kevin Nerney, 56, the attacks are "a daily memory." On Sept. 11, 2001, Lieutenant Nerney was settling into a new life in Steamboat Springs, hav- ing just retired two weeks ear- lier from the New York City Fire Department. He watched as the Twin Towers crumbled, know- ing that his crew would most likely be on the ground. He found out later that all the men from his fi re station on duty that day died, including his best friend. He took the fi rst available plane back to New York to help with the search and cleanup efforts. "It was a horror show," he told the Denver Catholic Register re- calling the 10 days he spent at ground zero. At one point he called his wife, Kathy, and told her, "Kath, there's nothing but down here but death." In June, Nerney learned that he has a form of brain can- cer, stage four glio- blastoma, which is among the cancers tied to the tox- ic ground zero cleanup area. He immediately underwent surgery, radiation and chemo- therapy and is getting ready to start another series of chemo. His medical bills have topped $640,000. Because he worked as a volunteer at ground zero, Nerney was told he's ineligible for fi nancial assistance from the World Trade Center Health Program. To help Nerney, Holy Name Church, where he and Kathy are parishioners—their two chil- dren are grown and have both served in the military—has established the Kevin Nerney Fund (see box for information). "People are so compassion- ate," Kathy Nerney said, ex- pressing gratitude. Although her husband's speech is a bit slurred at times and his thought process can be fuzzy, the cancer hasn't slowed him down. He is Grand Knight of his parish's Knights of Colum- bus Council and a member of the men's Beer and Bible group. "I think he's missed one Knight's meeting, that's it," Kathy Nerney said. "He still goes to Beer and Bible every Tuesday and if he can't go, they come here. Last week he made chili for them. He keeps truckin' along." On Sept. 11, he'll attend a me- morial service and pray for his fallen comrades. "For guys like us, it's a daily memory," he said. "It feels like yesterday, not 13 years ago." KEVIN NERNEY FUND Make checks payable to: Kevin Nerney Fund Mail to: Holy Name Catholic Church, PO Box 774198, Steamboat Springs, CO 80477 KEVIN NERNEY PHOTO BY ROBERT LINN/DCR ARCHBISHOP SAMUEL AQUILA, center, and fi rst responders—law enforcement offi cers, fi re- fi ghters and paramedics—attending the 2014 Blue Mass Sept. 6 at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception gather for a portrait in the Mary Garden following the afternoon liturgy. Blue Mass honors fi rst responders

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