Many Catholic dioceses, including the Diocese of Phoenix, held special Masses on Sunday, with Church leaders expressing messages of sacrifice and hope on the 21st anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.

"Our #FirstResponders give their time, energy and their lives for the sake of this community. We celebrate those who put themselves in harm's way," Bishop John P. Dolan said during a Mass of Thanksgiving in Phoenix, as Jeff Grant, a reporter for the Catholic Sun, reported on Twitter.

Other bishops made comments along that same vein.

“Dear police officers, firefighters, sheriffs and park rangers of our city of San Francisco: It is an honor for us to host you here… for this Mass in which we thank you for the sacrifices you make for us, sacrifices mostly which we do not even see,” Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone tweeted.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) publicized a broader message about the anniversary.

“As we remember Sept. 11, 2001, let us reflect on Pope Francis' Prayer of Remembrance at Ground Zero in 2015,” the USCCB tweeted. It included a picture of Pope Francis, who offered prayer during a visit to Ground Zero in New York in September 2015. That full prayer can be read here.

The deadly attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon have been a subject of prayer and pastoral messages over the years, with the USCCB making one of the first.

About two months after the attacks, the USCCB released “Living With Faith and Hope After September 11,” a pastoral message in which the bishops quote the Beatitudes (Mt. 5:4,6,7,9), adding, “We offer words of consolation, criteria for moral discernment, and a call to action and solidarity in these troubling and challenging times.”

The bishops’ message honored the firefighters, law enforcement officers, chaplains and others who died during or after the attacks. It discusses such things as responding with faith and justice, and the role religion can play in politics and terrorism. The USCCB conveyed praise for the nation’s commitment to the common good, in unity with a determination to come together and defend America from all future threats, the pastoral message continues.

In 2021, the Pillar released an article headlined “The Catholic Church and 9/11” that documented stories and testimonials about the day. It mentions Pope St. John Paul II, who remembered the attacks on Sept. 12, 2002, saying, “Christ’s word is the only one that can give a response to the questions which trouble our spirit. Even if the forces of darkness appear to prevail, those who believe in God know that evil and death do not have the final say.”

On the 10-year anniversary of the attacks, a prayer service was held at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City. At it, a Brooklyn pastor said, “We decided to have exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. People flocked to the church… We held many funerals for police and fire persons who gave their lives,” the article adds.

Church leaders throughout the years have offered some unique takes on the attacks. Franciscan Friar Father Brian Jordan, for example, offered a video in which he recounts a story of the Ground Zero Cross that stood tall after the attack despite being in the middle of so much carnage.