Service Held at Yankee Stadium

ByABC News
September 23, 2001, 2:15 PM

Sept. 23 -- Thousands of people gathered today at New York's Yankee Stadium at a multi-faith service to mourn the victims of the Sept. 11 terror attacks on America.

New York Mayor Rudolph Mayor Giuliani was careful to call the occasion a prayer service, rather than a memorial, though hope was fading for most of the people buried when the two towers of the World Trade Center collapsed after being hit by two hijacked airplanes.

No survivors have been pulled out since Sept. 12, the day after the attacks, and 6,453 people are missing in the World Trade Center attack. As of Saturday, 261 people were confirmed dead, 194 of whom have been identified.

The hijackers also crashed a plane into the Pentagon, where 189 people are missing or dead. A fourth hijacked plane went down in rural Pennsylvania, after passengers apparently tried to wrest control of the aircraft from the terrorists. All 44 on board were killed.

We Shall Not Be Moved

Yankee Stadium, normally filled with thousands of cheering baseball fans, instead had thousands somberly applauding Placido Domingo, who sang "Ave Maria," and nodding to the words of TV talk show host Oprah Winfrey.

"They came to kill Americans. Each life lost represents one of us. Every story we've heard has pained us so much because we know their stories are our stories," she said.

But, she added: "We Americans refuse to be shattered. We shall not be moved."

The House That Prayer Built

Second base became a stage and podium for today's service, dubbed "A Prayer for America," and a spray of red, white and blue carnations covered the pitcher's mound.

Winfrey and actor James Earl Jones hosted the service, which included prayers from several Roman Catholic clerics, Jewish rabbis, Islamic and Sikh ministers. Cardinal Edward Egan, Imam Izak-El Pasha and Dr. Inberjit Singh were among those officiating. Also present was Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, who succeeded the Rev. Mychal Judge as chaplain of the Fire Department of New York. Judge was killed as he was administering last rites to a victim at the World Trade Center.