Timothy Keller, pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, New York, writes:

After September 11, I re-read Augustine's The City of God. Rome in Augustine's time was facing something similar to what New York faced in the aftermath of the tragedy. The city had been sacked. It didn't really fall; it had just been violated. It's as if the barbarians attacked to say, "See what we can do?" All of Rome, even the Christians, felt that if the barbarians could do that, there would be nowhere safe.

Augustine's point was that people were confusing Rome with the City of God. They were seeking their security from the wrong place. While pagan Romans might run and hide—which would only make sense with Rome being such a dangerous place to be all of a sudden—Christians should be different. As citizens of the City of God, there are no weapons or bombs that can threaten a Christian's home. For Christians it was illogical, even wrong, to flee Rome when there were so many needs to be met and no threat to a Christian's true security.

So I preached five messages on what it means to be a Christian in New York. There are perfectly good excuses for non-believers to flee this city. But Christians have every reason to stay.