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50 People To Know: Guardian Of The Ground Zero Cross, Fr. Brian Jordan

NEW YORK (WCBS 880) – When Father Brian Jordan first learned of the 9/11 terror attacks, he rushed to ground zero with holy water and brass knuckles.

"I was going to bless the people of God with the holy water, and if any of the attackers were coming back, I was going to give them a little bit of retaliation with the brass knuckles," he tells WCBS 880's Peter Haskell.

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On September 23, the priest got his first glimpse of what became known as the ground zero cross – a cross-like beam structure that fell within the ruins.

"We interpret this to be a cross, a sign from God that God never abandoned us at ground zero," he says.

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(Credit: Peter Haskell/WCBS Newsradio 880)

Fr. Jordan served as the ground zero chaplain and guardian of the cross. He's also the author of "The Ground Zero Cross," which pays tribute to those who have worked at ground zero and fought to preserve the cross.

At St. Francis College in Brooklyn, he is a tireless advocate for immigrants and strives to foster unity. He tells Haskell that ignorance is not bliss.

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