Released on this date . . .

Tuesday is generally the release day for new music. The last time Sept. 11 was on a Tuesday, it was the Sept. 11. It just so happened that was the day two artists released albums that were balms for many grieving souls and became influential in the rise of Christian pop music over the past six years.

The artists couldn't have been more different.

That morning, Michael W. Smith's Worship and P.O.D.'s Satellite hit the shelves. A few hours later, planes struck the world Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania, shaking the United States to its core. No decent person would want to profit from such unspeakable tragedy, but contemporary Christian music definitely saw a rise in its audience after the terror attacks, as many people turned to Christianity and music that reaffirmed their faith. A 2003 Toronto Star story singled out gospel music as the largest growth genre, with a 13.5 percent rise in sales since September 2001. In May 2005, the Columbia Journalism review reported that Christian radio had grown 33 percent in the previous five years, thanks in large part to the growth of Christian pop. Just a few days ago, we were writing about Casting Crowns' The Altar and the Door being the latest Christian disc to debut in Billboard magazine's Top 200 album chart, and three out of the four top Christian market debuts had been since 2001, including Satellite.

Certainly no one's music could have presupposed the unprecedented attack of that day. But, man, Satellite felt incredibly vital in those days, from the exhortation of the opening track, Set it Off, to the meditation on the uncertainty of 21st Century America in Youth of the Nation. The lyric about the boy skating off to school and, "instead of taking a test, I took two to the chest," had its roots in Columbine but it had grown relevance as the hazards of being a kid in America grew greater. Alive became a huge anthem for people claiming an intimate and exhilarating faith.

Satellite was also indicative of a growing maturity in Christian pop. It was a genre that used to actively avoid darkness. But in Satellite and its ilk, youth were hearing faith spoken of in the context of a world they recognized. I still think it is the best Christian rock record, ever.

Worship was far different, but no less vital in the Post-9/11 world. It was the album in which Smith, one of Christian pop's biggest stars, thoroughly and masterfully embraced the burgeoning praise and worship movement. The merits of the movement are debatable, but Worship was unassailable as a Christian pop classic that came along at a time when many people were looking heavenward for answers and comfort. It's hard to think of a more emotional grouping of songs than Above All, Breathe and Let it Rain set at the center of the album, which also included classic renditions of Heart of Worship and Agnus Dei. Worship showed Smith as a master of creating a mood, and it was a mood and a place a lot of people craved then and still desire.

Some may say dropping these albums on Sept. 11 was part of a master plan. All of us who profess a faith can probably name something -- be it music, a book or another art work -- that we feel was divinely provided to us at a time when we needed it. These albums were certainly among the many, many works people clung too as they coped with the profound sorrow of Sept. 11.