The Rev. Terry Jones announced Saturday that “We will definitely not burn the Quran” on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the U.S., “not today, not ever.”

The controversial pastor of a Gainesville, Fla., church said his congregation made the decision, announcing it on NBC’s “Today” show. The burning had been planned for 6 p.m.

Jones told interviewer Carl Quintanilla that although he had traveled to New York in the hopes of a meeting with Faisal Rauf, the imam in charge of the Islamic center planned for lower Manhattan, there was no meeting.

Jones said his church’s goal was “to expose that there is an element of Islam that is very dangerous and very radical.”

The original Quran-burning plans sparked international controversy and protests in the Muslim world. U.S. military leaders said the event would imperil the lives of troops abroad.

President Barack Obama said Friday that the idea that “we would burn the sacred texts of someone else’s religion is contrary to what this country stands for.”