One of the many names for Jesus, the Incarnate Word, was the “Prince of Peace”
(Eph 2:14 and Is 9:6). In this time of
Advent as we prepare to welcome the Prince of Peace into the world anew, we
take a few minutes to reflect on this concept of peace in our own lives, our
communities, and our world.
Jesus came to bring
peace to the world. The first message of
the risen Christ to his disciples was, “Peace
be with you” (Lk 24:36). We exchange
these greeting with one another during our weekly celebration of the Eucharist:
“Peace of Christ be with you.” So what
is this peace of Christ? The Peace Christ revealed in the Scriptures is not
just about the absence of war, but rather the fullness of life.
Think about the words of
the prophet Isaiah that Jesus said he came to fulfill, “The Spirit of the Lord
is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He
has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the
blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
(Lk 4:17-21) This is the peace we are
called to help co-create with the Spirit of God.
“To be at peace, humankind must be in right relationship
with one another and with God.” The
work of peace, justice, and the care of creation all seeks to bring healing and
wholeness to these broken relationships between ourselves, the planet, and
God. We can see how all of the areas are
interwoven, and how we will not be able to achieve the peace of God, without
first achieving justice in our world.
Looking at the realities
facing us today, we have a lot of work to do to realize the peace and justice
of God. We are inundated with news and
stories of violence and injustice in our world today. This violence can take many forms whether
physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual.
All that denies the dignity and equal worth of all God’s creation is a
form of violence.
One of the most blatant
forms of physical and psychological violence is the perpetual warfare and
exorbitant military spending of the U.S. government. How can we ignore the pain and final messages
of the people in Aleppo experiencing violent confrontations and bombings? And there are many other parts of the world
experiencing the same violence of war and conflict.
"America Has Been At War 93% of the Time –
222 Out of 239 Years – Since 1776. "
54% of the Federal Discretionary Budget in 2016 went to Military and
Defense. Gun violence continues to plague
our communities, with over 13,000 deaths and over 26,000 injuries from firearms
in 2015.
In
Mexico, it is now going on ten years since the start of the “war against drug
trafficking” (2006), and even if the main Mexican drug kingpins have been
detained, their capture or abasement by
the federal forces has not translated into a decrease of violence in the
country or a weakening of the drug cartels. In reality, there were 172,876
reported homicides from 2007-2016, according to the statistics of the National
Public Security System (SNSP), and 28,937 people were disappeared, according to
the National Registry of Missing or Missing Persons.
Although the internal
war in Peru ended in 2000, remnants of terrorist groups and drug trafficking
operating in the valley of the Apurímac, Ene and Mantaro rivers (VRAEM) have
become a priority for the State which is why they continue to strengthen the
institution of the Armed Forces. And while some countries have reduced spending
on defense, in Peru defense spending has increased 1.7 billion soles between
2012 and 2016.
The face of victims of
violence in Peru is that of a young woman. A recent study by the Catholic
Pontifical University in Peru indicates that at the national level that 7 out
of 10 women between the ages of 18 to 29 have been victims of violence; and in
Lima-Callao it is as high as 9 out of 10.
In fact, on average, 11 femicides and 23 attempted murders are reported
each month, the highest figures in the
last seven years according to the Ministry of Women.
Selfishness, hard
heartedness, intolerance, fundamentalism… the world is hurting. Humanity has turned against itself. We need to ask for forgiveness for the
destruction of so many lives. We need to
rethink our relationships. We need to
work for peace; life depends on it.
So what can we do to be artisans of peace? Earlier this year representatives from around
the world gathered to discuss experiences of nonviolence, Jesus’ way of
nonviolence, how Nonviolence and Just Peace is already being lived out in
communities, and how to move beyond unending wars – replacing the doctrine of “Just
War” with “Just Peace.”
The final statement
coming out of this gathering is titled: “An Appeal to the Catholic Church to
Recommit to the Centrality of Gospel Nonviolence.” Some of the highlights of that appeal
include: incorporating nonviolence explicitly into the life and work of the
Church, training ourselves in nonviolent practices and strategies, initiating a
global conversation on nonviolence, rejecting “just war theory,” and being a
prophetic voice to challenge unjust world powers.
Pope Francis for the
World Day of Peace also calls us to recognize: “Non-Violence: A Style of Politics for Peace.” This is because as people of faith we cannot
remain indifferent. We must commit
ourselves to incarnating the Peace of Christ in the world.
What if we each made a
commitment for this coming year to support an environment of “just peace”
through active non-violence? What kind
of impact might we be able to have collectively?
“Jesus, the Incarnate Word, called his disciples
to love their enemies (Mt 5:44), which includes respecting the image of God in
all persons; to offer no violent resistance to one who does evil (Mt 5:39); to
become peacemakers; to forgive and repent; and to be abundantly merciful (Mt
5-7). Neither passive nor weak, Jesus’
nonviolence was the power of love in action.”
Please, take some time
to pray with an image of the Incarnate Word, asking him to teach you his way of
peaceful love in action.
Biblical
Text: Mt
5:38-42
- How do you understand Jesus’ proposed third way
of nonviolence?
- What does it mean to return good for evil?
- How do you seek to understand someone who is
different from you?
- How do you confront those who are violent or
promote violence?
We have
been called to promote practices and strategies of nonviolence.
- How can you learn more about nonviolent
strategies and skills and incorporate them into your own life and
ministry?
- How is Nonviolence and Just Peace connected to
our incarnational spirituality, recognizing Jesus, the Incarnate Word, is the
Prince of Peace?
We end this reflection asking the God of Life to
give us all we need to realize God’s peace, the peace that has been sown into
our very being.
Give us your peace – Pedro
Casaldaliga
Give us, Lord, that
strange Peace
That sprouts in the
midst of struggle
Like a flower of fire;
That breaks in the
middle of the night
Like a hidden song;
That arrives in the
midst of death
Like a longed for kiss.
Give us the Peace of
those always walking,
Stripped of any
advantage,
Clothed in the wind of
nebulous hope.
That Peace of the poor
Who have already
overcome fear.
The Peace of the free
Who cling to life.
The Peace that is shared
In fraternal equality
This year, we invite you to join the spiritual journey of “Walking Toward Hope,” by participating in the 8 part series focusing on the following themes:
