The Quest for Peace
St Luke describes “a great throng” of angels praising God as they sang to the shepherds on Christmas night, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace to men who enjoy his favour”. The birth of Christ in Bethlehem was a singular cause for exultant praise of God and the promise that all people could find peace.
The Prophet Isaiah centuries earlier proclaimed that the Messiah would be known as the “Prince of Peace”. The coming of the Messiah would be the means by which humanity could find the true source of peace.
A common expression of greeting in some cultures is to say, “peace be with you”. For the Jewish people the word is “Shalom”, “Salaam” in Arabic. In Latin the word is “Pax”. This greeting, common among Christians, Jews and Muslims, flows from the spiritual sensibilities of these religions. True and enduring peace ultimately has a spiritual underpinning. It is more than the absence of discord or conflict. It is essentially an interior disposition. It has a basis in the soul, and not just in the emotions.
When Jesus speaks of his desire to give the gift of peace to his disciples (see Jn 14:27) he says that the peace he offers is not as the world sees peace. It has a supernatural origin. Thus, we note that St Paul lists it as one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit (see Gal 5:22).
The greeting of the risen Lord to his disciples at Easter was “Shalom”. The greeting carried with it a sense of reassurance that all is now well. In his resurrection not only had humanity been reconciled with God, but also those who embrace this reconciliation by coming to faith in the risen Christ could experience an enduring peace, a peace that the world could not provide.
To possess an abiding interior peace remains the great aspiration of the human heart and the longing for its realisation in human civilisation. All people long to dwell in a social environment of peace and concord. This is true even where peoples may have differing approaches to social and cultural issues. We all desire to live in peace with those around us.
The true place of peace is to be found ultimately within the heart of each person. The true source of peace is found, as Jesus said, as a divine gift. True peace is not as the world expects, but as God ordains.
For the world to find peace it does have to look beyond the exercise of politics and diplomacy, helpful as they may be at times. Enduring peace is about a change in focus – it is to look within. The Church has repeatedly claimed that lasting peace within human society will be grounded in a respect for the human person and the pursuit of higher values found in the religious quest.
As we prepare for Christmas the theme of peace receives special notice. The serenity and beauty of the stable of Bethlehem is a marked expression of the hope of peace. In a world marred by the lack of peace – peace among nations, peace within societies, peace within families, and peace within ourselves – we look to the One who has come as the “Prince of Peace”.