Peace On Earth

" If you want Peace, work for Justice." --- Pope Paul VI

" On that day, a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom. The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and strength, a spirit of knowledge and of awe of the Lord, and his delight shall be the fear of the Lord. . . .  Justice shall be the band around his waist, and faithfulness a belt upon his lips. Then, the wolf shall be guest of the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; the calf and the young lion shall browse together, with a little child to guide them. The cow and the bear shall be neighbors, together their young shall rest; the lion shall eat hay like an ox. The baby shall play by the cobra's den and the child lay his hand on the adder's lair. There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord." [Isaiah 11: 1-10].

Re-reading this Scripture passage, I was moved once again by the beautiful image of Peace, so all-encompassing, that even mortal enemies amongst the animals shall lay down together.

These images remind me of the lowly beasts, such as the donkey and oxen and sheep, who pay homage to the newborn baby Jesus. This image has been the subject of countless Christmas cards and precious works of art.

And yet, where IS that Peace in all the world? 

A few years ago, I was talking to my son about how certain countries have hated each other for centuries. He was barely in grade school then, so sensitive that he started to cry at the prospect of warring nations.

He wanted to know more about these countries who are sworn enemies? I told him that because of atrocities during World War II, Japan and China hate each other. Even today, they are sparring over a string of uninhabited islands in the East China sea, named "Senkaku" by Japan and "Diaoyu" by China. A recent article on Time.com is entitled, "Why a Pacific War Is Possible: The Dangerous Hatred Between China and Japan."

There are other examples of long-standing national hatred: Turkey and Greece; France and England; England and Ireland; Israel and Palestine.

In this conversation with my son, I was pathetically accepting of this state of affairs.

But, my son would not accept this as status quo. He asked, "But, WHY?" Then, he told me firmly, "I am going to become a diplomat and I am going to talk to all these countries and MAKE them get along!"  My reaction: HOW did I get so jaded as to say, 'Well, that's just the way it is' ?

I learned that day, that the first step to Peace is to NOT accept it as inevitable. Re-read this Scripture and transform your vision of what is possible. There is a pure innocence about this Scripture that is poetic and awe-inspiring. I hope that everyone can refuse to dismiss this vision as mere fantasy.

Many years ago, Martin Luther King, Jr. said, " It is  no longer a choice, my friends, between violence and non-violence. Through our scientific and technological genius, we have made of this world a neighborhood and yet we have not had the ethical commitment to make of it a brotherhood. But somehow, and in some way, we have got to do this. We must all learn to live together as brothers, or perish together as fools."

In other words, we must fully face the urgency of this matter.  In matters of seeking Peace, there is no tomorrow; because by tomorrow, even more human beings will be sacrificed on the altar of hatred and war.

Ironic, that this Reading comes up this very week, in which the world lost a great leader for Peace, Nelson Mandela. He not only recognized the need for urgency and tireless commitment to Peace, he knew that his quest for Peace was one for Justice.

He was even willing to die in the fight for equality. He said, " But if it needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die." Nelson Mandela spent 27 years in prison for his activism. In prison, he contracted tuberculosis, and ultimately he has died of complications from lung disease.

Martin Luther King himself said, " Remember, if I am stopped, this movement will not stop, because God is with the movement."  He also said, " Use me, God. Show me how to take who I am, who I want to be, and what I can do, and use it for a purpose greater than myself."

I pray that the world will see a vision of Peace that is possible. I pray that the world will see, once again, another visionary, a man or woman who is willing to urgently and faithfully work for a lasting Peace.

[Related Posting: "The Prince of Peace", December 20, 2011.]

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