Peace – January 20, 2002
At times our world is a world of sorrow, of war, of fear, and of grief for those we have lost. Each new year comes upon us cautiously as we step most carefully into the unknown future. Yet, amidst the swirling eddies of tragedy, is it possible to find peace and joy?
Peace is far more than the absence of conflict. Peace goes beyond the winning of a battle or the signing of a treaty. Real peace exists in the heart. If we can find peace in our hearts, we can bring hope to an uncertain world.
Saint Francis of Assisi once wrote a “Prayer for Peace,” suggesting a way to find true inner peace, even when living in troubled times. He said, “O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console.”1
And there is the secret. When we give love and assurance to others, that’s when we find our own peace. If we’re always waiting for someone else to comfort or to rescue us, then our contentment lies in another’s keeping and remains just beyond our grasp.
When we forget our own troubles and work to relieve the suffering of others, we feel the peace that comes from God.
We can’t wait for the world to rest, to lay down its sword and promise us harmony. We need to find our strength where genuine peace is found: in the knowledge of God’s unlimited love for us.
Program #3779
1. Saint Francis of Assisi, “Prayer for Peace,” in Caroline Kennedy, ed., The Best Loved Poems of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (New York: Hyperion Books, 2001), 141.