Tuesday of Fifth Week of Easter
We often think of peace as the absence of something negative. For instance, peace can be the absence of stress, the absence of anger, and especially the absence of violence. All of these forms of peace are important and true. The world would certainly be better off if there was more of it. At the same time, none of these are the full measure of Christian peace, precisely because they defined by absence. Christian peace is a positive peace. It is a full, active, and transformed peace accomplished in and through Christ. More than absence, it is a peace of presence. Today’s readings help us understand peace positively.
The first reading, from the book of Acts, helps us see the courage and encouragement that the peace of Christ inspires. Shortly after being stoned, Paul is dragged from the city of Lystra and left for dead. Surviving the ordeal, Paul does not flee or seek safety. Instead, he and Barnabas continue to spread the Gospel. In fact, Paul courageously returns to Lystra, not to condemn the city but to encourage the faithful that remained there. While Paul affirms, “It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God,” the Kingdom God inspires his courage and encouragement.
The second reading, from the gospel of John, helps us see the peace of Christ as positive gift. At the last supper, Christ prepares the disciples. He states, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.” His parting gift to the disciples was peace. Not a worldly peace defined by absence, but a positive peace. This is the peace of Christ, the peace of the Kingdom of God.
This peace, this gift, inspires the disciples to spread the Gospel. It is this peace that grants Paul the courage to return to Lystra. It is this peace that inspires Paul to encourage the faithful. As Paul demonstrates, Christian peace is audacious. It does not simply act to eliminate the negative aspects of the world. Instead, it acts to bring the positive peace to all people, everywhere, and in every age. The peace of Christ is the Kingdom of God in the making.
Today let us ponder in our hearts how we make peace positively.
- Adam Sheridan