As Jesus was about to leave this world, he bade farewell to his apostles gathered at the upper room. His parting words to them were, “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.”
Three days later, Jesus rose from the dead and visited his apostles gathered in the same room and greeted them, “Peace be with you!”
Peace was Jesus’ parting word to his apostles before his death and his first word to them after his resurrection.
Two weeks ago, people gathered at St. Peter’s Square and eagerly waited to see the new Pope. When he finally emerged from the loggia, he greeted the Church and the world with the same greetings of the risen Lord.
“Peace be with you all! These are the first words spoken by the risen Christ. I would like this greeting of peace to resound in your hearts… It is the peace of the risen Christ. A peace that is unarmed and disarming, humble and persevering. A peace that comes from God, the God who loves us all, unconditionally.”
True enough, the message of Pope Leo XIV found immediate resonance in the hearts of those who gathered at the piazza that evening, as well as of those who heard him on television and the internet all over the world. For indeed, no message could be timelier and more welcomed to a world terribly torn and worn down by wars and divisions.
Eighty years have passed since World War II which took away 600 million human lives. But today we are witnessing before our eyes the unfolding of World War III in “pieces”, as Pope Francis puts it. Very sadly, the primary victims in this war are civilians, the elderly, women and children. They make up 80% of the casualties. Aptly did a journalist comment that in today’s war, the collateral victims are the soldiers.
No wonder, Pope Francis could not hold himself from saying, “War is stupid… There is no such thing as a god of war. Anyone who makes war is evil. God is peace.” (Hope, The Autobiography of Pope Francis, pp. 27-28)
War is all around us. They come in all forms and at all levels: in government, in politics, in communities, in families, and in the human heart. There is so much woundedness and division. How badly the world longs for healing and peace!
What is this peace that Jesus offers? In today’s gospel Jesus tells us, “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.” Herein lies the secret of peace – the divine indwelling in us.
The peace of Jesus does not consist in mere absence of war or conflict. The peace of Jesus is fruit of the presence of God. Where God is, there is peace. When God lives in us and rules our life, his kingdom is established, which is “a kingdom of truth and life, a kingdom of holiness and grace, a kingdom of justice, love, and peace.” (Preface of Christ the King)
How can we attain peace? By loving Jesus and keeping his word. Jesus tells us, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments… my commandment is this: love one another as I have loved you.” (Jn 14: 12-15)
When I was a student in college, there was a strong anti-war movement in the US promoted mainly by young people who did not want to be drafted in the army and sent to the Vietnam war. They defied the government and passionately advocated for peace. They were called the Hippies or the Flower People. Their slogan was “Make love, not war.”
Their formula sounded right at first, but not really. They preached love as the antidote to war, but the love they propagated was about promiscuity, sexual license, drug culture, et cetera. Such love could not give true peace. Such “free love”, as they called it, succeeded only in wrecking relationships, annulling commitments and destroying the human heart.
The peace of Jesus is altogether different from the peace of the world. It comes from a love that is greater than our own human love. He asks us to love one another as he loves us.
Jesus’ love is a love that is willing to serve and to die for others. We may not be called to literally die for others, but we are called to die to ourselves that others may live. It means to swallow our pride to be able to forgive and save a relationship, or to die to our convenience/comfort to be able to help another in need.
When we are able love with such love, God lives in us and peace reigns in our heart. Only when we have peace in our heart can work for peace in the world. “Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me.”