Apostles for Today Fr. Eugène NIYONZIMA, SAC
PEACE: A MISSION OF HOPE
Lord, make us peacemakers!
Introduction
If there is one thing that brings joy to the human heart, if there is one precious good—the object of our hope—to which all humanity aspires, if, in short, there is one gift that is the greatest we can offer to today’s world, a world scarred by the various conflicts raging in many parts of the globe, it is indeed peace. To quote Pope Francis, this is peace as a ‘path of hope in the face of obstacles and trials […], a ‘path of listening based on memory, solidarity and fraternity […]. The peace we speak of in this article is also a path of reconciliation in fraternal communion, which calls us to find deep within our hearts the strength to forgive and the capacity to recognise one another as brothers and sisters. Learning to live in forgiveness increases our capacity to become women and men of peace.”
It is therefore no surprise that peace is the first message of the Risen One, nor that peace is the precious treasure which Jesus bequeathed to his disciples. The Church, aware of the greatness of this legacy, has always guarded it jealously, to the extent that some of her children have had to bear witness to it throughout history, at the risk of their lives. Drawing on the teaching of Jesus Christ, Apostle of the Eternal Father, the Magisterium of his Church and the wisdom of our Founder Saint Vincent Pallotti, we wish, through this article, to awaken our consciences to the need to faithfully preserve the legacy of peace and to do everything humanly possible to bear witness to it in this world so troubled by various kinds of conflict.
Peace: the greatest gift from the Risen Christ
According to the Gospel of Saint John, after Jesus’ death, the disciples were paralysed by grief and fear. To protect themselves, the doors of the room where they were gathered were locked. Meanwhile, Mary Magdalene, followed by Peter and John, had gone to the tomb and found it empty. Moreover, Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene, and she immediately went to tell the disciples that she had seen the Lord. Despite Mary Magdalene’s enthusiasm and determination, her message was not enough to drive the fear from the disciples’ hearts. It should be noted that the fear which confined and paralysed them stemmed from their dread of the Jews, in other words, their fellow human beings. This fear of the disciples was compounded by the immense sorrow of having lost Jesus, who had died in terrible suffering. All those overcome by such fear withdraw into themselves and no longer leave their homes, nor do they emerge from within themselves. Sorrow, like a cancer, takes hold of them.
To the disciples, paralysed by grief and fear, Jesus offers a precious gift: peace. For however tightly shut the doors of the room where the disciples were gathered, however paralysing their fear and however overwhelming their grief, Jesus came and stood among them. His hands and his side bore witness that it was indeed he and no other. He then spoke these words, which he would repeat every time he appeared in his resurrected form: ‘Peace be with you’. These words are so vital that we, the Lord’s disciples more than two thousand years after this event, still utter them at every Eucharist:
May the peace of the Lord be with you always! At this point, it must be made clear that, following the example of Jesus Christ, peace has now become a mission of hope for all of us as disciples. Our Lord Jesus Christ clearly asked his disciples: “Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be upon this house!’ And if a child of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him; if not, it will return to you.”
In short, the message conveyed by the risen Jesus is peace: peace be with you! It is the Lord’s gift that dispels fear, sadness and self-absorption in those who receive it. Such is also our mission of hope in this world paralysed not only by fear of ‘the other’ but also by the ‘sad emptiness’ caused by the rejection of God. Indeed, ‘When God is no longer there, man becomes god. And man is a bad god who brings only hard times: war, social injustice, famine and uprising.’
The Church is a promoter and guardian of peace
With a clear conscience, we can affirm that since its foundation, the Catholic Church, carrying on the mission of its Founder, Jesus Christ – whom prophetic language calls the ‘Prince of Peace’ – has taught and fostered peace. Close to him, Pope Pius XII affirmed, the Church breathes the breath of true humanity; true in the fullest sense of the word, since it is the very humanity of God, her Creator, her Redeemer and her Restorer.
The peace that the Church of Jesus Christ teaches and fosters is, by its very nature, a peace not founded on mutual fear, suspicion and mistrust. Nor is it based on the threat – such as that posed by today’s great powers – of terrible destruction that would spell the total ruin of the human race, which was created to give glory to God and for mutual edification in brotherly love. The peace that the Church teaches and bears witness to is rather founded on the proper order of human relations, ‘an order which rests on truth, is built upon justice, receives its life and fullness from charity, and is ultimately expressed effectively in freedom’. This, then, is the peace to which the nations of the world aspire as to a gift without which one cannot hope for constructive progress, lasting well-being, or a secure future for the younger generations, families and nations. This is the peace that ultimately becomes the mission of hope.
Pallotti and his work: heirs and witnesses to peace
Saint Vincent Pallotti, a faithful son of the Church, firmly believed that peace is the precious legacy of Jesus. According to him, ‘peace of mind’ is such a great gift that the divine Redeemer, before leaving this world and after having proclaimed it many times, left it to his apostles as a legacy. For this reason, his disciples must devote themselves to spiritual exercises in order to obtain the legacy of Jesus Christ, which is peace.
Aware of the value of peace, Pallotti advises his followers to avoid all occasions and situations that might cause them to lose the gift of peace, and asks them to take Jesus as their model of peace. That is why he says: ‘Tell me then, O my son, when you behold the infinite treasures of the Divine, will you have the courage to lose them rather than grant peace to your neighbour, rather than restrain the first impulses of anger and vengeance, rather than use a little violence against the rebellious passion of the irascible?’
For Pallotti, it is not enough simply to avoid opportunities to disturb the peace; one must also become a peacemaker. ‘Ah, my son,’ he would say, ‘learn to be peaceful from your Brother, and from my divine Son Jesus: He is your divine model of peace; He proclaims and bestows peace upon all, and even upon His enemies; instead of launching the deserved arrows of vengeance, He implores, even in His agony, for peace and forgiveness. Remember, O son, that in Jesus you have not only the divine model who urges you to be peaceful, but you also find in him the grace, the virtue necessary to imitate him perfectly.” Pallotti advises his disciples to become “peacemakers” even in the details of community life. In this vein, addressing a supposed disciple, he would say: ‘What I ask of you is this: if ever your inner peace were to be disturbed by any member of the Community, you shall endeavour to be reconciled immediately.’
In keeping with the convictions of its Founder, the Union of the Catholic Apostolate, a gift of the Holy Spirit, plays its part in the Church’s mission to teach peace, to ‘forge’ it, and to bear witness to it throughout the world. Indeed, together with all people of good will, who are living images of charity in its truest sense, the Union will always remember that its mission is to build peace among peoples through its commitment to promoting justice, solidarity and the care of creation, without forgetting interfaith dialogue.
Conclusion: ‘What should we do? (Luke 3:10–18)
After John had spoken, the soldiers—and not only they—asked him, ‘And what should we do?’ He replied, ‘Do not use violence against anyone, do not make false accusations against anyone; and be content with your pay.’ Undoubtedly, John’s reply applies to each of us in the circumstances of life where the Lord has placed us. It is even more significant for us who live in the African Great Lakes region, which has been ravaged for over thirty years.
To become more truly peacemakers, we might add to John’s response the social perspective illustrated by Christ’s actions, which are founded on a love that transcends the minimum required by human justice: that is to say, giving others their due. We must arrive at a firm conviction that the inner logic of love goes beyond mere human justice to the point of giving what one possesses. We must strive for a ‘always more’ which implies the decision to love not in words or speech, but in deeds and in truth.
And as if that were not enough, following the example of his Master, the disciple of Christ will go even further, to the point of giving himself for his brothers. This is the price of authentic peace in God.
Questions for reflection
• Am I aware of my mission in this world as a peacemaker? Do I have the courage to bring love where there is hatred? How many times have I hesitated to offer forgiveness where there is offence?
• Have you not missed good opportunities to ‘make peace’ because you lacked the courage to offer peace to your neighbour, because you did not suppress the first impulses of anger and vengeance, because you did not use a little restraint against the rebellious passion of the hot-tempered?
• Would you be prepared to take a further step to move beyond the logic of loving not with words or speech, but in deeds and in truth?
Fr. Eugène NIYONZIMA, SAC
