Our
Mighty God the Prince of Peace
Fr. Dominic Gomes
Mother Teresa once stated, “If we have no peace, it is because we
have forgotten that we belong to each other”. This is so appropriate in today’s
world. There is a story of a young girl whose parents had been killed in a
ghastly act of terrorism. It was a tragic situation. She was
now alone on Christmas Eve, very sad and depressed. She came out and stood
under the clear night sky. In her frustration and bitterness she shouted to the
stars: “Glory on earth and peace to God in the highest” ... and the
echo came back... Highest… Highest.Highest... Peace...Peace...Peace. The
young girl sat down and cried as ‘Peace’for her was only an echo that began
to fade far away.
Christmas peace is it only an echo in many parts of the world? YES!
Christmas peace is only an echo in Iraq, Syria, Palestine, Bethlehem and so many
places around the earth. And certainly Christmas peace is only an echo for
those families whose members were bombed by terrorist or killed in the many
wars around the world. Is that what Christmas peace is, merely an
echo from the distant past?
Yes it is merely an echo in so many homes? Where husbands and
wives fight shouting obscenities to one another, where there is conflict
between father and son; where there is so much hurting and so much harming?
Is there some fundamental flaw to our human
nature? What is wrong with us that we are the only creatures
on earth that murder and torture our own species? We make weapons capable
of destroying millions. What is wrong with a husband and wife
who can hurt each other so deeply and be so extremely cruel to each
other? Or that parents can actually abuse their own
child? My God, what is wrong with us? ... Why is peace so hard for
us to accomplish?
Because we are so deeply flawed, God sent us his son, Jesus, the Prince
of Peace. Jesus says: I have come to bring you peace, to teach
you to walk in the paths of peace. I have come to teach you to be people of
peace. Peace always followsjustice and
righteousness. This is true within our family and personal life, the life
of our nation and the world. It’s the same everywhere. If you want peace, you
have to pursue justice and righteousness. Justice is the structuring of
society, our economy and government, so that the little people, the widows,
orphans, handicapped and the poor are taken care of justly without which there
will be no peace within society or family. For peace always follows justice.
The only way that you can
live in peace is with the gift of forgiveness, the forgiveness of Jesus Christ. The
“peace of Christ” has to do with those people in whom the ‘Prince of Peace’
comes to live. When the‘Prince of Peace’ lives within the manger of our hearts,
we become one who works for justice and rightness. Peace follows. Like others,
a Christian too has to struggle through periods of grief, gloominess and hurt. But
we have divine help and assurance to hold us up. The peace of Jesus that lies
within us keeps us settled, sure and confident in the hope of Christ’s return,
when his peace will at last encompass all. You simply take a step of faith and
surrender all your efforts to Jesus. Are you ready this Christmas to believe
Jesus is enough, that he is all you need to know God’s peace?
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