Peace and Life. They are supreme values in the civil order.
Peace and Life. They are supreme values in the civil order. They are also values that are interdependent. Do we want Peace? Then let us defend Life!
The phrase "Peace and Life" may seem almost tautological, a rhetorical slogan. It is not so. The combination of the two terms in the phrase represents a hardwon conquest in the onward march of human progress - a march still short of its final goal. How many times in the drama of human history the phrase "Peace and Life" has involved a fierce struggle of the two terms, not a fraternal embrace. Peace is sought and won through conflict, like a sad doom necessary for self-defence.
The close relationship between Peace and Life seems to spring from the nature of things, but not always, not yet from the logic of people's thought and conduct. This close relationship is the paradoxical novelty that we must proclaim for this year of grace 1977 and henceforth for ever, if we are to understand the dynamics of progress. To succeed in doing so is no easy and simple task: we shall meet the opposition of too many formidable objections, which are stored in the immense arsenal of pseudo-convictions, empirical and utilitarian prejudices, so-called reasons of State, and habits drawn from history and tradition. Even today, these objections seem to constitute insurmountable obstacles. The tragic conclusion is that if, in defiance of logic, Peace and Life can in practice be dissociated, there looms on the horizon of the future a catastrophe that in our days could be immeasurable and irreparable both for Peace and Life. Hiroshima is a terribly eloquent proof and a frighteningly prophetic example of this. In the reprehensible hypothesis that Peace were thought of in unnatural separation from its relationship with Life, Peace could be imposed as the sad triumph of death. The words of Tacitus come to mind: "They make a desert and call it Peace" (ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant: Agricola, 30). Again, in the same hypothesis, the privileged Life of some can be exalted, can be selfishly and almost idolatrously preferred, at the expense of the oppression or suppression of others. Is that Peace?
We continue to contemplate peace. What is peace? How is it achieved, when have we reached peace, and what are we seeking? Pope Saint Paul VI established the first day of the Civil Year (January 1
st) as the Day of Peace – a day for the call to Peace. The times were chaotic during his reign as the Bishop of Rome, as our Holy Father, with much social and political upheaval. A time with a lack of abiding peace, even within the Church. Yet, upon reading through his writings it is clear that Saint Paul VI had a deep desire for peace born from his faith in Jesus Christ and love for the People of God. The interrelations of the desire for peace and the dignity of human life are codependent in the mind of Saint Paul VI – an important insight for each of us to reflect upon and accept, we who take the Lord Jesus as our Savior and Lord.
No doubt, from our own experiences, we can see negative and positive examples of the connection between the desire for peace and the dignity of human life. We know this in the abstract, the grand scale of nation states, and in our interpersonal relationships. Acts of violence, to wound, restrict, or end human life, are the clearest violations of peace. Acts of compassion, to improve health, to educate and nurture, or to protect and encourage human life, are some of the most powerful expressions of a desire for peace. In biblical terms, ‘to love one another, as Christ has loved us’ is to seek to live within the graces of the words of the Risen Christ: ‘Peace be with you!’ Our commitment to the protection, defense, and care for each and every person is our commitment to true and lasting peace.
As we begin by considering the relationship of peace and life, and then apply these principles in our life it would be good to read through the entirety of
Pope Saint Paul VI’s Message on the Day of Peace, delivered on January 1, 1977. It is insightful and will invite you to renew your own personal commitment to the Gospel and the Church’s Teachings on Life as each of us desires to live in the abiding and lasting – the rejoicing and gladness – of the Peace of God.
Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed!
Know of my prayers for you, please pray for me!
Father Wilke
Saint Joseph, Guardian of the Redeemer, pray for us!