7-3-19 - Peace Boomerangs

(You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.)

I think of peace as static; I associate it with stillness, stability, rootedness. But Jesus describes peace as something very dynamic, able to bounce from person to person, house to house, community to community. This peace sounds downright restless:

"Whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this house!' And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you."

What is the peace of God? It is power and purpose and presence. Different from ordinary human peace, the peace of God is strong as iron, filling us unexpectedly, able to keep us rooted in times of anxiety or conflict. I have been in situations in which I should be anxious – medical tests, job searches – and been surprised by the peace I felt, unable to locate the anxiety I expected should be there. The peace of God is pure gift – Paul writes it is a gift that comes when we make our petitions known to God with thanksgiving.

Jesus goes even further, speaking of peace as a force that can be directed to another person. The idea of saying, “Peace to you,” or “Peace to this house” when we encounter another person, and really meaning it – speaking it as a command to heavenly powers – could be world-changing. What if, instead of “hello” we said, “Peace,” as Jewish and Muslim communities do? (“Shalom,” “As-salaam alaikum”) And as we were saying it, we prayed that God would fill that person with the peace we feel. “Peace” to institutions we deal with. “Peace” on the highway, train, in the grocery store, at family dinner. Really sharing our peace at church instead of just shaking hands and saying hi.

That’s all we would need to do. If the person had no interest in the peace we bring, it would bounce back to us. But if we don’t even offer it, someone who really needs our peace might miss out.

God’s peace becomes part of us, something we can share, the same way we share our intellect, our compassion, our money and time. Maybe we want to ask God to give our peace a shape or color so we can become more conscious about sending it to others. Like any good boomerang, it will always come back to us.

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