Blessed are the Peacemakers

"Peace be with you.  As the Father has sent me, so I send you."  --John 20:21

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God." --Matthew 5:9

What is the peace that Jesus offers his disciples, then sends them out to share with the world?
When we considered the story of Jesus and his "locked-up" followers in the Gospel of John last week (John 20:19-31), you said:
--"Don't be afraid."
--"I am with you.'
--"Face what's outside."
--"Take a deep breath."

In the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), Jesus declares peace-makers as the "blessed" who will be known and recognized as the "children of God."
Jesus comes forth from a faith community that refers to peace in terms of shalom.  The concept of shalom is that:
"All of creation is one, every creature in community with every other, living in harmony and security toward the joy and well-being of every other creature."  *

We broke into small groups and responded to two questions:
1)  How did Jesus practice peace?
2)  What would it mean for us to be peacemakers?

In answer to the first question, members of the class said that Jesus practiced peace by:
--learning
--listening
--being honest
--practicing forgiveness
--being generous and other-centered
--joining with people where they were
--sharing, not only food but a "better way to live"

In answer to the second question, folks said that if we were to be peacemakers we would:
--practice forgiveness
--refuse to fight, offering alternatives
--"be the change (the difference) that we want to see in the world"
--be honest
--be self-giving, generous
--would live "unmasked," and our way of living would urge others to put down their "masks' as well
--be willing to assume leadership in this new way of life
--be committed to awareness

What qualities and characteristics might be added to these two lists?

It was noted that people can be trained as peacemakers, just as people in the world have often been trained for war.  For many years, we at St. Andrew's had a ministry called Teens Acting for Peace (TAP), which trained teenagers in the ways of peace and prepared them to be peace educators for elementary-age children.  The Pledge that our TAP teens made had seven points, each with a curriculum to learn.

1) Respect Self and Others
2) Communicate Better
3) Listen Carefully
4) Forgive
5) Respect Nature
6) Play Creatively and Nonviolently
7) Act Courageously

Who might be interested in learning these ways now?  If God's children made these kinds of commitments, and were willing to do all of the good learning, it would make an enormous impact in the world




* definition from Peace by Walter Brueggemann, Chalice Press, 2001, p. 13.