成人快手

For the first time in a long time, it feels possible to talk about peace this week. A fragile ceasefire holds in Gaza, and the US and Russia have begun talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. There is a long way to go in both processes, and much could still go wrong, not least because Ukraine is not currently included in the peace talks. Nevertheless, there is a flicker of hope and that hope allows us to reflect on the nature of peace.
On one level, the answer to the question of what peace looks like is simple. Peace is the absence of war. When there is no conflict or fighting of any kind, we can declare peace. Peace treaties are signed to indicate the cessation of war.
In the Roman Empire the Pax Romana, or peace of Rome which lasted roughly 200 years from the time of the emperor Augustus, famously declared a peace that was defined not just by the absence of war but by the inability of their opponents to mount any form of resistance at all. Peace was imposed and maintained brutally but, largely, effectively. For many people around the world, whose lives have been torn apart physically and emotionally by war, peace as the absence of conflict would be very welcome but real peace is much greater than that.
When described in the Bible, peace does not consist in the absence of something but in its presence. Peace refers to making something whole or complete, to connection and the joining together of opposites. It points to well-being and safety and most importantly to justice. Peace-making is not just about agreeing to stop doing something, it is a commitment to a way of life that seeks wholeness and harmony. It requires us to build bridges, to listen carefully to those who are different from us and to work passionately for justice. No wonder Jesus in the Beatitudes declared that peace-makers were blessed, children of God. There can be no greater commitment than to dedicate our lives to making peace.
Most of us will not be called upon to negotiate peace deals on the world stage but we can, all of us, live as peacemakers in the small things of life. As I wait with baited breath, praying with every fibre of my being for lasting peace in the current world conflicts, I long for the presence of peace, not just the absence of war.