“Blessed are the peacemakers”

One of the most reliable signs, to discover in a discernment what God wants, is the peace that this or that decision produces. It is true that we are talking about an inner peace felt by those who make a decision or who accept it, but it is still peace. In today’s Gospel, in the context of his farewell, Jesus says to his disciples: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you; I don’t give it as the world gives.” And He also says this from the experience He is living: “the prince of this world is coming”. It is not, therefore, a naïve offer from Jesus. We, too, are frightened by the spiral of violence and humanity’s capacity for self-destruction… Let us redouble our trust, as Jesus also asks us to do. Let us pray for those who have the great decisions in their hands and let us work to be “artisans of peace” in our midst, as Pope Francis invites us.