He Shall Be Peace

September 8, 2008

Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

By Beth DeCristofaro

He shall stand firm and shepherd his flock by the strength of the LORD, in the majestic name of the LORD, his God; …his greatness shall reach to the ends of the earth; he shall be peace. (Micah 5:3-4)

We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son. (Romans 8:28-29)

Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. (Matthew 1:20-21)

Piety

Mary, Mother of God, my mother, Queen of Peace, ask your son Jesus to give me the gift of peace. Pray for me for peace, peace in my heart, peace of mind and soul, peace in my family, peace with all whom I meet, the peace of Jesus.

Give me peace, Jesus, peace within myself, peace in my family. Give peace to my nation and to all nations, peace to all peoples, peace in the world.

(from “Mary’s Peace Prayer)

Study

http://www.usccb.org/nab/090808.shtml

In 2005, James Loney was kidnapped. James, a Canadian member of a Christian Peacemaker Team, was held for four months along with three other peacekeepers by extremists in Baghdad. In addition to his physical discomfort and fear of death, James’ biggest struggle was with himself. James, an avowed Christian espousing non-violence, faced a moral conflict over the potentiality of using violence in order to gain his freedom.

He tried to engage his captors in conversation, considering that “I tried to show them my humanity…it is harder to kill a human being.” A guard showed James pictures of his nieces and nephews who had been killed at a checkpoint. And he was faced with scorn by a guard who mocked his non-violent commitment, even to self-defense.

But James looked at a heavy lamp, considering it as a weapon. Would it be too much to just knock a guard out? Should he administer first aid after the blow – before he escaped? He knew that killing a guard would be “too much.” After the murder of one of his team members, American Tom Fox, James “was so desperate to escape…I was so desperate to have my life back.” How could he uphold his passivist values?[1]

What does this have to do with the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary? One of Mary’s titles is “Queen of Peace.” We are told that, at pivotal points in Mary’s life “she pondered things in her heart.” As a woman of faith and as a loving mother, what struggles she must have had in her own mind and heart. How to keep faith with her “Yes” to God? How to keep safe the gift God had given specially to her, a son who would save his people from their sins. At times when I thought my daughters were being hurt, that adrenalin surge I felt was almost frightening, but it allowed me to act quickly and decisively. Could I live with the knowledge that my beloved daughter would be arrested, tortured and murdered? Rather, I would be like Peter who responded to Jesus: “God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you.” (Matthew 16:22).

James Loney realized, though this ordeal “the interconnectedness” of people and actions. “Everything we do affects everything and everyone else. Whether we want to see it or not, whether we know it or not…when we take away other peoples’ lives and their humanity, we soil ourselves in that act. We destroy our own humanity in doing that.” Mary never did this. Mary placed her heart and sought her strength in the power and promise of God. She sought peace within her own heart and by doing so she spread peace to her family, her life, her town, her People. She is a harbor of peace for us today.

Action

After 118 days, James and the other two captives were rescued. Later, when arrests were made, James refused to testify against the terrorists because they would, most probably, receive the death penalty in which he does not believe. “There had been enough suffering…I had already spent time in the tomb of violence…if we say no to the spiral of violence, then the violence ends with us.”

We can have control only over ourselves (and that’s no easy task!). An angel came to one woman, who said “yes” and thus furthered God’s plan. Can we say “no” to violence in order to be peaceful? Where is there violence in our lives? Do we struggle with anger, confusion, envy, over- competitiveness or fear? How do we respond when things don’t go our way, when we feel taken advantage of or when we are “dissed?” Seek peace within by sitting with the silence and peace of God. Pray to Our Mother the Queen of Peace that God grant peace upon ourselves and upon those with whom we are most at odds.

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[1] Listen to Tom Loney’s story at “The Story” from American Public Media http://thestory.org/archive