Sixth Sunday of Easter

Peace

            When John Paul II was elected Pope and came out on the balcony above Saint Peter’s square, to salute the crowd, he began his speech saying: Be not afraid. I didn’t understand at that time why he said that. I was young and I wasn’t afraid of the future. Life was open to me. Later on I understood his words. In our modern society we are afraid of the future. We spend a lot of money on insurance, keep our money in the bank, our jewelry in the safe, and spend money in security. We live in a society full of tension, a peaceless environment, because we have thrown God out of the window.

            Today in the Gospel Our Lord offers us his peace. He is the vine; we are the branches. As long as we are united to the vine, we get the sap. But, we don’t want it. We prefer another kind of peace, the false peace the world offers to us. We normally look for peace in places where it is not. We think that money will bring us peace. It is proven that when you win the lotto your life becomes hell. Multimillionaires are never happy: they want more money. We think that entertainment, shopping, alcohol, drugs, sex, will make us happy; it is the opposite. Many times they complicate our lives.

            Peace doesn’t come from a life without problems. We think that if we can get rid of our problems, our life will become easier. There is no life without suffering. It has to do with how we face our challenges, how we maintain our interior peace in the midst of our daily struggles. What are the things that take away my peace? How do I recover my peace? We normally regain our peace when we pray and try to see things through God’s eyes. Without peace we cannot love God. If we are anxious, worried, depressed, down, it is impossible to pray. The love of God brings us serenity, tranquility, peace of mind, good humour, smiling faces. Many times, we spend our time in prayer recovering our peace. Prayer is an exercise of letting things go and accepting the will of God for us.

            Saint Catherine of Siena says that “without war there is no peace.” If you are lazy, if you don’t struggle, if you give up, it is impossible to find peace. We all have the experience of reaching joy after winning a battle. To be at peace you need to get rid of your enemies. If you want to find out who your main enemy is, look at yourself in the mirror every morning. Don’t forget your features. Engrave them into your memory. I am my biggest enemy.

            Saints experience peace in spite of many trials and tribulations. In the midst of furious storms, they maintain an interior tranquility. People go to them looking for consolation. Blessed Alvaro was a man at peace with himself. I can testify about this. You could feel it close to him. Peace is something sought by everyone, even though we don’t acknowledge it. It is a rare commodity, difficult to find, a precious diamond. It takes a long time to reach, to come across. You need to keep digging. We Christians should be sowers of joy and peace. We cannot give what we haven’t got. Peace is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. In every Mass we ask for it: Grant us peace!

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