We all yearn for peace and quiet, at least some of the time. We live in a noisy, intrusive world to the point when moments of silence may feel terrifying. Even when we are relaxing, there\u2019s a good chance that the telephone will ring \u2013 a sales pitch for something we don\u2019t need \u2013 or the doorbell ring, or the computer ping. Even if we decide to get away from everything, getting there can be stressful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When we hear that Jesus appeared to his disciples after the Resurrection and said, \u201cPeace be with you,\u201d we wonder whether he was being sarcastic. The disciples are in the upper room, huddled for fear. Fear denotes an absence of peace. The disciples feared their new title, that of Apostle, feared their Mission to go out into the world and tell about Jesus, and feared the outside world that seemed ready to pounce and destroy them as it seemed to have done to Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At one level, Jesus saying, \u201cPeace,\u201d was utterly normal. Just as we say, \u201cHi,\u201d or \u201cHey,\u201d depending on our tribe, or \u201cHow are you?\u201d \u2013 greetings that have become so habitual they are blurted out before we think. In Israel, then and now, the habitual greeting was \u201cShalom<\/em>,\u201d peace. It was expected. The response, \u201cPeace be with you also,\u201d was the polite reply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jesus says hello to his fearful, bemused friends, as he says hello to us, just as we share the Peace during the Eucharist each Sunday. Too often at the Eucharist we use that greeting to engage in hurried conversations that have nothing to do with peace at all! \u201cWanna join us for lunch after church?\u201d \u201cHave you seen what Marty is wearing?\u201d \u201cThat sermon was a bore!\u201d Meanwhile, the priest tries to shake as many hands as possible, hopes no one is offended if their hands aren\u2019t shaken, and worries that this noisy interlude won\u2019t destroy the rhythm of the liturgy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet when we emulate Jesus as we exchange the Peace, we remember what he was saying to the disciples in the upper room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What was he saying?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jesus was saying that his presence is<\/em> peace; a peace, as St Paul puts it, that is beyond our understanding, far more potent than an absence of noise, or a feeling of well being. Jesus says, \u201cPeace,\u201d and we are reminded how costly his gift of peace is, and how extraordinary its depth. Because Jesus has died, has risen, has ascended, we are offered a share in the results of those costly actions. Baptism reminds us that we have died with Jesus, have risen with him, have ascended with him, and now live in his company, in the company of the Church, fed by Word and Sacrament.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Secondly, the peace Jesus gives us means that nothing can separate us from the love of God, except our own unwillingness to accept the gift, live in the gift and share the gift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Accepting a gift is a moment of self-emptying, of acceptance and gratitude. For a moment we are beholden, vulnerable, dependent as we receive that which we lack. Receiving a gift can strike our pride, can be uncomfortable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Living in the gift demands an active gratitude. It also means that we value that which we have been given. We feel it necessary to show it off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And that leads to sharing the gift. The gift of \u201cthe peace of God which passeth all understanding\u201d is to be received as a trust to share with others. Thus when we exchange \u201cthe Peace\u201d today, we say to those we greet, \u201cHere is the most wonderful gift, the gift of accepting Jesus into our lives and sharing that communion with each other and out into the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n All the orders Jesus gave to the apostles are about that Peace: Go tell about me; go baptize; do this in remembrance; love one another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In short, hearing and accepting Jesus\u2019 \u201chello\u201d forms us and renews us. It is that peace for which we yearn and which we are given. The apostles went into a hostile world. Many of them were martyred. But through it all they were upheld and sustained by the \u201cPeace\u201d Jesus gave them. Today he offers that same Peace to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This sermon was written by Anthony F.M. Clavier<\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" We all yearn for peace and quiet, at least some of the time. We live in a noisy, intrusive world to the point when moments of silence may feel terrifying. 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