Thoughts for a New Year

During the Christmas season, Christians reflect on the word “peace.” In the faith tradition, Christ is the Messiah and the Prince of Peace. We sing of sleeping in “heavenly peace,” and wish “Peace on earth, good will to all” in the hymn, It Came Upon a Midnight Clear. The advantage of using this word for the blog was intentional. Peace may represent tranquility and sense of calm regardless of faith. 

The Harper Collins Bible Dictionary states that the Hebrew word Shalom is usually translated as  peace. In the Old Testament, shalom is a “relational concept between people or between people and God.” In the New Testament, peace is used as a greeting and farewell, but also as a spiritual blessing associated with grace, love, joy and life.

I often heard bereaved people refer to their deceased loved ones as “at peace.” Daniel Tobin, M.D. used the phrase “peace of mind” in his book Peaceful Dying, not as a cliché but as a relaxed and restful state.

I began to understand the importance of the word peace during my college days in the 1970’s. My more senior friends may remember gesturing to others by raising your hand with the index and middle fingers extended and hollering, “Peace, man!” At that time, this was a reference to ending the war in Vietnam. Unfortunately, some took the gesture to mean total opposition to all who fought in the war. If you weren’t careful, you might receive a return gesture using just one of those fingers.

As the decades unfolded, I sensed a call to work with those who mourn by encouraging and teaching them to find their sense of peace. We might refer to this as a personal peace, not necessarily of faith, but a means of temporarily avoiding anxiety and distress. Over time, peace often grows and results in an acceptance of wellbeing. Indeed, where there is sorrow there will be joy.

I like all the definitions above for the word peace. Relational peace is vital in our world right now, regardless of your faith or lack therof. Peace as a blessing of grace, love, joy and life is beautiful. The resurrected Jesus addressed the disciples with the greeting, “Peace be with you!” As we approach a new year in the midst of a continuation of a global pandemic, hostilities at home and elsewhere, climate challenges, and numerous other uncertainties, I borrow the blessing from the Prince of Peace: To all who read this:  May your holidays be joyous and safe and may all our lives be filled with grace, love and being “At Peace.”