Let Us Sow Pardon and Union
Becoming Instruments of God’s Peace
When we practice peace, we open ourselves to the transformative power of God’s love, and we become agents of that love in a world that so desperately needs it.
-Robbin Brent
There is often a connection between the next two lines of the Peace Prayer: “Where there is injury, [let us sow] pardon,” and “where there is discord, [let us sow] union.” Discord is often rooted in the experience of one or both parties feeling injured by the other.
At some point in the past, when you experienced difficulties in a relationship, did you notice how easy it was to believe that the other person was responsible for the injury that created the dissonance? I know for myself that it so much easier to see the speck in my brother’s or sister’s eye than the log in my own (Matthew 7:3). If I persist with this kind of self-righteous attitude, I am perpetuating injury, sowing seeds of hurt and anger, both within myself and in my relationship with the other person.
Our faith calls us to a different attitude, one of pardon, forgiveness, and, when possible, reconciliation. In the end, it doesn’t matter “who started it.” What matters is our commitment to sow seeds of pardon and union so that we may begin the healing process.
During the holiday season we often see people we rarely encounter during the rest of the year. This may mean that we will be spending time with people with whom we are currently at odds. In these situations, we have the choice to continue to nurse our resentment and injury, or to be instruments of peace and to sow at least a small seed of pardon. And if others offer seeds of pardon to us, we can choose to let go of our sense of injury and to receive their gift with an open heart.
Making it Personal: Is there a relationship in your life in which you have been injured, in which you would like to sow a seed of pardon? Is there someone you know that you have injured, with whom you would like to sow a seed of forgiveness? In both cases, what is one specific step you could take now to become an instrument of God’s peace?