Peace Deeply Rooted in Faith
Deepening Our Understanding of Peace
We are not at peace with others because we are not at peace with ourselves, and we are not at peace with ourselves because we are not at peace with God.
-Thomas Merton
This time of year, Christmas tree lots appear in every city and town across our country. Millions (more than 35 million) of trees are cut and sold each year to adorn homes, churches, and offices.
A month from now, just as they are turning brown and losing their needles, all of these trees will be tossed to the curb. Cut down and no longer connected to their root systems, the trees cannot live, which seems an apt metaphor for deepening our understanding of practicing peace.
As Christians, our desire and efforts to practice peace need to be deeply rooted in our faith and our relationship with God. If our efforts to practice peace are cut off from this rootedness, they will most likely wither.
Thomas Merton makes this point in the quote above. The state of our peace with others and with ourselves will directly reflect the state of our peace with God. In order to strengthen and extend branches of peace to others, we first need to water and deepen the roots of our faith and our relationship with God. If we are struggling in our efforts to practice peace with others and with ourselves, we are wise to pause and reflect on the current state of our peace with God.
Making it Personal: What are your thoughts about the quote from Thomas Merton? Do you see a connection between your spiritual life and your capacity to practice peace? Does the metaphor of our spirituality being like the root system of a tree speak to you?