Peace Makers

Kofi Annan and Aung San Suu Kyi are remarkable people. They are both working for peace, in very different settings. They seek a peace which would be transforming and wholesome, marked by justice and integrity. What the people of both Syria and Burma presently experience are tyrannical regimes which want peace of a sort - the peace where the citizens do what the government says.

It is startling that Jesus called on his followers to be peace-makers. Palestine was then under the brutal rule of the Roman Empire, and there was much which needed to be changed. Jesus said, ' God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God.' (Matthew 5.9)

All of us face situations or people which are sometimes or always difficult. How can we work for peace or be peace-makers?

Much will depend on our attitude and approach to the people who are perceived as being at the heart of the trouble. Showing respect and treating with courtesy seem to be the starting points for working towards a better outcome. Our world needs people who will pay the high price of peace-making - all around us. Are you up for it?
Best wishes,

Richard