2 Thessalonians 3:16
Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace
always by all means. The Lord be with you all.
Peace by all means.
There are two groups of people fighting against
each other, destroying property and killing.
It looks as though they will never get along with each other and the
fighting won’t end, the warring won’t stop, until one group has completely annihilated
the other. We could say that there will
be no peace until one side is dead. But,
is that peace? Or is it merely the
cessation of fighting?
A third group might get involved in the fight, before
that terminally decisive end, and try to find a way to bring about a cease-fire
without the annihilation of a people.
That third group will come into the fight with their own weapons and
tools, their own fighting, and beat the two groups into submission, forcing
them to make peace with one another. But
– is this really peace? Or is it merely the
putting down of guns?
If peace is defined by the absence of war, then
peace is only a mediocre, lukewarm kind of state, with nothing truly noble in
it. It would be akin to defining the
absence of hate as apathy. The absence
of love can also be defined as apathy.
Do we want an apathetic world?
I’ve often thought that the cooling down of
violence in Ireland has not been brought about by wondrous peacemakers and and
a true acceptance of each other’s differences, a true love of one another. No. I
think that the growing “peace” in Ireland is a result of cultural and religious
apathy. The economic situation in
Ireland has improved, and, so, people are enjoying more jobs and more money. The focus is on the increased availability of
wealth and the things that it can do – not on love of neighbor. If an Irishman doesn’t have to compete with
his neighbor over a limited number of jobs or resources, then there’s no reason
to fight. Because, really, the reason
for the violence wasn’t so much cultural or religious – it was always about
finances. The great cause for which the
young willingly gave their lives, for which countless civilians were killed –
this great cause was not of the heart, or of the soul, or even of the mind, it
was always of the wallet.
And it is easy to think (rather cynically, I admit)
the same about every war in every region, across the world, throughout
history. If the belly is full and the senses
are sufficiently entertained, then the people are at peace. It’s the “bread and circus” mentality of
life. We can see the truth of it when we
examine the unrest caused by the desperation of the poor or the reckless
boredom of the rich – but it is much more difficult to see when we are in the
midst of this bread and circus peace.
We, of the middle class, who can pay our budget-wise
bills without worry and still have enough for big-screen TVs, take out, and
twice yearly vacations, with the occasional bungee jump and impulse purchase
thrown in – we have no cause to amass a militia and start a war. Hungry, desperately poor people who are that
way because they are being seriously oppressed may have cause to start war –
but no one else. The crazy people in civilized
countries who do that sort of thing are, well, crazy. They’re either zealous nuts who believe in
the rapture, or Armageddon, or seven virgins in Paradise, or some other
superstitious drivel like that. Or, they
are ruthless power mongers, monstrous villains, bent on world domination. Or they are seriously mentally ill. Perhaps they are combination of all
three. If only someone could calm them
down by enlightening them away from religion, getting them to talk to a trained
therapist, or making sure that they are well medicated, then, maybe, we could
have peace. Make sure everyone has
enough to eat and that premium cable channels, antidepressants and cosmetic
surgery are available to everyone and then we will live in a civilized and
peaceful world. [Insert your sarcastic
and cynical take here. Well, actually,
at the bottom of this post.]
The problem is, of course, that human beings will
always long for something more. Not just
more food, more money, more pleasure, and more fun – but also more… How many humans have asked
themselves, and anyone listening, the timeless question: “Is this all there is?” Not, “is this all the chicken there is?” or “is
this all the bonus pay?” or “is this all the orgasm?” or “is this all the
tequila?” or “is this all the comedy?”
Well, yes, people ask those questions, too. But, these are finite things and, so,
naturally, they are limited in supply.
They are also limited in results.
Chicken, bonuses, orgasms, tequila, and comedic acts can only do so much
for the human person. The purpose of
life is not to amass as much as possible so that there are no gaps or lapses. No, in fact, if one is able to live one’s
life this way, then one will always be stuffed and entertained and, therefore,
oblivious to want. And the absence of
want is not joy. The absence of want is
not plenty.
When I was little (and sometimes still, now) I
would ask my father for something by saying that I wanted or would like
it. To which he would respond with two
alternate phrases: “Now you know what it’s like to want,” and, “It’s good to
want.” I always thought he was just
being annoying for the fun of pushing my buttons. And, yes, in a way, he was. But, he was also right. If I had everything that I ever wanted before
I could even ask for it – before I even
knew that I wanted it – then I wouldn’t be happy. I would be surviving very easily and
perpetually entertained, but I wouldn’t know satisfaction and I wouldn’t know
joy.
Now, I’m not saying that the poor are blessed
because they wake up every morning with hungry stomachs and go to bed every
night with their stomachs still wanting.
No. But, when anyone wakes up
with a hungry stomach, that first bite of food is extra delicious, isn’t it? In strictly financial terms, a good or
service gains no appreciation in value if there is an overabundance of supply
of that good or service. In fact, if supply
is low and demand is high, then that is good or service has great value. Appreciation grows when there is want. So, yes, it was good for me, as a child, to
want something to eat or to want a toy – for, then, my appreciation for that
food and that toy grew.
What am I trying to say with all of this?… What am
I trying to say with all of this…? The
very fact that we can imagine the infinite opens up our longing for it. Finite goods and services – no matter how
wanted or how plentifully received – can not give us the ultimate fullness of
joy. It is good to feed the body. And it is good to feed the mind. And it is also very good to feed the heart and
soul. Material things aren’t bad. In truth, material things are good. But… What do we do with them? If we use material things to numb us to the
fullness of reality – to blind and deafen us to spiritual things – then we are
making very bad choices. We’re getting
it all wrong. Think of the arrogance, the
patronizing condescension of those high and mighty rulers who planned bread and
circus to keep their people “at peace.”
Do we really think that God is like one of them? He hears us wishing and praying for material
things, for material comforts and material pleasures, and He does not turn away
in hoity-toity disgust. No, God
understands our material needs – better than we even do ourselves. God does not want a child to starve to
death. God sees the overfeeding of one child’s
belly and the under feeding of another’s, and the solution to the problem
should be obvious to us. But it’s not. Because we’re blinded by bread and circus. God wants to give us good things and for us
to use those good things well in loving service to ourselves and to our
neighbors, to all of our fellow human beings.
And God also knows that the best thing is no thing. God did not make us
solely for the material. God also made
us for the spiritual, for the eternal and the infinite. God made us for… God.
God wants us to be fully satisfied and fully joyful –
and God knows bread and circus won’t cut it.
God hears us pray for peace and knows that true peace is not merely the
absence of wanting. Sometimes, in order
for us to know true peace we have to have our eyes and ears opened wide, opened
wide with wanting, with sorrow and grief.
It is in the stillness and the silence that we are able to be open and
receive the infinite goodness that God is pouring down on to us. If we are too stuffed and occupied here and
now on this earth, we will never know this earth for the fullness of what it is
– we will never know ourselves or one another for the fullness that we are – we
will never know what it truly is to be fully human and fully alive. God will grant us peace… peace by all means.
© 2014 Christina Chase
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