In a year that is coming to an end that has been filled with hate, war and violence in all it's forms we wonder, what is peace? Is this concept ever going to be achievable within our lifetimes let alone the lifetime of the world? Our conceptions of a peace that effects all people in a grandiose idea of harmony amongst the peoples of the world is a dream beyond our abilities to attain. In saying this I realise I may be destroying a dream but in reality I am destroying an illusion that we have generated for ourselves in place of the reality that is beyond our understanding. It is only beyond our understanding because we over complicate things rather than simplifying our lives. If we are to understand we need to look at 2 Samuel and Luke linking them in our hearts and acting them out in our lives (2 Sam 7b.11; Luke 1.38).
The first realisation is that it is God's dream and God's will that brings the peace that we desire and that God seeks. In placing it within the realm of humanity's striving we denigrate God's presence and dream. It becomes all about us rather than all about God, no matter how we conceive of God. In doing this we will never achieve peace as we will always have separate views of who/what God is and who/what God wants etc. We cannot decide for ourselves how to worship God in our own denomination / faith let alone accept the other's view of God. How then can we achieve peace, if all our dreams of peace are fantasies dreamt up by ourselves that devolve into our own in-fighting as to how we actually go about starting to achieve that peace? Peace the concept is difficult to get our heads around in the first place as each person has a different notion of what peace is and here we are trying to reach out for God's peace. Who knows what that is? This is not for us to achieve, promote yes, achieve no as it requires God or at least Christ's presence in our midst. Not something that we have cultivated in our lives with great relish.
So what is the realisation that we need to take on board at this crucial time of the year (one sleep to go). Can we achieve God's peace the one that passes all understanding? Unlikely, as it passes all our understanding. We limit ourselves to our conceptions. Can we at least begin to comprehend or start the process that leads to God's peace; a peace that perhaps we yearn for but do not achieve as it is not possible through our own efforts. How hard is this beginning for us? It is both easy and hard a celebration and a sadness. Mary (Lk 1.38) gets it right, perhaps in her naivety or rather in her honesty before God, Mary lets go of her life. She lets go of control and she lets go of her wants, needs and desires. Simple. Straightforward. Easy. However in doing so she gave up everything that we hold dear, which is where the sorrow comes in for us. The unimaginable sadness of letting what we perceive to be right go without any doubts recriminations or hesitancy. Once again the ugly head of our own reticence and selfishness rears up as we determine what it is that God asks of us to achieve a peace beyond understanding. We want control; we want our peace; we want that which eases our souls not what eases the burden on others.
This is not the lesson to be learnt in these passages. God's peace comes with God, for us to be participants in that peace is to be like Mary. Mary accepts. Even in her youthful state she is more aware of the response that is required to attain God's peace. Even in the heartbreak of the death of her son she knows God's peace. Even in the knowledge that life is not going to be easy she finds peace by accepting the call of God. This is where we need to look for God's peace for it is only God who can give such peace it cannot be achieved by our own efforts, however much we strive for it. In letting go we find God, in letting go we find God's peace beyond all our understanding.
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