Word to the Wise
Tuesday, May 12, 2009 - Tuesday in the Fifth Week of Easter
[Acts 14:19-28 and John 14:27-31A]Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid......
These words of Jesus are spoken at every celebration of the Eucharist just prior to the exchange of "the Sign of Peace." I find it truly ironic that this ritual exchange of a "sign of peace" has become one of the most controversial changes in the eucharistic liturgy since the Second Vatican Council! Some of our brothers and sisters (in fact, entire nations) simply refuse to participate in this! Students going abroad to study have come back and said to me that the church they attended did not exchange the Sign of Peace! One wonders what, then, is the meaning of "communion?" How can we accept peace from Jesus and refuse to share it with one another? Jesus' words are meant to reassure the disciples who would soon be very frightened by the events of his death and resurrection as well as disciples who would be preaching about him in the face of sometimes lethal persecution later on! Faith can be the source of a profound peace but it is not a private peace! The Pope is currently consulting with bishops around the world about the Sign of Peace - not to get rid of it but to relocate it possibly to Offertory time. Wherever and whenever it happens, it should be an occasion of a gift to one another and not a vague (and sometimes resented) platitude. This is Christ's own peace that we are giving! Our reluctance to give it may indicate the need for an equally profound examination of conscience! AMEN