Peace -- image by Lou Gold
Today is the celebration of the life and vision of Saint Francis of Assisi.
As has been said, many times in many ways in many traditions, "The answer is in our hands."
PEACE
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love.
Where there is injury, pardon.
Where there is doubt, faith.
Where there is despair, hope.
Where there is darkness, light.
Where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive.
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.
Amen.
Peace is not a mystery. It is a practice. It's in our hands and, as the great Buddhist living teacher of peace Thich Nhat Hanh shows, it is in every step.
His poem fits perfectly the vision of Saint Francis, who is also known as Brother Sun.
Peace is every step
The shining red sun is my heart
Each flower smiles with me
How green, how fresh they all grow
How cool the wind blows
Peace is every step
It turns the endless path to dust
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