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Peace I leave you, my peace I give it to you

John 14:27

Time truly flies. At times, it astonishes me how quickly days pass when we move through them without awareness or engagement. By the end of a day, week, month, or even a year, I often find myself wondering how easily I can drift—carried along by schedules and routines, consuming time without much intention.

Now we stand on the threshold of the second week of Advent, a season that invites us to prepare, reflect, and wait with hope. I wonder how this Advent season is unfolding in you. The theme for the second Sunday of Advent is PEACE. When we think of peace, many images come to mind. The prophet Isaiah paints one of the most profound in chapter 11:

The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid,  the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.

What a beautiful vision of God’s Kingdom where harmony reigns, and division is healed. I long to see people of differing opinions work together for the common good, those with power and wealth using their influence to serve the powerless, and people of diverse backgrounds learning from and cherishing one another.

Yet, peace is not easy. It is hard to be kind in the face of hostility, hard to remain open when others may take advantage, and hard to forgive when repentance is absent. That is why peace must first take root within our hearts.

In a recent conversation with my spiritual director, I realized that I had often sought new paths hoping to find what I was missing—only to discover that what I sought had been patiently waiting within me all along.

In the same way, we all yearn for peace—a world without conflict, relationships filled with meaning—but sometimes all our efforts seem as futile as trying to dry water in the middle of pouring rain. Still, we can plant a seed of peace in our hearts by inviting God to dwell there. As our relationship with God deepens within us, it will naturally flow outward into the world.

Let us turn our attention again to the God who is with us in every moment, speaking quietly to our hearts. Even when we feel alone, the love of God—revealed to us in Jesus Christ—reaches out to connect and renew us. The more we open ourselves to that divine presence, the more we come to see, hear, and know the peace that only God can give. And in that peace, we will shine as the light and salt of the world, living as who we truly are—with God, and for the world God loves.

Fr. James