A Piece On Peace

BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS,
FOR THEY WILL BE CALLED
CHILDREN OF GOD.

Matthew 5:9

The 26th United Nation's International Day of Peace is celebrated today the world over. This celebration offers a chance for some to put down arms and for others to join arms in recognition of peace.

The Associated Press said that guns even fell silent in Afghanistan for the day: "The UN said tens of thousands of international and Afghan soldiers as well as Taliban militants 'all stood down from offensive military operations in support of the biggest international peace day effort that Afghanistan has known.' A US Coalition spokesman said, 'It's crazy, but apparently the Taliban sent out an email saying they were going to abide by it if we were, and we definitely are. It's a great day to show Afghans exactly what peace is like and how their everyday lives would be if they just booted out the bad guys.' "

Of course, it's never that simple, is it? A great Tibetan Master has said that peace and war are not the true opposites. Peace and change, peace and movement, are the real ones: "Therefore, I deal not with peace, but am concerned with love, which oft disturbs the equilibrium of matter and material circumstance, and can consequently work against so-called peace."

The May/June 2002 Beacon Magazine article "Preparing For True Peace" went on to say: "All polarities, all true opposites, when properly integrated form a complete whole. To achieve a true and lasting peace, change, movement and a deep upheaval of the foundations of human society are necessary. Yet, too often peace is invoked prematurely before the necessary transformational changes have been put in place. . . To achieve true peace may well require the disruption of familiar equilibrium. Like wisdom, peace is 'a pearl of great price' that must be won by humanity through sacrifice of self-interest to the common good and the welfare of the whole."

The key according to this wise sage is a commitment to justice which recognizes the rights and needs of all through sharing, to the spirit of cooperation based on active goodwill and the principle of right human relations as well as to a sense of personal responsibility for group, community and national affairs. Entering this door boldly would take us beyond the personality's desire for peace at any price and put us on the side of those working to establish the Kingdom of God on earth where True Peace will reign.



Of Note: These gigantic sunflowers were large when this shot was captured but have grown to the size of dinner plates since. If it is anything like last year, the birdies will soon be enjoying the tightly packed seeds right off the plant. With delight and amazement, we watched these wee creatures enjoy their dinner last fall--often accompanied by aerial swoops and loud fights over the best morsels. The cats watched in amazement as well because the 12-foot tall sunflowers were way too high for the flying dinner they had in mind.

Today's Weather Report: Perfect weather today and for most of this coming week. We really appreciate each and every temperate day because it is not unusual to have the first snow fall in October.