Living the Quaker Way: Timeless Wisdom For a Better Life Today by Philip Gulley

Author:Philip Gulley [Gulley, Philip]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
ISBN: 9780307955807
Publisher: The Doubleday Religious Publishing Group
Published: 2013-09-16T16:00:00+00:00

A Plea for Peace

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” —Jesus of Nazareth

One recent summer day, I was sitting on my porch when two well-dressed young men approached my home asking if they could speak to me. Having seen them around town and recognizing them as two Mormon missionaries, I invited them to sit down on the porch and brought them iced water to drink, knowing they didn’t drink caffeinated beverages.

Because I enjoy theological conversation and learning about other faiths, I asked them to tell me about their beliefs, which they did. Though I admired their commitment and appreciated their pleasant personalities, it was evident they were working from a script, and that neither one had the education or experience to talk at length about theological matters beyond their rehearsed lines. Our conversation ended with one of the young men warning me not to believe in evolution. Since we hadn’t discussed that topic, I thought it odd, but I didn’t comment. Instead, I thanked them for stopping by and told them they were always welcome in my home.

Curiously, since that day, I have been warned by other Christians to beware of evolution. While I know their objections, having heard them countless times, I don’t understand them. I not only believe in the science of evolution, I am also counting on the principle of progress to usher humanity into an enlightened era. For a number of years, I believed God would finally and dramatically intervene on earth, initiating a worldwide reign of peace and justice. I no longer believe that. My Quaker morality will not permit me to assign to God the work of peace that rightly belongs to us. Will this reign of peace happen soon? Obviously not. Evolution, moral and otherwise, is a gradual, sometimes plodding, work, but it is an inevitable one. It is tempting to think peace will happen for us or to us, but it must happen through us and because of us. The peace Jesus leaves us is the capacity to forgive, the potential for reconciliation, and the example of determined grace. Jesus and other great spiritual teachers provide signposts pointing the way to peace, but they do not magically speak it into being.

Just as, in our evolutionary process, we’ve managed to overcome many obstacles that could harm us—disease, the effects of extreme weather, accidental injury—so must we take on the threat of war and violence. We must do this with the same resolve and determination with which we have conquered other blights, recognizing violence for the global threat it poses. We must empower the wisest and most capable among us to wage war on war. Whenever rogue nations threaten the peace of their neighbors, we must not turn a blind eye toward their misdeeds; rather, we must go to them quickly and work for a resolution, so the cancer of war is checked.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.