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Two thousand years in the life of a living faith may be nothing. For though we sang, “All glory to God on High and on the earth be peace,” there seems to be today neither glory to God nor peace on earth.
As long as it remains a hunger yet unsatisfied, as long as Christ is not yet born, we have to look forward to Him. When real peace is established, we will not need demonstrations, but it will be echoed in our life, not only in individual life, but corporate life. Then we shall say Christ is born. That to me is the real meaning of the verse we have sung. Then we will not think of a particular day in the year as that of the birth of the Christ, but as an ever-recurring event which can be enacted in every life. . . .
And unless one wishes for peace for all life, one cannot wish for peace for oneself. It is a self-evident axiom, like the axioms of Euclid, that one cannot have peace unless there is one an intense longing for peace all around.
Mahatma Gandhi, from a talk he gave in December 1931 while voyaging back to India
Reflection questions:
1. What does Christ’s peace mean to you?
2. How do you experience the birth of Jesus not just during Christmas, but throughout the year?
3. Do you truly wish for peace?
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