Blessings of peace to all of you, my brothers and sisters in Christ.
We gather today under the gaze of the Almighty, in a world that cries out for mercy, for justice, and for the courage to act. The wounds of our time are deep—violence shatters families, injustice mocks the sacredness of human life, and the innocent suffer while the wicked roam free. Yet, we are not a people without hope, for we know that Christ walks among us, calling us to be His hands, His voice, His instruments of peace in a broken world.
The Scourge of Violence and the Call to Be Peacemakers
The blood of the innocent cries out from the earth—like Abel’s, it rises to the ears of the Lord. In Minnesota, a woman and her husband were shot seventeen times by an assailant still at large. In Austria and France, schools—sanctuaries of learning—have become scenes of horror, leaving parents trembling and nations searching for answers. How long, O Lord, must we endure this?
But Christ does not leave us without direction. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God." (Matthew 5:9) Peace is not passive; it is the labor of love, the refusal to accept hatred as inevitable. It is the work of rebuilding communities, of demanding just laws, of raising children who know the weight of a life’s sacredness. Imagine a world where every Christian, every person of goodwill, stood against violence—not only in prayer but in action. Imagine a world where the gunman is met not with silence, but with a society that refuses to let hatred go unchallenged.
The Demand of Justice and the Humility of Mercy
In Ukraine, a Russian soldier stands trial for a battlefield execution—a rare moment where the machinery of war is forced to answer for its crimes. The prophet Micah speaks to us across the ages: "What does the Lord require of you? To act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:8) Justice is not vengeance; it is the restoration of God’s order, the affirmation that no life is disposable.
But justice alone is not enough—mercy must temper it, for without mercy, justice becomes a new kind of violence. We must be a people who demand accountability while never forgetting that even the guilty are souls Christ died to save. Imagine a world where courts do not merely punish but redeem, where nations do not only wage war but seek reconciliation.
The Cry of the Vulnerable and the Duty of the Faithful
The Psalmist commands us: "Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked." (Psalm 82:3-4) How have we answered this call? Schools should be places of safety, yet children tremble in fear. The poor are forgotten, the refugee turned away, the unborn discarded. The Church herself is not without fault—too often, we have been slow to act, divided in our witness, hesitant to confront the evils of our age.
One of the great failings of our time is the scandal of indifference—the refusal of many within the Church to stand boldly for the defenseless. We must repent of our complacency. We must be a people who do not merely mourn evil but rise up to oppose it.
A Choice Between Two Futures
My dear brothers and sisters, we stand at a crossroads. One path leads to a world where violence reigns unchecked, where the innocent are abandoned, where justice is a hollow word. This is not prophecy—it is the trajectory of our inaction.
But there is another path—one where Christians refuse to let darkness have the final word. Where we become peacemakers in our homes, our streets, our nations. Where we demand justice tempered by mercy. Where we shield the vulnerable as if their lives were our own.
This is the world Christ calls us to build. Not by our strength alone, but by His grace working through us.
A Call to the Church
Let us not be a people who only lament. Let us be a people who act. If the Church is to regain her moral voice, we must first live as if we believe what we preach. Feed the hungry. Shelter the homeless. Protect the child. Stand against the machinery of war and greed.
The time for half-measures is over. The hour is late.
Will we be remembered as the generation that turned away—or the one that stood in the breach?
May God grant us the courage to choose rightly.
Amen.
What can we do?
In a world where violence takes innocent lives, where justice is often delayed or denied, and where the vulnerable suffer, it’s easy to feel powerless. But each of us can take small, meaningful steps to make a difference. Here’s how:
1. Stand Against Violence
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