“Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house!’” – Luke 10:5

Our Lord sent his disciples from town to town with several instructions, the above being one he repeats a couple of times in that conversation. First speak peace. While we may not be as nomadic in our daily activities as the disciples were, we are sent by God from situation to situation in our particular contexts: family, school, work and our social lives. We are also surrounded by various volatile situations in our country, not least of which is the conflict evident on the campuses of various of our tertiary educational institutions.

First speak peace. How would this change how we discuss our decisions, and put them into practice – both as individuals and as a country?

Speaking peace does not mean brushing important questions under the carpet. Peace (shalom) is wholeness, unity, healing – not simply an absence of conflict. First speak peace, therefore, means to begin each thought process and conversation with the question, “How do we, together, help bring about healing, unity and wholeness in this situation?”

How do we first speak peace if we are not ourselves deeply aware of God’s gift of peace within each of us – if we do not emanate that peace that comes from resting in God’s presence, if only for a few moments prior to each situation?

Revd Claudia Coustas