visible rhetoric

What is this peace which Christ is leaving his disciples?  What is the peace of Christ? Peace is a biblical word.  In the original Hebrew the word for peace is shalom .  Shalom means to be whole, to be complete.  That is why the greeting shalom can mean a lot – it can mean prosperity and well-being, it can mean harmony and concord, it can mean success, it can mean tranquility.  It is a state when the person becomes whole, when a person becomes what God intended him to become. When shalom was translated into Greek they used the Greek word eirene.  Eirene means inner peace wherein the person has no conflicts within, when a person does not have hostile feelings.   Later still the word evolved so that eirene or peace means the good that comes from God. 

Before we go into our reflection this morning it might be helpful to look into the context of our gospel today.   The gospel of John says that Jesus was walking about in the temple on the feast of the dedication.   The feast of the dedication is held in December which explains why John says that it was winter.   The feast of the dedication commemorates the re-dedication of the temple after the Jews fought and won their independence from the Greeks.   The temple had to be rededicated because the Greeks turned the Jewish temple into a pagan temple erecting even the statue of Zeus and sacrificing pigs in the temple, so despicable to the Jews.   So the temple has to be cleansed, it has to be offered back to God, it has to be dedicated again.  

Jesus said, I am the gate for the sheep.  And a second time he said, I am the gate, whoever enters through me will be saved. When Jesus said “whoever enters through me will be saved” what did he mean “will be saved”? What does it mean to be saved?  Some of you might have been approached by some people who might have asked you, are you saved?  What did you say?  How did you answer?  Did you ask them, what do they mean saved? How does it feel to be saved?  Does being saved mean my sins have been erased, I am forgiven?  Did Christ come to die for my sins so that I can be forgiven and therefore saved?  Of course this is what Jesus came for – to forgive our sins, to wash away our sins.  But what does it mean, what does it feel like, what does it do, what does salvation bring you?

We have already reflected on two cardinal virtues namely prudence and fortitude.  Now we reflect on the third cardinal virtue which is justice.  Justice is the virtue that guides us to give what is due to God and to others.  Giving what is due to God and to the others is not charity.  It is a strict obligation.  As employers, as people who employ other people, giving the correct salary and benefits to which our employees are entitled, is a demand of justice and not of charity.  As employees paid for our work, by justice we are also obligated to render the service that is required of us.