Prince of Peace
Fr. Gus Carter
12 /25/ 04

One of my favorite sayings is, "No wonder Jesus is so famous, he had four geniuses write the story of his life." The Gospels are crammed with meaning that is never exhausted. We reflect on various Gospel passages to try to understand more deeply and more clearly the messages offered. Consulting commentaries helps us widen our understanding of all the evangelists want to communicate.

The first verse of the story of Jesus birth begins with the census of Augustus Caesar. Luke wants to pin point the time of Jesus birth to emphasize that the Word of God entered human history. Luke is stressing the realty of God coming among us. By this coming all of history was changed. Connecting a census of the whole world with Jesus' birth give Luke the opportunity to imply that Jesus opens salvation to all. One of the major themes of Luke's Gospel is that God's salvific activity in Jesus is offered to all human beings.

In Luke's time most of the Roman Empire was still honoring their emperor as a god. These honors were begun in the period of Augustus Caesar who was emperor at the time of Jesus' birth. There is an inscription still to be found in Rome that calls Augustus "~Savior of the whole world." The Romans celebrated the "Peace of Augustus." Most of the know,Jerusalem had been pacified in Augustus time. However, for many it was a bitter peace of oppression. Another Roman inscription speaks of Augustus: "The birthday of the god has marked the beginning of good news for the world." We can see that Luke is challenging all these ideas in his description of Jesus' birth. The Gospel read at this Mass proclaims that the savior has been born in the city of David which is Bethlehem. It is not a Roman inscription but a heavenly host that proclaims Jesus the one who brings peace. These same angels announce that the real good news is the birth of Jesus.

One of the major ways people experience the presence of God is through peace. Some people like quiet churches because they find assurance of God in their lives through peace. The peacefulness some individuals feel after confession of sins helps them believe that God has forgiven them. One of the most satisfying experiences for parents occurs when they see their children at peace with one another. People return to God because they feel that they must do something about the tensions and useless struggles in their lives.

Jesus promises peace to those who follow him. Struggle and pain still happen among Jesus' disciples. However, living truthfully, for example, really does set us free from many of the anxieties of life. When we face realities, they are much less likely to sabotage our lives. Even when we are hurt by loving, we can find peace in the fact that we are capable of love. We gradually become convinced that real love is never wasted. We have constant examples in history and in headlines that vengeance and resentment do vast amounts of damage to individuals and to society. Recently I heard the remark that vengeance is like taking poison yourself to hurt another person. Forgiveness and compassion bring peace to ourselves and to others. Jesus truly is the Prince of Peace.

Our pride causes so much trouble in ourselves and in others. We create bitter enemies if we must always have our way. When we seek special status, we begin a competition that leaves much envy and hurt in its wake. There are many who are offended when they are not given first place. Pride often interferer;with acting justly. When we feel more important than others, we leave a trail of injustice. We easily ignore the rights of others.

Christmas season lasts three more weeks. During these days we should make sure that we spend some time reflecting on the Infant Jesus. How can we fear a God who comes to us as an infant? Jesus said, "He who sees me, sees the Father." In some mysterious way the Creator of the world can reveal divine things to us through a tiny child. The Son of God, Creator of the universe, Sustainer of uncountable galaxies, came among us as a helpless child. We need to reflect on the humility, gentleness and hopefulness revealed in the Babe of Bethlehem.