 |  By Father Daniel P. Horan The Priest |
Excerpt focusing on peacemaking:
For Merton, the vocation of peacemaking was not something reserved for a few but the requirement of all the baptized who bear the name Christian. In his posthumously published book “Passion for Peace: The Social Essays of Thomas Merton” (1997), he wrote: “Christians must become active in every possible way, mobilizing all their resources for the fight against war. First of all there is much to be studied, much to be learned. Peace is to be preached, nonviolence is to be explained as a practical method, and not left to be mocked as an outlet for crackpots who want to make a show of themselves.”
While Merton envisions Christian peacemaking a Gospel mandate for all disciples, the last point he makes here is aimed at us: ministerial priests. He challenges us to do our research, know the circumstances of our time, familiarize ourselves with the tradition of Catholic social teaching, preach peace and nonviolence to our congregations and model peacemaking by our words and deeds. Indeed, this is no easy task. But it is our task, as Pope Francis continually reminds us. In the same book, Merton later writes that this pastoral ministry of peacemaking “is the great Christian task of our time.”
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For Merton, the vocation of peacemaking was not something reserved for a few but the requirement of all the baptized who bear the name Christian. In his posthumously published book “Passion for Peace: The Social Essays of Thomas Merton” (1997), he wrote: “Christians must become active in every possible way, mobilizing all their resources for the fight against war. First of all there is much to be studied, much to be learned. Peace is to be preached, nonviolence is to be explained as a practical method, and not left to be mocked as an outlet for crackpots who want to make a show of themselves.”
While Merton envisions Christian peacemaking a Gospel mandate for all disciples, the last point he makes here is aimed at us: ministerial priests. He challenges us to do our research, know the circumstances of our time, familiarize ourselves with the tradition of Catholic social teaching, preach peace and nonviolence to our congregations and model peacemaking by our words and deeds. Indeed, this is no easy task. But it is our task, as Pope Francis continually reminds us. In the same book, Merton later writes that this pastoral ministry of peacemaking “is the great Christian task of our time.”
READ the full article
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