For Holy Week, we’ve collected a series of reflections written by our devoted Supporters, Trustees and our Patron. Each have contributed ‘100 words for peace’. We truly hope they bring you an opportunity to pause for peace and reflection as we journey together towards Easter.
Sun 29th March, Palm Sunday
Peace not quiet
We often equate peace with quiet, stillness and calm.
Well, not in my house.
If you joined us for breakfast, you wouldn’t find an ounce of calm. Two daughters talking over each other, cereal being negotiated like a UN treaty, parents misplacing keys and letting coffee go cold, someone singing something from Encanto at full volume. It’s loud, chaotic and very human.
Over the years I’ve noticed that when this isn’t the case – when my kids are quiet or withdrawn, when nobody is singing or talking over each other – those are the moments of concern. Perhaps that’s when we’re least at peace.
At our breakfast table we’re not looking for stillness. We’re seeking the kind of peace that lets people speak honestly, argue loudly, laugh freely, and still feel loved.
Kit Lewis, Cord Trustee
Mon 30th March
Father God, in a world where we can only ever grab moments of peace – peace before the alarm goes off, peace before the kids come home, peace in our town, our nation, our world – we give thanks for your peace. Not the fleeting peace of our world but a deeper inner peace, one that passes understanding, which sustains and strengthens us through the most difficult times, and the best. We praise and thank you for the knowledge of your peace, and pray that those in even the least peaceful of places – geographically, physically or emotionally – might experience your peace too.
In Jesus name, Amen.
Alison Pressey, Cord Supporter
Tue 31st March
PEACE
It’s not the absence of war.
It’s not the acquisition of wealth.
Nor even good health.
But in the midst of war and lives’ other horrors,
When food and essentials of life: shelter, security, are no longer – for some never have been – there.
When friends are absent and family no longer around.
When life seems dark and hopeless.
Then a light shines, like a pinprick at first, growing to a huge flame.
PEACE that is beyond all understanding.
LOVE beyond measure.
And LIFE for ETERNITY.Dawn McDonald, Cord Supporter
Wed 1st April
Recently I was reading Psalm 37 and a phrase in verse 37 jumped off the page – one I hadn’t noticed before. The NIV Bible says “a future awaits those who seek peace”, while the NRSV translation has the pleasingly alliterative “there is posterity for the peaceable”. I was struck again by the upside-down nature of God’s kingdom. We tend to seek a particular future, whether as individuals or as societies, thinking it will give us peace. But if we shift our priorities and pursue peace, it will lead us to a future – and perhaps one we couldn’t imagine.
Kat Brealey, Cord Chair of Trustees
Thu 2nd April, Maundy Thursday
The Bible’s word for Peace is Shalom.
Shalom means “make it good”, “make full restitution” or “restore”. It also means “to make something whole.” It does not apply only to outward peace but also applies to the whole person: mind, body and spirit.
It is worth remembering that, in a time of multiple wars around the world, peace does not just mean lack of armed conflict, but something much deeper and profound.
Let us all pray for peace – being made whole – within ourselves, with God and with our families, friends and neighbours.
Peter Davis, Cord Supporter
Fri 3rd April, Good Friday
“Peace I leave with you” (John 14:27)
I used to think of the peace Jesus promised as simply a state of inner stillness, focussed on God. But recently – partly through learning about Cord’s work – I’ve come to understand that that’s only half the picture.
We live in a world of conflicting interests, personal, national and international, and we are constantly making choices that affect other people. Some of those decisions may have global implications. Others are as simple as stopping to listen carefully to someone who wants to talk. In every situation, we need a quiet mind to grasp what’s happening and act for the best. Peace is a gift to be shared, every day.
Gillian Cross, Cord Patron
