Advent week 2 – Peace

Do you know that there are more than 110 active conflicts – state based, non‑state, high and low‑intensity – raging across our world today? Most remain unseen or unheard in global discourse. These conflicts are fuelled by territorial ambition, clan rivalries, ethnic and religious divisions, and the relentless desire for power and control. In such a world, the old notion of a “just war” continues to resurface. But there is no just war. Every act of violence violates the imago Dei—the image of God—in another human being. Each life lost is a tear in the fabric of God’s creation.

As we light the Candle of Peace on this second week of Advent, the haunting words of the prophet Jeremiah echo again: “Peace, peace,” they say, “when there is no peace.” Advent does not allow us to ignore such brokenness in our world today. Instead, it calls us to persevere with hope in bringing peace to the world, trusting in the God who enters human life not with armies but as a vulnerable child.

Mary’s Magnificat offers a powerful vision of what God’s peace truly looks like with justice at its heart. She proclaims a God who scatters the proud, brings down unjust rulers, lifts up the humble, fills the hungry with good things, and sends the rich away empty. These “great reversals” point to God bringing justice — a move toward the world being set right, which is a core aspect of biblical peace. The Magnificat shows us that shalom—biblical peace—is not simply the absence of conflict but the presence of justice, mercy, and restored relationships.

The coming of Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace teaches us that peace begins in small places—in a manger, in a forgotten village, in the quiet choices of ordinary people like Mary and Joseph. This advent challenges us to remember the ordinary lives of several peacemakers in our world, who persevere where others dare not tread. Let us celebrate all those who do not make much noise as they sow hope where there is despair, and love where there is hate.

May we be inspired by such people whose lives reflect glimpses of the life of Christ. May their acts of courage, justice, and compassion offer sparks of inspiration for our own witness as we take up Christ’s call to be instruments of God’s peace—in our homes, workplaces, places of worship, communities, and public life.

Come, Lord Jesus. Prince of Peace, come. Be born in our hearts so that we may know and do the things that make for peace (Luke 19:42).

Rev. Rebecca Daniel