Peace has always been elusive in this world, with each generation experiencing its own struggles to maintain unity. While it’s tempting to see the state of the world in a negative and depressing way, we are urged to continue offering our prayers for peace and unity.
St. John Paul II reminds us, in his Message on the World Day of Peace in 2003, that “peace is not essentially about structures but about people. Certain structures and mechanisms of peace – juridical, political, economic – are of course necessary and do exist, but they have been derived from nothing other than the accumulated wisdom and experience of innumerable gestures of peace made by men and women throughout history who have kept hope and have not given in to discouragement. Gestures of peace spring from the lives of people who foster peace first of all in their own hearts.”
If we want peace in this world, it must first begin with our own hearts.
Here is a prayer from that same address by St. John Paul II, asking God to help us build a world of peace.
May he who calls us from oppression and conflict to freedom and cooperation for the good of all help people everywhere to build a world of peace ever more solidly established on truth, justice, love, and freedom. Amen.
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Prayer that government leaders will promote unity, honesty and peace
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John Paul II’s prayer that peace will have the last word in history
And today we celebrate...