Homespun Homily: Prayer for Peace in Our Troubled World
By Lori Fontana
We are living in an age wracked with conflict and desperately in need of peace and justice. Though for many of us daily life may seem unaffected, the turmoil elsewhere does and will affect our lives in ways subtle and not-so-subtle. More and more, we are all interconnected. If we look at our world with eyes of faith, we must see that “whatsoever we do to the least of our sisters and brothers,” whether we treat them poorly or simply neglect or ignore them, this is how we are treating Jesus.
What can we do? Here’s a saintly example to inspire and encourage us: St Clare of Assisi. As Clare lay in her sickbed in San Damiano, a monastery on the outskirts of Assisi, an army approached the city. Soldiers began to scale the monastery walls, terrorizing the nuns inside. Frightened, the sisters surrounded Clare, beseeching her help.
Clare, who had an unshakeable belief in the power of prayer and the Eucharistic presence of Jesus, rose from her bed. Retrieving the ciborium from the chapel which adjoined her cell, she faced the soldiers through an open window against which they had already positioned a ladder. She raised the Blessed Sacrament into the air. At this, the soldiers nearest to her fell backward as if stunned. Other soldiers advancing toward the monastery walls turned and fled. Then St Clare knelt and prayed to God for the protection of the entire city. The army did not try to enter the city at another spot. They left and did not return.
Another time, the imperial army approached Assisi, hoping to claim the city. When Clare heard this, she instructed her community of sisters to stop all activity and kneel in prayer to God, praying that the city be spared invasion. Immediately, the army was thrown into confusion and disarray. They dispersed; and Assisi was left in peace.
We can take heart from St Clare’s example. Here she was, a woman in the 13th century, and a frail, sickly woman at that. Yet her devotion to prayer and the Eucharist “moved mountains.” She prayed with unwavering faith. She also put her faith into action as she stood to confront the invading soldiers. She did what she could do: she prayed, and she acted.
I believe God is calling all people of faith to do what we can do at this moment in history. First, we pray, and in prayer the Holy Spirit will fortify us and guide us. Then we must act. As St Paul exhorts us, “Faith without works is dead.” How is God calling me, calling you to stand up and live the Good News in this time?
Here’s an invitation to pray for peace and justice over the next weeks. You can use the prayer below (an excerpt from Pope Francis’ Prayer for Peace) or your own favorite peace prayer. St Francis wrote a good one! Let’s pray in the spirit of St Clare and through the intercession of Mary, Queen of Peace. At Mass, as we receive the Eucharist, and also every Thursday, our CLM day of intercessory prayer – these can be special times of intercession. From now, through the feast day of St Clare (August 11), and until the great Marian feast of the Assumption (August 15), may we especially join our hearts and prayers for God’s peace and justice for all people and all of God’s precious creation.
“Now, Lord, come to our aid! Grant us peace, teach us peace; guide our steps in the way of peace. Open our eyes and our hearts, and give us the courage to say: “Never again war!”; “With war everything is lost”. Instill in our hearts the courage to take concrete steps to achieve peace.
Keep alive within us the flame of hope, so that with patience and perseverance we may opt for dialogue and reconciliation. In this way may peace triumph at last, and may the words “division,” “hatred,” and “war” be banished from the heart of every man and woman. Lord, defuse the violence of our tongues and our hands.
Renew our hearts and minds, so that the word which always brings us together will be “sister” or “brother,” and our way of life will always be that of: Shalom, Peace, Salaam! Amen.” ~Pope Francis
