Monday, May 30 : Saint Titus Brandsma

Even though we love peace and, in our deepest hearts, are hopeful that our actions to promote peace will not be in vain, neither you nor I can escape the pressures of this time. What this means is that we cannot free ourselves from the widespread doubt that, in accordance with the laws of history, anything can change: war succeeds to war and, each time, it strikes a mortal blow to the cause of peace. We still live too much under the influence of those who claim that people who want peace have to arm themselves to overcome war. (…) It is noteworthy that, over the centuries, heroes of peace, preachers of the message of peace, constantly arise. (…) We discover these messengers and apostles of peace in every time and place. And in our own times, fortunately, there is no lack of them. But no messenger of peace has found a more widespread response than He whom we call (…) the King of peace (Is 9:5). Allow me to remind you who this messenger is. On Easter day the apostles seemed to have lost all hope following Christ’s death on the cross. Just when, in the world’s eyes, Christ’s mission had come to an end, had failed, was unfulfilled, he appeared in the midst of the apostles gathered together in the Upper Room for fear of their enemies and, instead of warlike pronouncements against their adversaries, they heard him say: “Peace I leave with you, my own peace I give you. Not as the world gives do I give” (Jn 14:27). (…) I should like to repeat these words, make them echo through all the world without bothering about who hears them. I should like to repeat them so often that, even if (…) we have ignored them, we will come to listen to them until we have heard and understood them all.

Roman Catholic Ordinary Calendar – rosary,team