"But the fruit of the Spirit is...peace..."
An introduction to the third fruit, plus some questions and a prayer to get you thinking.
The Unattainable
Peace is typically understood and defined in terms of “freedom from.” In other words, the presence of peace is generally notable because of the absence of something else. In the societal sense, peace would be freedom from civil unrest or disorder; within personal relationships, peace can be understood as freedom from dissension or quarrels between people; for an individual it could be freedom from anxiety or disturbance (whether emotional, mental, or physical). Peace, in whatever way we view it, is unfortunately only ever a temporary situation on this earth.
Sometimes it can feel that we have never known peace. Any time we bother to look at the news, we can see the lack of peace in our communities and the world at large. For most of us, a major life event (graduation, wedding, birth, death) shows us that even the closest families are not always at peace with each other. An upcoming test, project deadline, or a day with an especially long to-do list can disrupt our personal ease. Unsurprisingly, the Bible has some wisdom to offer no matter the kind of peace we’re talking about because humans have been experiencing the desire for and the absence of peace of every kind for as long as we’ve been living with one another.
What words are used for Peace in the Bible?
This is one of those occasions where there are not a whole lot of special words with special nuanced meanings being used in the Hebrew or the Greek texts.
In the Hebrew, shalom (or šālôm — שָׁלוֹם) is used over 230 times and can be used as a greeting, as a description of completeness, to talk about safety, to speak of health or soundness in the body, or tranquility and calmness. It finds its root in šālam ( שָׁלַם), which can share in the peaceful interpretation or, as it is often otherwise translated, can be used to talk about rewards, restitution, restoration, or other forms of amends. The specific offering outlined in Leviticus which we’ll be looking at, šelem ( שֶׁלֶם), also shares this root.
šālôm שֶׁלֶם
eirēnē εἰρήνη
Meanwhile, the principal Greek term is eirēnē (εἰρήνη) and occurs over 90 times in the New Testament. While we see it being used as a greeting in the New Testament (such as in the Gospels with Jesus’s instructions for the disciples going out, or in Paul’s opening statements in his epistles), this reflects more of their Jewish context than Greek or Roman greeting practices. Otherwise, the Greek term reflects the expected meanings that it share with Hebrew and modern English: national tranquility (freedom from war) or personal tranquility, harmony between individuals, security and prosperity. The early church, however, also began to expand the definition to include the particular assurance of believers before God because of Christ and the blessed state those in Christ enter after death.
A Tangible Hope
As we study the fruit of peace we will consider it not only in the spiritual and internal sense of being at peace personally, but also the tangible hope of peace and how peace can exist in a community. We will look at the fact that though most everyone would say that they want peace, the reality is that they want peace apart from God, and the ways that pretending things are peaceful are not helpful (sometimes “fake it til you make it” is not applicable!). Through it all is the truth that God desires peace for us and with us, and one day that will be achieved.
Questions for Discussion and Reflection
If you were to list out all of the things which would make your life peaceful, who would be affected? What would be some major changes? How would it improve not only your life but the lives of those around you? Are there any items on your list which you can reasonably assume responsibility for?
What role does God play in your list of peaceful life changes?
Praying an Examen on Peace
As we begin our study on the fruit of peace, take some time to consider how it is present (or absent) in your day or week. For most of us, thinking about peace, or lack thereof, in our day or week may send us into a laundry list of all the things that have gone wrong. Try to keep your brain from overriding the process with a gripe list — if it wants to intrude, give yourself 10 minutes to stew — go ahead, set a timer, we’ll wait. Once the timer dings, deliberately put aside all those things. Gripe time is over, it’s now peace time.
Take a moment to breathe into the presence of God. Give thanks for the peace that God gives us, which is greater than the moment we are in.
Pray for the grace to see and understand how God is acting in your life.
Review your day (or week), recalling specific moments of peace. Since it is so easy to be distracted by the non-peaceful, for this exercise make an effort to dig out even the briefest peaceful moment you can recall to sit in.
Reflect on what you said, did, or thought in those moments. Were you drawing closer to God, or farther away?
Look forward to tomorrow (or next week) — how might you foster peace in accordance with God’s plan?