Peace on Earth

A few weeks ago, I received a card with words and music for the Christmas carol “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.” It has five verses, the first and last are hopeful, but the singer loses hope in the middle verses, because “hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on Earth, goodwill to men.”

On Christmas Eve, the pastor said that Jesus was God’s greatest gift to the world; we should give thanks and be grateful. I did not hear the pastor say what (I think) Jesus said, “Love your neighbor as yourself; love your enemies; do good to those who hate you.”

The world is now so small that all people are our neighbors and we think that many are our enemies, yet Jesus asked us to love them all, the foreigner, the thief, the enemy. I can’t imagine that God really needs, really depends on our thanks, prayers, rituals, sacrifices. However, our neighbor often really needs our goodwill, respect, generosity with material aid, and our neighbor really is everyone on this small planet.

Should we kill a person and destroy his friends, family, and homeland because we think he will try to kill us some day? Is “Love thy neighbor” just a pious prayer, or only for our friends? No, it is to accept insult without revenge, to give a robber more than he asks, to help those who we least want as neighbors; because they are our neighbors!

Eric Greenfield