Instruments in the hands of the Lord: Cardinal Bernadin's gift of peace.

    Just two weeks before he died of pancreatic cancer in November of 1996, Cardinal Joseph Bernadin of Chicago penned a final reflection on the last years of his life. the book which he entitled "The Gift of Peace" was not a reflection of the accomplishments of a man once considered one of the most powerful (and controversial) figures in the Church, but rather of a suffering servant of Jesus reflecting on his own final chapter. He concludes the book with a profound farewell:

"What I would like to leave behind is a simple prayer that each of you may find what I have found—God's special gift to us all: the gift of peace. When we are at peace, we find the freedom to be most fully who we are, even in the worst of times."

                                                          Cardinal Bernadin's coat of arms 

 

   These words led me to reflect on what this gift means to my own life. Peace is often considered to be the lack of that which causes us pain or difficulty. The absence of trial or loss. But to a Christian, peace is the presence of our loving and merciful God in every moment of life, joyful and sorrowful. Peace to one of faith is not the absence of all those things that lead to earthly sorrow, but the presence of the One who loves us in all moments of our life on this side of the veil. And in embracing the presence of our loving Father, a human person becomes who he or she was meant to be. In imitating the one who we ourselves were created in the image and likeness of, we embrace our freedom as immortal beings, heirs to the kingdom of the mightiest of kings.

    When Jesus left us His peace, He assured it was His peace, and not the world's. God's peace is transforming, everlasting and brings light, life, and healing to the most broken and sorrowful moments of each of our lives. It is this gift that Cardinal Bernadin hoped each of us would find and allow it to change our hearts, leaving them in the hands of our merciful God.