Embracing Christ’s Divisive Peace

Reflections on the Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time: Jeremiah 38:4-6, 8-10, Hebrews 12:1-4, and Luke 12:49-53.

In a shocking paradox, the Prince of Peace calls for division:  “Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.” At first glance, it seems contradictory, even unsettling. How can the one who taught us to love our enemies and turn the other cheek speak of division? Is Jesus endorsing conflict? Why would he wish that the earth were already blazing? What could possibly justify turning members of the same household against one another - father against son, mother against daughter, in-laws at odds under the same roof? What kind of peace is this, that seems to tear families apart?

No,  Jesus is not glorifying violence. He is not calling for conflict for its own sake. What He is doing is revealing the truth about real peace and false peace, and about the sword that is His Word, sharp enough to cut through illusions and half-truths. False peace is the comfort of complacency. It is a seductive and superficial calm that we experience when we go along with what is wrong, when we make peace with sin, with injustice, with the status quo, simply because it is easier that way. It is the silence that comes from refusing to confront what needs to be changed.

False peace tolerates what is wrong because confronting it is too uncomfortable, too disruptive. This is the peace where we silence our conscience to maintain superficial harmony. Jeremiah rejects this notion of peace when he cries, "They have treated the wound of my people carelessly, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace" (Jeremiah 6:14). False peace is the spiritual stagnation that Jesus rejects when He declares, “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!”. He desires a world ablaze with the fire of love, of truth, of justice. He wishes to set the world on a fire that purifies, that transforms, that divides what is holy from what is not.

True peace is hard-won. Shalom, the deep wholeness, right relationship, and justice that God intends, is never cheap. It demands an inner struggle against ego, fear, and attachment, as well as an external confrontation with structures of oppression. As German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who resisted the Nazi regime, once wrote, “There is no way to peace along the way of safety. For peace must be dared, it is itself the great venture and can never be safe”.  True peace requires such courage—the willingness to endure conflict for the sake of what is right.

This is the sword Jesus brings: not a weapon of physical violence, but the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17, Hebrews 4:12). This sword is razor-sharp, and it cuts inwardly first. It pierces our own hearts, convicting us of our compromises, our participation in false peace, our hidden idols. There is no comfortable middle ground at the heart of the Gospel. Jesus calls us to radical love and radical rejection of sin. This inner transformation leads us to challenge the structures of false peace in the world. Let us consider some examples:

Rosa Parks: Her refusal to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus in 1955 sparked a movement for civil rights. Her act of defiance caused division, not because she sought conflict, but because her stand for justice exposed the lie of segregation’s “peaceful” status quo, sparking necessary division that led to greater justice. Her peacemaking cost her arrest, harassment, and fear.

Jeremiah (First Reading): Thrown into a cistern for speaking God's uncomfortable truth to power. His prophecy caused division not because he sought conflict, but because God's truth shatters illusions. He chose the cistern over the false peace of silence.

Irom Sharmila: The “Iron Lady of Manipur”, defied the false peace enforced by the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA). She fasted for 16 years to protest state-sanctioned violence and human rights abuses. Her nonviolent resistance exposed the injustice hidden beneath the guise of peace, law, and order. She chose truth and justice over silent compromise.

These are not peacekeepers who avoid conflict at all costs, enabling injustice. They are peacemakers who, like Christ Himself, courageously engage the necessary conflict for the sake of true justice and ultimate reconciliation. Their lives embody the sword of truth in action. The Cross stands as the ultimate symbol: the most profound division – the sinless Son rejected and killed – became the only path to true, lasting peace between God and humanity. True peace is always costly grace. This is the sword Jesus brings: the sword of decision, the Word that forces us to choose. There is no room for compromise in the heart of the Gospel. Jesus calls us to be radical in our love, radical in our rejection of sin. “Let your yes be yes, and your no be no”.

As the Letter to the Hebrews (Second Reading) reminds us, we are surrounded by a "great cloud of witnesses" – the Bonhoeffers, the Parks, the Jeremiahs, the Sharmilas, the countless saints and martyrs who ran this race before us, enduring division for the sake of truth. They show us the way. We are urged to "run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame" (Hebrews 12:1-2).

The Christian life is a race, a struggle, a persevering journey. This clarity of heart will cause division, sometimes even within families and among friends, because not everyone will welcome the truth. But here is the hope: if hearing the Gospel troubles us, shakes us, even divides our heart, then we are still attuned to grace. That discomfort is a gift. It means God’s Word is still at work in us.

So, where do we stand?

Discern the Fire Within: Ask the Holy Spirit: Where have I settled for false peace in my life? Where is the fire of God's love dormant? What compromise with sin, injustice, or apathy have I made for the sake of a quiet life? What truth am I avoiding? That unsettling feeling this message provokes? That is grace! It means God's Word is still active, cutting, purifying. Welcome it as a gift.

Discern the Sword's Call: How do we know when to speak, when to act? Through prayer, immersion in Scripture, seeking wise counsel, and rigorously examining our motives: Is this truly for love, truth, and justice, or for my ego, anger, or desire to be right? We must distinguish the necessary division born of Gospel fidelity from unnecessary strife born of pride.

Take the Next Courageous Step: Don't be overwhelmed. Ask for the grace to take one step this week: Have that difficult conversation you've been avoiding. Refuse to participate in that gossip. Speak up against that casual injustice. Make a stand in your sphere of influence, however small. Endure the discomfort of being different for Christ's sake. Dare peace.

Let us not fear this fire. Let us not shrink from this sword. Let us welcome them, trusting that the division they cause is not to destroy, but to save, to separate light from darkness, truth from illusion, and lead us, if we allow, to the true peace that Christ gives, not as the world gives, but as only He can.