WRITTEN TH. KIRYGMA
«…and he said to them, »Peace be with you.’” (John 20:19)

«Peace be with you» It was the greeting of the Lord Jesus Christ to his disciples after his Resurrection from the dead. «Peace be with you» It was mentioned twice in today’s Gospel reading. «Peace be with you» It is often heard during the Divine Liturgy, recited by the celebrant. The Divine Liturgy begins with a prayer for peace, and it concludes—once again with the priest’s blessing and exhortation for peace—with this, the sacred mystery of love: «Let us proceed in peace». The rulers of this world speak of peace; the needy also speak of peace, the persecuted and the weary. But what is true peace? What is the true peace that Jesus Christ gives to his disciples in today’s reading?;

With this greeting of peace, my beloved, the Lord offers the blessed fruits and the saving effects of His resurrection. Peace be with you. Peace with God, peace with ourselves, and peace with our fellow human beings. But why do we say that Christ gives this peace? Did humanity once have it and later lose it?;

First and foremost, man’s peaceful relationship with God in the state prior to the first man’s fall into sin was a reality, since man was in communion with God and, by extension, in a state of virtue and holiness. However, this God-given, peaceful, and blissful state was disrupted by the intrusion of sin. Man was cut off from his Creator, and their relationship was disrupted, since human nature was now weakened and corrupted. rebelled against God and the man was unable to speak to him.

Then Man's relationship with himself was also disrupted. His personality suffered a breakdown and disruption. The former perfect psychosomatic relationship and unity within the human being, as well as the dispositions of the flesh and the spirit, became at odds with each other and were at odds with one another. Due to the distortion of the spiritual powers, internal turmoil and confusion, stemming from the passions, now prevailed.

But also Every person's relationship with their fellow human beings has been disrupted, because of the dominion of sin. One need only observe human history and the prevailing atmosphere of today to confirm this.

Indeed, our own situation and life are often—if not constantly—marked by hostility and war. We wage war against God, we wage war against our fellow human beings, and we wage war even against ourselves. We are at war with our fellow human beings, and we are also at war with our own conscience.

Only Christ, through his passion and resurrection, could save humanity from this war. Only Christ is the one who could restore and offer true peace to humankind· «Whoever seeks peace seeks Christ, for He is peace.» (Instructions of the Apostles 2:20, PG 1, 637A). Only Christ could reconcile fallen humanity with God and people with one another. Mystically and energetically, following the Lord’s Resurrection, the unifying power of grace operates within the body of the Church, ensuring unity, harmony, peace, and a spirit of brotherhood toward fellow believers and the entire world, thus ensuring the smooth and unimpeded spiritual development and progress of humanity.

Christ offers His peace to all people. All that remains is for us to submit to His will and respond positively, with love, to His call.

«Lord, you have given us peace and harmony among us. Grant us
and peace, the undivided union with you, so that, having made peace
through Your Holy Spirit, whom You placed within us when You first
»You have created us so that we may never be separated from your love"
(Isidore of Pelusium, Letter 1, 122, PG 78, 264C).

Hierodeacon Fr.Ierotheos Kritikos